St. Pete Standard

During the City Council and Committee meetings on July 11, several significant proposals and initiatives were discussed and advanced, ranging from homeowner assistance programs to budget recommendations and community proclamations.

In the Housing, Land Use, and Transportation Committee meeting, the Codes Compliance Assistance Department proposed a new program to aid St. Petersburg homeowners who may be financially or physically unable to correct certain outstanding code violations. The proposal seeks to utilize $100,000 of unused funding to assist homeowners with household incomes at or below 100% Area Median Income (AMI) in remediating violations not currently supported by other city programs. These violations include driveway disrepair, accessory structure disrepair, and hazardous tree removal. Additionally, funding will support the Accessibility Accommodation Program, which helps residents build wheelchair ramps at their homes with up to $5,000 per property available. This program will be voted on in a future City Council meeting.

At the Public Services and Infrastructure Committee meeting, updates were proposed for fine and lien structures related to specific code violations. The proposed changes would adopt language from Florida State Statutes regarding code enforcement fines to address issues such as junk accumulation, irreparable violations like unauthorized tree removal or illicit discharges, short-term rentals without permits, and unsafe conditions requiring immediate attention. The new fine structure aims to deter violations more effectively while establishing a separate hearing process for prompt resolution. Property owners would still be eligible for relief through the lien release process once compliance is achieved.

Mayor Kenneth T. Welch presented the Fiscal Year 2025 Recommended Budget during today's City Council meeting. The council will vote on this budget in September 2024. Included in this budget is the Innovative Equity Project—an initiative where the community voted for one of five potential new city programs to receive up to $1 million in funding. The winning project announced was "Forward Together - A Youth Crime Prevention Program."

City Council also approved a new program aimed at assisting homeowners in the South St. Petersburg Community Redevelopment Area (CRA) with roof replacements and related repairs for those with household incomes at or below 120% AMI under active code violation related to roofs. This Rapid Roof Replacement Program is a subprogram of the Affordable Single Family Homeownership Program which saw its maximum award increased from $45,000 to $60,000.

Additionally, two proclamations were delivered during the City Council meeting: one celebrating the 34th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 presented by Vice-Chair Copley Gerdes marking July 26 as Americans with Disabilities Act Day; another proclamation by Mayor Welch celebrated Duke Energy's 125th anniversary declaring July 18 as Duke Energy Day.