08/27/2015 CHARTER REVIEW COMMITTEE MEETING
CITY OF CLEARWATER
August 27, 2015
Present: Brian J. Aungst, Jr. Chair (Departed 5:48)
Bud Elias Vice Chair
Nino Accetta Committee Member
David E. Allbritton Committee Member
Jane D. Bongo Committee Member
Karen Cunningham Committee Member
Dirk A. Curls Committee Member
Leann J. DuPont Committee Member
Rosemarie Kibitlewski Committee Member
David Loyd Committee Member
George Mantzaris Committee Member
William Sturtevant Committee Member
Also Present: Pamela Akin City Attorney
Rosemarie Call City Clerk
Nicole Sprague ORLS Coordinator
The meeting was called to order at 5:44 p.m. at City Hall.
To provide continuity for research, items are in agenda order although not necessarily
discussed in that order.
2. Approval of Minutes
2.1 Approve the minutes of the August 13, 2015 Charter Review Committee Meeting as
submitted in written summation by the City Clerk.
Member Allbritton moved to approve the minutes of the August 13, 2015 Charter Review
Committee meeting. The motion was duly seconded and carried unanimously.
3. New Business
3.1 Guest Speaker: Mayor George Cretekos.
Mayor Cretekos thanked the Committee members for their service and said Council
asked the Committee to review the length of time between charter reviews as 4 years was too
frequent; 6 years would be ideal.
In response to questions, he said he went to college to be a City Manager but after an
internship for a Republican congressman and attending the Republican National Convention in
1968, was told he could not be hired because of his affiliation to a political party. Discouraged,
he went to work for Congressman Young. Cities the size of Clearwater are better off with an
administrator as opposed to a strong mayor. If there is something wrong in the community, then
Charter Review 2015-08-27 1
it would be appropriate to look at changing the form of government. Council Manager form has
served the City well and has enabled the manager to concentrate on running the City and for
the Council to concentrate on policy. A strong mayor would not mean a better government for
the citizens. There is no disadvantage to being a weak mayor on regional boards. There are
quarterly meetings with the mayors of St. Petersburg and Tampa. That is Clearwater's
opportunity to work with the surrounding communities. Area newspapers cover the two largest
cities in the area; Clearwater is covered in the news more compared to other smaller
communities. Beachwalk, the City's most significant investment, was constructed with a council
manager form of government, and has brought in world class hotels and resorts. Putting a
change in form of government on the ballot may convey to citizens that something is wrong in
Clearwater. Regarding a salary increase for Mayor and Council, he said one is not in
government for money, one is in it to serve the community. He expressed concern regarding
the amount of questions on a ballot, people will either vote no on all issues or won't vote at all.
Council should be able to ratify and confirm the hiring and firing of the police and fire chiefs.
Church of Scientology members who live and work in Clearwater care about the City but the
perception from outside the community hinders our downtown. It will take the City, Chamber of
Commerce and the Church of Scientology to work together to help change the perception. In
regards to potential bluff redevelopment, the library should not house City Hall. City Hall, MSB
and the Police Department should all be housed together or near each other. There is a lot of
wasted time coming and going to meetings since departments are not all in the same place.
Changes need to be made to the charter to make it easier for people to invest in Clearwater and
develop the bluff for long -term growth and success. If re- elected, he would like to find a way to
get the neighborhoods to understand that each neighborhood is important to the community and
what the City is doing with the US Highway 19 corridor will help.
4. Citizens to be heard regarding items not on the agenda: None.
The meeting was adjourned at 7:14 p.m.
Attest:
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City Clerk
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Chair, Charter Revi w Committee
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