Local officials discuss legislative hopes, concerns

St. Petersburg City Council members recently welcomed state lawmakers to City Hall for a legislative recap, and the discussion often centered on one topic – a regional metropolitan planning organization (MPO).

Sen. Nick DiCeglie, Darryl Rouson and Rep. Lindsay Cross met with city leadership at the June 8 Legislative Affairs & Intergovernmental Relations Committee meeting following a whirlwind spring Legislative Session. DiCeglie began the presentation by noting he sponsored the bill that disbanded the Tampa Bay Area Regional Transit Authority, which he called “years in the making.”

He also relayed that conversations regarding consolidating local planning agencies into regional MPOs continue progressing. He said Florida leads the nation with 27 smaller organizations spread throughout the state.

“Anytime these agencies are looking for federal dollars for transportation initiatives, you have a much more effective voice as one MPO that represents several million people,” DiCeglie said.

Forward Pinellas oversees local transportation and land use planning, and is exploring the pros and cons of merging Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas Counties’ separate MPOs. Whit Blanton, executive director of Forward Pinellas, drafted a memorandum of understanding to achieve that goal and explained the process to its board at an April 12 meeting.

Councilmember Brandi Gabbard was a board member for several years and said she understands both sides of the argument. She also believes consolidation will eventually happen but noted some Hillsborough officials pushed back on the initiative.

DiCeglie relayed that two newly elected Hillsborough County Commissioners were surprisingly receptive during a recent meeting. He also expects to have legislative allies on both sides of the bay when lawmakers introduce a related bill.

“That being said, I think we in Pinellas County need to – in many ways – take the lead on that conversation,” DiCeglie added. “We have a very unique opportunity in Pinellas to … be a very effective and loud voice in this space.”

Councilmember Gina Driscoll chairs the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority and represents the agency on the Forward Pinellas board. She finds it “curious” that creating a regional MPO lacks unanimous support.

She added that with the dissolution of TBARTA, and Tampa Bay becoming one of the nation’s fastest-growing metropolitan areas, “we’ve got to solve this problem of getting people from point A to point B.”

Rouson also expressed his commitment to regionalism. He represents a large swath of Tampa and downtown St. Petersburg and said he often flips a coin to determine if he should take the Gandy, Howard Frankland or Skyway Bridge when crossing his district.

“So, I’m very much interested in regional solutions to transportation and other issues that need to be addressed,” Rouson said. “And I’m going to look to my colleagues to make sure we do something along those lines.”

From left: City Council Chair Brandi Gabbard, Mayor Ken Welch, USF President Rhea Law and City Councilmember Copley Gerdes during a March trip to Tallahassee. Photo: City of St. Petersburg.

USFSP’s expansive science facility

Another prominent topic at the meeting was funding for the University of South Florida’s long-discussed Environmental and Oceanographic Science Research and Teaching Facility (EOS) in St. Petersburg. The Legislature included $24.3 million for the initial planning and construction phase in the state budget.

However, Gov. Ron DeSantis has yet to approve the budget over a month later, as he launched his presidential campaign. He also vetoed $75 million for the previously estimated $80 million project in June 2022.

DiCeglie called the EOS a “game-changer” for the city and region and said he relayed its potential impact to the Governor’s Office. He also noted the importance of Rouson serving as vice chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee.

Driscoll thanked the lawmakers for sharing her passion for a project she feels “even stronger about” this year.

“As our marine science sector continues to grow – especially in the area around USF and the Innovation District – we want to make sure that we are moving forward with growing that education pipeline,” she added. “To have our residents, our local students, prepared to take those jobs that are here now and continuing to come.”

Property insurance

After crediting Cross for her environmental and infrastructure efforts, Councilmember Ed Montanari asked for an update on property insurance issues. He called it a “tsunami” that could devastate the economy and amplify the affordable housing crisis.

Montanari said helping residents storm-harden their homes should be part of the solution. DeCiglie noted that lawmakers finally addressed tort reform but questioned their willingness to adopt additional legislation until backlogged claims from previous hurricanes make it through the courts.

He explained that recent measures are not retroactive and must continue navigating a “broken system.” However, he did relay that a recent report showed lawsuits are decreasing.

DeCiglie said the question is when that would help stabilize rates moving forward.

Rouson said insurance companies denying, delaying and “lowballing” claims necessitates legal counsel. He believes many lawsuits are justifiable and suggested increasing industry regulations and penalties.

“I do believe property insurance will come down,” Rouson said. “It’s not a solution that happens overnight; it’s complex. And as far as I’m concerned, instead of tort reform, what we did was tort deform.”