Jim Parent - City Commissioner, St Pete Beach » Looking out for the interest of the Community.©

You, the City, received an offer from Mr. Kadoura to settle some of the pending lawsuits.

I have put his offer and your City's counter-offer here on my website so you can read it.

I think your City Commission proposed, via public meeting motion, an excellent counter-offer.  One that was intended to accommodate ALL the lawsuits against our Comp Plan and not just 60% of them.  I think we did a good job covering everything they have represented that they want and I think our proposal is a good attempt to minimize taxpayer litigation expenses.

Read it >HERE< and see what you think.

Did you know that Ken Weiss has filed at least 76 motions that have required responsive pleadings by our City Legal Team; paid for by your tax dollars?

I attended one of them today that was held in the Circuit Court of the Sixth Judicial Court of the State of Florida in and for Pinellas County.  I sat at the defense table with our City legal team.

This particular suit was brought by Jim Anderson, the Plaintiff.  He did not bother to attend.

I could go thought my notes and give you my opinion of the session but I am going to save that for a later date.

The topic at hand is a Settlement offer from Bruce Kadoura.  Since I started talking one-on-one with Bruce your City has managed to agree to dismissal of three lawsuits.

This offer is for a fourth.

In the first three the agreement was that opposing parities would just walk away and handle their own costs.

This offer is different.  The Plaintiff wants the City (you, the Taxpayers) to pay them $20,000 to walk away.

And, as you can see by an email chain I have attached, Weiss et al, do not want to account for what could possibly make up that $20,000.  We estimate thier legitimate costs to be about one tenth (10%) of that. 

Recently we have been approached by a resident (with a petition of around 100 signatures) who wants us to scrutinize our legal fees.  I have done that and I am confident we are getting great value for our money.  I think, in the spirit of scrutiny, that to consider this demand for money, we must get an accounting of expenses and not accept some number pulled out of who knows where.

I'm not sure that is a settlement.  To me, a settlement usually occurs when there is a debt owed of some sort and the parties agree to some alternate amount of payment or terms of payment.  I don't see a debt owed here so perhaps there is some other concept about what is going on.

I had thought all of this was about the Comp Plan and/or Sunshine law not money.

At any rate, one of the things that Ken said in today’s hearing was that we, the commission, do not bring things before the residents.  While our legal team pointed to the 139 public hearings that have been held in connection with Comp Plan/Land Use, I am taking his suggestion and putting this most recent settlement(?) demand here on my website for you to read.

IF, we agree to this payoff, it will be our (Taxpayer) money.  So read the materials.  I know the commission has/will.  Tell us what you think. 

Make that payment?  Don’t pay them off?  Your opinion matters.

HERE is the email chain proposing the payoff with Weiss threatening to bump the demand up to $25,000, still with no accounting (see Weber’s 20 Oct email; third one down).

HERE is the Settlement proposal and litigation status.  Read it carefully.

HERE is the SOLV (SOLV is a co-defendant in this case) position on the settlement offer.

HERE is the pending motions status update.

Read it all.  What do YOU think we should do?

You can email your opinion to any of and/or all commissioners.  My email address is j.parent@stpetebeach.org and you can find the emails for the rest of us at the City website or rest assured I will copy the whole commission on anything you send to me.

This is your City.  This is your money.

I take my position as your representative City Trustee very seriously and your input can help shape my vote on the commission.

St. Pete Beach Attains Green Government Certification

There have been several messages by several people about the results of a recent motion in one the City's lawsuits.  The theme of these messages are roughly that of the "Cost to the taxpayers AGAIN for ANOTHER losing motion" and "the City and their attorneys lost the motion to dismiss".

I thought you might want to decide that veracity of those lines of reasoning for yourselves.

Contrary to (mis-?)representations made over the weekend, the court did NOT deny the City's Motion to Dismiss.  In fact, the Court directs Pyle to file his Answer Brief within 20 days and states that a ruling on the merits of the Motion to Dismiss will be made after the briefing schedule is concluded.  Finally Pyle will have to incur some expense and actually file an Answer brief.  Note that this is contrary to Weiss and Weber's (the lawyers suing your City) contention that their time to file their Answer brief is tolled (delayed) until the Court dispenses with their Motion for Sanctions.

Here is the actual order issued by the 2nd DCA on September 30, 2011 in the Pyle appeal.  

Be part of the solution.

If you are interested in serving the City either as a Board or Committee member, a poll worker or a volunteer, please fill out THIS form and fax, email, mail, or take it to City Hall or one of the City Commissioners.

Frustrated by the bazillion dollars that the City is being forced to spend to defend the community against lawsuits?  I am.  I get periodic updates as to the progress of our legal actions.  Since it's our tax dollars we should all get the updates.  Here is the latest one.

Did you read the St Pete Times article on the upcoming budget process?  Newspaper writers; their job is to sell newspapers.  We have had the proposed budget up on the city website since the 24th of June.  I doubt if all the commissioners have read it through yet.  Let alone the Budget and Finance committee.  Want the objective truth?  Read it.  Give us (the Commission or the Budget and Finance Committee members, your input.  Click on these words to go to the online version and start reading.