St. Pete Beach appointed new commissioners legally, judge rules
The St. Pete Beach City Commission acted appropriately when it appointed new members to four of its five seats in the wake of a mass resignation late last year, a judge ruled last week.
It puts an end, for now, to a lawsuit filed early this year by an activist group and nine residents. They alleged the city violated its own charter by appointing new commissioners rather than waiting for a special election, “bypassing the democratic process.”
But in a summary judgment released July 2, Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Court Judge Michael Andrews wrote that the appointments did follow the charter’s rules for filling vacancies. He also ruled that the plaintiffs lacked legal standing for several of their complaints.
The series of December resignations was part of a wave of municipal turmoil around Tampa Bay and Florida, as elected officials left their positions in the wake of a new law requiring them to file more extensive financial disclosure forms. Groups including the Florida League of Cities decried the law, which they said would burden officeholders and deter qualified candidates from seeking office in smaller cities and towns where officials make little or no money.
In St. Pete Beach, the resignations of four commissioners — all but Mayor Adrian Petrila — were complicated by a city charter provision that calls for a special election to be held within 15 days if multiple seats open simultaneously. With the Pinellas County Supervisor of Elections unable to arrange a special election on such short notice, the resigning members spread out their departures over nine days and appointed four temporary members one at a time from a pool of applicants.
Two of the appointed members, Karen Marriott and Betty Rzewnicki, maintained their seats after running unopposed in the city’s municipal elections in March. A special election for the other two seats will take place Aug. 20.
Protect St. Pete Beach Advocacy Group, the organization that sued over the appointments, has also been a leading critic of expansion efforts by local beach resorts. City commissioners this year have approved permits for major expansions at two such resorts — the Sirata and the TradeWinds — which Protect St. Pete Beach has challenged in court.
That challenge, a separate action from the lawsuit resolved last week, is framed around the allegation that the mostly appointed commission was illegitimate, along with several other complaints about the permitting process. It is still pending, said Jane Graham, an attorney for the group.
Len Collins, another attorney for the plaintiffs in the appointments lawsuit, said in a statement Friday that he disagreed with the judgment and will appeal it “to the extent necessary.”
“These are serious issues that concern the rights of citizens to have a say in the operation of their government,” Collins said. “We will continue to fight to ensure that the law is followed on this important issue.”
A news release issued by the city Friday said Andrews’ ruling affirms its commission’s authority in granting those permits for redevelopment.
“The decision hopefully marks the end of a long-fought battle,” it said.
