news Council Raises Utility Rates, Talks Tuesday Market By Laura Mulrooney
GULFPORT MERCHANTS CHAMBER
At their virtual meeting Wednesday, August 19 at 6 p.m., Gulfport City Council passed utility bill increases and approved insurance policy renewals. Mayor Sam Henderson and City Clerk Lesley Demuth were excused from the meeting. Vice Mayor Michael Fridovich led the meeting, while Deputy City Clerk Kathy Cook-Tatay sat in for Demuth.
Residents Sing Praises of City Staff The evening’s first public comments came from resident Karen Love, praising city staff for their commitment to and improvement of Gulfport. “I want to thank the city and the staff for working so hard during this pandemic and continuing on our projects and improvements,” said Love. “I also want to thank the police and particularly Chief Vincent for projecting an attitude and agenda which is helping keep our citizens calm during these hard times.” “Those people in the utility department care more than you’ll ever know about how people’s bills are created, if there were mistakes. I can’t begin to tell you how good those folks are and it goes all the way up to Cheryl [Hannafin, City of Gulfport Director of Finance],” said resident Margarete Tober. “When
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Cheryl knows the name of residents that have issues, you know they’re involved.”
Talks Begin: Reopening Gulfport Tuesday Fresh Market
The Gulfport Merchants Chamber has started the dialogue with the city about resuming the Tuesday Fresh Market. Chamber President Barbara Banno submitted the GMC’s proposal to the council regarding updated operational procedures in the event the market does reopen. The GMC originally projected a Tuesday, September 8 comeback for the market, but it may be about a month longer, according to Banno. “We didn’t realize how much work we really have to put into it, to make sure we keep our community safe.” Banno informed council about new operational guidelines for the Tuesday Fresh Market, including shifting booth entrances. The booths would be spaced further about and rotated sideways to free up congestion on the sidewalks. There will be hand sanitizer stations setup along Beach Blvd S and volunteers will roam. “The market is a symbol of our community,” said Banno. “And we feel that all of the guidelines we will have in place do add a lot of safety to the community and adds a little bit
of normalcy back into our lives.” Send inquiries about Gulfport’s Tuesday Fresh Market to media@ visitgulfportflorida.com.
City Council Addresses The Tempest Over Utility Bills
Council held second readings for four ordinances concerning utility bill increases. Gulfport City Council met in person July 21 at city hall for the initial reading of ordinances 202003 through 2020-05. Since then, comments on local Facebook pages have caused some waves. Resident Karen Love called in during public comment to address the confusion churning in the Facebook community. “I’ve been in the city for about 10 years now and I feel that there are more complaints and conspiracy theories about what the city does about these water bills and the fact that they don’t get answers,” said Love. “I personally don’t believe that.” “If an individual has a specific case with their water bill, my staff and I are more than willing to help,” said City Manager Jim O’Reilly. “I don’t want to get into a debate about what’s being said on Facebook. If an individual is willing to speak to us about their water bill we’ll be happy to talk to them.” O’Reilly further explained what the percentage increases mean in dollars and cents.
theGabber.com | August 27 - September 2, 2020
