They say the first three months are the hardest, but since the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office has taken over policing duties in St. Pete Beach January 6, the reviews are very positive.
In his 90-day report to Sheriff Bob Gualteri, Mayor Steve McFarlin said, “As far as the Sherriff’s Department’s initial commitment to us, they have by far surpassed our expectations. The magnitude of resources that they offer [and have demonstrated] far exceed that of what you could reasonably expect from our own independent force.
“Although we certainly benefit by these expanded resources along with their state of the art technology and equipment, one of the key factors in the improvement in service is their consistent emphasis on communication with the community. The Sherriff’s business model of “community policing” provides for certain personnel assigned daily strictly for not only knowing the ins and outs of our city, but maintaining an ongoing relationship with our residents and business owners. This policy has already proven to be a great asset to the community. “Another key factor in the improvement with the transition is the flexibility of service, and quite frankly, I consider this ‘huge’. This city is very unique in that the number of people on this island at any given time can vary from 5,000 to 25,000 due to seasonality, holidays and special events. Common sense would dictate that there should be some sort of a ratio of police/people maintained. However, the reality of it is, with just our own independent force, it wasn’t really possible and at the same time operate in any viable manner.
“Now, we have the option of scheduling extra deputies on strictly a ‘as needed’ basis, which provides for that desired ratio without the necessity for full-time hires that would have crippled our budget. The end result… this city can now be assured that we have the appropriate volume of Sherriff’s personnel throughout the year and at the same time save millions in public safety dollars going forward.”
Vice Mayor Marvin Shavlan added, “In addition to the substantial budget savings in shifting to the PCSO, there’s a significant impact on the city’s under-funded pension liability. As a result of (1) changing our pensions to a hybrid defined benefit/defined contribution plan and (2) shifting our law enforcement services to the Pinellas County Sheriff, our unfunded pension liability has dropped by approximately $4,905,612 or 21.7%. We’re moving in the right direction!
“Every small government in Pinellas County, no matter how good they feel their own police force is, should take a hard look at the Sheriff’s Office. If they do, they will find there will be substantial savings as well as a higher level of service from an agency that is considered one of the best in the country.”
The Sheriff’s Response
Responding to the Mayor’s report, Sheriff Gualteri said, “Thank you, we appreciate the comments and feedback. I too have received many positive comments from St. Pete Beach residents. We are very glad that the transition has been accomplished so smoothly and that the former St. Pete Beach personnel are acclimating well into the Sheriff’s Office. One civilian member has already been promoted into a supervisory position. I will pass your comments along to the deputies working in the City and, as always, let us know if there is anything we can do help the City and its residents.”
Sheriff Gualteri told Paradise News, “With all our experience with 12 other contract cities, we handpick our local deputies for a number of reasons. In St. Pete Beach, we recognized the population fluctuation and the specific needs of residents, tourists and the business community. We made sure we had the people who had the desire for perform their functions to meet these needs.
“The strongest element of community policing is to buy into the specific city and its environment. We work with everybody to make sure we are effective with public safety and policing. At the same time we’re working with the business community to protect their interests, we’re also working with a tourist community to make sure they are safe while they’re there.
“Equally important, everything is going very well with the former St. Pete Beach police and civilian staff, and they’re integrating well into the PCSO. They are very appreciative of a lot of additional opportunities here.
“Everything has gone very smoothly in St. Pete Beach and that’s a credit to our people we have working there. Feedback from residents and the business community has been very positive. We’ve done this many times before, and once the decision was made and we had the opportunity to be the police provider for St. Pete Beach, we were confident the people would be satisfied with our services.
“Going forward, we’re going to stay the course and continue to try to make it even better. We continually hear that those who had concerns no longer have them, What we’re doing is obviously working, and like they say, ‘If it ain’t broke …!
Strong Community Support
Local neighborhood associations have been very positive about the policing changeover. After a dinner meeting with PCSO Deputy David Mancusi, SPB Community Policing Officer, Jane Gottwald, Corresponding Secretary of the Pass-A-Grille Community Association, said, “On behalf of the membership and the Board of Directors of our association we thank you for your very informative and professional presentation. We found the hand-outs very informative. Among the many questions that were asked, you certainly clarified the drivers’ responsibilities at the marked pedestrian crossings. Our members feel very comfortable with the current services provided by the Sheriff’s department. Please do not hesitate to contact us if there is anything the Association can do to assist the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Department.”
Paul Pfister, President of the North Beach Civic Association the past eight years, was a big SPB Police supporter. He reported, “In January we had 50 members, our biggest turnout in years, to a meeting at the Oyster Shucker to welcome the new deputies. Lt. Joe Gerretz, with the Patrol Central District, spoke about the smooth transition with 21 PCSO Deputies serving SPB. Many members had met Deputy David Mancusi, the go-to guy here, who also visited all the hotels to let them know about services, and Sgt. Bev Borland covered the availability of the Sheriff’s community education programs. Sgt. Denise Nestor came after our meeting to speak with our lady members about self-defense. So far, local people have seen more of a police presence with same staffing as before, and we’re all very happy with the changeover.”
Rob Stambaugh, who has owned Silas Dent’s since 1979, was very much opposed to moving to the Sheriff’s Office when the issue was first discussed. He recalled for Paradise News, “My father Ted came to the area in the 1920s, and the family moved to St. Pete Beach in 1946. Dad was the first Police Commissioner and a former Mayor, and I was born here on the island. I’ve had several first-hand instances dealing with the Sheriff, and all have been handled in a manner the city should be proud of … Hats off to the Commission!”
Another strong supporter is Suzanne Ferry, who has lived here about 30 years, and has six properties on West Corey Avenue, mostly rental apartments catering to the tourist industry. “In the past this area has had a lot of problems with drugs and violence,” she said, “and personally I couldn’t get much help from our local Police in getting rid of undesirables in the neighborhood. Since the Sheriff took over, the new Deputies have really cleaned this area up. They helped me to get rid of the squatters that I have had to evict who brought in friends to overrun the apartments. I’m born again and couldn’t be happier.”
The PCSO takeover of St Pete Beach policing duties since January has seen a very propitious start, and the Sheriff is committed to staying the course and making the operation even better.
[Editor’s Note: Special thanks to Mayor Steve McFarlin, Vice Mayor Marvin Shavlan, Sheriff Bob Gualteri, Paul Pfister, Jane Gottwald, Rob Stambaugh and Suzanne Ferry for their comments.]
[Steve Traiman is President of Creative Copy by Steve Traiman in St. Pete Beach, offering freelance business writing services. He can be reached via email at straiman@mindspring.com.]
Author: Steve Traiman
Date: May 2013