City of Clearwater leased out land it doesn’t own to Sand Pearl Resort

In 2007, the City of Clearwater leased out land to the Sandpearl luxury resort so that it could build a marina for its well-heeled guests. However, the city doesn’t own the submerged land it leased out – the State of Florida owns it. The issue only arose after Duke Energy sought an easement across the…

Pinellas County refuses to comply with “redundant” state law

Our investigation found that all 25 municipalities in Pinellas county fail to comply with a state law requiring them to notify the property appraiser’s office of real estate they own. The offending government agencies include the municipality within the county with the largest budget, namely Pinellas County itself. There is no indication that the statutory…

Has St. Pete City Council candidate learned from past admitted mistakes?

Barclay Harless, a banker employed by Bank of the Ozarks, wants a seat on the St. Pete City Council. But has the now 32-year old Harless learned from the mistakes that the 22-year old Harless made a decade ago? Those mistakes led to Harless’ resignation as student body president of USF in 2007. Harless, a former aide…