The loud banging noise at city hall led to silence.
Bradenton Beach Mayor Jack Clarke slammed his gavel on the dais five times, seeking to quiet Commissioner Janie Robertson near the end of the Oct. 13 town hall meeting on the proposed quality-of-life ordinance regulating vacationers in the city.
“I’ve had enough,” Clarke said in response to Robertson’s questions as to how long before Clarke’s preferred ordinance could be implemented and how much it would cost to implement and enforce.
Clarke wanted to end Robertson’s input and push the discussion to an upcoming workshop. Before taking a vote, commissioners discussed conducting a workshop rather than adopting the ordinance at their Oct. 15 regular meeting. On Oct. 15, they agreed to have the workshop at 10 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 29, at city hall, 107 Gulf Drive N., Bradenton Beach.
But Robertson wanted commissioners and the public to learn the cost and the timeline at the Oct. 13 town hall meeting, partly because Clarke does not allow public comment at workshops.
“I think that’s pretty heavy-handed,” said resident Tina Chambers of Clarke silencing Robertson. Chambers has spoken recently at commission meetings. She added, “When it comes to passing on costs to the residents, we have no say.”
On a couple of occasions in recent weeks, the commission opted not to pass a moratorium on new construction sought by residents and Commissioner Jan Vosburgh. While a moratorium would give the city time to decide what rental regulations to implement, commissioners instead agreed to fast track some regulations.
The citizens sought to halt construction of homes with five or more bedrooms during the moratorium, but the rental ordinance being proposed does not address limiting bedrooms.
The homes with five or more bedrooms are often blamed for problems related to too many occupants — trash left curbside and noise from parties and people and kids in the swimming pool — and too many parked vehicles.
Since then, however, commissioners slowed the process, scheduling two town hall meetings and the workshop before holding the final vote on the proposed regulatory ordinance.
The city is expected to charge an annual fee — about $30 — for transient public lodging establishment licenses that most of the 433 rental operators citywide would be required to purchase. Operators also would be expected to pay a fee for annual unit inspections if the ordinance is adopted.
Bradenton Beach Police Chief Speciale told Robertson the city could enforce the ordinance at no cost, but city clerk Terri Sanclemente noted the administrative costs of setting up and mailing out the TPLEs.
At a time when two of the four permanent positions in the administration department are vacant, Robertson asked Sanclemente how much time she would need to get the TPLE running. Sanclemente said the city could process and mail notices to property owners in three days.
But before Sanclemente gave that answer, Clarke interrupted her to say they had discussed implementing it gradually.
“It’s going to be a matter of phasing in over the course of a year,” Clarke said.
Robertson noted the proposed ordinance states TPLE applications would be available from the city no later than 45 days after adoption. Delaying implementation could subvert the primary purpose of the proposed ordinance — curbing the behavior of unruly renters.
Staggered licensing is planned to take place over the course of a year.
“I think it would be a deceptive thing to do to pass this … and then find out — like I did just now — that they are going to phase this in over a year or so,” Robertson said.
Later, with the rap of his gavel, Clarke said, “I am discontinuing that line of discussion.”
Chambers said Clarke’s attempt to stifle Robertson was inappropriate. “She was shut down, full-out ugly,” Chambers said. “She deserves an apology.”
Regarding Clarke’s public temperament, former Mayor Bill Shearon, who is running against Clarke in the Nov. 3 election, said Oct. 14 that which he was falsely accused of doing, Clarke is actually doing.