Discussions regarding construction crane safety and potential child care benefits for city employees will continue in St. Petersburg thanks to one council member’s persistence.
The city council held a typically procedural vote on removing the items from committee referral lists at its Jan. 22 meeting. However, Councilmember Gina Driscoll successfully advocated for keeping two updates on the city’s schedule.
If approved, the first vote would have removed an update on increasing tower crane safety after Hurricane Milton caused one to collapse into a neighboring downtown office building. While state preemption handcuffs those efforts, Driscoll noted that “the other part of that was a discussion on the need for improvements to communication with residents regarding their proximity to dangerous cranes, and how we go about that notification process.”
“We had some really good discussions during that time – a couple of ideas came up,” Driscoll said. “Staff seemed receptive, and they were supposed to come back with what their new procedure was going to be, what their improved procedure was going to be.”
Driscoll requested the discussion in Milton’s immediate aftermath. The Category 3 storm’s 100 mph gusts cause the top of a massive tower crane at the Residences at 400 Central, St. Petersburg’s tallest building, to crash into an office complex across the street.
At a February 2025 Public Services and Infrastructure (PSI) Committee meeting, building official Don Tyre said the city would not issue an emergency advisory regarding falling construction cranes until forecasts called for winds topping 100 mph. Removing the machinery is an extensive process, and the mayoral administration did not offer a public warning until about a day before Milton began battering the area, hindering evacuation plans.
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“We had what, 3,000 units just downtown that had to be notified,” Driscoll said at the time. “They’re being told to go into a stairwell all of a sudden, and it’s too late to go anywhere and make other plans.”
Officials update disaster operations plans annually and pledged to offer residents more advanced notice of the potential fall radius for at-risk cranes. Driscoll said Thursday that she doesn’t recall receiving an update on improved procedures, which is why she left the discussion on the committee referral list.
“I know I’m not the only city council member who has cranes in their district, but I have a bunch of them,” she added. “And I would very much like to have that answer and be able to tell the residents of my district, at least, that there is more that we are going to do in the future.”
City Administrator Rob Gerdes said he was not prepared to provide a detailed update. He believes staff have “made some progress on mapping and notification,” and welcomed the discussion remaining on the PSI committee’s referral list.
Driscoll, who was unable to attend the Jan. 15 committee meeting, said she was “quite surprised” to learn that two of her referral items “were removed without anyone waiting for my input.” Councilmember Copley Gerdes stressed that he meant “no disrespect” when calling for the item’s removal, thought the “conversation was over” and knew “we still had to discuss it here.”
State lawmakers passed new construction crane safety legislation in May 2025, which preempts any local ordinances. The council unanimously approved keeping the topic on the committee’s schedule.
Driscoll then advocated against removing a discussion on potential childcare benefits for city employees from the Housing, Land Use and Transportation (HLUT) Committee’s referral list. Officials explored solutions to help offset soaring costs in July 2025.
City employees have approximately 270 children under the age of 3. The per-child average cost of daycare at the time was $250 weekly.
Providing a $500 monthly subsidy for those children would cost the city $1.62 million annually. The program’s potential price tag was a top concern.
Christie Bruner, who spoke Thursday on behalf of a “coalition of working moms across Tampa Bay,” said the initiative would provide “an opportunity for St. Petersburg to set the standard for employers across the region.” Driscoll has eagerly anticipated a January update on “potential ideas for us to consider” for several months.
“If we were going to just send it out into Never Never Land, I would have argued much harder that day to keep going, and keep it in our hands,” Driscoll continued.
She said a nonprofit “childcare champion in this city” has offered to help officials explore solutions. Driscoll believes there is “someplace we can go with this,” and requested a staff update “sooner than later.”
Administrator Gerdes again welcomed keeping the item on the HLUT committee’s referral list. Council members unanimously agreed without setting a date.
This content provided in partnership with StPeteCatalyst.com
