Largo Citizen Comments Some Times Pass Bad Infoby Leo CoughlinLARGO – Citizen comments are a staple part of City Commission meetings, but they are always a one-way communication. That is, questions raised or assertions made are never answered. In some cases, the policy demonstrates a high level of tolerance. Example – the fellow who shows up at meeting after meeting to caterwaul about a situation that is not in the jurisdiction of Largo. Even worse, is an allegation that goes unrefuted and leaves the public – whether in the commission chamber in City Hall or all agog at home watching on TV – with what might be a false report. That was the case last week when a citizen, usually pluperfectly accurate in statements to the commission, told of how Largo employees had worked as volunteers for a week on a Habitat for Humanity Project. Oops....not quite true. A query to City Manager Mac Craig straightened out the record. Largo is in partnership with HFH, Craig explained, as the group builds houses for families without homes. “The city purchased the land where the house was built with funds provided by the state,” Craig said. Pointing out that it is Habitat for Humanity’s custom to use volunteers (which it needs) for these building projects, Craig said that some volunteer employees and one commissioner worked one day – not a week, as had been reported. Of some significance at last week’s commission meeting was the unanimous action (Rodney Woods was absent) to boost police retirement pensions which includes provision that there is a 10-year certain payout on a pension, even if the retiree dies. This, of course, drew some comments from citizens, one pointing out that the “10-year certain” payout didn’t “pass the smell test.” Kim Adams, the city’s finance guru, explained that through the operation of state law in regard to the pensions, taxes collected by Tallahassee come back in a shared way by guaranteeing a pension annuity for 10 years, whether the pensioner is alive or not.
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