Discussions regarding construction crane safety and potential child care benefits for city employees will continue in St. Petersburg thanks to one council member\u2019s persistence.<\/p>\n
\u200bThe 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\u2019s schedule.<\/p>\n
\u200bIf 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 \u201cthe 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.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u200b\u201cWe had some really good discussions during that time \u2013 a couple of ideas came up,\u201d Driscoll said. \u201cStaff 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.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u200bDriscoll requested the discussion in Milton\u2019s immediate aftermath. The Category 3 storm\u2019s 100 mph gusts cause the top of a massive tower crane at the Residences at 400 Central, St. Petersburg\u2019s tallest building, to crash into an office complex across the street.<\/p>\n
\u200bAt 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<\/a> Milton began battering the area, hindering evacuation plans.<\/p>\n \u200b\u201cWe had what, 3,000 units just downtown that had to be notified,\u201d Driscoll said at the time<\/a>. \u201cThey\u2019re being told to go into a stairwell all of a sudden, and it\u2019s too late to go anywhere and make other plans.\u201d<\/p>\n \u200bOfficials 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\u2019t recall receiving an update on improved procedures, which is why she left the discussion on the committee referral list.<\/p>\n \u200b\u201cI know I\u2019m not the only city council member who has cranes in their district, but I have a bunch of them,\u201d she added. \u201cAnd 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.\u201d<\/p>\n \u200bCity Administrator Rob Gerdes said he was not prepared to provide a detailed update. He believes staff have \u201cmade some progress on mapping and notification,\u201d and welcomed the discussion remaining on the PSI committee\u2019s referral list.<\/p>\n \u200bDriscoll, who was unable to attend the Jan. 15 committee meeting, said she was \u201cquite surprised\u201d to learn that two of her referral items \u201cwere removed without anyone waiting for my input.\u201d Councilmember Copley Gerdes stressed that he meant \u201cno disrespect\u201d when calling for the item\u2019s removal, thought the \u201cconversation was over\u201d and knew \u201cwe still had to discuss it here.\u201d<\/p>\n \u200bState lawmakers passed new construction crane safety legislation in May 2025, which preempts<\/a> any local ordinances. The council unanimously approved keeping the topic on the committee\u2019s schedule.<\/p>\n \u200bDriscoll then advocated against removing a discussion on potential childcare benefits for city employees from the Housing, Land Use and Transportation (HLUT) Committee\u2019s referral list. Officials explored solutions to help offset soaring costs in July 2025.<\/a><\/p>\n \u200bCity employees have approximately 270 children under the age of 3. The per-child average cost of daycare at the time was $250 weekly.<\/p>\n