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Welch proposes new Diversity, Equity and Inclusion office for St. Pete

Welch proposes new Diversity, Equity and Inclusion office for St. Pete

St. Pete Mayor Ken Welch addressing a crowd
Photo courtesy City of St. Pete

As St. Pete continues to grow, Mayor Ken Welch has been adamant that he wants to be sure everyone in the Sunshine City is able to benefit, without leaving significant chunks of the population behind. In many of the biggest issues facing the city – housing and development, most notably – the underlying challenges are often matters of equitable growth.

To that end – and at the recommendation of a structural racism study – Welch has called for the creation of a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Office for St. Petersburg. Presented as part of the fiscal year 2023 budget, Welch included funding for a DEI Officer and support staff, as well as four full-time positions in the Procurement and Supply Management Department as part of the implementation of recommendations from the city’s recently completed Disparity Study.

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The DEI office will focus largely on city policies, and equitable hiring and practices for city employees, in addition to development and other bigger picture items. Debate will surely follow as the budget goes through the approval process, though the City Council has already voted to accept and act on the recommendations of last year’s structural racism study.

While the new positions are only a fraction of the overall budget, their influence is expected to be far more significant for city’s future, particularly with so many big projects on the horizon. Between the current RFP for the Gas Plant District/Tropicana site, an incoming economic and community impact study on Albert Whitted Airport, the Southside CRA investments, and the soon-to-launch Sunrunner bus rapid transit, historic change will take place over the next few years, and these new roles are part of Welch’s plan to make sure everyone in the city benefits.

“Our goal is to ensure that any new development, or any existing development, meets the needs of and benefits a wide variety of residents and visitors,” Welch told City Council in the budget proposal. “To do this, we must be intentional in the application of equity as a principal factor in all of our decisions.”

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New budget follows principles of St. Pete’s five pillars

These proposals fall under the goal of ensuring equity within the city’s five pillars for principled progress: Housing Opportunities for All; Environment, Infrastructure and Resilience; Equitable Development, Arts and Business Opportunities; Education and Youth Opportunities; and Neighborhood Health and Safety.

“Our administration is focused on ensuring intentional equity in all of our policies, decisions, and actions,” Welch said. “We are a city that loves the arts, knows that development must benefit all, and believes everyone should have access to business opportunity.

To that end, that section of the budget also included around $1.5 million in funding for strategic initiatives meant to support and attract business. Additionally, just under $1 million was also proposed for various arts programs, including maintained funding for The Woodson Museum, the Museum of History, the Florida Orchestra, and $450,000 for the city’s Arts Grants Program.

Next, the 2023 budget will go through the approval process, including two public hearings this fall, on September 15 and 29.

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