Ken Welch administration seeks members for St. Pete bond oversight, resilience committees

Outgoing Mayor Ken Welch s administration is seeking 21 residents to serve on two advisory committees, including one that will monitor spending from the $600 million infrastructure bond voters approved. Applications are open on a rolling basis for 12 seats on the General Obligation (GO) Bond Advisory Committee and nine on the Resilience Advisory Committee. The GO Bond Advisory Committee will oversee spending tied to the city s St. Pete Agile Resilience program, which aims to accelerate improvements to stormwater drainage, wastewater treatment, drinking water systems and flood protection. Nearly 74% of St. Petersburg voters approved the $600 million bond referendum, authorizing the city to borrow money backed by property taxes to speed up infrastructure improvements. Mayor-elect Charlie Crist, who will succeed Welch, opposed the bond during his campaign but has pledged to implement the voter-approved measure. Crist said his administration would prioritize projects based on flood risk an