SEMINOLE - It appears the county will fund all of a grant that was awarded to a youth organization, regardless of the outcome of Tuesday's annexation referendum.
County Administrator Steve Spratt told commissioners it would be feasible to award $180,000 to the Seminole Youth Athletic Association.
"We concluded that we could still have a rational basis for providing the original grant that you all had approved - $180,000," Spratt told commissioners during Tuesday's regular meeting.
Spratt said staff researched what the "worst-case scenario" would be if there was a significant shift in the population to Seminole. The grant money comes from an increase in a special property tax that only unincorporated residents pay.
According to the county, 80 percent of the users of the association's complex on 90th Avenue live in unincorporated Pinellas. So, the grants should benefit only groups in unincorporated areas, Spratt and commissioners said during a recent workshop. Commissioner Karen Seel disagreed, saying the grant should remain intact.
When City Council members learned last week that the grant could be reduced or withdrawn because of the annexation vote, they unanimously agreed to back it up.
The athletic association is one of 29 recreation programs that received a grant last year from the county. The money will be divided four ways: $112,000 for new baseball field lights, $16,000 for a cover over the concession stand, $32,000 for a new restroom and $20,000 for field maintenance.
