Lower property taxes? Hell yes. Who wouldn't want that?

HOWEVER, there's an old saying Clearwater voters might want to remember before heading to the polls this November:

“Penny-wise and pound-foolish.”

It means saving a little money today while making a decision that ultimately costs you considerably more somewhere else.

That may be exactly the question Clearwater residents need to ask about the proposed changes to Florida's property-tax system.

According to preliminary estimates from the Pinellas County Property Appraiser cited by the City of Clearwater, the city could lose approximately $12 million in ad valorem property-tax revenue in the first year and another $8 million the following year.

That's potentially $20 million less coming into Clearwater.

The city has now published a contingency plan illustrating what a revenue reduction of that magnitude could mean for residents.

This is where the conversation gets considerably more interesting.

Forget millage rates, constitutional language and government budget jargon for a minute.

We're talking about the potential loss of police officers, recreation facilities, library access, city employees, park maintenance and faster road repairs.

One important point before we go any further:

These are potential impacts, not approved cuts. Clearwater specifically states that no decisions have been made regarding service reductions.

BTW… these aren't numbers My Clearwater Scoop pulled out of thin air, either.

They're examples published by the City of Clearwater itself.

So let's look at what “saving money” could actually look like.

Well...here's an uncomfortable conversation.

Clearwater's contingency plan estimates approximately $4.8 million less for Police, Fire & Rescue, with an estimated personnel impact equivalent to 30.7 full-time positions.

And one particular item jumps off the page:

Nine police officers could be eliminated.

Yes. Nine.

The city's scenario says that could result in reduced proactive and community policing.

It also lists reduced Fire & Rescue availability because of staffing constraints, elimination of tools and staff that enhance investigative capabilities, longer response times for non-emergency calls, elimination of civilian crash investigators and elimination of dedicated homeless-outreach or victim-advocacy services.

Clearwater says residents could experience longer response times, fewer proactive crime-prevention efforts, reduced access to specialized rescue resources and delays in some criminal investigations and traffic-accident responses.

Remember the national outrage over the phrase “defund the police”?

Well, regardless of which political team you're rooting for, taking millions of dollars away from public safety and eliminating nine police-officer positions is, quite literally, reducing the resources available for policing.

You don't get to rage about “defunding the police” and then ignore the arithmetic when the words “lower property taxes” appear on the other side of the equation.

If protecting public safety matters to us, how we pay for it has to matter too.

Clearwater has some pretty damn good recreational amenities.

Pools. Fitness facilities. Athletic fields. Parks. Tennis. Golf. Pickleball. Recreation programs. Community centers.

Residents get access to many of those amenities at prices that would be difficult to duplicate privately.

FYI…there's a reason they're affordable:

Your taxes help pay for them.

Clearwater's contingency plan estimates approximately $9.4 million less for parks, athletics and recreation, with an estimated personnel impact equivalent to 56.1 positions.

Here's where “lower taxes” starts getting complicated.

The city lists the potential closure of a recreation center and the Beach Recreation Center, along with privatization of the McMullen Tennis Complex.

Clearwater also identifies:

Think about that for a second.

You save some money on your property-tax bill.

Great.

HOWEVER, then your recreation center closes earlier.

Maybe a facility closes entirely.

Maybe the tennis complex becomes privately operated and charges more.

Maybe your exercise program costs more.

Maybe renting a ballfield costs more.

Maybe the recreational amenities you enjoy today become substantially more expensive tomorrow.

Did the cost disappear?

No.

The bill just moved.

That's precisely where “penny-wise and pound-foolish” becomes worth thinking about.

Maybe you don't use the recreation centers.

How about Clearwater's libraries?

The city's scenario estimates approximately $3.1 million less for library and information services, representing a 34% funding reduction in its contingency example and an estimated personnel impact equivalent to 33.8 positions.

The potential consequences include something pretty dramatic:

Closure of a library branch and the Beach Library.

Clearwater also lists:

Again, those aren't cuts that have been approved.

They're examples Clearwater has published of choices it could face with substantially less revenue.

Unfortunately, we're starting to see a pattern.

You can reduce what taxpayers contribute. However, eventually you have to reduce something on the other side of the ledger.

Then you're going to love this one.

Clearwater's contingency scenario estimates approximately $876,000 less for public infrastructure and maintenance, along with an estimated personnel impact equivalent to six positions.

Among the potential consequences:

Pothole, sidewalk and road repairs could face service delays of up to six months.

The city also identifies possible delays in roadway projects and traffic-signal improvements, reduced tree and palm maintenance and decreased funding for sustainability grants, projects and programs.

There's another particularly relevant item for anyone living in Florida:

Reduced investment in resiliency and flooding improvements.

Flooding.

In Clearwater.

That's probably not the category where residents are clamoring for less attention.

Again, perhaps the property-tax bill gets smaller.

So, if roads deteriorate longer, infrastructure projects get delayed, tree maintenance decreases and flooding improvements get pushed back, there's still a cost.

It just doesn't arrive in an envelope labeled PROPERTY TAX BILL.

Here's where this proposal loses me.

Why are our choices seemingly “keep everything the same” or potentially rip $20 million out of Clearwater's revenue?

There ought to be room somewhere between those two extremes.

Property owners absolutely deserve relief.

Homeowners have been hammered by rising insurance premiums, maintenance costs, inflation and property taxes. And after the extraordinary run-up in Florida real estate, the market isn't exactly booming anymore.

In fact, a USA TODAY Network article published just days ago highlighted WalletHub's latest real-estate-market rankings.

Clearwater ranked #255 nationally and was among the lowest-ranked Florida cities included in the study.

Now, one important clarification: Clearwater itself doesn't determine your property's assessed value. That's handled by the Pinellas County Property Appraiser under Florida law.

If market values are declining, those changes should ultimately be appropriately reflected through Florida's existing property-assessment system.

More importantly, state and local leaders should be looking for targeted, responsible ways to reduce the burden on homeowners without taking a chainsaw to the revenue paying for basic city services.

Why not pursue a smaller reduction?

Why not phase relief in and measure the consequences?

Why not look harder for efficiencies first?

Why not protect homeowners who genuinely need relief while preserving enough revenue to maintain the services residents actually use?

That's the part I have trouble swallowing.

I'm certainly not arguing that government should keep every dollar simply because it collected it last year.

Quite the opposite.

Government should constantly be forced to justify spending, eliminate waste and operate efficiently.

There's a difference between trimming fat and cutting into muscle.

When Clearwater's own contingency planning starts talking about eliminating police officers, closing recreation and library facilities, delaying road repairs for months and reducing flood-resiliency spending, we're no longer talking about some invisible line item buried on page 437 of a city budget.

We're talking about services residents can see, touch and use.

No.

That's not the point.

Let's find ways to lower them.

Let's challenge government spending.

Let's demand efficiency.

Let's make sure declining property values are properly reflected through the assessment process.

And let's acknowledge that homeowners are getting squeezed from seemingly every direction.

Also, let's also stop pretending there's a magical government-money tree growing behind City Hall.

If Clearwater collects substantially less money, something eventually has to give.

Maybe the city finds additional efficiencies.

Maybe some of these contingency scenarios never happen.

Maybe alternative revenue can be found.

Maybe voters look at the tradeoffs and decide fewer services are worth the tax savings.

Those are legitimate positions.

Voters deserve to understand both sides of the transaction before making that decision.

This shouldn't be about Republican versus Democrat.

It shouldn't be about conservative versus liberal.

And it certainly shouldn't be about which politician gets to stand behind a podium and announce that they “cut your taxes.”

This is considerably simpler.

What are we paying?

And...

What are we getting for it?

If you reduce the first number substantially, you need an honest conversation about what happens to the second.

So before November, don't stop at:

“Will this lower my property taxes?”

Ask another question:

Maybe after looking at everything, you still decide the tax savings are worth it.

Fair enough.

That's your vote.

At least you'll be voting after seeing both sides of the receipt.

Because sometimes cutting costs is smart.

Sometimes government desperately needs a haircut.

However, there's a difference between a haircut and an amputation.

And sometimes...

Source: City of Clearwater, “How Your Property Taxes Fund City Services.” The service reductions described above are contingency examples of potential impacts from reduced future revenue. Clearwater states that no decisions regarding service reductions have been made. Real-estate ranking referenced from WalletHub reporting highlighted by the USA TODAY Network.

Clearwater Beach has about 3 miles of sandy beach. But when you include all of Clearwater's waterfront shoreline, including areas along the Intracoastal and surrounding bays, approximately how many miles does the city have?

A) 28 miles
B) 35 miles
C) 51 miles
D) 68 miles

Don't Google it, cheater. 😂

👇 Answer at the bottom of today's Scoop.

Before you load up the car, take a peek at the live beach cam to see exactly how busy it is out there. Sometimes the smartest move is knowing when to go and when to enjoy our little slice of paradise another day.

Check current water temperatures and conditions Here

Watch the live Clearwater Beach Cam Here

Clearwater Beach itself may have only about 3 miles of sandy beach, but Clearwater has approximately 51 miles of total shoreline when you include its waterfront along Clearwater Harbor, Clearwater Bay, Old Tampa Bay and other waterways.

Even more surprising? About 30 miles of that shoreline is seawalled.

So if you guessed 51... you know your Clearwater. 🌴😎

Our pets aren't just animals - they're family. If you've seen any of the pets below please email us at [email protected] and we will connect you directly with their families. One share could bring someone's baby home.

Zena has been missing for over 165+ days from the Seville Condo area near Clearwater Costco. Her heartbroken family will not give up searching

LEARN MORE →

Leah has been missing since April 28th from the King Arthur Court in Dunedin. Her Mom has owned her since she was a puppy.

LEARN MORE →

Lobo has been missing since May 11th from Gladden Park in St. Petersburg. Her Mom has owned her since she was a puppy.

LEARN MORE →

River is a one-year-old male tabby (brown, white, and gray) who slipped out the front door on May 30th, and last seen near 134th Ave and Trotter Rd in Largo.

LEARN MORE →

Mama Kitty is a 15 year old black cat with with a clipped left ear that went missing on June 4th, and last seen near Druid and Belcher in Clearwater.

LEARN MORE →

🎸 Devo Thursday August 27th - 7:00 pm The BayCare Sound Clearwater, FL INFO & TICKETS→

🤠 Wednesday Night Line Dancing — OCC Roadhouse Clearwater Free lessons. 6:00pm to 7:30pm — All ages welcome DJ Brandon takes over at 7:30pm playing requests all night 10575 49th Street North, Clearwater INFO →

🎸 Josh Higgins Wednesday August 26th - FREE - 5:00 pm Crabby’s Dockside Clearwater, FL INFO→

🎸 Tommy Roxx Band Thursday August 27th - FREE - 7:00 pm OCC Roadhouse Clearwater, FL INFO→

🎸 Mello Vibes Thursday August 27th - FREE - 5:00 pm Crabby’s Dockside Clearwater, FL INFO→

🎸 Open Mic Thursday August 27th - FREE - 7:00 pm Clearwater Brewing Company Clearwater, FL INFO→

READ MORE →

🚶‍♀️ SilverSneakers: Zumba Gold Class Tuesday and Thursday 9:00 am - Aging Well Center @ The Long Center, 1501 N. Belcher Road, Clearwater, 33765, View Map LEARN MORE →

🧘 Yoga Tuesday and Thursday 7:00 pm - 8:15 pm - Aging Well Center @ The Long Center, 1501 N. Belcher Road, Clearwater, 33765, View Map FEES & LEARN MORE →

🧘 Golden Hour Yoga - FREE - Wednesday at 7:00 pm - Pier 60 Clearwater Beach View Map

🚶Indoor Walking at the Countryside Mall: Beat the heat and rain with some indoor walking, grab a bite to eat, browse the shops, or catch a movie…all while letting the mall’s A/C do the heavy lifting. MAP →

If you must be out in nature, please don’t forget to bring water

🌳🥾 Beat the Heat: Peaceful Nature Parks Looking to escape the crowds and cool off in the shade this weekend? Tampa Bay is loaded with hidden natural gems, all free to explore:

🦅 Moccasin Lake Nature Park (Clearwater) — A peaceful 51-acre preserve with shaded oak trails, boardwalks over the lake, and a wildlife rehabilitation sanctuary where you can see rescued eagles, hawks, and falcons.

⛵ Clearwater Community Sailing Center A nonprofit sailing center at 1001 Gulf Blvd offering boat rentals, sailing lessons for all ages, and Summer Camp. Open Tuesday through Sunday 9am to 5pm. LEARN MORE →

🏓 Pickleball Court Locations: Here is the easiest way to find Pickleball courts near you with an interactive map. LEARN MORE →

🏖️ Near the Beach

🏙️ Inland

⚠️ Trivia nights and schedules can change. We recommend confirming directly with the venue before heading out. Know of a change or a new spot? Tell Scout →

Thanks for reading My Clearwater Scoop today. If you found something useful, please share it with someone that you think would enjoy it.

Until next time,

Stan, Scoop and Scout