Scope Creep - kind of like sewage. Kriseman can't seem to control either

Where things the politicians want get added and things the designers screwed up get fixed by throwing money at them.

St. Petersburg, Fl
Opinion by: E. Eugene Webb PhD
Author: In Search of Robin

You may have noticed that lately every major St. Pete project seems to be getting more costly.

Charlie Frago Tampa Bay Times, St. Petersburg's new police HQ on track to be greener, but also pricier

Waveney Ann More Tampa Bay Times March 2016, St. Pete pier design costs exceed construction budget, forcing cuts

Waveney Ann More Tampa Bay Times, St. Petersburg's mayor wants to bring renowned artist to Pier, but at what cost?

Mark Puente Tampa Bay Times October 2016 Mayor Rick Kriseman may seek more Pinellas County dollars for St. Petersburg Pier

Project	Original Estimate	Current Guess
Pier	$50 Million	$80-$90 Million
Uplands	$20 Million	$34-$40 Million
Police Building	$50 Million	$70-$80 Million
Sewer Repair	$300 Million	Who Knows

In government, we call this scope creep.

That is where things the politicians want to get added to a project and things the designers over looked or screwed up get fixed by throwing money at them.

The Kriseman team and its fascination for all things bright and shiny is a project manager's dream come true.

Too busy banning the President, trying to establish a sanctuary city and blowing their own horn, the ground battle for cost control on these projects is lost among the details. It is called scope creep.

The Kriseman administration pays little attention to the detail. They put way to much trust in owner's reps and project managers. These are good people but just like everything else in a project, they need to be managed.

The issue of public art for the Pier is a classic example.

Instead of just saying no they are in search of more money for an insane addition to what is a quickly becoming an unseemly disaster.

When it comes to running the business of the St. Petersburg government, Kriseman has shown he is pretty good at writing a Tweet, chasing the silly and ignoring the will of the people.

All of these chickens are quickly coming home to roost and unless the Mayor, and his crack team of campaign consultants still on the City payroll can figure out a way to hold off the rain and delay the Pier until after the election, his honor may be in for some tough sledding.

I am starting my annual round of neighborhood association meetings and so far, when the Mayor is not around the comments are very negative.

By the way, if you would like to have me speak or be on a panel at your Neighborhood Association meeting give me a call at my office 727-545-9269. Otherwise, I may show up and sit quietly in the back of the room.

E-mail Doc at mail to: dr.gwebb@yahoo.com or send me a Facebook (Gene Webb) Friend request. Be sure to follow me on Pintrest (Doc Webb),  Like or share on Facebook and follow me on TWITTER  @DOC ON THE BAY

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