Pinellas Commission Unanimously Elects Seel As Chairwoman

CLEARWATER, FL -- On Nov. 20, the Pinellas County Board of County Commissioners unanimously elected Commissioner Karen Williams Seel as chairwoman and Commissioner Pat Gerard as vice chairman of the commission for the 2019 calendar year.

Both will officially assume their one-year appointments on Jan. 1.

In her role as commission chairwoman, Seel will preside over board meetings and represent the elected body in county-sanctioned functions. Seel has served on the Pinellas County Commission since 1999 and represents District 5. She currently serves as board vice chairwoman and will succeed Commissioner Kenneth T. Welch in her new role.

The Pinellas County Board of County Commissioners also welcomed two re-elected and one new commissioner. Commissioners Pat Gerard, Dave Eggers and Kathleen Peters were officially sworn in at an investiture ceremony ahead of the regular board meeting.

Gerard, who represents District 2, was sworn in by Clerk of the Court Ken Burke.

“I am humbled by this opportunity to serve. We’re doing some very good things here,” said Gerard, who was first elected to the Pinellas County Commission in 2014.

Eggers, who represents District 4, was sworn in by the Rev. John Fullerton.

“I want to thank the residents of our county for their support. We’ll continue to work for them each and every day,” said Eggers, who was also first elected to the commission in 2014.

New Commissioner Kathleen Peters, who represents District 6, was sworn in by Judge George Greer.

“It’s really a privilege to be here,” said Peters. “I look forward to working with the rest of the board and our constitutional officers.”

The Pinellas County Commission is the main legislative body that governs unincorporated areas of Pinellas County. Commissioners work collaboratively to adopt local ordinances, approve the county budget and set millages, and establish the requirements for the departments under its control. The Commission partners with other local municipalities and agencies to deliver essential services to county residents every day.

Commission meetings are typically held on the first and third Tuesday of each month, unless otherwise noticed. Meetings are streamed live online on the county website as well as on the PCC-TV channel (Spectrum 637, Frontier 44 and WOW! 18).

Images via Pinellas commission

(For more local news from Florida, click here to sign up for real-time news alerts and newsletters from Patch. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app; download the free Patch Android app here.)