SAFETY HARBOR, Fla. — Nonprofits in Safety Harbor are preparing for the possibility of losing city funding as commissioners consider more than $500,000 in potential immediate cuts following the passage of Amendment 3.
The proposed reductions could affect everything from holiday parades and fireworks shows to grants for local nonprofits that provide critical services to residents.
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Among the organizations facing uncertainty is the Mattie Williams Neighborhood Family Center, which provides a food pantry, utility assistance, and other resources for families in need.
Janet Hooper with the center said the organization is already thinking about how quickly it could find other funding if city support is reduced.
"It's going to be how fast can we tap dance," Hooper said as she described the challenge of trying to maintain services.
Rather than eliminating funding altogether, Hooper is asking city leaders to consider a tiered approach that would give nonprofits more time to find other sources of money.
"My argument would be, can you do a tiered thing where you only do partial, so that we have a chance to try and find ways to get additional funding so we can cover some of it so it's not just cut off," Hooper said.
Community looks for alternatives to cuts
The possibility of cuts is already sparking conversations about ways Safety Harbor businesses, residents, and private sponsors could help fill the gap.
Thomas Bassano, owner of Bassano Cheesecake, said he believes the community should explore those alternatives before services or funding are eliminated.
"You don't have to immediately make the cuts," Bassano said. "We can look for answers outside of just coming in and chopping it out."
Other organizations are preparing for the possibility that they may have to increase fundraising.
Scott Long, president-elect of the Friends of the Safety Harbor Library Foundation, said finding additional sources of money will become critical if city funding is reduced.
"There's going to be very aggressive fundraising, I think, coming up," Long said.
Hooper said the Mattie Williams Neighborhood Family Center may ultimately have to rely more heavily on residents or find ways to quickly replace any funding that disappears.
"We either hope that residents come through to support the work that we do or that the city will do a partial so that we're not totally left standing with trying to backfill quickly," she said.
Cuts still need final approval
The proposed funding cuts are not final and would still need approval from the Safety Harbor City Commission.
Safety Harbor's Mayor said earlier this week they are having these conversations now so they can be prepared.
The city is also considering a fire service fee as one option to help backfill lost funding.
City Commissioners are expected to discuss the potential cuts at their meeting Tuesday.
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