🌅👮 Police Chief Hunt

It’s Monday! First day of school starts today. I want to wish all the students and teachers a great school year. For the rest of us, keep an eye out for traffic and maybe leave a little early to avoid some of the buses. Alright…

💜 People Pass Shoutout: Thank you to everyone supporting the work through the People Pass. You keep this going. If you want to join, you can do that here.

🎨 Paint and Sip Shoutout: A couple of my friends are hosting a paint and sip at the future Sunland Bookstore with the amazingly talented Bezo. Details here

Go Vote: 🎨 Help choose the new Sunrise Theatre mural in Downtown Fort Pierce. Voting ends Aug 28. Cast your vote

🌤️ Day: High of 85°F | Thunderstorms likely with winds SE at 10–20 mph
🌙 Night: Low of 74°F | Locally heavy thunderstorms in the evening
🌅 Sunrise: 6:49 AM | 🌇 Sunset: 8:03 PM
🌔 Moonrise: 9:09 PM | 🌘 Moonset: 8:00 AM
🎶 Sounds like: “Summer’s Over” by Majid Jordan

You can never plan too much. That’s why Yates Funeral Home is giving Sunland readers a free guide to help you make more thoughtful decisions for yourself or for loved ones. No pressure. Just helpful info.

TLDR: The City Manager, Richard Chess, says the Police Chief job will post next week. A retirement tweak was made for the chief which cleared it’s first reading. Residents pushed on officer pay while the city juggles shortfalls across the board. All of this lands as the commission is a board of four, which makes every vote tight.

It is Monday, Civic Update time: Last week’s meeting was packed, but here is the center of everything. The chief search is moving. The job description is done. The recruitment brochure is supposed to land this week. Risk Management is meeting on liability coverage, then the posting goes live next week. Commissioners will get the packet and a status check in one on one meetings.

Why the timing matters: We are down a seat. The commission is four right now. Big decisions can stall or split. Even the vote to accept the last chief’s resignation was a close one. Until that fifth seat is filled, possibly not until January, this search could move slower than anyone want

Pay and benefits in the mix: Ordinance 25 022 passed first reading. It would let the Police Chief opt out of the Police Officer’s Retirement Trust Fund and extend DROP participation to six years so it matches the general employee plan. The change is retroactive to the current chief. The stated goal is uniformity across plans.

Officer pay pressure: Public comment was blunt. Officers want a livable wage. Speakers tied the squeeze to the city’s overall finances, including an unexpected special election that could cost about sixty thousand dollars, and questioned raises for other staff. Commissioner Johnson said recent talks gave police about a six percent bump plus step programs, but the budget is still tight.

Budget backdrop, and why today matters: There is a budget meeting today at 9 a.m. I will drop the link below so you can watch. This is where the pay conversation and the hiring timeline meet money in real time. Shortfalls, pensions, recruitment, it all shows up in that spreadsheet.

What I am watching next

🗣️ What do you think: What should the city prioritize first, the chief hire, officer pay, or broader cuts and savings. Leave your thoughts

District leaders will hold three meetings Aug. 12–14 to gather public input on funding maternity services at Cleveland Clinic Indian River Hospital. The hospital operates at a $7.7M loss on maternity care and delivers about 900 babies annually. Residents will be asked if they support using tax dollars to sustain local services.

Read more

Indian River, Martin, and St. Lucie schools start the year with “A” ratings from the state and plans to push academic rigor. Districts will use data tracking, earlier interventions, and career-tech programs to boost performance. St. Lucie earned its first-ever “A.”

Read more

An Aug. 19 open house at Tradition Town Hall will present proposed improvements to the Tradition Parkway and Village Parkway intersection. The city is considering protected intersection designs to improve safety for drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians.

Read more

If you have an event, send it to me here

When students return today, they may walk into a surprise. Randomized metal detector checks are coming to St. Lucie County schools.

The district is rolling out walk-through detectors that will appear unannounced at different campuses. Students and staff will only be screened for a day at a time, and no one will know in advance when or where the detectors will be in use.

Supporters say it is a step toward preventing weapons on campus. Critics worry it could cause delays and chaos during busy mornings.

📍 Why It Matters: This is the county’s latest move to strengthen school safety for the new year.

💬 What you think? Leave your thoughts here.

So yesterday I took a trip to Tampa to see our team win in the flesh! Mannnn, when I tell you it was burning hot out there…. I felt like Mookie in Do The Right Thing. We had beaten the Tarpons in the last 4 games so we were going for the fifth straight W against them. The Tarpons drew first blood in the bottom of the 2nd, driving in a dub. These were the only two runs our starting pitcher, Jose Chirinos, would allow in the 5 innings he was on the mound for us. Thankfully, our guy Sam Robertson tied the game in the 5th with a 2-RBI single. Now, I’ll be honest, I couldn’t stand the heat on those bleachers so I left in the 6th. Sorry yall. But I got good news! We scored 6 more runs, ending the game with a final score of 8-5. Congrats to our squad for their 5th win in a row. (Also, shoutout to Randy Guzman who also had a 2-RBI game.) We’re currently the best team in the entire league 💪🏽 LGM!

Darius “odgtm” Garrido

I hope y’all don’t get tired of me saying thank you. I truly mean it. Sunland has become such an expression of everything I am passionate about. I recently directed a little “film,” a video postcard if you will. Shot by the incredible J’Qwan (Head of Sunland Image) Check it out here. My goal with Sunland is really to create a language around this place I call home. Alright…

See you tomorrow!
With Love, Ja’Min

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