Simmering tensions boiled over at a St. Petersburg City Council meeting Thursday morning as members admonished a colleague for what they perceived as a public lie.

Gulfport’s Lincoln Cemetery, the primary burial ground for St. Petersburg’s Black population during segregation, was at the center of the dispute. Council member Corey Givens Jr. requested a Committee discussion last week regarding the embattled graveyard’s future that ideally would have included officials from the neighboring city.

The new business item failed, as Council member Gina Driscoll previously requested a Committee meeting on the subject. Council member Deborah Figgs-Sanders noted that she and Mayor Ken Welch have also discussed plans for the cemetery, including annexation, with Gulfport stakeholders.

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