Category: Tampa Bay

So far, so good, it would seem with the new traffic signal at Bayshore Boulevard and Howard Avenue. The northbound traffic flow appears relatively unaffected. No reports of motorists not adapting to the infrequently used, pedestrian-activated signal.

However, there’s still a clear and present danger: those ubiquitous u-turns and NASCAR wannabes who merge during rush hours and take up parts of both inside lanes.

Much has been made of the inconsistencies of the Tampa Housing Authority’s application of eviction guidelines. The THA answers to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which makes the (“One Strike”) rules. HUD, however, does permit housing authorities to use discretion in allowing for extenuating circumstances.

And where there is flexibility and less than uniform enforcement of rules, there will be disparities and, at the very least, perceptions of unfairness. It comes with the territory – and that territory includes the THA’s responsibility to do what it deems best to reduce violent crime and drug use.

Now cue Connie Burton, the poster tenant for public housing eviction melodrama.

She’s a former resident of the Robles Park Village public housing property who was evicted – after six years of legal resistance – in 2005. The eviction scrum dates to the 1999 arrest of her son, who was charged with selling drugs at Robles. He’s still in jail.

Along the litigious way, in which the THA incurred $472,000 in legal fees, she turned down the authority’s compromise – a move-to-the-front-of-the-line Section 8 voucher. Burton remains feisty and defiant. She thinks she was singled out because she’s an outspoken community activist who has publicly criticized THA president Jerome Ryans. She relishes having cost the THA nearly $500,000 to defend the legality of federal policy that ultimately involved the U.S. Supreme Court. She took it that far on principle, she maintains, and has no regrets.

Would that her eviction battle and the constitutionality of HUD’s rules were the only principles in play here. Putting aside the issue of whether HUD should have reimbursed THA and how THA could have better spent that money, there’s the whole concept of public housing itself.

Public housing – not unlike unemployment compensation and welfare benefits – was never intended to be anything other than a governmental hand – not a hand out. For those down on their luck and needing help getting through a tough time – not to be defined as decades or generations.

In the case of the ample and able-bodied Burton, now 50, she had been at Robles since 1987. Eighteen years. Taxpayer-subsidized entitlement housing for the majority of her adult life.

There would be a principle there too — were it not for the eviction of self-reliance and personal pride.

When it comes to really jump-starting the downtown riverfront renaissance, there is only so much the city – via Community Investment Tax dollars, streetscapes, signage, mayoral soapbox — can do. Developers provide for nearby residential mass and the citizenry, as has been well documented, will have to dig deep to fund-raise Riverwalk and museum dreams into reality.

But there’s another synergistic component in the public-private partnership scenario: entrepreneurs. Those who see an enlightened self-interest in providing a service that will serve as a people magnet.

Welcome back, Malio’s.

The announcement that iconic restaurateur Malio Iavarone had signed a long-term lease at the Rivergate Tower to re-open Malio’s – on the waterfront – is nothing short of a credibility coup. It should debut this fall.

Malio’s has that requisite “gathering-spot” reputation to become a catalyst for other fine-dining venues – and attendant ambience — so glaringly absent in downtown.

Having a hot spot on your ground floor is also a major score for the 31-story, cylindrical tower with plenty of vacant square footage. Might even get locals to can that unhip hops frame of reference.

“Meet you at the, uh, at Malio’s.”

When the Wasserman Vornado Strategic Real Estate Fund bought a majority stake in Old Hyde Park Village last year, it was with the intent of doing a “complete renovation” of the Village. Estimates were in the range of $100 million.

While there’s no disputing that the status quo – in the context of tenant roulette and competition from the ritzy International Plaza and the rehabbed WestShore Plaza – was no recipe for success, there is mounting neighborhood concern about what that “complete renovation” actually entails. To wit: It’s a lot more than curb appeal and revitalized retail. More like: IN with some disproportionately large, multi-family buildings and more traffic – and OUT with the lifestyle-enhancing Sunrise Cinemas.

In short, Wasserman says that the numbers only work by adding a major residential element, for which the developer will need some zoning help. Right now plans call for razing the Brooks Brothers block (40-foot limit) and going up eight stories and 89 feet for 102 residential units. It also means replacing the theater area with 102 units – going up nine stories to 106 feet.

Letters to the editor and a recent communication from Hyde Park Preservation Inc. to Wasserman indicate that the renovation scenario will be no metaphorical walk in the (Hyde) park. City Council will eventually weigh in – as will those who come before it for public comment.

The letter from HPPI president Mary Britain suggests that Wasserman consider “dramatically limiting the residential request for the (Brooks Brothers) site within the Village if not completely eliminating that aspect of the PD (Planned Development) rezoning.”

It also unsubtly reminds Wasserman “of the current sensitivity of City Council, especially certain Council members such as John Dingfelder, Linda Saul-Sena and Rose Ferlita, to the height, mass and density issues which have been presented in a number of condominium projects in South Tampa.”

Britain concluded by acknowledging that “each project is unique and stands on its own when being evaluated.” Having said that, however, she made it clear that HPPI feels strongly that “this project certainly has its own unique issues given the strategic location of the Village. Given this, it is unlikely we could support the current residential requests.”

What remains increasingly clear as renovation plans course through the re-zoning process: The real issues will be height, mass and density as well as creativity, ego and compromise.

At the end of the day, David Wasserman should be held to his word. In February he said his company’s goal was to “unite the intent of the Hyde Park Historic district design guidelines with our development vision.” He called the Village “an icon in a unique neighborhood.”

One, presumably, to be treated accordingly.

In whatever form and whenever completed, a new immigration-reform bill hopefully will reflect more enlightened self interest and pragmatism than pure politics. But even in the polarized pit that is Washington, the odds at least favor a better outcome than the last time this subject was in the cross hairs. That was in 1986, when the Immigration Reform and Control Act proved an exercise in bad policy (amnesty) and awful enforcement (of sanctions against businesses that knowingly hired the undocumented). Some context:

*No nation worth its sovereign salt can have a sieve for a border — even a country with a track record of taking in “huddled masses.” Nobody has an absolute “right” to your house.

*Nothing wrong with bigger, better border barriers – as long as you’re not fencing your own people in. How it looks from the other side is another matter. In the case of Mexico, which is ironically notorious for its own treatment of illegals from Central America, the perspective continues to be one that excuses chronic corruption, economic malfeasance and generic mismanagement of a country hardly resource-challenged. Stateside remittances are Mexico’s second biggest source of revenue after oil and a disincentive to get serious about deterring illegal immigration. This problem didn’t start with NAFTA.

*Ask anyone with inside insight on security, and they’ll tell you that seaport-container scenarios notwithstanding, a “dirty bomb” coming across the Mexican border amid a stream of economic immigrants is among the more viable terrorist possibilities.

*In the abstract, the U.S. economy – notably agriculture, construction and hospitality — would ultimately adjust without 11 million illegals. But it wouldn’t be painless. In the real world, with real logistics and unforgiving politics, however, it wouldn’t even be possible.

*Let’s hear it for some self-restraint on everybody’s part on agenda-driven, counterproductive buzzwords such as “amnesty” and “reward for breaking the law.” It would be neither a freebie nor a reward if there really is a significant commitment to be exacted to convert to legal status – whatever the details. In addition, the words “felons” and “criminals” only add heat – not light – to the debate.

*And to reiterate, some means of legitimizing illegals is necessary. A permanent underground population is the unacceptable alternative.

*A national I.D. card. If not now – post 9/11 immigration imbroglio – when?

*Good PR move for demonstrators to finally put away flags other than American. Not a good idea to say, in effect, “I have a right to stay where I entered illegally because I need the work, but I don’t need or want to be an American or even speak your language.”

*If the Statue of Liberty is to remain relevant, assimilation has to be more than a quaint historical footnote harkening back to the Ellis Island epoch. “Mexifornia” remains an ominous omen.

*And one more thing. Trying to convince the children of immigrants not to leave their school campus for a banner-waving rally proved an understandably touchy issue. The principals involved – at Durant and Plant City High Schools — did the right thing by making good on consequences. Ultimately, “civil disobedience” for a cause doesn’t trump the safety of kids who should be in classrooms instead of lining busy state roads.

And all those administrators who have long countenanced the loopy “Senior Skip Day” precedent only made it more difficult.

Thom Stork, The Florida Aquarium’s entrepreneurial president, is not one to venerate the status quo. He knows he’s in the entertainment business and is always looking for an edge – and a reason for people to make return visits. Hence, new attractions.

The latest, if expansion plans-in-the-works materialize, would include new dolphin, sea lion and giant shark exhibits, along with a reconfigured lobby. Along with a price tag of at least $40 million.

If the Aquarium’s board of directors gives the go-ahead this fall, the Aquarium would need to tap private donors. The result: Tampa’s “Big Dig” – putting the arm on the private sector to dig deep as never before.

This city is no fountainhead of corporate headquarters, where the big decision-makers can take care of their own. Nor is it home to Bernie Marcus-type sugar daddies who will just flat out bankroll a project – as Home Depot co-founder Marcus did with Atlanta’s $200-million Georgia Aquarium.

And remember the Florida Aquarium will have to make its donor case in the context of some other serious fund-raising around town. To wit: Tampa’s Riverwalk and new art museum. Neither can happen without an unprecedented level of private giving.

The bottom line on visions about Tampa’s protean downtown is paying for it. The private tab will be coming due. Before anyone steps onto a completed Riverwalk or into the new museum or expanded Aquarium, a lot of private citizens and business interests – the quality-of-life beneficiaries — will have to step up financially for Tampa’s “Big Dig.”

The biggest winner of the recent Indy Racing League’s Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg was, quite arguably, the city of St. Petersburg. The crowd was estimated at nearly 100,000 and all the corporate suites sold out. Race sponsors quickly re-upped for 2007. It was better than last year, and last year was pretty good.

Moreover, chamber of commerce weather and postcard vistas were a prominent part of what a national TV audience saw on ESPN’s live telecast. And nobody identified the venue as “Tampa Bay.”

The downside? Downtown merchants and residents had to take one for the team.

No, that notorious “Support Our Troops” sign standoff in Westchase has not quietly faded from the public eye. In fact, look for it to be prominently aired next week on “The Daily Show,” Comedy Central’s faux news program.

To recap, Stacey Kelley won’t take down her patriotic front-yard sign that’s at odds with her community’s deed restrictions. She rejected a good-faith compromise, told the neighborhood association to “bring it on,” agreed to representation by First Amendment/adult business specialist Luke Lirot and generally seemed to revel in the notoriety.

Now the last laugh may be Jon Stewart’s.

Some issues deserve better than that.

Another year, another State-of-the-City report and accompanying DVD, and another reminder that this mayor has a lot to juggle. From making a dent in chronic neighborhood needs, such as drainage, to helping shape downtown’s future — as in a destination for visitors and a home for thousands of urban-core residents.

“Downtown is everybody’s neighborhood,” reminded Pam Iorio at her annual progress-report presentation. It’s part of her mayoral mantra.

And while she can — and does – cite, for example, improvements in East Tampa, an impressive dip in citywide crime and significant movement toward re-development of Central Park Village, there’s little doubt that downtown is where her legacy will be built – literally. The “downtown core,” once dormant, now features some 2,500 residential units built or under construction.

But her City Hall touch is all over the riverfront location for the new art museum as well as the 2.4-mile Tampa Riverwalk project now underway. These are public-private partnerships that will ask locals to dig deep and require Iorio to proselytize and educate.

And while Tampa’s downtown – most notably what’s along the river — is “everybody’s neighborhood,” it can be argued that not “everybody” gets it. Especially those whose perspectives — or agendas — are more county-centric.

“These messages take years,” acknowledged Iorio. “When people are able to access these amenities, then it will be easier to get them back downtown. Our job is to make it more attractive, more accessible and help with parking and signage and adding more two-way streets.

“I would hope that one day we could see folks from Odessa and Riverview coming into downtown as if they worked here,” Iorio adds. “This is a long-term message, one that has to be backed up by tangible improvements.”

Mary Ann Stiles, the Tampa attorney who is leading the fight for a Hillsborough County mayor, is not without her challenges and obstacles.

*She needs 75,000 signatures by July 6 to get the proposal on the November ballot. And there continue to be delays over the layout of the petition questions.

*She also acknowledges the need to “educate” citizens about why “it’s right; it’s ready; and it’s necessary.”

*She – as in Taking Back Hillsborough County Political Committee, Inc. – also needs money.

Stiles told a recent gathering of the Tiger Bay Club of Tampa that she has “no big money” behind her. “We need lots of contributions.” She also said she wasn’t worried. If necessary, she would “make up the difference.”

While Stiles wasn’t passing the hat, she didn’t leave empty-handed.

On his way out, Joe Redner dropped off a $100 bill for the cause.