Sticks of Fire: a Tampa blog

The City of Tampa has given their website a face-lift. Mayor Pam Iorio had the site redesigned, and created a Customer Service Center where you can report on neighbors flouting the water restrictions & accumulating junk cars, complain about the drug dealers & prostitutes just past your driveway, or simply report a pothole or missed garbage pickup. In addition, Mayor Pam has outlined her Five Areas of Strategic Importance. Those areas include:

1. Investing in Neighborhoods
2. Economic Development in Our Most Challenged Areas
3. Creating a Residential Community Downtown
4. Efficient City Government focused on Customer Service
5. City of the Arts

Hmmm there seems to be a mistake. I don’t see where “create groups for EVERYTHING” is listed, and it’s obvious that would be high on her priority list:

First Mayor Pam visited east Tampa. She quickly created an agency to handle economic development. Then along came Richard Florida with his “creative class” idea. Mayor Pam fell in love with this theory, and hired a “creative industries manager” and a “director of arts and cultural affairs.” Next, a jogger got killed by a motorcyclist on Bayshore. Mayor Pam created a “task force to improve safety” on Bayshore. Yesterday, Mayor Pam visited Sulphur Springs and promptly declared she would form an environmental round table. I wonder what kind of group it was that helped with the website redesign…

So, in addition to the Managers and Directors, Mayor Pam has already created an agency, a task force, and a round table. At this rate, Mayor Pam can create a committee, a group, a board, a team, a commission, an organization, an outfit, a congregation, a panel, and a council within the next year and a half. Then I guess she’ll have nothing to do but begin work on her reelection campaign.

Inspired by a new TLC television series, “Now Who’s the Boss,” executives at the Don CeSar traded places with front-line employees. At the end of the day, results from an opinion and feedback survey were analyzed and department heads gave feedback on how executives performed in their new roles.

What a great idea. Bosses can see exactly what kind of issues the employees have to deal with, re-learn basics of their business, and understand exactly how the employees interact with and impact customers’ experiences. Employees get to see that the executives don’t necessarily have easy or “cushy” jobs. More companies should do this to keep in touch with customers as well as to improve employee relations.

I love the old buildings downtown – the old Floridan Hotel, Woolworth’s, etc. – I can always imagine all the activity that used to surround them 40, 60, 80 years ago. Every time I walk around downtown Tampa, I take a trip by my favorite of these – the old Maas Bros building on Franklin. Sometimes, I’ll walk around the entire block, wondering who would buy it, how they could restore it, what amazing things I could find inside it. The last couple years have seen the Maas building fall into serious disrepair. The city removed the old awnings last year, for safety reasons. It’s a great old building, but to look at the details, you would see how this place really needs serious help. It’s got a really nasty stench to it – decay, mold…. It’s really stinky. Along with a handful of other old downtown buildings, firefighters have been ordered not to save Maas Bros, should it catch fire. And now the city council wants it razed for future development. I actually remember shopping there in the late 80’s/early 90’s… Now I’ll never get to look around inside… and today my heart is a little bit broken.

Florida entered the Union on March 3rd, 1845. So two days ago, we turned 159 years old. I know, I know – you in New England have got underwear older than that. Happy Birthday anyway, Florida. Thanks to “you can’t get there from here” for the head’s up and the link.

Live in Hillsborough County? The library wants you to read “Anna in the Tropics.” The “One Book, One Community” concept, which started in Seattle has caught on in several places, and the Hillsborough County Public Library wants it to catch on here. This year’s book is actually a Pulitzer-prize winning play by Nilo Cruz. Cruz won his Pulitzer for this play based on a 1920’s Ybor City cigar factory, it’s owners, the factory workers, and the lector (reader). The playwright will be at the Centro-Asturiano tonight, along with a Tampa history display, and he’ll stick around to sign some books. Cruz will also be at the John F. Germany (downtown Tampa) branch tomorrow morning. The Tribune had two stories in today’s edition, and the Weekly Planet reviewed the book. My family and I will be in New York later this month, and I was really looking forward to enjoying the Broadway production. (My wife would have like to seen Jimmy Smits, who played the lector). But “Anna” only lasted 3 months there, and closed two weeks ago – just my luck. Anyway, I like the idea of one book, one community, so I’m going to read the play. Won’t you?

Once again: If you buy a house, rent an apartment, or sleep in the woods, and you choose to do so in the pathway of an airport that has been around for quite some time, there is a good chance it may be noisy once in a while. In 2003, 58 people filed 261 noise complaints. But 172 of those complaints came from only 5 residents. Tampa International Airport should be commended for attempting to appease their neighbors, but it should be obvious to those homeowners that the airport and the noise are not going away. This is like moving next to a railroad crossing, and demanding an end to all the train whistles.

Perhaps those folks in Valrico could trade their houses for those south of the airport.

Life is funny. Last weekend, I cut down a bunch of branches, and cut them to make sure the “yard waste” guys would take them this morning. This weekend, I’m going to buy some mulch. HA!

City/County Government money watch:

Wise moves:
County gives up on moving Brandon’s historical Galvin-Jaudon House: No one said anything about this house until the First Baptist Church, who owns the land, planned to raze the house to provide parking. All of a sudden, the Brandon Historical Association was formed. Already too much time & money has been spent on this thing. To the Brandon Historical Association: Start working on your next project NOW – don’t wait until years after it’s rightful owner announces plans to demolish it.

Commissioners approve Hart audit: The bus system is a mess. Questionable (corrupt?) management just adds to the nuisance that is known as HARTline. According to the census bureau, less than 2% of Hillsborough County residents use the public transportation to get to work (thanks to DebWire for that link). The Trib ran a story referring to a study that seniors rely less on public transportation here than in Davenport, Iowa. The bus routes are ill-timed and inconvenient. As one senior says “I’d have to start walking today to catch the bus the day after tomorrow.”

Undecided:
Rate increases not yet showing an increase in revenues. This one will have to wait for further information. The city had to do something; it was losing money on the operations of the parking garages. I think it will prove to be the right move, but we’ll see.

Two weeks ago, I noted a fatality on Dale Mabry. The pedestrian was the idiot in that case. Last week, I wrote that walkers are getting killed all over Tampa, not just on Bayshore. Apparently, the Tribune must have seen my notes, and sent some crack reporters to get the facts. Well, I was right: Vehicles kill walkers all over the city, and (sarcasm) surprise, surprise (/sarcasm) it’s more pervasive in the less elite parts of town. In the past 4 years there’s been exactly one pedestrian death in or near the Bayshore neighborhoods. Of course that one has got the city’s panties in a bunch. On the other hand, perhaps this citywide issue needed some attention, and the unfortunate incident on Bayshore brought it out.

Anyway, accompanying the Trib’s story today (print edition), is a picture of a woman crossing Nebraska Av. near Waters Av., with a big van bearing down on her. The key word in that last sentence? NEAR. The woman is a short distance from the stoplight, where there is a freakin’ crosswalk. Ay ay ay!