banging my head on a wall
tommy permalink | categories: county, election '06, environment, storms torrents, tampa, tax wasteby tommy @ 7:37 pm
Once again, Ronda Storms uses her colorful language skills to dis an entire class of citizens. But this time I happen to agree with her.
We wrote about the recent tax cut hike, and briefly mentioned a million dollar allocation for a noise wall at Cheval. The Tribune’s Mark Holan’s article on Saturday tells us of a bit of the history about the Great Wall Of Cheval (the bold below is always my emphasis).
Cheval residents and the Florida Turnpike, operators of the Suncoast Parkway, have been fighting about the wall since before the road opened in February 2001. A sound wall provides a buffer along both sides of the road, but there are gaps. On the east side of the road, the gap includes the eighth fairway of the Tournament Players Club of Tampa Bay…
The state says two rounds of noise tests show there isn’t sufficient benefit for spending the money to close the gaps. The opening next to the golf course “isn’t benefiting enough people to warrant the wall,” [Florida Turnpike environmental manager Raymond] Ashe said Friday…
Apparently TPC wants to help improve their customers’ games, and have decided to blame the highway traffic.
The state says two rounds of noise tests show there isn’t sufficient benefit for spending the money to close the gaps. The opening next to the golf course “isn’t benefiting enough people to warrant the wall,” [Florida Turnpike environmental manager Raymond] Ashe said Friday…
So the State won’t pay for it. But Norman wants it done. And is willing to spend $1,000,000 of your county money for it:
Norman wants… to coax the state into a partnership to complete the wall. He linked his effort to the [previously] planned widening of the Veterans Expressway… “They’re eight-laning up to Van Dyke, which is a quarter-mile away from this gap, and… it’s going to greatly impact one of our communities,” Norman said.
The million-dollar county offer surprised state transportation officials, who are unaccustomed to offers like this… “In the past, we have not had any local government funding for any noise abatement” said Matthew Click, intergovernmental coordinator for the Florida’s Turnpike Enterprise. “This is also precedent-setting because they are asking us to consider construction outside the identified project area.”
The main thrust of the article suggests Jim Norman offered to help those poor, destitute Cheval residents with their noise-abatement wall because they contribute to his election campaigns. I didn’t want to believe that. I mean, no one expects direct help from an elected official simply because they donated money to the campaign, right? But I don’t see any other plausable explanation.
Back to Ronda Storms: Norman suggested that plugging the gaps could cost $5 million, and the county should offer to throw in the $1M:
“I tell you, it’s pocket change,” Storms said.
“For who?” Norman asked.
“For the people who live in Cheval; they spend that on hot dogs on Saturday,” Storms replied.
Blair suggested that Cheval make use of the commission’s property tax cut, saying they “could take the millage reduction, put it together, and build two walls.”
Aye, aye, aye! So, not only do I agree with Ronda, but Brian Blair is making sense too? I gotta see a doctor.
Hey, as county commissioner, Jim Norman should be looking out for all his constituents, including those who happen to live in Cheval. But Jim Norman works for all of us in this county. This wall will never benefit anyone outside of that neighborhood, and only a few people within the neighborhood. If the State says they don’t need the wall, then they don’t need it.
Commissioners Ronda Storms, Brian Blair and Kathy Castor voted against the $1 million allocation. Ken Hagan, Tom Scott, Mark Sharpe, and Jim Norman voted to spend your money on this. November is right around the corner.
Tags: county, election '06, environment, storms torrents, tampa, tax waste
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July 31st, 2006 at 8:17 pm
I meant to post this comment in the other story…
Just because the overall tax bill went up doesn’t mean it was a tax cut. We expect the value of our homes to increase. So, county residents are paying less tax than they would have were the cut not passed.
Your bill is more than it was last year, but less than it would have been.
July 31st, 2006 at 9:25 pm
It’s-killing-me-to-say-this-I can-barely-type-I-too-agree-with-that-Harridan-of-Hillsborough.
Ack!
July 31st, 2006 at 11:07 pm
I recently met one of Jim Norman’s opponent’s at the Italian Club’s Friday Night Happy Hour in Ybor City. I like her. Her name is Yamel (pronouned Jamel) Arronte. Prior to meeting her, I was going to vote for Redner just to not vote for Norman. My wicked sense of humor would love for him to be on the County Commission!! Common sense prevailed and I realized Yamel would do the best job of representing my views and the citizens of Hillsborough County. She grew up in Tampa…I beleive she’s of Cuban/Hispanic heritage…her heritage matters not to me. Retired from the Air Force I beleive, her husband is from up north somewhere… Norman is too willing to spend my money on an EXPENSIVE athletic center in BFE northeastern Hillsborough County, noise buffers, reject gay rights and spend money on lawyers to fight strip clubs in the City of Tampa.
July 31st, 2006 at 11:26 pm
Tommy, the issue is a bit more complicated than you have made it here. When Cheval residents agreed NOT to block the construction of the Suncoast Parkway (by avoiding lawsuits) they were shown several renderings that included complete walls along the parkway through their community. (They have more evidence about this as well).
Then when Turnpike Authority built it, they failed to include a wall.
The residents of Cheval were victims of bait and switch by a government agency. All the residents want is to have the Turnpike Authority build what was promised.
I have actually been to some of the houses there and hear the noise from the unprotected and protected areas. It may not meet the guidelines required for a sound wall, but there is a considerable amount of both noise and lights (at night) from the Parkway.
Finally, although I don’t have access to the information now, the Florida Department of Transportation has gone back and supplied a wall for two stretches of Interstate (one in Jacksonville and one in Broward country) where the wall was not justified by noise levels. They built the walls to satisfy the community.
The Turnpike Authority wants to get buy in for Phase II of the Parkway through Citrus County. The Cheval residents can make a lot of noise about how the Authority is unable to deliver on its promises. That could delay Phase II for years in the courts.
You are right that the people in Cheval have enough money that they can pay for it themselves. It’s the principle that matters now.
August 1st, 2006 at 6:30 am
You may in fact be right, but do you ever notice that it is only rich folks who complain about principles? They agreed not to hold the whole region hostage via lawsuits that they could bring against the dot, stopping a badly needed roads project, so I should feel bad that they got shorted a wall?
August 1st, 2006 at 7:50 am
Ronda is full of sh*t. Many people in Cheval are millionaires and not truly bothered by the interstate and its noise. The ones who are bothered live near the back and are not the richest of the rich. Yes, they live in a gated community; however, have you seen their homes? They are modest and face an interstate! Those people were guaranteed something, like Jim Johnson stated earlier, and the government is not coming through on their end of the deal. Instead of addressing the issue, Ronda lets loose with an irrelevant and incendiary statement just for effect. How typical.
August 1st, 2006 at 8:21 am
Of course if it wasn’t Cheval but say, Fishhawk Ranch (in Ronda’s district) her toon would be different.
August 1st, 2006 at 8:47 am
I did do a quick check. I don’t know the area mind you but the article specifically mention the gap at the eighth fairway. Right on the eighth fairway and across from the parkway is cour estates. The homes there are selling right now for between $1.2 and $2 million. Of course there are cheaper homes in Cheval (cheaper being $350,000 that is about as ‘low end’ as you will find).
August 1st, 2006 at 8:54 am
Even if the Turnpike Authority screwed the neighborhood, it is still not the job of county government to pay for it. Jim Norman should instead use his political sway to get the job done, not our money.
August 1st, 2006 at 9:55 am
So we have to shell out the $ so the Suncoast Sprawlway Phase II will be fast-tracked? There isn’t enough sprawl in Florida yet?
August 1st, 2006 at 10:14 am
What time/night is Joe Redner’s public access TV show on? I bet this week he will spend the entire hour laughing his arse off at Jim Norman.
August 1st, 2006 at 1:20 pm
Hey I live just south of Chevel. Not only do I get the noise from Dale Mabry, but from the Gaither High School marching band. Maybe I should ask Gaither HS to build a wall around my neigborhood. OH WAIT…it’s not worth $1 million.
OK All kidding aside. Deliver what you promise. If these residents were promised a wall, then they deserve a wall. It doesn’t matter that I think they make way too much money, and I’m jealouse they live in a better house than me.
It doesn’t matter what they agreed “not to do”. An agreement was made. You have to stand up for what is right. You could be next.
August 1st, 2006 at 1:34 pm
Let’s not lose all track of reality here. The TA may have promised some things, but if Cheval was a poor ghetto the road would have been built right through the middle of it without little consultation and no promises. I guess my bleeding heart just doesn’t bleed much for people with enough money to take care of things themselves.
August 1st, 2006 at 1:35 pm
As a man who makes $70 bajillion a year, I can say that if the state promised to build the wall, the STATE should pay for it.
Not Jim Norman.
Speaking of which, Jim … when are you going to Vegas again? I heard you had a sick aunt out here. I’ve been dying to hit the poker tables.
August 1st, 2006 at 2:05 pm
yes Mister Jobs returns!
August 2nd, 2006 at 9:10 am
[...] On the heels of the well-to-do Cheval residents up in arms about the neighborhod wall, now comes some well-to-do Bayshore residents with their own protest. [...]
August 4th, 2006 at 11:12 pm
Hi I’m Yamel (ja-mel), Norman’s opponent. If reelected he will have served 18 years. As a social science educator in public schools I cringe. I am a service connected Army Veteran who was stationed in Germany as a Combat Medic. I’m married to a retired enlisted Army Tanker, also service connected. Government has no trouble falling short of their promises to those who serve (most being poor Americans looking for training, insurance and the GI Bill). They have no problem privatizing social services and insurance screwing the youth, elderly and underpaid we should defend. Spending millions of dollars on concrete instead of public transportation and filling in wetland to destroy our environment. My competition, Redner is a nice man but too much is at stake. The guy is tenacious as this is his 6th time running (1st time as a Democrat). But I don’t want my tax dollars spent in litigation. By the way I have a Masters Degree and own no business. How about we just vote for the local lady, no party affiliate. I’ll defend constitutional rights, support scholarship and animal sanctuary, bike paths and crossing walks, public transportation and services, and fight for affordable housing. All while maintaining our focus on attracting conventions and tourist to our lovely historic city and bringing forth local voices from community and commerce. http://www.arronte2006.com