Sticks of Fire: a Tampa blog

District 4 is that “South County” you have heard so much about. It’s everything east of 39 and south of Hwy 60, except along the coastline, which is district 1. The much beloved Ronda Storms is leaving to pursue a Senate seat.

Independent Jean Batronie, Republican Al Higginbotham and Democrat Lisa Rodriguez are campaigning to replace the irreplaceable Ms. Storms.

You can read Lisa’s Vision on her website. She has a lot of visions and not much ‘splaining about how she wants to pay for them.

GROWTH MANAGEMENT

• Improve Roads and Transportation
• Address Water and Stormwater issues
• Respect Community-based Plans

LOCAL SERVICES

• Enhance Fire and EMS services
• Support Sheriff’s Community Outreach
• Strengthen Code Enforcement

ENVIRONMENT

• Protect Coastal areas and Wetlands
• Improve Parks and Recreation areas
• Provide greenspace for communities

Jean Batronie (NPA) doesn’t include her position statements, but an interview in August gives an idea of what is important to her. Here is an excerpt:

• Growth Management-No doubt about it, it is a lot worse today than what it was back in 2004. If nothing is done now to stop all this developing, Tampa will be the next expensive city to live in right behind New York and San Francisco. Don’t get me wrong, growth is good for economy. But not when it runs rampant to the point that it puts heavy a burden on our county roads and threatens our natural resources; especially in the area of water and conservation. We MUST foster RESPONSIBLE growth.
• Transportation-We need a more reliable transportation system between Plant City, Brandon, and Tampa. This will help cut down on congestion, promote better traffic flow and help protect the environment.
• Community Trust-We have to bring HONESTY, TRUST, RESPECT and FAITH back to our local government by keeping the community better informed on the issues involving them. County officials must be held accountable to their constituency.
• Human Rights-Plain and simple; All men, and women are created equal and are endowed by the creator with certain unalienable rights. Among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. REGARDLESS of race, creed, sex, age, national origin, religion, physical handicap, political affiliation, or SEXUAL ORIENTATION.

You might be able to find out more information on Jean’s other pages:

• Yahoo Group Vote 4 Jean
• Myspace Group Vote for Jean in 2006
• Myspace page
• Myspace Blog

Al Higginbotham (REP) doesn’t have a policy page or a stance on the issues or any vision listed, but it’s just as well – he has “Terms & Conditions” of using his website:

ALL CONTENTS ON THIS SITE ARE PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT. EXCEPT AS SPECIFICALLY PERMITTED HEREIN, NO PORTION OF THE INFORMATION ON THIS WEB SITE MAY BE REPRODUCED IN ANY FORM, OR BY ANY MEANS, WITHOUT PRIOR WRITTEN PERMISSION FROM AL HIGGINBOTHAM VISITORS OR USERS ARE NOT PERMITTED TO MODIFY, DISTRIBUTE, PUBLISH, TRANSMIT OR CREATE DERIVATIVE WORKS OF ANY MATERIAL FOUND ON THIS SITE FOR ANY PUBLIC OR COMMERCIAL PURPOSES.

Wait – pretend you didn’t read that – I don’t wanna get in trouble. Al does have a couple commercials you can watch.

You know that I have been including the Tribune Q&A article on our previous posts (BOCC D1 and BOCC D3). Districts four and five have a bit of a twist. It seems the Tribune chose to only provide answers from the Democrat and Republican candidates. In Districts 4 and 5, there are also independents running in the race. Jean Batronie says she was never given the questionnaire. And the Tribune does not list Batronie as an option on their BOCC district 4 index page. But since our election process allows independents to run (even if it doesn’t give ‘em much of a chance at winning), and Batronie is listed on the ballot, I asked Batronie to answer the Tribune’s questions. Please click below to see ALL District 4 candidates answers to the Tribune questions.

QUESTION: How will you vote on the nonbinding referendum about regulating adult entertainment? As a commissioner, what will you do if Tampa declines to pass regulations as tough as those adopted by Hillsborough County?

• Al Higginbotham: I am on record in support of the referendum. I am committed to cooperatively work with all three municipalities to ensure Hillsborough County is a wonderful place to live, work and raise a family.
• Lisa Rodriguez: I will work to build a consensus with all three cities — Tampa, Temple Terrace and Plant City — to ensure that the adult entertainment business is contained to certain designated areas and abides by all current law.
• Jean Batronie: I believe that the regulations are more than adequate in regards to the adult entertainment industry.

QUESTION: What are the two or three most important steps Hillsborough commissioners can take to reduce traffic congestion and improve transportation?

• Al Higginbotham: First, make sure road projects which [that] are under way or currently scheduled are completed in a timely and cost-effective manner. Second, encourage through both public and private sectors an atmosphere which [that] includes all ideas to solutions whether they are roadways or other means of mass transportation.
• Lisa Rodriguez: We must work with all the other governmental agencies and find ways to fund improvements to our local roads prior to development, make [HART]line more “user friendly” and consider light rail and ferries.
• Jean Batronie: ONe of the most important steps is to implement a more user friendly and dependable public transportation system. Also we must take serious steps to create a light rail system. The answer is NOT to continue to build highways in the sky, it’s just perpetuating the transportation crisis.

QUESTION: What are the two or three most important steps Hillsborough commissioners can take to manage growth and provide more affordable housing?

• Al Higginbotham: Families want to live in Hillsborough County because of our attractive location and economy. We must appropriately plan for growth and development so we continue [to] enjoy a strong and robust economy.
• Lisa Rodriguez: We need to really start looking at the impact that massive growth has on our quality of life and work with the developers to give back to our community in the way of infrastructure. Affordable housing must be addressed with a comprehensive plan that involves a cooperative effort between the public and private resources, and we must protect our existing housing.
• Jean Batronie: The growth crisis is at epidemic level. We must halt all residential growth and give our infrastructure a chance to catch up. If the developers and builders are willing to provide affordable housing that people of all walks of life can afford, than they will be invited and allowed to build affordable homes and as a sidebar to also pay their fair shre for the privilege of building in Hillsborough County.

QUESTION: Does Hillsborough spend too much, too little or about the right amount of tax money on services and projects? What part of the county budget do you think could be cut to provide more tax relief?

• Al Higginbotham: Our county budget should not grow at a faster pace than our personal incomes. We should strive to prioritize programs which [that] need funding adjustments and live within our means.
• Lisa Rodriguez: Too little goes to the right services. I would work to see that we stop wasting money on frivolous lawsuits, special interest projects (the proposed soccer complex) and make our dollars work for us in the areas of transportation, water and affordable housing.
• Jean Batronie: I feel that way too little is being spent on the residents of Hillsborough County. Our services have been neglected and shortchanged for far too long. As to the answer to what part of the budget that’s a no brainer. All the self serving ego building pet projects of the current commissioners and maybe also exam the curretn salaries of the commissioners. It does sound to me as they are being well overpaid for a part time position.

QUESTION: How would you rate the performance of the county commission over in the past two years, and what is the single most important thing you could do as a commissioner to improve what happens in the next two years?

• Al Higginbotham: There is always room for improvement. My experience in both the private and public sector [sectors] gives me a unique, common-sense approach to working with people from all walks of life in finding solutions to our complex challenges here in Hillsborough County.
• Lisa Rodriguez: Their performance has been poor with major issues neglected. I’m running because I am not happy with the direction of this very partisan commission. When elected, I will bring a fresh voice of reason, respect and cooperation to find real solutions to the real problems that we face.
• Jean Batronie: That’s easy, it sucks and it has for more than just the last two years. I feel that we all have to be better informed of what is happening behind closed doors at the county commission. We must bring honesty, trust, and respect back into our local government, all county officials must be held accountable to the community they represent.

QUESTION: What’s your position on changing county government to include an elected county mayor?

• Al Higginbotham: Adding another layer of bureaucracy could be costly to the taxpayers without substantial data supporting the benefits. I do not support the county mayor referendum. If voters are unhappy with an elected official, they should not return them to office.
• Lisa Rodriguez: Thanks to the mishandling at the Supervisor of Elections office, voters must now wait until 2008 to voice their opinion. What we now have is not working for the common people; so whatever the outcome, I will work to make Hillsborough County a better place to live and raise our families.
• Jean Batronie: At first, I was leaning towards a county mayor. The last thing that Hillsborough county needs is another political office. I feel and believe with all my heart that by holding the county commissioners accountable and responsible to the people of the county and be very vigilant at this task that a county commission will do a better job of looking out for the Hillsborough community.

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