Sticks of Fire: a Tampa blog

The recent forum on the SOHO parking problems clearly showed no real answers are in the immediate offering.

Demand currently continues to exceed availability on as many as 4 nights each week. At some point, the City hopes to eliminate street parking on residential streets, including half of Westland and parts of Azeele and Horatio resulting in 100 or more spaces being lost.

On the 300 block of South Howard, animosity between the current tenants and the efforts of Whiskey SOHO owner Tommy Ortiz is escalating. Many claims and accusations are flying. Some are valid and some are not.

The van we have pictured here has been parked in front of Sangrias for over a week. Many of the building’s tenants claim that vehicles such as this are being parked and left here on purpose. These business owners say someone is leaving unattractive automobiles in needed spaces for extended periods of time to prevent real customers from using the spaces, and to purposely damage their business.

This SOHO Parking War of 2007 is deeply affecting the political campaigns of City Council Candidates Julie Brown and John Dingfelder. Charges from supporters of both candidates have been flying back and forth. A lesser known candidate in the race, Joseph Citro has not been drawn into it thus far. We do not plan to take a stand in this race at this time, but we will try to clear up falsehoods or shortcomings when we see them.

Those of you concerned about the parking problem should not focus all of your attention on this individual council race. The candidates in other seats will have a vote on these crucial issues affecting SOHO as well. But the real attention needs to be directed to the Mayor’s race.

I have had several discussions with Mayor Iorio, and the option of a city parking garage being built in SOHO has NO chance of being considered due to the high costs of land and construction. With Hartline doing nothing to address the possibility of better mass transit in SOHO, leadership is needed now. Many SOHO businesses and residents feel neglected as their financial contributions to the city and county keep rising. The new inflow of tax money from the many new townhouses and upgrades in the South Howard area has to be significant.

As we have indicated on many occasions, while the accusations come and go, there is nothing like looking the candidate in the face and asking them your questions directly. You have that right and you have that opportunity. We hope you take advantage of it.

Previous Articles relating to this:

• The Start of the SOHO Parking War 2007
• SOHO Parking Problems Exist - No Real Solutions
• The Parking Issue - Creating Problems in SOHO
• You Can’t Always Get What You Want

One Hundred Million Served 

In addition to a partnership with Sticks of Fire, you may know that the Tampa Marketing Company also has agreements with TampaForums, TampaGold.com, SoHoTampa.com, and a couple more.  Combined, it looks like those sites will reach 100,000,000 page views - yeah, one hundred million! - for the year of 2006!

At Your Service

Along with the holiday season, we are going to celebrate that milestone this Tuesday, December 12 at the 42nd St. Bistro.  All of you readers, writers, and lurkers are invited to join us on Tuesday and help yourself to free hors d’oeuvres, live music (two great bands!), and cash bar.  There will also be free goodie bags for those that get there the earliest (once they are gone, that’s it)!

Serviceman Returns

In addition to all that, there will be a great guest of honor.  US Airman, Sticks contributor, and local internet superstar Smitty is back from a tour of duty in Africa.  If for nothing else, come out and welcome Smitty home and buy the guy a beer.

Get more information from your personal invitation to the party, and we will see you Tuesday at 6pm at the Bistro!

This past Friday night Traci took me to Charley’s Steak House to celebrate my birthday.  Charley’s is located near the Tampa airport off of W. Cypress.  Charley’s also has several locations in Orlando, where the old-Florida style steakhouse got its start. 

I had never been to Charley’s before, but had heard good things about it from several friends.  Charley’s regularly makes a variety of “top steak house” lists.  A few weeks earlier I had dined at Bern’s Steak House on S. Howard and I was interested in seeing how the two compared.

For our appetizer we ordered the beef Carpaccio.  My only complaint was that there wasn’t more of this tasty delight on our plate and it was drizzled a little too heavily with what tasted like a spicy creole mustard.  For our main course, I ordered a filet topped with a lump crabmeat mixture and Traci ordered a grilled chicken with a slice of pineapple and cherry. Charley’s flame broils all of its meat over a natural wood burning pit which gives the meat a unique flavor.  Each entree came with a small house salad. For sides, we went with creamed spinach and fried green tomatoes.

My filet was nicely done and the lump crabmeat was a nice topper.  I had a few bites of Traci’s chicken and thought it was well done, too.  The fried green tomatoes weren’t too greasy and were lightly breaded.  The creamed spinach was a little bit of a disappointment.  Just okay, nothing great.  For dessert, we had a flour-less warm chocolate brownie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.  Throw in a bottle of wine and two glasses of a dessert wine, and overall we had a very enjoyable experience.

Maybe I just caught Bern’s on an off time, but I thought my steak and meal overall was better at Charley’s.  In terms of unique experience, it’s hard to beat Bern’s world-class wine collection, famous dessert room and the rich history of the place.  I can understand why it has become a Tampa institution, but the next time I want a great steak, I’m going back to Charley’s - not Bern’s.

What’s your favorite steak house in Tampa Bay? 

Bottom-line: If you’re looking for great steaks and top quality service in a more casual setting, at prices a notch under Bern’s, then Charley’s Steak House is a great choice.  I’ll definitely be back.

Inspection Scorecard: Last Inspection - August 2006 - violations - Critical (0), Non-Critical (0).

Politics, money, and more - how it may be playing a part in SoHo real estate, bars, and restaurants.

The zoning change requested for the 300 block of S. Howard currently occupied by The Dubliner, Sangrias, SohoSushi, and others took an interesting turn at the Nov. 16th City Council meeting. Property owner Frank Kane teamed with Whiskey Park owner Tommy Ortiz to address the main questions of increased parking needs that would occur with the creation of a cigar bar/restaurant on the second floor.

Rumors have circulated for months that the Whiskey Park group is interested in much more than just the upstairs of the building facing Howard Avenue. With the shortage of parking already a major problem in SOHO, the addition of another club will only increase that demand. Not only that, but there will likely be 100 fewer spots as the city considers a reduction of street parking on parts of Westland, Azeele, and Horatio streets (emergency vehicles need the room).

Mr. Ortiz shocked council members when he reported he had either acquired property or negotiated alliances with enough locations to provide a total of 600 parking spaces in SOHO for the additional crowds expected on the 300 block. Knowing the limited parking currently in SoHo, council members John Dingfelder and Linda Saul-Sena seemed stunned to hear such a large number, and questioned some of the specifics in the plan presented by Mr. Ortiz.

Councilmember Kevin White also questioned the reality of available parking. Council Member Shawn Harrison seemed to be most concerned about the wet zoning license. He wanted to know why the desired wet zone includes almost the entire property from border to border, and why designation should stay with the property, regardless of whether parking was added later. Councilmember Gwen Miller stayed quiet through most of the discussion. Rose Ferlita did not.

Councilmember Rose Ferlita was the only council member to aggressively support the Whiskey Park proposal. To me, it appeared that Mr. Ortiz was most eager to get the issue passed at that meeting. He produced over a dozen witnesses to testify as to his soundness in business, cooperativeness with the neighbors, and his ability to bridge various issues. Along with the promise of 600 parking spaces, Ferlita accepted that at face value, and was ready to support the wet zone designation.

Remember, this was the final City Council meeting for both Rose Ferlita and Kevin White. They are leaving City Council to become members of the Hillsborough County Board of County Commission.

I wondered about Ferlita’s unquestionable support for Mr. Ortiz plan, and remembered watching as she stuck campaign signage into the ground in front of the existing Whiskey Park SoHo. So that got me curious. Turns out there might be a bit more to this.

Corporate records indicate Tommy Ortiz and/or Christopher Scott are officers of at least eight different entities. Separately or together, they are involved with Skybar of Tampa, Precision Marketing & Promotions, Tampa Hyde Park Cafe, Tampa Hyde Park Properties, 309 Holdings, Harmony 420, CPT Acquisitions, Tampa Concessions, and 720 South Howard. Along with their personal contributions of $500 apiece, each of those businesses contributed the maximum $500 allowed by law to Ms. Rose Ferlita’s campaign. It appears that most of those checks were bundled and received by Ferlita’s campaign on June 22.

Campaign contributions also came from South Tampa Rentals owned by Frank Kane, the actual owner of the 300 block. Peter Hannouche, who shows up on corporate records with Mr. Ortiz, also gave $500. The Rose Ferlita Republican County Commission campaign raised over $400,000 in total contributions.

To be sure, none of those contributions look to be illegal. However, we believe council member Ferlita should have excused herself from participating in this issue or at the very least acknowledged her relationship with the petitioners. It raises questions in our eyes and in the eyes of the public as to whether our elected officials can be bought. And it is certainly not a good way to start a new elected position.

The final result at the City Council Meeting was to allow time for some compromise discussion and to continue the zoning request to be heard at the December 7th meeting. Additional public input (that Mr. Ortiz & friends were trying to avoid?) will be allowed at that meeting. Rightfully, most council members want proof of parking leases and property ownership before they are willing to approve this zoning change request.

All council members voted to continue the zoning request - including Rose Ferlita. When Mr. Ortiz questioned that decision, John Dingfelder suggested “It is better than being denied.”

You can call the City Council at (813) 274-8131

You can see the Ferlita Campaign Finance Reports here. http://www.votehillsborough.org/CFFilingDetail.aspx?type=contribution&file_id=1508

You can verify corporate officers here: http://sunbiz.org/corpweb/inquiry/cormenu.html

This week’s Creative Loafing includes Wayne Garcia’s The Money Men, a breakdown of some other very “generous” givers in the recent local elections. http://tampa.creativeloafing.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A143851

Read more about what’s going on in SoHo.

The recent Times redesign also gave them the chance to begin a new marketing campaign. The latest catchphrase from them is “Know It Now.” But that’s not entirely accurate.

Last Friday, Rick Gershman of the St. Pete Times looked into some changes coming to SoHo. The article, “Word on the street about SoHo” includes stories about Whisky Park closing or moving, zoning changes in the building currently housing The Dubliner, and St. Bart’s creating a members-only private club. Certainly news that is important for businesses and residents in that area of town.

But you see, our good friend Bill Sharpe wrote about the zoning changes and what they mean two weeks ago. In his “On The Street” column, SoHo Bill also told you about the decision to make St. Bart’s a private club and the closing and demolition of Whisky Park way back in June – Five months ago!

Two things here. First – It should now be quite clear that traditional media is getting more stories and information (and headlines!) from non-traditional media without always acknowledging it.

Second - If you want to know what’s going on in your neighborhood, you need to check with your neighbors. The newspapers are among the LAST to know.

We were in the mood for pizza this past weekend so we decided to head to Gourmet Pizza Company in SoHo at the corner of Swann & S. Armenia.  As the name implies, Gourmet Pizza specializes in pizzas with gourmet toppings.  Everything from center-cut rib eye to crawfish tails.While most folks get their pies to-go at Gourmet Pizza Company, we decided to eat-in this time for a change.  On this visit we ordered a custom 12-inch pizza with pepperoni, sausage and caramelized red onions and a 12-inch chicken smoked gouda pizza.  This specialty pizza comes with gouda cheese, grilled chicken, the same caramelized onions and crumbled smoked bacon pieces.

The two pizzas were more than enough food for Traci and me, but we also went with an order of breadsticks, which had been great when we ordered them previously.  Unfortunately, this time the breadsticks had more of a raw dough taste to them. The breadsticks were dripping in delicious butter and cheese like before, but we couldn’t get past the doughy taste and let most of them sit.

As for the two pizzas, both were tasty, and loaded with fresh toppings.  Maybe it was because I already had dough on the brain, but I noticed more of a semi-cooked doughy taste to the crust than I had before too.  Don’t get me wrong, though.  These were still two good-tasting pizzas and I boxed up what was left for home.

While the place isn’t perfect, I’d rather order a pizza from Gourmet Pizza all day long over the chain gang of Papa John’s, Domino’s, Little Caesars and even local chain Westshore Pizza.  Other local pizza places I’ve tried include Galley Pizza on S. Westshore, which does a pretty good pizza, and Sally O’Neal’s on S. Howard, where I found the pizza and service to both be pretty mediocre. 

So what’s your favorite local pizza joint?

Bottom-line:  If you’re looking for a unique twist on your next pizza, Gourmet Pizza Company in SoHo is worth checking out.  They deliver downtown and throughout most of south Tampa.

Inspection Scorecard: Last Inspection:  September 2006 violations - Critical (12), Non-Critical (4). 

SoHoTampa.com is sponsoring a Pub Crawl to benefit the Lance Armstrong Foundation.  The crawl is this Saturday in SoHo.

A pub crawl starts at one location at and proceeds to each bar in a designated order.  Each location has specific drink specials, food specials, giveaways, etc.  This Pub Crawl includes specials at every bar, PLUS the opportunity to see three different bands and meet a movie star.

Advance tickets are $20, but if you wait until the day of, you will pay $30.  Proceeds go to the Lance Armstrong Foundation, LiveSTRONG.  Please go to SoHoTampa and sign up now!  The first 200 to sign up get a commemorative t-shirt.

YOU MUST BE 21 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER TO PARTICIPATE, and PROPER ID IS REQUIRED. 

Local bands to be performing that night include the JGLB, Blue Collar Whiskey, and The Crime.  Special Guest Krista Grotte plays the role of Necro Nancy in The Nightmare Collection, and will be signing autographs at some point along the Pub Crawl.

Bonus for Sticks Readers:  The 20th person to come up to me (I’m in one of the bands mentioned above) that night, and tell me they heard about the pub crawl on Sticks of Fire will get 2 free tickets to an upcoming concert.

JGLB and the SportChix, originally uploaded by tommyduncn.

Lynne Austin, BL, and Heather Young are the Sportchix.  Jim Lighthall also contributes to the program when he’s not doing color analysis for the USF Bulls Mens Basketball team.  Monica is the producer of the show.  Sports fans will know that the Sportschix have been back on the air since August. 

All of them turned up at the 42nd St. Bistro on Saturday night to celebrate BL’s birthday!  Plenty of other friends showed up to celebrate as well, including our good friend John Thomas from ABC Action News.  There is evidence a good time was had by all.

You should go out and see JGLB  - you never know who is going to make an appearance!