The Official Unofficial Seminole Heights Blog

From TBO.com

TAMPA - Mayor Pam Iorio confirmed this morning that she is considering running for the U.S. Senate next year.

If she ran, Iorio would enter a Democratic primary in which there are already two announced prominent candidates – U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek of Miami and state Sen. Dan Gelber of Miami Beach – and more expected.

“It was not something I was considering when there was a possibility that Alex Sink might run,” Iorio said this morning. “But since she bowed out, I have had people talk to me about it. So I am analyzing it, and that’s where I am right now. I have not ruled it out.”

Sink, also from Tampa, is Florida’s Chief Financial Officer and was considered the most powerful potential Democratic candidate. But Sink announced two weeks ago she won’t run and instead will run for re-election as CFO. Gelber had held off his own announcement, he said, because he didn’t want to run against Sink.

Republican Mel Martinez will leave the seat vacant when he retires in 2010.

Iorio said she has no self-imposed deadline for making a decision.

“I don’t want to declare any specific timeline,” she said. “I’m gathering info and facts and analyzing it.”

She didn’t want to say whom she’s talking to about the race, but said there are no major family considerations in her way.

“Both of my children are in college, and my husband and I are empty-nesters,” she said.

Iorio said she hasn’t previously talked about her interest in the race because “I have not wanted to have my name out there just for the sake of having it out there.”

Iorio is now in her second term as mayor and would leave office because of term limits after the 2011 election. If she won the Senate seat, she would miss only the last year of her tenure as mayor.

Florida Democrats have speculated that Meek and Gelber may split up the huge Democratic voting bloc in Southeast Florida, where about one of every three Florida Democrats live in Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties. That could create an easier path to a primary victory for candidate from the Tampa Bay area.

Iorio didn’t deny that calculation is part of her analysis of the race.

Iorio was elected mayor, a nonpartisan post, in 2003. Previously, she served as Hillsborough County elections supervisor from 1993 to 2003 and as a county commissioner from 1985 to 1992 - at the time the youngest commissioner ever elected.

Her husband, Mark Woodard, is an assistant county administrator in Pinellas County.

http://www2.tbo.com/content/2009/jan/27/iorio-considers-running-us-senate/c_2/#comments

This article is from yesterday’s Tampa Tribune.

By CHRISTIAN M. WADE | The Tampa Tribune Published: November 20, 2008 TAMPA - The Tampa City Council today gave a tentative nod to Mayor Pam Iorio’s plan to use $13.6 million in federal funding to buy foreclosed and abandoned homes — but not without criticizing the administration for keeping the council out of the loop. Councilman John Dingfelder said he has a lot of unanswered questions about how Tampa’s portion of $3.92 billion in neighborhood stabilization money will be used. “We haven’t had any input into this,” he said. Iorio’s plan calls for buying about 80 foreclosed homes that will be fixed up or torn down and resold. An additional 30 foreclosed properties will be bought with the money and rehabilitated as rental properties, requirements of the federal grant. Sulphur Springs, North Tampa and Old West Tampa have been identified as target areas based on the high rates of subprime mortgages, mortgage defaults and delinquencies. The city plans to work with nonprofit groups and charitable organizations to find eligible buyers. However, the money will not be available to homeowners facing foreclosure. The city’s plan for using the money must be submitted to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development by Dec.1. Cynthia Miller, the city’s growth management and development services director, said the council will have input as the program gets under way. “It can be modified in the future,” she said. “You all get to make the final call.” Council members plan to hold a workshop and public hearing on the plan in January. “I’m not convinced we’re using the money in the right way,” Councilwoman Mary Mulhern said. “Demolishing houses doesn’t sound like what the government intended.” http://centraltampa2.tbo.com/content/2008/nov/20/council-oks-iorios-plan-foreclosed-abandoned-homes/news/

Recently, Janet Zink, one of my favorite St. Pete Times Staff Writers wrote a post for tampabay.com. Like myself, Janet is wondering who is heir to the throne to become
Tampa’s next Mayor. While Iorio has drawn much criticism for her laid back leadership style, who will be next in line and what challenges will they face? What Iorio policies will be left to clean up, complete or continue? While I must admit, some of her “could be” heirs scare the heck out of me, some are tolerable. Read her thoughts below.

Tampa Mayor Pam Ioriowill finish her second term in office in 2011. Who’s best-suited to assume the mantle when she moves on? That’s the question posed in a new robo-call. The potential candidates listed in the survey: Hillsborough County Tax Collector Doug Belden, Hillsborough County Commissioner Rose Ferlita, former Tampa City Council member and one-time mayoral candidate Bob Buckhorn, City Council members Tom Scott, Linda Saul-Senaand John Dingfelder; and developer Ed Turanchik. Let the speculation begin…

 

This email came in from a neighbor in SH and may be a solution to the problem. I think the idea definitely has merit. Read On:

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One of the commonalities among the writers in all the emails are the feeling that the city cleaned up Kennedy and also Dale Mabry. Many felt that the city has abandoned SH and does not care nor will listen to the issues that are facing our neighborhood.

 

I think it may be time that SH speaks out and is heard LOUD AND CLEAR. Each month, City Council has their late night meeting.  If SH were to organize en mass a very large group of protesters to orderly march on the sidewalks with picket signs and chants, this would not only embarrass the city and TPD, but could cause the light to shine on the severity of the problem and more importantly every media in town would clamor to downtown for the story. It would be more symbolic in nature in that the location is more important as we would be protesting at the Mayor’s office (though likely not there) and City Hall. What is more important is the fact that once brought to light, we would have avenues to explore as follow-up to ensure that the efforts do not fade in typical TPD style. Anyone up for an old fashion protest?

The letter below was sent by a resident in SESH to Mayor Iorio regarding the city’s lack of assistance with prostitution. Read on.

_________________________

Mayor Iorio, 
   I have lived in SE Seminole Heights for 3 years and have never seen the prostitution activity on Nebraska Ave as bad as it is now. They walk the streets Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights from midnight til dawn. Friday I watched two Hillsborough HS students walking to school have to wait at a corner where a prostitute was waiting for her next customer. I always report the presence of these women and men to the TPD non-emergency number. I live next to the DJJ building, a frequent turnaround spot for the cars, and I leave for work very early in the AM. There is even activity on the daylight hours.  Saturday night I was awakened at 3:30 by car horns as one of the frquent visitors to our neighborhood was standing actually in the  middle of Nebraska. Our neighborhood is under no less than assault by these criminals. This weekend both vehicles in my drive were vandalized. The men that accompany these women are hardly good citizens themselves.

  We desperately need your assistance. We have a very concerned and socially active neighborhood. We are attempting to renew this historic area of the city. The obnoxious presence of this activity is no less than a blight on the city’s name. They were driven off Kennedy. They were driven off Dale Mabry - all within the years I have lived in Tampa. Please lead the fight to drive them off Nebraska.
  Thank you,

Below are 7 emails that came from the SESH Email group regarding the increase in prostitution and TPD lack of response. Read On…

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EMAIL ONE
I spoke to some DJJ staff and the camera on their building films the parking lot at the corner of McBerry where there was hooker activity both Friday and Saturday nights. It is a convenient turnaround spot and is often used. I was awakened by it last night at 3:30, phoned TPD and drove around to see the extent of it. I love losing sleep so I waited a while to send out this email. There were two black females and two males between Shadowlawn and Caracas. One stood out in the bus lane ON Nebraska. When I returned home she was in the middle of the road. A black Hummer was also driving up and down the side streets. This is now every Friday and Saturday night, all night. It begins around 11 or 12 and continues on til dawn. On Friday I saw two Hillsborough HS kids walking to school and stood at the corner of Osborne and Nebraska with the same woman I saw out last night. There is also a white woman who works the sidewalk during the day. I have lived here for 3 years and this is the worse I have seen. If TPD could get the DJJ staff to not erase the tapes from their cameras every day, they could easily clean up the activity at McBerry and get some good evidence for court. I was told by my neighbor that there was a TPD cruiser stopped there for a while but not at 3:30.

EMAIL TWO
On Thursday evening around 9:30 p.m. I saw two “girls” working. One at Nebraska and New Orleans and the other at Emma. I called TPD non-emergency. The dispatcher was a bit “put off” by my call. I advised them that I would wait at the corner to see how long it would take for a patrol car to show up. I was told that it might be a good while since it was not an emergency. Friday night, Joel’s cousin, who is visting, was returning home after an evening out at around 2:30 a.m. and saw no fewer that 8 prostitutes working. There were 4 north of Osborne and 4 south of Osborne. There was no obvious police presence. We are obviously being completely and totally ignored by the police authorities.

EMAIL THREE
I’ve seen the self employed ladies on 15th too….although the drug dealers outnumber them. It is getting worse instead of better. I had a rude awakening the other day after talking with my neighbor. He let me know what has been happening on my block. On this block alone there has been no less than 4 air conditioners stolen and 1 set of washer and dryers which was hooked up in the garage. I don’t know if the police were called or not. The neighbor 2 houses down from me had his front door kicked in sometime between 8 am and 10 am. He called the police and they were supposed to send someone out. As of 1 pm when I spoke with him they still had not shown up. He also told me about coming home and there was a black truck backed up through my lot and the 2 males were attempting to hook up his trailer that had 2 jet skies on it. They took off when they saw him coming. For the first time in the 8 years that I have been living here I am becoming increasingly concerned about the safety of myself and my home. I have strengthened the locks on all my doors but I am still uneasy about leaving town for any length of time. My friend on the corner of New Orleans and Olny came home to find a rock thrown threw his window. This is a trick that thieves do to see if an alarm goes off or not. If it does they move on. If it doesn’t they go in. Have we as a neighborhood been abandoned by the TPD?

EMAIL FOUR
Thank you J for sharing your infor on the activity out near 15th St We, as a neighborhood, need to stop talking, emailing, and take some action. We need to get watch teams organized to patrol the streets with cameras all night if necessary. We need to report all criminal activity to TPD. I have written to the mayor because of the sheer volume of activity that has been going on this past several months. I am about to start filming it for the news stations.

EMAIL FIVE (Weekly Hooker Report)
I am glad to see that others on here are upset b/c the problem is getting worse. Sun - No hookers at 1am Mon - One pregnant white hooker next to Ybor pizza. I called it in, but didn’t get a case number. When I checked the city website, there was no record. It seems the dispatcher sent my call to the circular file. I did get “tailed” by a marked unit when I was calling in this hooker. At least the officers will try and scare off what they think is a customer. This hooker is staying at the motel at Osborne and Florida. I saw her coming out of there with her pimp on Wed afternoon. Tue - No hookers at 1am Wed - No hooker at 2am Thu - didn’t go out to check Friday Night - The hookers were out an hour early tonight. I called in a report of 8 hookers at 1:45 am and the call was again not logged on the city website. I went home and heard on my scanner that an officer called in that he was doing “crime prevention activity” at Osborne and Nebraska, at 2:50. I am wondering if one car is going out to do a sweep b/c this is the third time that a unit has come out at ten before three. I went back out at 3:40 and the road was full of hookers and the johns were circling on all the side streets. By the time I circled around to get descriptions to call in, again, the hookers were all gone. Saturday Night - Again, as others have reported, Nebraska had 8 to 10 hookers most of the night. I called in the report and asked for the case number. The dispatcher said hold on, which told me that he hadn’t recorded anything. They almost always give their operator number when they answer the phone. I make it a point now to record both the operator number and the case number. As others have said, there has been an increase, in the past few weeks, in drug dealer pimp types on foot near the hookers. The problem is just as bad north of Hillsborough. Even when south of Hillsborough has one or no hookers, Nebraska north of Hillsborough has a half dozen each of hookers and drug dealers. There was also a hooker at the Circle K at Florida and Hillsborough sitting next to the pay phone. Also, on Wed night the individual who was arrested in this story, was standing in front of the Circle K aggressively panhandling. I thought he was going to rob someone or rob the store. Looks like my instincts weren’t too far off http://blogs.tampabay.com/breakingnews/2008/09/drug-bust-at-ta.html I had my desktop scanner on at home both Friday and Saturday nights. Part of the problem is that we are sharing resources with some very high crimes areas to the south and east of us. If you are out on Nebraska and Hillsborough, you won’t see many patrol cars b/c they are over in these other areas. We are getting one or two units to stop and move the hookers along but they know that the unit will get a call and they can get right back to hooking. Until a commitment is made to stop cars driving on the streets off Nebraska and making u-turns on Nebraska, the customers will continue to come into our neighborhood. Until units are consistently stopping and interrogating the hookers, disrupting their business, the hookers will continue to operate in our neighborhood. I am all for turning up the heat downtown. Hookers are not tolerated on Kennedy or Dale Mabry. They should not be tolerated on Nebraska Ave.

EMAIL SIX
I Wonder if Tampa could borrow some officers from a less busy city to do “hooker patrol” on Nebraska, the way cities do after a natural disaster. It seems to me that having all of these criminals swarming freely through our neighborhood is a disaster, and TPD’s resources are already stretched thin right now. “Borrow” some officers to spend the whole night driving through the hood and driving off and arresting the criminals.

EMAIL SEVEN
Send any tapes you get to one of the online news sources…

Recently, I received an email from a neighbor requesting that we write about the non-existent, interactive water fountain. The email includes a few of the milestones throughout the project. However, for those more familiar with the project, you may recall many more missteps throughout the project. This project has been the elephant in the room for WAY TOO MANY YEARS. It is time the Mayor step up, take control of the project and complete it all ready.
 

Dear blogger,
Below I have copied and pasted a few tidbits regarding the water fountain at Giddens park. I live near the park and was extremely excited at the prospect of walking my children to the park each Saturday to play. My kids are now in High School and the fountain is not completed. Instead of entertainment the fountain is now an eyesore for all of those that have to look at it every day. Maybe with enough encouragement from our neighborhood, the mayor will finally oversee her project to completion. Can you please help?
  
In 2003, Sean Lengall’s article in the Tampa Tribune
“We didn’t want to plan [the park improvements] too definitively because we want the neighborhood to help define it,” Budde said. Project coordinators will forward residents’ ideas to landscape architects, who will draft a final design. Work on Giddens Park is expected to begin later this year and to be completed by year’s end, Budde said.
 
Published May 27, 2005
An article in the St. Petersburg Times  mentioned some of the earlier problems.
http://www.sptimes.com/2005/05/27/Citytimes/Homeowners_preview_Gi.shtml 
 
In the March 31, 2008 City of Tampa Community Redevelpment Agency Quarterly TIF Financial Report and Capital Improvement Project Status for the Quarter Ending March 31,
 
Neighborhood Infrastructure
These funds will be used to install/improve neighborhood infrastructure,
including but not necessarily limited to sidewalks, roadways and streetlights.
Includes Giddens Park Fountain, and other improvements and equipment to
area parks and recreation facilities.
 
 
FY ‘07 = $1,117,600
Actual = $187,723
Encumbered = $37,499
Balance = $892,378
 
According to this budget, there is money to be spent. Yet, poor leadership and project management seems to be holding up the entire process.
 
As recent at July 2008, The Tampa Tribune had the following the article: http://southtampa2.tbo.com/content/2008/jun/04/st-wait-for-fountain-is-almost-over/?news
The question becomes, should the Mayor’s office be held responsible for a project that bears her name? The answer is YES. In an effort to speed up the process, I would encourage you to email her office to voice your frustration. Maybe with enough “encouragement” we can get her to focus on completing this longstanding project. You can email her directly at Pam.Iorio@ci.tampa.fl.us