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Greco's Name To Make Tracks

Photo from Steve Dickey

The statue of former Tampa Mayor Dick Greco sits on a bench in a foundry in Sarasota.

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By RICH SHOPES

The Tampa Tribune

Published: April 8, 2008

TAMPA - There's Curtis Hixon Park, William F. Poe Garage and Nick Nuccio Parkway, all named for former mayors. Now add to the list Dick Greco Transportation Plaza.

Hillsborough Area Regional Transit board members voted Monday to rename the Southern Transportation Plaza, the end point of the city's electric streetcar system, after Greco, mayor from 1967-74 and 1995-2003.

A bronze statue of Greco sitting on a park bench will be dedicated at the site next month.

"I'll be able to wave to myself as I drive by," said the former mayor, who now works for developer Carl Lindell and lives on Harbour Island.

The renaming is appropriate considering Greco's influence on the $56 million streetcar line, which links Ybor City, the Channel District and Tampa Convention Center, HART officials said.

The system, operated by HART, got rolling in October 2002 near the end of Greco's fourth term and after years of debate and planning.

The debate continued even after Greco's term because the system hasn't met ridership expectations and is costing more to operate than anticipated.

Officials say, however, they will extend the line to Whiting Street in 2010, which should boost ridership, and have developed a business plan to keep the system afloat for 20 years.

"He's dedicated much of his adult life to the city and was a major force behind the streetcar," said Councilman John Dingfelder, who also serves on the HART board.

HART owns the land where the plaza sits, but the statue eventually may be donated to the city's public arts program and maintained by the city, Dingfelder said.

The transit agency is looking to lease naming rights to the streetcar station at the plaza. If that happens, Greco's name still would be included in the new name.

The statue depicts Greco in his late 30s or early 40s reclining with his legs crossed and right arm stretched across the top of the bench. In addition to the statue, a poem about Greco by Tampa Poet Laureate James Tokley will be emblazoned on a plaque nearby.

Greco, 74, said it was strange to see himself in bronze.

"At the same time it's very, very nice of my friends to do that," he said. "I'll be able to sit with myself."

Dingfelder said he and friends were talking a year ago about how to honor Greco when someone suggested a bronze statue. The group raised $55,000 and commissioned sculptor Steve Dickey.

Reporter Rich Shopes can be reached at (813) 259-7633 or rshopes@tampatrib.com.

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