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Former Mayor Has Sit-Down With Himself

Tribune photo by JULIE BUSCH

A statue of former Tampa Mayor Dick Greco now rests near the Trolley Terminal at the Marriott Waterside Hotel in Tampa.

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By RICH SHOPES

The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 30, 2008

TAMPA - A year and a half ago, former Mayor Dick Greco jokingly suggested that if his friends wanted to erect a statue to him, it should depict him sitting on a bench.

"That way I could sit next to myself," he said.

On Thursday, Greco did just that.

At the unveiling of his likeness across from the Tampa Convention Center, Greco promptly sat next to his bronze self and mugged for the cameras.

"It was said that Dick was often beside himself during his administration," joked radio personality Jack Harris, the master of ceremonies. "Now we have proof."

The life-sized statue depicting the four-term mayor - Greco served from 1967 to '74 and from 1995 to 2003 - was unveiled at the Southern Transportation Plaza, the streetcar's end point behind Embassy Suites. Greco was a major force behind creating the streetcar system.

The station was renamed Dick Greco Plaza, and Tampa Poet Laureate James Tokley dedicated a poem to him. Among the attendees were Mayor Pam Iorio and former Mayor Bill Poe.

Councilman John Dingfelder said he and friends a couple of years ago were discussing how to honor Greco when someone suggested a bronze statue. The group raised $55,000 and commissioned sculptor Steve Dickey.

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