Residents plead to spare programs

They were all ages, wearing colorful T-shirts and hats, holding signs and cheering full-blast.

Some pushed children in wheelchairs. Others, a little grayer, proudly wore red or white caps and service pins.

In all, about 700 people crowded into the cavernous All People's Life Center in North Tampa to ask Hillsborough County commissioners to spare their favorite programs from budget cuts.

All their stories were poignant and commissioners were rapt in their attention. But many of the programs are fated to be cut or eliminated. The county must make $110 million in budget cuts and the commission has ruled out any tax increases.

"It's unfortunate because everybody is feeling these cuts," said Commissioner Jim Norman. "But we can't raise taxes because we want to keep people in their homes."

About 200 people signed up to speak; many were accompanied to the microphones by children and adults holding signs.

The largest contingent was there to support the county's after-school and summer parks and recreation program. But there also were large numbers of supporters of Boys & Girls Clubs and the Bakas Equestrian Center, where handicapped children get to ride and care for horses.

Rasheeda Alexander said counselors at the Boys & Girls Club help her two children with their homework and "issues going on in their lives."

"I'd much rather see my kids in a safe environment, learning leadership skills and community service projects, than staying at home," Alexander said.

Carmen Gutwirth, a volunteer at the Town 'N Country county park, asked commissioners not to lay off the park's director, Lucy Romero. Gutwirth said Romero has reduced littering, vandalism and bullying at the park and the nearby neighborhood.

"The point is, all the educational expertise in the world cannot make up for people who have chosen children as their career," Gutwirth said.

Several speakers used humor to get their message across. Synthia Kavanagh posed coquettishly and described herself as a "teenaged kid who became a debt-free college graduate" because of her experiences at Jackson Springs county park.

"Look how many kids sacrificed their afternoon to come out and tell you how important the park program is," Kavanagh said, gesturing toward a group of children who stood up and cheered on cue.

Ken Kramer came to plead on behalf of the county's wilderness parks, which are slated to be closed several days a week under budget cuts proposed by County Administrator Pat Bean. Kramer said that since he retired, he's been a part-time canoe guide on the Hillsborough River. During that time he's paddled with visitors from 36 countries and all 50 states.

"I would ask you to please keep the wilderness parks open and keep an old man off the streets," Kramer said.

Most public hearings on the budget are held at the Fred B. Karl County Center in downtown Tampa. Moving a hearing to another venue was the idea of Commissioner Al Higginbotham, who also suggested that commissioners take questions from people at home via phone or e-mail.

"I'm so proud we did this; it will bring reality to the budget process," Higginbotham said. "It's obvious the public wants to have more access and input."

Commissioners listened to speakers from 6 until 10 p.m.

The next public hearing on the budget will be Sept. 8. The commission is to adopt the budget Sept. 17.