Commissioner says this is wrong time for transit tax

County Commissioner Jim Norman lambasted his commissioner colleagues Thursday for wanting to put a 1-cent transportation tax on the ballot when the local economy is staggering from record bankruptcies, foreclosures and unemployment.

Norman, speaking at a workshop on transportation, said his fellow board members were "out of touch" and a "laughing stock" in communities where the suffering economy is an ever-present worry.

"You're wrong in everything you're doing and I plead that a different direction can be taken," Norman said.

Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio, who attended the meeting but did not speak publicly, fired back afterwards, saying Norman was the one out of touch for not seeing that a modern transit system is vital to reviving the economy. She suggested Norman was stuck in an outmoded way of thinking, doing nothing and hoping the economy will grow again through sprawling development.

"That kind of talk is, frankly, the kind of talk that has gotten us in a fix in this community," the mayor said. "Same old, same old: status quo, build out in the hinterlands, don't think about long-term economic development, don't think about smart growth."

Norman and Commissioner Al Higginbotham have consistently opposed the transit tax as it has gone through several procedural votes on its way to the ballot. There was no indication Thursday the majority supporting the referendum has cracked, although past supporters Mark Sharpe and Rose Ferlita were not at the meeting.

Next Wednesday, the commission will vote to set the final public hearing on the tax referendum after which commissioners will vote on putting it on the Nov. 2 ballot. The hearing is tentatively scheduled for May 13 at 6 p.m.

Also at the meeting, commissioners were updated on changes to an interlocal agreement between the county, Tampa, Plant City and Temple Terrace regarding spending of the tax receipts.

One change involved restrictions on the tax's use for road projects that are supposed to be funded in part by developers. Six such projects were on the original list of road improvements that the county's Transportation Task Force approved for tax funding. Four of the projects involved Newland Communities, developer of South County housing projects such as FishHawk Ranch, MiraBay and Waterset.

The six were later removed, but Commissioner Kevin Beckner pushed for safeguards to make sure they are not put back. The adopted changes require a supermajority vote by commissioners and approval by an oversight committee before the tax could be used for developer-funded road projects. The developers would also have to post a bond or other security instrument to guarantee payment of their share.

Beckner said the language was necessary so the "public understands they are not funding a bail-out for one specific developer."

If the tax is approved, 75 percent would go to mass transit including light rail, buses and smaller transit vehicles. The remaining 25 percent would go to road and bridge improvements as well as some walking and biking trails. About $383 million in road improvements are scheduled for the first 10 years after the tax passes.

To see a list and map of the proposed road work, go to www.hillsboroughcounty.org/transportref/.