Commissioner Murman quoted in this Tampa Bay Times article on Streetcars:

Hillsborough transit authority discusses upgrades to streetcar

CAITLIN JOHNSTON

Tampa Bay Times

Monday, January 5, 2015 3:48pm

TAMPA —Transit authority board members Monday discussed extending Tampa’s struggling streetcar through downtown and upgrading it to a modern streetcar or light rail.

The Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority board had commissioned HDR Engineering to conduct the study in light of an ongoing discussion on how to improve the floundering transit option.

“People don’t ride it because it’s slow and costs too much,” board member and County Commissioner Sandy Murman said. “For a family of four to go Ybor and back, it’s $20. That’s too expensive.”

The intent of the $35,000 study, which was preliminary and did not include information on ridership or traffic impact, was to provide some data and pave the way for future discussions and studies, said Steven Shukraft of HDR.

In his presentation to the board, Shukraft explained the four options evaluated in the study. One is along Ashley Drive, another down Franklin Street, one on Marion Street and a final one which uses both Tampa Street and Florida Avenue.

Each has its pros and cons, Shukraft said, including issues with right of way, single-track sections, tighter turns to navigate and other hurdles. The cost for building any of the options ranged from $30 million to $60 million.

Shukraft also outlined the potential of upgrading the system to a modern streetcar or light rail. Buying eight newer streetcars would cost $32 million. Other costs — including a new storage and maintenance facility, new tracks, and a power upgrade — would bring the total to more than $60 million.

It is unclear from where the money might come. On top of construction and upgrade costs, there is also a $400,000 insurance fee to cross CSX tracks.

Part of the problem with the streetcar, board members said, is that it has no clear leading force at its helm. HART is in charge of operating and maintenance, but the right-of-way is owned by the city and the streetcar is managed by the Tampa Historic Streetcar, Inc. Board.

“Frankly, the streetcar is not owned by anyone and we’ve seen the effects of the neglect,” HART CEO Katharine Egan said.

HART chairman and Tampa city councilman Mike Suarez pointed to Jeff Vinik, the Lightning owner and downtown developer, as a possible catalyst for its transformation. Vinik mentioned the streetcar when he unveiled his plans for downtown Tampa in December. Other board members agreed that any changes would have to be done in tandem with the Downtown Partnership, Mayor Bob Buckhorn and the Tampa Port Authority.

Monday’s meeting also included an election of board positions and outside board appointments, a messy process that took about an hour. Suarez was re-elected as chairman, and Karen Jaroch and Murman were elected as vice-chairwoman and secretary, respectively.

The board also approved a $177,000 contract for Egan, active from November 2014 through May 2017. Egan was confirmed as HART CEO on Nov. 3, 2014, after serving as interim CEO since May.

Contact Caitlin Johnston at cjohnston@tampabay.com or (813) 661-2443. Follow @cljohnst.

Commissioner Murman quoted in this article in StPetersBlog on Kathleen Shanahan:

HART board member Kathleen Shanahan makes her presence felt

By Mitch Perry on January 5, 2015

Being the Secretary of the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority doesn’t come with many frills. The main job of this particular position is that he or she will preside over all board meeting in the absence of both the chair and vice chair. In other words, it’s heavily symbolic.

But the question of who was to fill that position today provoked an unusually high level of discussion at today’s HART board meeting, and showed the gravitas that newbie board member Kathleen Shanahan carries with the agency.

After Tampa City Councilman Mike Suarez was unanimously selected to maintain his role as chairman of the board and Karen Jaroch was voted vice chair, the board appeared poise to vote and approve Temple Terrace City Councilman Eddie Vance as board secretary.

But Sandy Murman objected. The Hillsborough County Commission Chair said she was not okay with the three-member executive committee not including a county commissioner, referring to how integral the board is to the agency’s future. “We are the primary funders of what happens in HART,” she said, adding that “I do feel pretty strongly about this.”

Enter Shanahan, who replaced Fran Davin as a representative from Tampa by Mayor Bob Buckhorn in late October. She backed up Murman’s nomination.

But almost concurrently, Murman said she was withdrawing from the position, ceding it to Vance. “My remarks have fallen on deaf ears,” she said in sorrow.

Shanahan then advised to Murman to not withdraw.

Watching the exchange, Vance withdrew his nomination. “I understand Commissioner Murman’s concerns,” he said, trying to maintain the peace.

Several other board members then chimed in.

Jaroch, who is a citizen appointed member representing Hillsborough County, said it was important to have non-elected officials in high level positions on the HART agency.

But Shanahan thought otherwise. “Elected officials have a very different voice,” the Tampa businesswoman told her colleagues. “I think having a County Commissioner on the leadership team is an important sign to send to statewide or federal officials,” she said, insisting it wasn’t a political move. “I just think it’s smart.”

Shanahan’s extensive C.V. include stints with some of the nation’s most prominent Republicans. She was a chief-of-staff to former Governor Jeb Bush in the early aughts, a special adviser to Vice President George H.W. Bush in the 1980’s and was Dick Cheney’s chief of staff during 2000 presidential campaign and transition. She also served on the Florida Board of Education, where she said back in 2013 that Rick Scott should get an “incomplete” grade on education.

 Later in the meeting, HART CFO Jeff Seward told board members that finally, the agency is ready to solicit bids from companies to provide wireless connectivity on HART buses. Though critics (like former HART board member Mark Sharpe) have chastised the agency for its failure to offer free WiFi on buses until now, Seward said that the agency was benefitting by not moving on this amenity until now, saying it  would also provide for an automatic vehicle locator for real time data, provide live streaming on buses, and will assist in the agency’s plan for a new fare box. He estimated the cost to be between $800,000-$1 million.

“Have you asked for one-time money from the Legislature?” Shanahan asked him, saying that with budget surpluses finally occurring in Tallahassee the agency would be remiss in not requesting such funds.

Seward said that the board is including that request as part of their funding projects that they intend to submit to the state Dept. of Transportation.

Commissioner Murman quoted in this article on SaintPetersBlog regarding Streetcar:

Is the future looking brighter for Tampa’s much mocked streetcars?

By Mitch Perry on January 5, 2015

For more than a decade, Tampa’s downtown streetcar system has been mocked mercilessly by its myriad critics,  who say it’s a perfect example of how Tampa doesn’t get transit right.

But there increasingly appears to be momentum to finally improve the troubled system.

While there have been discussions regarding the 2.7-mile network of stations at the Tampa Port Authority for the past couple of years, one tangible shot in the arm is that an upgrade in the system was referred to explicitly in waterfront developer Jeff Vinik’s grand vision plan for the Channel District that was unveiled last month.

Currently trolleys run every 20 minutes between noon and 10 p.m. Monday to Thursday, until 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, and noon to 9 p.m. Sundays. Each ride costs between $1.25 for seniors to $2.50 for regular tickets; an all-day pass is $5. Critics say that’s too much time for anybody who actually works in the city to actually rely on, and is simply a tourist attraction.

While Mayor Bob Buckhorn has talked for a couple of years about making the system free and allowing for  more frequent trips, that plan has yet to come to fruition. The main reason is because the streetcar system (officially known as the TECO Historic Streetcar) has yet to find a way to solve an insurance issue —  an insurance policy required by CSX to cross its track in Ybor and costing annually some $400,000.

“We hope to get a legislative remedy this year,” Hillsborough County Commissioner Chair Sandy Murman said on Monday at the HART board meeting, adding that it’s the single biggest issue to overcome before any major restructuring of the streetcar system can commence.

Murman and her HART board colleagues on Monday listened to a presentation on potential improvements to the streetcar system, delivered by Steve Schukraft from HDR Engineering.

HDR looked at exploring the potential for an extension of the current system up through the Marion Transit Center, which runs on Marion Street parallel to Florida Avenue in downtown Tampa, as well as a plan to upgrade the current streetcars with a more modern look.

Schukraft said that his team looked at four different alternative extensions to the current system, which now ends downtown at the Franklin and Whiting street station, north of CAMLS.  The costs range from $30 million to $60 million. One of those routes would move the system north along Ashley Drive, to Tampa Street and Florida Avenue, and eventually to the Marion Transit Center.

Schukraft also discussed a plan to purchase newer streetcars — eight in all, that would cost a total of $32 million.   Combined with $11.2 million for a new storage and maintenance facility and $18.4 million to pay for new tracks and power upgrades, the total cost of that plan is over $60 million.

HART CEO Katharine Eagan told board members that a plan to have the trains arrive every 15 minutes (instead of 20) is being reviewed, a plan that would cost $1 million to implement. She said the “800-pound gorilla is the Vinik plan,” which remains unclear at this very early juncture in regards to how any streetcar upgrades fit in his master plan. But she said she has been in discussions with the Lightning owner’s economic development team and will continue to do so in the future.

County Commission Chair Murman — who also serves on the Tampa Port Authority, which has had regular discussions over the years about the streetcar — said she wants to see the HART board continue to have discussions with the Tampa Downtown Partnership, Mayor Buckhorn’s office, the Vinik Team and the Ybor City Development Corp., and “not just do it on our own as a single entity.” The streetcars are a joint operation of the city and HART.

Eagan said that fares from the streetcar brought in $457,000 of revenue to HART last year.

Commissioner Murman quoted in this article in the Louisiana Area Development News:

BluePearl Veterinary Partners Invests $1 Million To Expand Tampa, Florida, Headquarters

Area Development Online News Desk (01/05/2015)

Editors Picks

BluePearl Veterinary Partners, a national leader in veterinary medicine, plans to expand its headquarters, with the construction of a 4,800 square foot building for its support services team, at 3000 Busch Lake Boulevard in Tampa, Florida. The company is investing $1 million in the project, with plans to double its workforce and add 50 additional associates within three years.
“We’re very excited to be adding more talented people and a brand new building at our headquarters,” said Darryl Shaw, BluePearl Veterinary Partners CEO. “Tampa has always been our home, and we are happy to be creating new jobs and opportunities with our support services team as we continue opening veterinary hospitals across the United States.”
BluePearl Veterinary Partners was founded in Tampa by Darryl Shaw and his brother, Neil Shaw, DVM. The veterinary specialty and emergency medical practice grew rapidly and expanded nationwide, with much of that growth occurring since 2008, Tampa Hillsborough Economic Development Corporation officials said.
As an incentive, Hillsborough County will assist Blue Pearl with an expedited permitting process that is designed to save businesses time and money. The project was made possible through strong partnerships between Hillsborough County and the Tampa Hillsborough Economic Development Corporation.
“BluePearl Veterinary Partners has been a valuable member of our community for nearly two decades, providing exceptional care for the beloved pets of thousands of people in Hillsborough County and beyond,” said Sandra Murman, Chair of the Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners. “We’re committed to promoting the growth of outstanding local headquarter companies like BluePearl and will do all we can to support their continued success.”
“The expansion of BluePearl highlights the support and resources that our local partners are providing to help existing businesses stay here, prosper, and build an exciting future for their companies, their employees, and Hillsborough County,” said Rick Homans, President/CEO of the Tampa Hillsborough Economic Development Corporation.

Commissioner Murman quoted in this Tampa Tribune article on the Streetcar:

Transportation

Time to consider streetcar expansion, Murman says

A streetcar makes a stop in Ybor City. Hillsborough County Commission Chair Sandy Murman said Monday it’s time to consider expanding the system. ANDY JONES/STAFF

By Yvette C. Hammett | Tribune Staff
Published: January 5, 2015   |   Updated: January 5, 2015 at 07:46 PM

TAMPA — With huge growth plans for the Channel District and downtown Tampa gearing up, it is time to take a serious look at expanding the streetcar system and hammering out who will pay for it, Hillsborough County Commission Chair Sandy Murman said Monday.

“We need to look at it now, not wait,” said Murman, who sits on the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority board. After reviewing a study that outlines the potential cost of expanding and modernizing the TECO Line Streetcar System — up to $60 million — several HART board members discussed the need to partner with, among others, the City of Tampa, Port Tampa Bay and with Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vinik, who recently unveiled a $1 billion development plan for the Channel District.

Right now, the streetcar line, which has limited stops between Channelside and Ybor City, is too expensive and doesn’t run often enough, some HART board members said. Expanding it to cover more real estate, upgrading its vintage cars to modern streetcars and boosting its stop schedule could turn it around, they said.

“HART’s role in this is as its operator,” said HART Chairman Mike Suarez, a Tampa city councilman. “Any other choices or sources of revenue, whether it’s community redevelopment dollars or whatever, most of this is probably going to fall on the city and other partnerships, combined with federal and state funds,” he said.

“We are not the driving force,” Suarez said. “We are going to need all those folks to be involved to push forward for any kind of extension.”

Murman called the streetcar extension study “a small piece of a big puzzle. This needs to be coordinated with the port, the Vinik group, the mayor’s office.” The big hurdle is the $400,000 HART must pay each year for insurance to cross the CSX Railroad lines, she said. “Before we can move forward, that is the single No. 1 problem we have to overcome before we can really plan for the future of the streetcar.” She said she is hoping for a legislative remedy this year.

Murman suggested that if the street car line is extended and upgraded, private partners should consider subsidizing fares so that commuters can ride for free, since private interests will ultimately benefit from a better transit system through Channelside and downtown.

She said the Port Authority Board, which she sits on, will be discussing the streetcar issue at an upcoming meeting. Port officials did not return phone calls Monday for comment. In a one-line email to the Tribune, Port spokesman Andy Fobes said, “Port Tampa Bay continues discussions with HART regarding the streetcar as it relates to the Channel District.”

HART Director Bryan Crino, who sits on a committee for the streetcar line, said attending those committee meetings has been depressing, since ridership is dropping. “It is going to take leadership from a lot of different places to solve the problem. I believe it is the responsibility of this board to push this development and solutions and move the streetcar forward.” Crino said this initial study is a good first step.

Steve Schukraft, a consultant with HDR Inc., the company that completed the streetcar study, said it is very preliminary and a lot more detail would have to be studied to know how successful a streetcar extension would be, in terms of ridership and to be more precise about the cost of expansion.

yhammett@tampatrib.com

Commissioner Murman quoted in this Tampa Tribune article on County Communications:

Politics

Hillsborough County wants to get the word out on services, events and initiatives

By Mike Salinero | Tribune Staff
Published: January 1, 2015

TAMPA — Whether he’s munching from a food truck, pedaling a bicycle or cutting a ribbon, there’s no one in the Tampa area getting more public exposure than Mayor Bob Buckhorn.

A friend of his, Hillsborough County Commissioner Sandy Murman, thinks he needs competition.

After all, the county commissioners govern an area with more than a million people — triple the population Buckhorn represents in the city of Tampa.

So at a recent county commission meeting, Murman asked, What about us?

“I see where the mayor put out that they’ve done $2.5 billion worth of permits,” Murman said. “The county had about $7 billion worth of permits for the total value last year. The city does a much better job getting their story out than we do.”

The county, she noted, reduced permit fees for builders and park fees for all county residents — the kind of news she believes deserves more exposure.

Hillsborough is also rolling out a new quick-response team to deal with neighborhood blight, such as dilapidated housing, overgrown yards and graffiti.

Her message is aimed squarely at a county department, Communications and Digital Media, that appears to be building toward the task.

During a period of austerity across many county departments, communications has seen an increase in staff and payroll during the last four or five years — from 37 positions and $1.93 million to 39 positions and a $2.24 million payroll.

Nine of the positions are vacant now. Murman supports filling them.

“I just feel like we have to do a better job of getting our story out,” she said.

Orange County, similar in size and population to Hillsborough, has 31 employees in its communications department and a payroll of $2.16 million. Nearly 6,600 people are employed by Orange County’s government compared to about 5,000 in Hillsborough County.

Members of the communications staff are among the most visible of county employees as the first contact for news reporters on fast-breaking and long-term stories.

The agency has a broader mission of informing residents about county services, events and initiatives, said Liana Lopez, the county’s chief communications administrator.

In addition to public information officers, who deal with news reporters and churn out press releases, the department employs technical specialists who help reach people using use social media and the county cable television station HTV.

Communications employees also generate proclamations and commendations that county commissioners like to hand out at the beginning of their meetings.

“It winds up saving the county money when we can handle those services in-house instead of having a bunch of contracts for projects,” Lopez said. “If we have a lot of external contracts for communications, it becomes costly and time consuming and you don’t have the centralization.”

Other department responsibilities include planning and running special events such as the town hall meetings commissioners hold, on topics that in recent years included proposed cuts in a popular after-school program for children. Communications personnel also have been involved in the county’s ongoing public outreach effort regarding the future of transportation and mass transit.

Lori Hudson, the former communications director, handles these larger initiatives in her new role as manager of special projects. Hudson’s salary was reduced from $130,000 to $107,806 after she was replaced as director. Annette Spina, the current director, is paid $112,694 a year.

Lopez, part of County Administrator Mike Merrill’s executive team, receives $165,000. In addition to communications, Lopez also oversees Citizen and Communications Support, which includes the county call center, neighborhood relations and customer service — a priority of Merrill’s.

The Office of Community Affairs, which maintains county government connections with neighborhood organizations and diverse ethnic groups, also falls under Lopez’s management.

Since she came on board, Lopez has directed a reorganization of the department, assigning each public information officer to a group of county departments. That way the officers can develop expertise in certain departments.

Murman said she thinks Lopez’s restructuring efforts will boost the county’s profile and better inform residents about how their tax dollars are being spent.

“We’re not in competition with the city,” Murman said. “It’s just that I want people to know that our personnel are doing a lot of work in the community to make things better and to deliver needed services.”

msalinero@tampatrib.com

Commissioner Murman quoted in this Tampa Tribune article on Jeb Bush:

Jeb Bush says he’ll ‘actively explore’ presidential run

BY JAMES L. ROSICA
Tribune/Scripps Capital Bureau
Published: December 16, 2014   |   Updated: December 16, 2014 at 06:05 PM

TALLAHASSEE — Dust off the exclamation point – former Gov. Jeb Bush says he’s thinking about running for president.

In a holiday message on his Facebook page, Bush said he discussed the “future of our nation” and a potential bid for the White House with wife Columba and members of his family over the Thanksgiving holiday.

Bush, son of 41st President George H.W. Bush and brother of 43rd President George W. Bush, was Florida’s governor 1999-2007. He first crafted a personal brand with his “Jeb!” campaign signs.

The 61-year-old Republican now says he will “actively explore” a presidential campaign and form a new political operation allowing him to raise money for like-minded Republicans.

“Well, I mean, why not?” said Patrick Manteiga, a Democratic political activist and publisher of the trilingual Tampa weekly La Gaceta. “He’s been toying with it. He’s wanted to do it all his life and he’s long seemed to be preparing for it.”

Manteiga added that if, as some expect, there is a large field of Republican presidential candidates for 2016, Jeb “has to be considered the main contender.”

Brian Ballard, a Tallahassee lobbyist who was a top Florida fundraiser for the last two Republican nominees, said he expected most major donors in the state would commit to Bush.

“He freezes everyone out,” Ballard said. “Florida will be off limits to other presidential candidates should Jeb decide to run.”

Former state Rep. Sandra Murman, who served while Bush was governor, called him “a real ‘compassionate conservative.’”

“He’s a true reformer who would take to Washington all his skills as a great governor,” said Murman, a Republican who represented Tampa in the Legislature 1996-2004, rising to speaker pro tempore.

“He really cares about people, and there’s nothing like a hometown hero to come from our state,” added Murman, now chairwoman of the Hillsborough County Commission.

Cynthia Henderson, who served as Bush’s secretary of the Department of Management Services, said a Jeb Bush candidacy will generate excitement in a jaded electorate.

“The debate will be about how do we get America back up to a level of respect and admiration worldwide,” she said.

In his Facebook post, Bush wrote, “In the coming months, I hope to visit with many of you and have a conversation about restoring the promise of America.”

He also is known for helping to popularize the expression “BHAG” – big hairy audacious goal, defined as a long-term and visionary pursuit.

With Bush in the race, the discussion will “get into the real meat of what it means to run government,” said Henderson, now a Tallahassee lawyer and lobbyist.

Tony Villamil, Bush’s former director of Tourism, International Trade and Economic Development, called him a “conservative leader who respects all points of view.”

“He makes the best decision based on what’s the right thing for all, regardless of ideology,” said Villamil, now an economic consultant in Coral Gables. “That’s what he did as governor. He’s well read and well versed on the issues.”

Bush’s announcement is sure to reverberate throughout Republican politics and begin to help sort out a field that includes more than a dozen potential candidates, none of whom have formally announced plans to mount a campaign.

A Bush candidacy could affect Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who came up through Florida politics as a strong Bush supporter and is considering whether to seek re-election to the Senate or run for president in 2016.

“Marco has a lot of respect for Governor Bush, and believes he would be a formidable candidate,” Rubio spokesman Alex Conant said. “However, Marco’s decision on whether to run for President or re-election will be based on where he can best achieve his agenda to restore the American Dream — not on who else might be running.”

The announcement also overshadowed comments from former New York Gov. George Pataki, who told the New York Daily News in a story published Tuesday he is “very seriously” considering his own bid.

And the move could affect the plans of several sitting Republican governors, including New Jersey’s Chris Christie and Wisconsin’s Scott Walker.

“I don’t think it will affect their willingness to run, but it will affect to some extent their ability to raise money,” said Fred Malek, the finance chairman of the Republican Governors Association.

Should he decide to run, Bush can tap into his family’s vast political network, and his campaign would attract strong support from the same donor pool that other establishment-minded Republicans need to fuel their own prospective campaigns.

The announcement also came days after Bloomberg Businessweek reported on his involvement with several private equity funds, including those with Chinese investors, calling it potentially “politically damaging.”

The article compared him to someone in a similar line of work: Failed GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney. The story noted that if Bush was planning to run, he’d “be winding down such businesses, rather than expanding them.”

Kristy Campbell, Bush’s spokeswoman, said he has not yet made a final decision on whether to seek the Republican Party’s presidential nomination in 2016. She said that he will announce his decision next year “after gauging support” for a run.

“This is a natural next step and represents a new phase of his consideration process,” Campbell said.

That phase will include an expansion of Bush’s political operations. He said he will start his own leadership political action committee in January, which will allow him to raise money that can pay for his travel and the infrastructure of a nascent campaign, including office space and some broad polling.

Richard Schwarm, a former Iowa state Republican Party chairman, said he expected Bush to run in the Iowa caucuses, as did his father and brother. Schwarm was among the earliest supporters of George W. Bush, and among those who went to Austin, Tex., to court the then-Texas governor in 1999.

“I think if you’re going to be a national candidate you have to go where the ballots are and not be afraid to trust your campaign to Iowa voters, New Hampshire voters, Nevada voters and South Carolina voters,” said Schwarm, who considers Bush among his top considerations for president.

Tuesday’s statement is the most definitive signal that Bush plans to try and become the third member of his family to serve as president.

In a TV interview this past weekend, he said he “would be a good president,” disclosed that he was writing an e-book about his time as governor that will come out in the spring, and promised to release about 250,000 emails from his time in office.

During his two terms as Florida governor, Bush pushed for large tax cuts, overhauled Florida’s education system and led the charge to eliminate race-based policies in college admissions and state spending.

Since leaving office, Bush has continued to advocate for more changes to the nation’s schools, including the adoption of new education standards known as Common Core.

Those standards have drawn the ire of conservatives who view them as a federal intrusion into local classrooms.

Bush has continued to call them critical to overhauling the country’s education system, while seeking common ground with opponents by saying states should be allowed to develop their own education programs.

Schwarm said while Bush holds some positions that don’t sit well with some GOP activists, such as the Common Core standards, “I think they’ll realize his honesty and integrity on speaking out on his mind shows he has the courage of his convictions.”

“Iowans will give him a serious look,” Schwarm said. “And that’s all candidates can ask for. It’s up to him to make the sale to Iowans.”

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

jrosica@tampatrib.com

Commissioner Murman quoted in this Tampa Bay Times article on Channelside vision:

Vinik unveiling vision for Tampa’s Channelside area today

JAMAL THALJI Tampa Bay Times

Tuesday, December 16, 2014 12:23pm

TAMPA — The big day is finally here: Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vinik is set to reveal his vision for the future of downtown.

Vinik will hold an 11 a.m. news conference today to unveil his “billion-dollar” vision to transform the 24 barren acres of downtown land he owns into a walkable waterfront entertainment district stretching from the Tampa Convention Center to the Florida Aquarium.

New apartments, condos, restaurants, shops and offices will be added to the downtown empire Vinik has been assembling since he bought the hockey team in 2010: the Amalie Arena, Channelside Bay Plaza and the Tampa Marriott Waterside Hotel & Marina.

“Our vision is one of live, work, play — and stay,” Lightning CEO Tod Leiweke told the Tampa Port Authority on Tuesday.

Leiweke and other top Vinik lieutenants gave the port governing board a tantalizing glimpse of the “Vinikville” vision. One aspect of the plan calls for building a continuous greenspace along the water to connect the convention center to Channelside Bay Plaza.

Some pieces of the plan are already in place: The University of South Florida will build its medical school there; Vinik has filed plans to build a hotel by the Marriott Waterside; and billionaire Bill Gates’ investment fund is financing the project.

Other pieces remain up in the air, like a new name for the development and Channelside Bay Plaza. Team Vinik said they still haven’t figured out what to do with the troubled complex, which they acquired this year.

Channelside is being fixed in the short term, but its long-term fate is undecided. It could be upgraded but remain basically the same. Part of it could be torn down, which is what Bill Edwards did to turn St. Petersburg’s BayWalk into the new Sundial complex. Or Channelside could be demolished and a new structure would take its place.

That last option would be the most expensive and complicated option. There are existing leases in place, and the port would have to approve any changes made to Channelside.

Team Vinik hopes to have its Channelside plan ready by May to unveil to national retailers at the Global Retail Real Estate Convention in Las Vegas. Leiweke said the ultimate goal is to turn it into a destination for the throng of cruise passengers passing through Tampa.

“We want to figure out a way to get those passengers to stay longer, get here earlier and spend money at those retailers,” Leiweke said.

Vinik’s executives also announced a new restaurant will open at Channelside in January, but the name won’t be revealed until the news conference. It will be the first new tenant at the outdoor mall in 3½ years.

As part of the Vinik plan, his company also wanted the Tampa Port Authority to let it take control of the Channelside parking garage and parking lot. That ignited the most contentious exchange the normally cordial Tampa Port Authority board has had in months.

The board was asked to approve a contract to let Vinik run Channelside’s parking facilities in exchange for 70 percent of the after-tax parking revenue. Vinik also wanted the right to hold events like a farmer’s market on the lot.

“Mayor (Bob) Buckhorn and I fought hard for this contract,” said Hillsborough County Commission Chairwoman Sandra Murman. Both she and the mayor sit on the port board.

Murman wanted the board to quickly bless the parking contract. But when board member John B. Grandoff III had questions, Murman would not yield the floor.

“I would appreciate the courtesy of being able to ask a question of a concession agreement,” Grandoff said.

After a brief standoff, Murman relented. Grandoff wanted to make sure the cruise industry’s interest in the parking facilities was protected. The port’s attorney, Charles Klug, said the cruise ship industry would still have priority when it comes to Channelside parking.

But there was another reason why the port wanted to let Vinik run the parking operation along with Channelside itself.

“There needs to be a nexus between the owner-operator of the retail center and the parking lot,” Klug said. “We’ve been operating the parking garage for the last 15 years. There seems to be a disconnect between the retail center and the parking garage.”

That’s a bit of an understatement: The port’s management of the parking facilities has long been a major issue with Channelside’s owners over the years.

After the meeting, Grandoff said he was satisfied with the parking deal but would continue scrutinizing the Channelside parking lot because it is one of the last undeveloped waterfront parcels in downtown Tampa — and thus one of the most valuable. Various developers have sought to build a condo tower on top of that 5-acre parcel.

Vinik’s Channelside parking deal doesn’t include development rights to that land — not yet, anyway. But Team Vinik was clearly interested in one day developing those 5 acres.

“That’s a long-term conversation” said Vinik executive Jac Sperling.

Contact Jamal Thalji at jthalji@tampabay.com or (813) 226-3404. Follow @jthalji.

Commissioner Murman quoted in this Tampa Tribune article on Tampa Steel:

Business News

Tampa Steel adds facility, jobs

By Yvette C. Hammett | Tribune Staff
Published: December 12, 2014

TAMPA — Florida’s oldest steel erector and fabrication business, about to hit its 70th anniversary, isn’t slowing down. On the contrary, it is growing and has a huge project in the works and more coming down the pike.

Tampa Steel Erecting Co., probably most well known to the public for building the steel frame for Epcot’s Space Ship Earth in 1982, has a new $3.5 million 34,000 square-foot building under construction, is in the process of hiring 39 new employees and plans to soon be in on a massive undertaking dubbed the “I-4 Ultimate Project.”

For now, the company, started by Robert Clark Sr. in 1945 and now run by his son, Robert Clark Jr., his brother John Clark and son-in-law Jeff Ames, is so busy completing a twin arch bridge over the Trinity River in Dallas, that it needs more space and more employees.

“We are adding an additional fabrication bay in order to increase our available work space to facilitate delivery, on time, in Dallas and to prepare for upcoming projects in Florida,” Ames said. “The building, which is really to provide a covering for our new cranes, is going to cover about 34,000 square feet and be 80 feet wide and 375 feet long.” The new overhead cranes are capable of hoisting 50 tons and 25 tons to lift the monstrous girders going on the Dallas bridge.

Construction on the new building should be complete by February, Ames said.

“This little company here in Brandon is having a tremendous impact,” said Michelle Bauer, vice president of marketing and communications for the Tampa Hillsborough County Economic Development Corp. The economic agency helped expedite permitting for the new building to get the project on a fast track. “This is not an industry that Tampa is known for,” she said. “Right now, we are experiencing all this growth in the IT sector and in manufacturing and here we have Bob Clark’s company right there with them.”

And there is more to come. Ames said once the Dallas bridge project is complete — in about another year and a half — Tampa Steel Erecting will be working on expanding Interstate 75 north of Miami and south of Alligator Alley. Then, it’s on to the real monster, the I-4 Ultimate Project — or the widening and rebuilding of 21 miles of the interstate in the Orlando area, which includes about 100 bridges and will take years to complete. Many of those bridges will be built with steel.

“This is an exciting time in the history of our organization,” which employs 90 people at present, said Robert Clark Jr., the company president. “Our focus on steel bridge construction continues to pay off and the major contracts that we’re securing across the country as a result are fueling our growth and enabling us to create more jobs here. Hillsborough County has been tremendously supportive during this process and we’re proud to be strengthening our commitments to this community.”

The new positions, with an average wage of $54,000, will fill key manufacturing roles that will allow the company to meet the increasing demand for the steel it fabricates for major transportation and building projects, Bauer said.

“The success of Tampa Steel Erecting Co. is a significant point of pride for Tampa and Hillsborough County and a testament to the adaptability and competitiveness of our manufacturing sector,” said Ronald Vaughn, chair of the economic agency and president of the University of Tampa.

Hillsborough County Commission Chair Sandra Murman said the continued growth of Tampa Steel Erecting “highlights the role Hillsborough County is playing in creating an environment that attracts investment in the vitally important manufacturing sector and in helping local businesses to grow and prosper.”