Sandy Murman

Hillsborough County News

May 18, 2012

Contact: District 1 Commissioner Sandra L. Murman’s Office, 813-272-5470

Hillsborough County’s Small Business Job Creation Program Produces More Than 100 Jobs; Funds Still Available

Small businesses in Hillsborough County continue to take advantage of the County’s Job Creation Incentive Program. Since the Board of County Commissioners launched the Small Business Job Creation Program in March 2011, 114 new jobs have been created.

 

Currently, 61 businesses have applied for the funds and 87 of those new employees have already been hired with the average worker making about $15 an hour.  Thirteen of the businesses that have reached their six-month anniversary in the program report an increase in their gross sales revenues.

 

“Things are definitely starting to turn the corner,” said Commissioner Sandra L. Murman, who spearheaded the Job Creation Program. “It’s an encouraging sign for our economy that businesses are taking advantage of this Program by hiring workers and growing their companies in our community.”

 

The 61 businesses have received a total of nearly $379,000 and more than $121,000 is still available for small business owners to hire new employees.

 

The Program is designed to promote job creation in Hillsborough County by offering a wage reimbursement to small business owners. The reimbursement pays small businesses up to 50 percent of three months’ total salary for new jobs created, capped at $3,900 per new employee. 

Small business owners can visit the Hillsborough County Small, Minority Business Development Section’s Web page at: www.hillsboroughcounty.org/econdev/ to find out about the Program’s requirements and download an application, or call 813-914-4028.

Commissioner Murman quoted in this Tribune article on HART:

 HART plan cuts routes, ups fares

By TED JACKOVICS | The Tampa Tribune
Published: May 08, 2012

 

TAMPA —

Staring at a $1.5 million budget shortfall next year, HART will propose increasing some bus fares by 25 cents in November and combining and trimming some of the express routes.

The transit authority also is eyeing broader changes in the long run, including the possibility of switching from property tax-based funding to funding that comes from a sales tax.

The proposal comes at a delicate time for the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority. High gas prices have contributed to record ridership at the same time falling property values and declining operating grants have cut into funding.

As a result, the authority is looking at a cumulative budget shortfall of $23 million over the next five years.

On Monday, HART planners revealed their proposal to overcome those grim numbers. The agency’s proposed budget for the next fiscal year calls for a $62 million operating budget, about 2 percent higher than this year. The $32 million capital budget would be about 20 percent less than this year but still includes $8 million for buses and vans.

Proposed changes to take effect in November include:

• One-way full fares would rise from $1.75, to $2, and one-way express fares would rise from $2.75, to $3. Discount increases would be 15 cents, with higher increases for long-term passes. One-way streetcar fares would remain at $2.50.
• Buses and service hours would be added to two busy routes: Route 34 between East Tampa and West Tampa, primarily along Hillsborough Avenue, and Route 30 between downtown, Tampa International Airport and Town ‘N Country. Higher ridership has made it difficult for drivers to maintain schedules on those routes.
• Eliminating the Brandon Flex Service on Saturdays but extending regular service to Brandon Regional Hospital.
• Eliminating Route 28X between east Hillsborough County and downtown Tampa.
• Combining routes 50X and 61LX between Citrus Park and Town ‘N Country and downtown Tampa.
• Ending express service on Presidents Day and Columbus Day while adopting Sunday service schedules on Memorial Day, July 4 and Labor Day.

Though HART board members on Monday applauded the proposal, some said the agency needs to better define its long-term plans.

“I don’t see what the vision is — where do we want to be in 10 years?” HART board member and county Commissioner Sandy Murman said.

HART chief executive Philip Hale said the budget proposal unveiled at Monday’s workshop was designed to allow the agency to “survive” the next few years.

“What we really have to do is move past that,” Hale said, adding that “somebody is going to have to write a check” if the authority wants to expand to take advantage of the growing popularity of mass transit.

The budget will go to the full board on June 4.

Among other items in the proposal, HART’s new route for a Bus Rapid Transit system called MetroRapid between the northeast suburbs and downtown Tampa is budgeted to begin operating in 2013. Those buses would make limited stops along one of HART’s busiest routes.

The proposal for an east-west Bus Rapid Transit route, though, still has not been funded.

In addition, HART’s union employees have operated without a contract for months and are negotiating for pay-level increases.

Turnover among bus operators, in particular those with two to three years of tenure who are finding more lucrative jobs as the economy improves, is on the rise, costing HART additional initial training costs of nearly $6,000 per employee. Beginning bus drivers make $11.91 an hour.

Commissioner Murman mentioned in this Tampa Bay Business Journal article regarding the Port of Tampa:

Port board ready to explore Pinellas terminals

Tampa Bay Business Journal

Date: Wednesday, May 16, 2012, 6:26am EDT

Board members at the Tampa Port Authority have asked port Chief Executive Richard Wainio to research options for hosting larger cruise ships that cannot sail underneath the Sunshine Skyway Bridge.

One idea floating in the bay is to build new terminals near the bridge, according to the Tampa Bay Times. Board Member Sandra Murman is pushing for a plan.

The port has invested heavily in the cruise industry, but could lose a large part of the business as cruise companies build significantly larger ships that are too tall to get into Tampa Bay and draft too deep to come all the way into the port. The cruise industry brings in about a quarter of the port’s budget — $9.9 million in revenue last year.

 

Commissioner Murman mentioned in this Tribune article on Homelessness:

By KEVIN WIATROWSKI | The Tampa Tribune 
Published: May 16, 2012

 TAMPA —

As they’ve done month after month, Tampa City Council members will make time on their schedule Thursday for a report on the city’s effort to help its homeless population.

For month after month, the city’s point man on the homeless issue, growth management director Thom Snelling, has filed a one-sentence report, in essence saying he has nothing to say.

That will change Thursday when Snelling offers an update on work by Hillsborough County Commissioner Sandra Murman’s Chronic Homelessness Solutions Committee, a public-private group working on a concrete effort to address homelessness.

“I think there’s some very valuable information that they’re going to hear,” Snelling said this week. He declined to offer specifics because he hadn’t finished his report.

Snelling and other city officials work with Murman’s committee, but elected city council members so far have been shut out, much to their chagrin.

Last month, city council members asked to join the committee. Murman will meet next week with Councilwoman Yvonne Capin to discuss adding a city representative.

Tampa may be the epicenter for the region’s homeless problem, but so far the city has been unable to create the kind of one-stop-shop homeless advocates say the city needs. Such a facility would give homeless men and women a place to go for housing and services in the city’s urban core.

But that kind of facility remains elusive.

Snelling laid out the reasons in January when he made his last official report on the city’s effort to help its homeless residents. The city has neither the land nor the buildings to do what council wants, he said.

“The reality is that nothing jumps up and says, ‘This is what we have available in the city,'” Snelling told council members then.

As it has for decades, the city continues to funnel federal grant money to nonprofit groups such as the Homeless Coalition of Hillsborough County and Metropolitan Ministries to provide housing, food and other aid to the region’s homeless residents.

But city council members are eager to do more, particularly after seeing how Pinellas County has provided its own one-stop facility in a former jail.

Last month, they tried to scramble onboard Murman’s Chronic Homeless Solutions Committee, which began working last month.

Coalition spokeswoman Lesa Weikel said her group remains optimistic that the public-private project will be more successful than its predecessors.

“They’re moving forward, and we would expect something to be the result,” Weikel said. “The goal has been to produce a service.”

In the meantime, the city council will continue to ask Snelling for reports on efforts to help the homeless even when he has nothing to say.

That’s OK, Councilman Harry Cohen says.

“We put this item on the agenda every other week specifically because we didn’t want it to disappear from public view,” Cohen said at last month’s council meeting. “I think everyone recognized we wouldn’t have anything new every two weeks.”

Hillsborough Commissioner Sandra Murman Hosts Morning Coffee In South Tampa on May 18th

 

Hillsborough County Commissioner Sandra L. Murman, District 1, and her staff welcome this opportunity to meet residents, have coffee, and discuss their thoughts and concerns on various projects and community issues taking place in Hillsborough County.

 

The upcoming coffee is:

 

Friday, May 18th

8:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m.

Nola’s Second Line Cafe

301 W. Platt Street

Tampa, FL 33606

 

To learn more about Hillsborough County Commissioner Sandra L. Murman, go to www.hillsboroughcounty.org/bocc/commissioners/murman.cfm .

Hillsborough County News

May 14, 2012

Contact: Luann Finley, Director of Board Services, 813-272-5826

 

 

Commissioners Seek Applications For Citizen Boards And Councils

Applications Due June 7, 2012

 

Hillsborough County Commissioners are seeking residents to serve on several County citizen advisory boards and councils. Residents interested in seeking appointment must be registered voters in Hillsborough County. These are voluntary positions, and members serve without compensation. Applicants may apply to more than one board, but may only serve on one board at a time.

 

The deadline for applying is June 7, 2012. Appointments will be scheduled for a meeting of the Board of County Commissioners in June or July 2012.

 

An application is available in the Commissioners’ reception area on the second floor of County Center, 601 E. Kennedy Blvd. in downtown Tampa; by calling the Boards and Councils Coordinator at 813-272-5826; or on the County’s website at: www.hillsboroughcounty.org. Click on the “County Commission” link on the left-hand side of the page, then the “Advisory Boards and Committees” sublink. The “Application Questionnaire For County Appointments” is in the middle of the page. The form can be filled out, and then scanned and emailed, faxed, hand-delivered or mailed.

If you apply to a Board that requires a background check, you must also submit a Background Investigation Disclosure and Authorization Form, which also is available on the website. Forms must be signed and dated. Additional directions for submission are listed on the form.

The Boards and Councils that have openings are:

 

CHILD CARE FACILITIES ADVISORY BOARD — advises the Board of County Commissioners on recommended amendments to the Child Care Facilities Ordinance; proposes additional rules and regulations to the Board of County Commissioners which effectuate the intent and purpose of the Ordinance; and recommends and assists the Hillsborough County Office of Child Care Licensing in the development and implementation of training materials for child care personnel. It also advises the Hillsborough County Office of Child Care Licensing on all matters pertaining to child care facilities.

 

Two positions are vacant. Terms are for three years. Positions are specified as: 1) a representative of a non-profit licensed child care facility or organization; and 2) a parent of a child in a child care facility. (Please note this on your application.) Appointment to this Board is contingent upon passing a criminal background check.

 

Meeting schedule: Monthly, 1^st Thursday, 1 p.m.

 

 

CHILD CARE LICENSING HEARING OFFICER — pursuant to the Hillsborough County Child Care Homes Licensing Ordinance 05-9, and the Hillsborough County Child Care Facilities Ordinance 03-25, as amended by Hillsborough County Ordinance 04-25, an applicant for a license or a current licensee, under these ordinances, may request a hearing whenever an application for a license is denied, or whenever a license has been placed on probation, suspended or revoked, or an administrative fine has been imposed by the Office of Child Care Licensing. These hearings are conducted by a hearing officer who makes findings and recommendations with respect to the matters considered at the hearing.

 

Two positions are vacant; one due to resignation. One term is for three years. One position is for the remainder of an unexpired term, which ends 9/30/2014. Hearing Officers must be members in good standing of the Florida Bar and may not be employees of the County Attorney’s Office. Appointment as a Hearing Officer is contingent upon passing a criminal background check.

 

Meeting schedule: When requested.

 

 

CHILDRENS SERVICES ADVISORY BOARD — examines and advises division management on the development and operation of programs that treat children with special needs. The Board also advises on parent training programs, homeless and runaway youth programs, domestic violence programs, child care licensing, clinical outreach, and residential treatment programs for children in Hillsborough County.

 

Seven terms are expiring. Terms are for four years. Nominees are to have a demonstrated interest in the welfare of children. Appointment to this Board is contingent upon passing a criminal background check.

 

Meeting schedule: At least nine times annually.

 

 

CODE ENFORCEMENT BOARD — has jurisdiction to hear violations of all codes and ordinances of Hillsborough County with most cases arising out of violations of the County’s housing, building, zoning, and sign codes and ordinances to maintain minimum health and safety standards.

 

One position is vacant. Term is for three years. Position is specified as an alternate. Consideration for membership shall be given to representatives from the following fields: a businessperson; an architect; a general contractor; a subcontractor; and a realtor. After two consecutive terms, a member shall not be eligible for reappointment until one calendar year has elapsed from date of termination of the second term. Citizens appointed to this Board will be required to file an annual financial disclosure. Citizens appointed to this Board must reside in the unincorporated area of Hillsborough County.

 

Meeting schedule: Monthly, generally 2^nd or 3^rd Friday, 9 a.m.

 

 

ELECTRICAL BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT, APPEALS & EXAMINERS — confirms the competency and integrity of applicants applying for electrical certification in the County, and takes disciplinary action against those contractors that fail to comply with the Electrical Code.

 

One position is vacant due to resignation. Position is for the remainder of an unexpired term, which ends Dec. 31, 2013. Position is specified as an electrical utility company representative. Citizens appointed to this  Board will be required to file an annual financial disclosure.

 

Meeting schedule: Quarterly, 3^rd Thursday, 8:30 a.m.

 

 

FAMILY CHILD CARE HOME ADVISORY BOARD — annually reviews and advises the Board of County Commissioners on recommended amendments to the Family Child Care Homes Licensing Ordinance or the Rules and Regulations Handbook, including recommending and assisting the local licensing agency in the development and implementation of training materials for child care personnel; advising the local licensing agency on matters of licensing policy, procedure and priorities; and proposes additional rules and regulations regarding the intent and purpose of the ordinance.

 

Three positions are vacant. Terms are for three years. Positions are specified as: 1) a licensed family child care home operator; and 2) & 3) a parent who has a child enrolled in a licensed family day care home. (Please note this on your application.) Appointment to this Board is contingent upon passing a criminal background check.

 

Meeting schedule: Quarterly, 3^rd Thursday, 7 p.m.

 

 

HEALTH CARE ADVISORY BOARD — improves accessibility and efficiency of care for medically poor residents of Hillsborough County through recommendations to the Board of County Commissioners for fund allocation, coordination, planning, and monitoring of health care delivery systems.

 

Two terms are expiring. Terms are for four years. Positions are specified as: 1) a non-healthcare business community representative; and 2) a participant in the Hillsborough County Indigent Health Care Plan.

 

Meeting schedule: Monthly, 3^rd Thursday, 3 p.m.

 

 

HISTORIC RESOURCES REVIEW BOARD — serves as an architectural review board for the protection of historic resources in unincorporated Hillsborough County. It recommends archaeological and historical sites to the Board of County Commissioners for landmark designation and reviews alterations and new construction on landmark sites or districts.

 

Two positions are vacant and one term is expiring. Terms are for three years. Positions a

are specified as: 1) an architectural historian; 2) an architect; and 3) a property owner of a site listed on the Florida Master Site File. After two consecutive terms, a member shall not

be eligible for reappointment until one calendar year has elapsed from date of termination of the second term. Citizens appointed to this Board must reside in the unincorporated area of Hillsborough County.

 

Meeting schedule: Monthly, 3^rd Tuesday, 3 p.m.

 

 

HOSPITAL AUTHORITY — monitors the lease entered into in 1997 with Florida Health Sciences Center, Inc., which permits FHSC to occupy the Authority’s Davis Island property and transfers ownership and operation of Tampa General Hospital. Monitoring the hospital’s overall condition, indigent and charity care reports and Minority Business Enterprise contract participation, and reviewing citizen grievances who feel they were denied care due to the inability to pay are the primary obligations of the Authority.

 

Five terms are expiring. Terms are for four years. Citizens appointed to this Authority will be required to file an annual financial disclosure.

 

Meeting schedule: Quarterly, generally 4^th Monday, 9 a.m.

 

 

LAND USE APPEALS BOARD — hears appeals of decisions of the Land Use Hearing Officer on special use permits and variances from zoning regulations.

 

One term has expired. Term is for three years. Consideration for membership shall be given to representatives from the following fields: a landscape architect or architect registered to practice in Florida; a business owner or operator in unincorporated Hillsborough County; a professional planner with not less than three years of experience in land use planning or zoning in Hillsborough County; a civil or environmental engineer registered to practice in Florida; or a developer active in development in Hillsborough County or a duly licensed general contractor (Class A) active in business in Hillsborough County. After two consecutive terms, a member shall not be eligible for reappointment until one calendar year has elapsed from date of termination of the second term. Citizens appointed to this Board will be required to file an annual financial disclosure. Citizens appointed to this Board must reside in the unincorporated area of Hillsborough County.

 

Meeting schedule: Monthly, 1^st Friday, 1 p.m., as needed.

 

 

VALUE ADJUSTMENT BOARD — was created by F.S. 194 to provide citizens a forum to address complaints when they believe the Property Appraiser has over assessed their property or improperly denied an exemption or classification, or the Tax Collector improperly denied a tax deferral. The Board hires qualified attorneys and appraisers to conduct hearings on these complaints and make recommendations. The Board meets to act on these recommendations.

 

One term is expiring. Term is for one year. Position is specified as a citizen who owns homesteaded property in Hillsborough County. Citizen members shall be appointed in a manner to avoid conflicts of interest or the appearance of conflicts of interest. Citizen members must not be a member or employee of any taxing authority in this state and may not be a person who represents property owners, property appraisers, tax collectors, or taxing authorities in any administrative or judicial review of property taxes.

 

Meeting schedule: Five to seven times per year.

 

 

WATER CONSERVATION TECHNICAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE — makes recommendations to the Board of County Commissioners regarding water conservation issues.

 

Seven positions are vacant. Terms are for three years.

 

Meeting schedule: Quarterly.

 

For more information, contact Luann Finley, Director of Board Services, at 813-272-5826.

Commissioner Murman questions lack of vision at HART in this Tribune article on route cuts:

 

HART plan cuts routes, ups fares

By TED JACKOVICS | The Tampa Tribune
Published: May 08, 2012 Updated: May 08, 2012 – 12:00 AM

 

TAMPA —

Staring at a $1.5 million budget shortfall next year, HART will propose increasing some bus fares by 25 cents in November and combining and trimming some of the express routes.

The transit authority also is eyeing broader changes in the long run, including the possibility of switching from property tax-based funding to funding that comes from a sales tax.

The proposal comes at a delicate time for the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority. High gas prices have contributed to record ridership at the same time falling property values and declining operating grants have cut into funding.

As a result, the authority is looking at a cumulative budget shortfall of $23 million over the next five years.

On Monday, HART planners revealed their proposal to overcome those grim numbers. The agency’s proposed budget for the next fiscal year calls for a $62 million operating budget, about 2 percent higher than this year. The $32 million capital budget would be about 20 percent less than this year but still includes $8 million for buses and vans.

Proposed changes to take effect in November include:

• One-way full fares would rise from $1.75, to $2, and one-way express fares would rise from $2.75, to $3. Discount increases would be 15 cents, with higher increases for long-term passes. One-way streetcar fares would remain at $2.50.
• Buses and service hours would be added to two busy routes: Route 34 between East Tampa and West Tampa, primarily along Hillsborough Avenue, and Route 30 between downtown, Tampa International Airport and Town ‘N Country. Higher ridership has made it difficult for drivers to maintain schedules on those routes.
• Eliminating the Brandon Flex Service on Saturdays but extending regular service to Brandon Regional Hospital.
• Eliminating Route 28X between east Hillsborough County and downtown Tampa.
• Combining routes 50X and 61LX between Citrus Park and Town ‘N Country and downtown Tampa.
• Ending express service on Presidents Day and Columbus Day while adopting Sunday service schedules on Memorial Day, July 4 and Labor Day.

Though HART board members on Monday applauded the proposal, some said the agency needs to better define its long-term plans.

“I don’t see what is the vision — where do we want to be in 10 years?” HART board member and county Commissioner Sandy Murman said.

HART chief executive Philip Hale said the budget proposal unveiled at Monday’s workshop was designed to allow the agency to “survive” the next few years.

“What we really have to do is move past that,” Hale said, adding that “somebody is going to have to write a check” if the authority wants to expand to take advantage of the growing popularity of mass transit.

The budget will go to the full board on June 4.

Among other items in the proposal, HART’s new route for a Bus Rapid Transit system called MetroRapid between the northeast suburbs and downtown Tampa is budgeted to begin operating in 2013. Those buses would make limited stops along one of HART’s busiest routes.

The proposal for an east-west Bus Rapid Transit route, though, still has not been funded.

In addition, HART’s union employees have operated without a contract for months and are negotiating for pay-level increases.

Turnover among bus operators, in particular those with two to three years of tenure who are finding more lucrative jobs as the economy improves, is on the rise, costing HART additional initial training costs of nearly $6,000 per employee. Beginning bus drivers make $11.91 an hour.

Commissioner Murman mentioned for championing solutions for homelessness in this Times article:
Kill rate at animal shelter needs to be reduced, commissioners tell administrator
By Bill Varian, Times Staff Writer
Bill VarianTampa Bay Times In Print: Thursday, May 3, 2012

TAMPA — Hillsborough commissioners told their administrator Wednesday to come up with a strategy for killing fewer dogs and cats at the county’s shelter.

The move came a little more than a week after County Administrator Mike Merrill announced a shakeup at the county’s Animal Services Department. The changes included the abrupt retirement of the department’s director of operations.

At the time, Merrill said he wanted the county to get more aggressive in reducing the number of animals euthanized at the shelter. Wednesday’s 6-0 vote, with Commissioner Les Miller absent, formalizes that.

The changes within the department have prompted applause but also protests from some animal activists and members of a panel that advises the county on animal issues. Commission Chairman Ken Hagan, who initiated Wednesday’s discussion, said he is not advocating for Hillsborough County to adopt a no-kill policy like some other shelters around the country.

But he said he believes Hillsborough can do a better job even as it makes gains in reducing the number of animals killed each year.

Since 2005, the county has reduced the number of animals euthanized at its shelter by 52 percent, to fewer than 14,000 dogs and cats last year. But the county still kills 65 percent of the animals that end up at its shelter.

“To me, that is unacceptable,” Hagan said.

Some animals inevitably will still need to be put down because they are sick or dangerous, he added.

As part of the analysis, Merrill and his staff were asked to present the financial implications of a more aggressive approach. Would it require more space as animals are sheltered longer, and more employees to watch them?

“I think it’s important to lower the kill rate,” said Commissioner Al Higginbotham. “I am concerned about, do we have the space? Do we have the staff?”

Animal Services has experienced sharp financial cuts due to declining tax revenue in recent years. The department no longer traps nuisance feral cats or picks up road kill.

Under the proposal, Merrill said his staff will work closely with the county’s volunteer Animal Advisory Committee. That group’s meetings will also get broadcast on the county’s television station, as the issue is expected to draw strong community interest.

Merrill said he expects to announce a new director for the department in coming days.

In other action, commissioners agreed to give the nonprofit group Mental Health Care Inc. $2.1 million to purchase and renovate a 24-unit apartment building near the University of South Florida.

The building will be converted into living quarters for the chronically homeless, in an effort to stabilize their lives and get them necessary services, such as mental health care. The so-called “housing first” initiative is intended as a pilot program and was championed by Commissioner Sandra Murman and a homelessness task force she helped create.

Commissioner Murman mentioned in this Creative Loafing article on the homeless initiative:

A plan for the homeless is announced in Hillsborough County

Posted by Mitch Perry on Wed, May 2, 2012 at 6:55 PM

 

After years of failing to adequately address the rising number of homeless in Hillsborough County, the County Commission began what might be just the beginning of a new phase today by approving $2.1 million to fund the acquisition and rehabilitation of Villa Seville, a 24 unit affordable housing development located off of Fowler Avenue in the University area of North Tampa.

The deal locks in agreement between the county and the Tampa Heights based group Mental Health Care, with the funds coming through federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds and from the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The plan was unveiled by Commissioner Sandy Murman, who has been leading a group of public and private individuals over the past year who have come together to seriously attempt to do something tangible about the homeless in Hillsborough County.

Murman discussed the concept they are utilizing to attack homelessness – a “housing first” approach used in many other U.S. cities. She said the “incremental strategy” is all about creating a small scale facility like Villa Seville that is located near public transportation, shopping areas and behavioral health facilities.

Saying what the County has done in the past has been “creating a treadmill with very little success,” Murman said the intent of the public-private group is not just to manage homelessness in the county but to solve it.

Among the business officials involved with the Murman group is M.E. Wilson Company president Guy King, who agreed with Murman that “We believe we can solve this problem.”

Appearing with King in addressing the Board was Tampa Bay Lightning chief executive officer Tod Leiweke, who briefly discussed his earlier work on homelessness while living in Seattle. He said beginning small was intentional, saying they didn’t want to let ambition “wreck the first step.”

Leiweke said the plan would be to have success with Villa Seville, and then go to the private sector for funding to help rehab other buildings, while having the county concentrate on services.

Commissioner Kevin Beckner asked Leiweke what was the motivating factor in Seattle to get the private sector to be involved?

Guy King responded, saying that the business community has compassion for the chronically homeless, but perhaps more importantly, businessmen and women are passionate about the community. “I’d like to go to Platt Street and not trip over people,” he bluntly asserted. “It’s quality of life for everyone going to work.”

The modest first step comes nearly half a year after Tampa passed a partial ban on panhandling. Since that time, various members of the City Council have expressed frustration with the Buckhorn administration for not going forward in trying to acquire a property for the homeless, a la Safe Harbor in Pinellas County.

But Buckhorn has steadfastly said that homeless services is not something the city is charged with working on, and has essentially said the issue was being worked on.

That was accurate, but those discussions were outside of public view – until today.