Commissioner Murman quoted in this Tampa Bay Times article on City roads:
Would Tampa take over Hillsborough roads in the city? No chance, Buckhorn says
Monday, October 24, 2016 10:50am
TAMPA — The hundreds of cars that zoom along Bayshore Boulevard each day may be driving in the city of Tampa, but that’s a Hillsborough County road.
The same goes for Bay to Bay Boulevard, Armenia Avenue and Westshore Boulevard.
In all, there are about 60 miles of county-owned roads in Tampa. And some Hillsborough officials would like to see them turned over to the city.
“It’s really important because it’s causing confusion with taxpayers and residents,” Commissioner Sandy Murman said at a recent county board meeting. “People on Bayshore don’t know who to call when there’s a problem.”
But asked if he was willing to take on that responsibility, Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn said absolutely not.
“We have enough on our plate with the roads we’re obligated to fix that we own,” Buckhorn said. “It’s one thing if the roads were in good condition, but largely they’re not. … Bay to Bay is a minefield.”
Under an interlocal agreement between the city and the county, Tampa maintains the roads and foots the bill up front. The county then reimburses the city.
The agreement was extended last month through 2017.
Getting the county to pay Tampa back for the work it completes is like pulling teeth, Buckhorn said.
County commissioners approved a $1.08 million payment to Tampa in September for 2016 roadwork, and set aside $1.7 million for next year after a “testy” meeting between the two sides that finally forced the money to flow, Buckhorn said.
“They’ve proven to be an unreliable partner and I’m not inclined at all to assume any of their responsibilities,” he said.
County staff provided an invoice from the city for $1.08 million on Sept. 20. The invoice was paid by check in nine days, but the county administration did not have further comment.
Murman was caught off guard by Buckhorn’s position.
“I know they probably don’t want one more thing on their plate either, and I get it,” she said, “But that’s the first time I’ve heard those concerns. If that’s an issue obviously we’ll address it.”
At 9.8 miles, Armenia is the longest county-owned road, followed Columbus Drive at 8.54 miles. But they can be as short as a 0.04 mile stretch of 30th Street near Fowler Avenue. The state also owns roads in the city.
The spat over county-owned roads is magnified by Buckhorn’s resentment over Hillsborough’s decision not to raise the sales tax by a half cent to pay for transportation needs here. Tampa would have received a piece of the $3.5 billion that a surcharge would have raised over 30 years.
Instead, commissioners recently approved a plan to set aside $600 million out of their budget over the next 10 years to build and fix roads and intersections, mostly in unincorporated Hillsborough.
The project list approved last week includes $56 million for streets within Tampa’s boundaries, though much of that is improvements to county-owned roads.
Commissioners have promised that Tampa, as well as Temple Terrace and Plant City, can ask the county to help fund transportation projects.
“That’s the heart of the problem. It’s always going to be about money,” Murman said. “That’s the big issue. How do you have adequate funding?”
