Page 3 - Florida Sentinel 9-4-20

Feature
Mayor, Staff Present City’s Budget To Sentinel Editorial Board
BY GWEN HAYES Sentinel Editor
In a virtual Zoom meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2020, Mayor Jane Castor and 2 members of her staff pre- sented the City of Tampa’s 2020-2021 budget to mem- bers of the Sentinel Editorial Board.
In the past, the Board has looked forward to the Mayor and staff coming into the of- fice, however, because of COVID-19 things had to be different this year.
Mayor Jane Castor
was accompanied by Chief of Staff John Bennett and Chief Financial Officer Den- nis Rogero.
Members of the Sentinel Editorial Board that were a part of the meeting were: Kay Andrews, Publisher; C. Blythe Andrews, III, President/CEO; Gwen Hayes, Editor; Wilbert Malphus, businessman; James Tokley, columnist/consultant; James Ransom, retired County employee, TOBA/Saturday Morning Breakfast Group; and Joanna Tokley, guest.
Mayor Castor shared some specifics from the nearly $1.7 billion budget that will go into effect Oct. 1, 2020. She presented the budget to Tampa City Coun- cil early last month. One of 2 public hearings will be held on Thursday, Sept. 3rd. She added that there are no major changes or requests in the budget.
The Mayor explained that there is an increase in the 2020-21 budget, with the onset of COVID-19, and property values did go up.
The Fire and Police Dept. are starting their own health entities, so the City will pay them a lump sum.
There are plans to add more fulltime employees to Parks and Recreation. Fire
Rescue service has increased in East Tampa and North Tampa. The Mayor has made an obligation to parks and recreation and recently com- mitted $12 million to Fair Oaks with the intent of pur- chasing adjacent property.
She called 34th Street the gateway to East Tampa, the inclusion of round-abouts with smaller lanes are aimed to slow traffic, and wider bike lanes, along with LED lighting.
Police officers all have body cameras, except those who may be in quarantine; and new oxygen tanks have been added for scuba divers.
Tampa’s Department of Solid Waste and Environ- mental Program Manage- ment celebrated becoming the second city in the country to own and operate its own waste to energy facility. The other is in Seattle.
In housing affordability, the mayor stated that a pub- lic-private partnership should work together to build affordable housing for the City of Tampa. There are several lots around the city up for foreclosure, she said, that can become available to banks and developers for building.
However, Board Member Malphus said that the over- payment that the developers are charging on homes in East Tampa, is not affordable to the average working fam- ily. He suggested using smaller contractors whose overhead would not be as high.
Ms. Andrews, who has been in the housing business for many years, inquired about vacancies at The En- core. They are at market rate, she said, and not affordable as she attempts to assist res- idents find housing for the soon to be closed Tampa Park Apartments. The Tampa Housing Authority is involved with Encore. The
MAYOR JANE CASTOR
Mayor said she will speak with those officials about the vacancies. She was not aware of the vacancies.
The Mayor added how- ever, that the Bethune High
Rise in West Tampa should soon be available for rental. Domain, CDC and Habitat for Humanities have built on lots from the City.
Mr. Ransom said there should be more equity among developers. “Black developers and realtors have money to invest, too,” he said.
With regards to Work- force, Ms. Andrews asked about diversity and the appli- cation process. She had a friend, who contacted her after several problems of navigating the application website. The mayor said they’re trying to make it user-friendly.
Mr. Ransom inquired about the City’s spending budget report.
Mr. Tokley asked if the City does diversity training for its officers. There is train- ing at the Holocaust Mu- seum. However, there are plans to be more inclusive with history of African Amer- icans.
Mrs. Tokley asked about background checks on police officers who are mem- bers of or engaged in chat- room conversations including hate crimes.
The Mayor said her goal is to improve the quality of life for all who live, work and play in Tampa.
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2020 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY FRIDAY PAGE 3-A