Page 13 - Florida Sentinel 5-20-16 Online Edition

FLORIDA SENTINEL FRIDAY, MAY 20, 2016
B
Has Led The Hotel And Motel Association For 28 Years:
Bob Morrison Recognized During National Tourism Week
BY GWEN HAYES Sentinel Editor
Tampa consultant,
Robert “Bob” Morrison,
President/CEO of Morrison and Associates, was recog- nized on Tuesday, May 3, 2016 during the 19th Annual National Tourism Week Luncheon. He received the 2016 Gonzmart Family Am- bassador of the Year Award.
Morrison, Executive Di- rector of Hillsborough County’s Hotel and Motel As- sociation, was recognized by hosts of the luncheon, Visit Tampa Bay. The luncheon was held at T. Pepin Hospital- ity Centre. More than 450 of Visit Tampa Bay’s tourism partners attended the lunch- eon.
The annual Gonzmart award honors a leader of Hillsborough County’s tourism industry for their work on behalf of the industry and the community at large.
During the past year, Morrison is credited with leading Hillsborough County hoteliers in discussions about voluntarily taxing themselves to provide additional funds for marketing the destination.
Morrison has been with the Hillsborough County Hotel and Motel industry in a part-time position since its in- ception in 1988. He has been its only Executive Director.
Morrison led negotia- tions in 1982 to move the Convention and Visitors Bu- reau from a Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce de- partment to an independent organization, now known as Visit Tampa Bay.
He has seen the creation of several signature events and programs. For over 28 years, he has led a charitable golf tournament, Tee-Off for Tourism Golf Experience, which he has co-hosted with Visit Tampa Bay for the past 5 years; and for 17 years he has
Robert “Bob” Morrison, center, received the 2016 Gonzmart Family Ambassador of the Year Award from Richard Gonzmart, left and Santiago Corrada, President and CEO of Visit Tampa Bay.
state in the country to have a ‘Tourism Marketing District.’ “Hotels will impose on
themselves $1.50 per occu- pied room each night to create a destination marketing fund. That will mean more tourists and convention business to Tampa and Hillsborough County,” he further explained.
Morrison was totally surprised by the award pres- entation.
“I was shocked, it was a unique moment,” he said. “I don’t know how my wife and the board kept that from me,” he stated. As a matter of fact, Morrison said he almost did not make the luncheon be- cause something came up at the last minute.
Morrison added that the hotel and motel board works together and is “open to the big picture approach.”
Morrison, a Tampa na- tive, is the husband of Dr. Ja- centha Buggs and father of 3.
hosted a nationally recog- nized Annual Trends and Forecasting Forum on hospi- tality conditions.
Morrison says by work- ing with “the City of Tampa and Hillsborough County to
create a new marketing strat- egy to strengthen Tampa/Hillsborough County as a conven-tion/tourist des- tination, Tampa will become the first city in Florida and Florida will become the 10th
The Battle Rages On With Opposition To TBX Project
Town Hall Meeting For Property Tax Relief And Informational Forum Planned
The West Tampa Collaboration (WTC) and the Urban Progress Al- liance (UPA), Incorporated repre- sent a group of outreach organizations that currently serve the interest of the redevelopment of West Tampa.
On Thursday, May 26th at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center, 2200 North Oregon Avenue, a town hall meeting will be conducted. The meeting will be held from 6 p. m. to 7 p. m.
The purpose of the meeting is to inform the West Tampa commu- nity and other affected areas re- garding their property taxes. Residents will have the opportunity to come out and learn how to pre- pare their property taxes, what their options are, or just ask ques- tions.
When residents received their tax notices on April 1st, typically dis- parity and panic sets in as to what to do when mounting tax bills start to overwhelm property owners.
The WTC is encouraging prop- erty owners not to rush to judg- ment and decide to sell your property to predatory investors. Once you sell, you and your family will not be able to afford to return to your neighborhood under the current economic agenda by out- side forces.
The WTC is encouraging prop- erty owners to hold on to their properties and consider other op- tions that the WTC organizations are offering.
Andre Hill, Sr., President of the UPA, said the WTC is develop- ing an economic plan that will sta-
ANDRE HILL
bilize the West Tampa corridor with businesses owned and con- trolled by their children.
“These businesses will preserve the cultural history that African Americans have contributed for so many generations to the City of Tampa.
“Our economic agenda is to res- urrect the historical businesses from West Tampa, Central Park, Belmont Heights, Progress Village and Sulphur Springs. We also in- tend to establish collaborations with the alumni of both Howard W. Blake and Middleton High Schools.”
In addition to property tax con- cerns, the WTC will be offering services and solutions to property foreclosure, property partnership re-financing and re-structuring, building code violations, business finance and development, and community participation in eco- nomic prosperity.
The panel of speakers at the meeting will include Todd Jones, MAI, CRE, FRICS, and Charles Holloman, an attorney who spe- cializes in trust funds.
BY LEON B. CREWS Sentinel Staff Writer
Mauricio Rosas, and others in the Seminole and Tampa Heights communi- ties, have vowed to not take a step back in their opposi- tion to a proposed highway project by the Florida De- partment of Transportation (FDOT).
FDOT has been hosting a series of community meet- ings to discuss their plans to expand I-275’s northbound section and install toll lanes through its midsection. That project would involve FDOT first acquiring right-of-way rights to adjacent proper- ties, and the loss of some historical homes and busi- nesses.
It is the loss of those valu- able assets that Rosas and others are trying to protect.
Appearing before City Council a week ago, Rosas pointed out to the Council that some of the residents at Mobley Park Apartments had no idea a part of the complex had been targeted by FDOT for the project.
“A lot of valuable real es- tate is being destroyed for the sake of this project that allofusfeelisnotonlya waste of money, but will not solve our roadway prob- lems.
“Alternate solutions have been presented to FDOT,
MAURICIO ROSAS
and that’s why we are still having the meetings. How- ever, most of us feel they in- tend to move ahead with the project in spite of our objec- tions.”
Rosas said the acquisi- tion of properties along the route will be the only thing preventing FDOT from moving forward immedi- ately with their plans.
“We’re trying to make it as difficult as we can for them to acquire those prop- erties. We know some prop- erty owners have already been approached, and we would like all of them to not accept any offer until they understand what’s really going on.
“We’ve all vowed to con- tinue attending the meet- ings with FDOT and the Metropolitan Planning Or- ganization (MPO) until they see we aren’t going to change our minds, and we don’t want our landmarks
destroyed.”
Rosas said as seen in the
news, the express toll lanes on I-95 in the Miami area have been nothing but a drain on police depart- ments, other first respon- ders and taxpayers.
“It was recently reported that there were over 12,000 accidents on I-95’s express- way over the stretch of a few years, and State Troopers are not happy.
“Yet, FDOT wants to build the same system in Tampa’s urban core. Will our first re- sponders be ready for the forecasted accident rates on the express lanes? Actually, our first responders will not, because FDOT does not fac- tor in the cost of accidents on the express lanes as part of their plan. Before this project moves forward, FDOT needs to provide cost estimates of future emer- gency services and how they will be paid.”
Rosas said he doubts that FDOT has presented a fair analysis in its haste to align itself with the express but service scheme.
“FDOT has yet to provide how TBX will improve the urban core, or how many people have been and will be displaced.
“We cannot say yes to TBX until we know the neg- ative economic impact to Tampa’s urban core.