CAPTIONING
JUNE 3, 2008
METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION


***This is not an official, verbatim transcript of the 
***following meeting.  It should be used for informational 
***purposes only.  This document has not been edited; 
***therefore, there may be additions, deletions, or words 
***that did not translate.

[NO AUDIO]
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  -- OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK.
BEFORE WE START THE HEARING, LET ME REMIND YOU THAT THERE 
ARE YELLOW FORMS IN -- ON THE TABLE AT THE DOOR IN THE BACK 
FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO WANT TO SPEAK.
IF YOU HAVE NOT SIGNED IN, PLEASE FILL OUT A FORM AND GIVE 
IT TO LINDA FERRARO, THE MPO'S SECRETARY.
IF YOU WISH TO EXPRESS YOUR COMMENTS IN WRITING, THERE ARE 
PINK FORMS ON THE TABLE.
NOW I'LL CALL ON OUR STAFF TO GIVE US A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF 
THE TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM.
WALLY.
>>WALLY BLAIN:  GOOD MORNING.
THANK YOU, MAYOR.
WALLY BLAIN, MPO STAFF.
I DO WANT TO OPEN THIS PUBLIC HEARING AND LET YOU KNOW 
WE'RE IN THE FINAL PHASE OF THE T.I.P. DOCUMENT THAT WILL 
BE IN EFFECT OCTOBER 1st OF THIS YEAR AND RUN THROUGH THE 
FISCAL YEAR THROUGH SEPTEMBER OF NEXT YEAR.
THIS IS THE DOCUMENT BY WHICH ALL OF THE PROJECTS THAT 
REQUIRE FEDERAL FUNDING ARE AUTHORIZED.
THE PROJECTS NEED TO BE SHOWN IN THE T.I.P. DOCUMENT FOR 
THE FEDERAL HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATION, THE FEDERAL TRANSIT 
ADMINISTRATION TO AUTHORIZE PROJECTS THAT USE FEDERAL 
MONIES.
THAT'S WHY OFTENTIMES WE'LL COME BACK THROUGH THE YEAR AND 
AMEND THE DOCUMENT SO THOSE PROJECTS ARE SHOWN WITH 
APPROPRIATE AND PROPER FUNDING AMOUNTS.
THIS IS BASED ON THE PRIORITIES THAT THE MPO ADOPTED LAST 
SEPTEMBER.
THOSE WERE PRIORITIES FOR FUNDING THROUGH THE SURFACE 
TRANSPORTATION PROGRAM AS WELL AS TRANSPORTATION 
ENHANCEMENT PROGRAM.
WE'RE ALSO INVOLVED -- EXCUSE ME -- IN COORDINATING WITH 
THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION IN THIS -- THE 
OTHER STATE AND FEDERAL FUNDING AMOUNTS THAT WE ARE 
COORDINATING MPO PRIORITIES WITH THE FDOT PRIORITIES FOR 
THOSE PROJECTS.
IN ADDITION TO THOSE PROJECTS THAT ARE FEDERALLY AND STATE 
FUNDED, IT DOES INCLUDE PROJECTS THAT ARE LISTED IN LOCAL 
AGENCY CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAMS, SO WE'VE TAKEN THE 
COUNTY'S, THE CITY OF TAMPA, THE CITY OF TEMPLE TERRACE, 
AND THE CITY OF PLANT CITY'S CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAMS, 
WE'VE COMPILED THE INFORMATION FROM THE AVIATION AUTHORITY, 
THE HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY EXPRESSWAY AUTHORITY, THE AVIATION 
AUTHORITY, AND THE TURNPIKE ENTERPRISE.
THOSE PROJECTS ARE IN HERE, AND WE'VE ALSO CONTACTED THE 
TRANSPORTATION DISADVANTAGED AGENCIES THAT PROVIDE SERVICES 
AND INCORPORATED THEIR INFORMATION IN HERE AS WELL, SO YOU 
HAVE A FULL LISTING OF MAJOR TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS FOR 
THE NEXT FIVE YEARS THAT ARE INCLUDED IN THE T.I.P. 
DOCUMENT.
THE MPO PRIORITIES SPECIFICALLY FOR THE SURFACE 
TRANSPORTATION PROGRAMMING, THERE IS FUNDING IN THERE, 
AGAIN, FOR THE MPO TO CONTINUE DOING THE STUDIES IN 
COORDINATION IN DEALING WITH LOCAL AGENCIES AND PROVIDING 
SUPPORT FOR THEIR PLANNING EFFORTS.
ADDITIONAL FUNDING WAS ADDED IN THE NEW FIFTH YEAR, WHICH 
IS 2012-2013 FOR THE FUNDING ON 40th STREET, TO CONTINUE 
THAT PROJECT MOVING ON.
MONEY WAS ALSO ADDED FOR BRUCE B. DOWNS ON THE NORTHERN 
SEGMENT, WHICH WILL BE FROM PEBBLE CREEK NORTH TO THE 
COUNTY LINE FOR RIGHT-OF-WAY AND CONSTRUCTION RESERVES IN 
THE FUTURE.
RIGHT-OF-WAY WAS ALSO ADDED ON SAM ALLEN ROAD FROM 39 TO 
PARK.
THIS IS A PARALLEL FACILITY TO INTERSTATE 4 OVER IN THE 
PLANT CITY AREA.
THE MONEY WAS AWARDED FOR HART FOR BUS REPLACEMENTS AS WELL 
AS TRAFFIC SYSTEM MANAGEMENT.
THIS IS FOR THE CITY OF TAMPA FOR EQUIPMENT UPDATES AND 
THEIR INTELLIGENT TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM IMPROVEMENTS.
THREE AGENCIES WERE AWARDED GRANTS THIS YEAR FOR THE 
TRANSPORTATION DEMAND MANAGEMENT.
THAT'S THE BAY AREA COMMUTER SERVICES, THE TAMPA DOWNTOWN 
PARTNERSHIP, AND THE NEW NORTH TRANSPORTATION ALLIANCE.
THESE AGENCIES WORK TO PROVIDE ALTERNATIVES TO THE SINGLE-
OCCUPANT VEHICLE, SO THOSE -- EDUCATING THE PUBLIC ON 
OPPORTUNITIES THAT ARE AVAILABLE FOR THEM EITHER THROUGH 
EMPLOYMENT -- EMPLOYER PROGRAMS OR THE LIKE.
ALSO, THE WESTSHORE ALLIANCE WAS AWARDED SOME MONEY THIS 
YEAR FOR DESIGN ON PEDESTRIAN SYSTEM IMPROVEMENTS IN THE 
WESTSHORE AREA.
THESE ARE IMPROVEMENTS THAT WOULD BE CONSISTENT WITH THE 
MPO'S WESTSHORE PEDESTRIAN PLAN THAT WAS COMPLETED SEVERAL 
YEARS BACK.
SOME HIGHLIGHTS THAT ARE IN HERE AND SPECIFIC PROJECTS THAT 
CHANGED FROM LAST YEAR'S T.I.P. DOCUMENT TO THIS DOCUMENT, 
THE FIRST IS THE I-275 NORTHBOUND OFF RAMP AT STATE ROAD 
60.
THIS WILL TIE IN THE WORK THAT'S CURRENTLY BEING DONE ON I-
275 AS WELL AS THE WORK THAT'S BEING DONE FOR THE TAMPA 
AIRPORT INTERCHANGES, SO IT IS KIND OF A LINCHPIN -- HINGE 
PIN, WRONG WORD -- CORNERSTONE TO THOSE PROJECTS THAT WILL 
TIE THOSE TWO TOGETHER.
ALSO ON I-275 THERE'S AN I.T.S., INTELLIGENT TRANSPORTATION 
SYSTEM, PROJECT THAT WAS ADDED FROM BEARSS NORTH TO I-75.
THIS WILL EXTEND THE TRAVELER INFORMATION THAT'S CURRENTLY 
AVAILABLE ON I-275 SOUTH OF THIS AREA DOWN INTO DOWNTOWN.
SOME PROJECTS THAT WERE ADDED SPECIFICALLY.
I KNOW LAST MONTH AT THE MEETING WE DISCUSSED THE I-
4/SELMON EXPRESSWAY "Z" MOVEMENT, AND THERE WAS SOME 
CLARIFICATION OF THE TIMING OF THE PROJECT BEING DONE AND 
COMPLETED AND WHEN THE MONEY IS AVAILABLE.
THAT MONEY HAS BEEN ADDED INTO THE NEW FIFTH YEAR OF THE 
T.I.P. DOCUMENT.
ALSO ON STATE ROAD 574 -- THIS IS MARTIN LUTHER KING 
BOULEVARD OUT IN THE SEFFNER/VALRICO AREA -- FROM PARSONS 
TO KINGSWAY RIGHT-OF-WAY ACQUISITION WAS ADDED IN THE NEW 
FIFTH YEAR.
IN ADDITION TO TWO SPECIFIC PROJECTS AND CAPACITY-ADDING 
PROJECTS, 11 RESURFACING PROJECTS WERE ADDED IN THE D.O.T. 
WORK PROGRAM THIS YEAR.
APPENDIX "B" OF THE T.I.P. DOCUMENT WAS ADDED.
IT KIND OF HIGHLIGHTS A LOT OF THE MAJOR -- SOME OF THE 
OTHER MAJOR THINGS WE'RE NOT HIGHLIGHTING IN THE 
PRESENTATION TODAY, BUT IT SPECIFICALLY CALLS OUT WHAT 
THOSE 11 RESURFACING PROJECTS ARE.
I KNOW WHEN WE WENT THROUGH THE TECHNICAL ADVISORY 
COMMITTEE, THERE WAS INTEREST FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENTS TO 
PARTNER WITH D.O.T. IN GETTING ADDITIONAL IMPROVEMENTS IN 
THOSE THAT THE LOCAL AGENCIES WANTED TO SEE SO THEY CAN 
PARTNER WITH D.O.T., SO WE KNOW WHERE THOSE 11 RESURFACING 
PROJECTS ARE COMING UP.
IN ADDITION TO ADDING PROJECTS AND MOVING PROJECTS FORWARD, 
THERE'S ALSO PROJECT DEFERRALS THAT HAPPEN FROM YEAR TO 
YEAR.
THE FIRST IS AT DALE MABRY HIGHWAY FRONTAGE ROAD PROJECT.
THIS WAS A DESIGN STUDY THAT WAS MOVED FROM 2011 TO 2012.
THIS IS IN THE NORTH DALE MABRY CHEVAL AREA.
THE TAMPA PORT AUTHORITY HAD SOME PORTWIDE IMPROVEMENTS.
THEY HAVE AN ANNUAL ALLOCATION OF ABOUT $2 MILLION JUST FOR 
GENERAL PORTWIDE IMPROVEMENTS.
THE MONEY WAS MOVED FROM 2010 TO 2012.
IT IS A ZERO BALANCE.
THAT MONEY IS NOT LOST, IT'S JUST MOVED OUT TWO YEARS.
ALSO SOME LAND ACQUISITION FOR THE NORTH -- OF HILLSBOROUGH 
AVENUE FOR THE TAMPA AIRPORT MASTER PLAN IMPROVEMENTS WAS 
DEFERRED AS WELL FROM 2010 TO 2012.
I UNDERSTAND THAT NOBODY SEES THE PRESENTATION ON THE 
COMPUTERS.
>> [INAUDIBLE]
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THAT'S ALL RIGHT.
KEEP GOING, WALLY.
>>WALLY BLAIN:  I'M A LOT BETTER THAN THE PRESENTATION, I 
HOPE.
ALSO THIS LAST YEAR THE COUNTY'S TRANSPORTATION TASK FORCE 
MADE A RECOMMENDATION TO BOND FUTURE COMMUNITY INVESTMENT 
TAX IN THE BALLPARK OF ABOUT $500 MILLION.
SEVERAL OF THOSE PROJECTS ARE NOW COMING INTO THE COUNTY'S 
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM, AND AS I MENTIONED THAT WE DO 
INCLUDE THE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM IN THE WORK 
PROGRAM, SO AGAIN, IN THE APPENDIX "B" OF THE DOCUMENT, 
YOU'LL SEE SOME OF THOSE SPECIFIC PROJECTS THAT WERE ADDED 
INTO THIS YEAR T.I.P. DOCUMENT.
IF WE LOOK AT THE AMOUNT OF MONEY THAT'S PROGRAMMED IN THE 
FIVE YEARS, IT'S ABOUT $2.9 BILLION OVER THE NEXT FIVE 
YEARS THAT'S PROGRAMMED FOR SOME OF THE MAJOR 
TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENTS.
BREAKING THAT OUT, IT'S -- ABOUT 78% OF THAT IS FOR HIGHWAY 
IMPROVEMENTS, 6% IS FOR TRANSIT IMPROVEMENTS, 3% FOR 
GENERAL PORT IMPROVEMENTS, AND 13% FOR AVIATION 
IMPROVEMENTS AT THE VARIOUS AIRPORTS THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY.
WE HAVE GONE THROUGH THE COMMITTEES IN APRIL WITH A REVIEW 
OF THIS PROVIDING INFORMATION TO THEM AND GETTING FEEDBACK 
FROM THE COMMITTEES.
WE CAME TO THE MPO IN MAY, ALSO TO PROVIDE INFORMATION AND 
GAIN FEEDBACK.
IN MAY WE WENT THROUGH THE COMMITTEES, AND ALL THE 
COMMITTEES DID APPROVE THE T.I.P. DOCUMENT TO BRING IT 
FORWARD TO THE MPO FOR APPROVAL THIS MONTH.
WE'RE HOLDING THE PUBLIC HEARING NOW TODAY FOR YOU TO HEAR 
WHAT WE HAVE, FOR THE PUBLIC TO HEAR WHAT WE HAVE AND 
PROVIDE COMMENT AND FEEDBACK TO US.
WE DO HAVE A DEADLINE OF JULY 15th TO MOVE THIS ON TO 
D.O.T., WHERE WE WILL BEGIN THE FEDERAL AND STATE REVIEW 
PROCESS OF THE T.I.P. DOCUMENT BEFORE IT BECOMES EFFECTIVE 
OCTOBER 1st.
SO WITH THAT, WHAT WE ARE ASKING THE BOARD TODAY IS FOR 
APPROVAL OF THE T.I.P. DOCUMENT AND TO MOVE THIS FORWARD 
AND BECOME THE T.I.P. FOR FISCAL YEARS 2008-2009 THROUGH 
FISCAL YEAR 2012-2013.
WITH THAT, IF THERE'S ANY QUESTIONS, I CAN ANSWER THEM NOW.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  ANY QUESTIONS OF -- YES, MR. SKELTON.
>>DON SKELTON:  YES, MAYOR.
I JUST WANT TO ADD A LITTLE BIT OF INFORMATION FOR 
CONSIDERATION.
WHAT WALLY HAS TALKED ABOUT IN ALL THE CHANGES THAT HE'S 
DISCUSSED THIS MORNING WERE AS A RESULT OF THE REVENUE 
REDUCTIONS TO TRANSPORTATION AS CONCLUSION OF THE REVENUE 
ESTIMATING CONFERENCE HELD IN MARCH.
SINCE THEN WE'VE HAD A LEGISLATIVE SESSION THAT HAS 
PROPOSED A BUDGET TO THE GOVERNOR -- IT'S IN FRONT OF THE 
GOVERNOR NOW -- AND A COUPLE OF BILLS THAT WILL IMPACT THE 
WORK PROGRAM FURTHER.
WE WILL HAVE REDUCED OUR STATEWIDE FIVE-YEAR PROGRAM BY 
$1.3 BILLION IF THE GOVERNOR SIGNS THOSE BILLS, WHICH WE 
EXPECT HIM TO DO SO.
AS THAT AFFECTS HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY -- SOME OF THOSE FUNDS 
WERE IN THE TRIP PROGRAM.
NO HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY TRIP PROJECTS ARE AFFECTED BY THAT, 
BUT WE DO NOT HAVE ANY RESERVES LEFT IN TRIP FOR THE FIRST 
THREE YEARS AND VERY LIMITED OUT IN YEARS FOUR AND FIVE.
BUT THE BIG PROJECTS -- IF YOU TURN TO PAGE 27 OF YOUR 
T.I.P. DOCUMENT, I-275 FROM STATE ROAD 60 TO HIMES, THAT 
PROJECT WHICH IS IN THIS T.I.P. SHOWN IN 2010-2011 IS 
PROPOSED TO MOVE TO '11-'12, AND THEN THE PROJECT THAT IS 
TWO LINES BELOW THAT, I-275 FROM HIMES TO THE HILLSBOROUGH 
RIVER WILL MOVE FROM '11-'12 TO '12-'13.
AGAIN, THAT'S PROPOSED.
WE'RE TRYING TO GET THAT FINALIZED AT THE STATEWIDE LEVEL, 
AGAIN TO TRY TO BALANCE A $1.3-BILLION IMPACT.
ANOTHER ASPECT THAT I JUST NEED TO BRING UP IS THE PROVISO 
LANGUAGE IN THE LAW AND THE BUDGET ALSO PROHIBITS THE 
DEPARTMENT FROM SPENDING ANY MONEY ON LANDSCAPING 
COMPONENTS IN 2008-2009, SO WE HAVE REMOVED ALL MONIES 
RELATED TO LANDSCAPING FOR THAT BUDGET YEAR IN ORDER TO TRY 
TO PROTECT THE PROJECT, SO WE'RE LIKELY TO BE BRINGING A 
T.I.P. AMENDMENT OR PROBABLY EVEN IN THE JULY MEETING TO 
ADDRESS THESE ISSUES AS WE FINALIZE THEM.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OKAY.
MS. SAUL-SENA.
>>LINDA SAUL-SENA:  THANK YOU.
I WANTED TO BRING UP THAT IN OUR LIVABLE ROADWAYS COMMITTEE 
MEETING THIS MONTH WE SPECIFICALLY REFERENCED WHAT WE 
CONSIDER LIVABLE ROADWAYS COMPONENTS, INCLUDING 
LANDSCAPING, AND WHAT WE SAID AS A -- AS A GENERAL POLICY 
DIRECTION FROM THE MPO -- WE'RE GOING TO MAKE THIS AS A 
RECOMMENDATION DURING OUR REPORT -- IS THAT RATHER THAN 
CREATE UNLIVABLE PROJECTS THAT WE SLOW THE WORK SCHEDULE 
ONLY SLIGHTLY.
IF YOU LOOK AT WHAT THE COST OF LANDSCAPING IS IN TERMS OF 
MOST OF THE PROJECTS, IT'S SIGNIFICANTLY LESS THAN 1% OR 
PERHAPS AROUND 1%, BUT THE QUALITIES IT BRINGS ARE 
SIGNIFICANT, SO WHAT WE'RE SAYING IS SINCE THE HIT FROM THE 
STATE AND FEDERAL GOVERNMENTS IS SIGNIFICANT, LET'S JUST 
SLOW THINGS ONLY SLIGHTLY BUT PRODUCE PROJECTS THAT ARE AS 
HIGH QUALITY AS WHAT WE ORIGINALLY ENVISIONED.
MY QUESTION TO YOU IS, IS THIS IDEA OF ELIMINATING 
LANDSCAPING COMING FROM THE STATE OR IS IT COMING FROM OUR 
LOCAL DISTRICT, OR WHERE IS THE SOURCE OF THAT?
>>DON SKELTON:  THAT IS THE PROVISO LANGUAGE IN LAW, SO --
>>LINDA SAUL-SENA:  FROM WHOM?
>>DON SKELTON:  FROM THE LEGISLATURE.
IT'S IN THE BILL, IT'S IN THE APPROPRIATIONS BILL, THAT 
THERE IS NOT TO BE ANY MONEY SPENT IN LANDSCAPING ON 2008-
2009, THAT THOSE MONIES THAT WERE PREVIOUSLY IDENTIFIED FOR 
LANDSCAPING BE USED TO PROTECT PROJECTS IN THE WORK 
PROGRAM.
>>LINDA SAUL-SENA:  THE AMOUNT OF MONEY THAT'S GOING TO BE 
CUT VERSUS PROTECTING PROJECTS IS SO MINUSCULE, I'M VERY 
DISAPPOINTED THAT THE LEGISLATURE HAS CHOSEN TO DO SUCH AN 
ANTI-QUALITY-OF-LIFE GESTURE BECAUSE AN EMPTY GESTURE IT 
IS.
BUT -- SO THE OPPORTUNITY, THEN, IF WE WANT TO HAVE 
LANDSCAPING IS FOR THE LOCAL MUNICIPALITIES TO PICK UP THE 
TAB?
ARE WE ALLOWED TO DO THAT?
>>DON SKELTON:  THAT WOULD BE FINE, SPENDING IT OUT OF THE 
LOCAL MUNICIPALITY BUDGET OR IN FUTURE YEARS IF FUNDING 
ALLOWS.
>>LINDA SAUL-SENA:  CAN YOU MAKE US AWARE OF WHAT KINDS OF 
HITS THOSE ARE, BECAUSE, FOR EXAMPLE, IF THERE WERE ANY 
IRRIGATION AS PART OF A PROJECT, IT OBVIOUSLY MAKES SENSE 
TO INCLUDE IRRIGATION OPPORTUNITIES WHEN YOU'RE DOING THE 
PROJECT AND PERHAPS ADD THE PLANT MATERIAL AT A LATER DATE.
>>DON SKELTON:  RIGHT.
WE'VE NOT TAKEN OUT ANYTHING RELATED TO THE SLEEVING OF 
THINGS THAT WERE IN PROJECTS.
>>LINDA SAUL-SENA:  THANK YOU.
>>DON SKELTON:  IT'S THE PLANT MATERIALS AND THE ACTUAL 
LANDSCAPING ITSELF.
>>LINDA SAUL-SENA:  SO WILL THERE BE GRASS OR JUST DIRT?
>>DON SKELTON:  THERE WILL BE SOD -- ANYTHING THAT'S 
RELATED TO SOIL EROSION STABILIZATION, THOSE TYPE THINGS, 
OR MITIGATION ARE STILL IN THE PLANS.
THOSE ARE ENGINEERING NECESSITIES.
THEY'RE NOT AESTHETIC LANDSCAPING.
>>LINDA SAUL-SENA:  THANK YOU.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  MR. SKELTON, DO YOU KNOW OF ANY PROJECTS 
WITHIN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY IN TERMS OF THE LANDSCAPING THAT 
COULD BE AFFECTED?
>>DON SKELTON:  I'D ASK LEE ROYAL TO ADDRESS THAT.
IN LOOKING AT HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH 
THE AFFECTED LOCAL JURISDICTIONS LIKE CITY OF TAMPA, 
HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY.
I THINK THERE WERE A COUPLE OF ENHANCEMENT-FUNDED PROJECTS, 
BUT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO WORK WITH THE LOCALS WHERE THEY 
WOULD ACTUALLY FUND THE LANDSCAPING COMPONENT AND THE 
ENHANCEMENT FUNDS WOULD EITHER BE RETURNED TO A BOX OR USED 
FOR SOME OTHER COMPLEMENT.
>> THERE WERE TWO PROJECTS IN 2009, AND WE'RE ACTUALLY 
WORKING WITH THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT INTO MOVING THEM INTO 
2010 THAT WE'LL BE COMING BACK WITH A TIP AMENDMENT, AND I 
BELIEVE ONE OF THEM WAS THE 22nd STREET ENHANCEMENT AND 
ANOTHER ON A LOCAL FACILITY IN THE CITY OF TAMPA THAT WE'LL 
BE WORKING WITH THE STAFF TO DEFER THOSE PROJECTS.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OKAY.
JOE CAETANO, YOU HAD A QUESTION.
>>JOSEPH CAETANO:  MR. BLAIN, ON BRUCE B. DOWNS BOULEVARD 
SOUTH OF PALM SPRINGS --
>>WALLY BLAIN:  YES, SIR.
>>JOSEPH CAETANO:  -- WAS THE STATUS OF THAT TO BEARSS 
AVENUE?
>>WALLY BLAIN:  MY UNDERSTANDING IS -- AND THAT -- THE 
COUNTY IS DOING THAT PROJECT.
MY UNDERSTANDING WAS FROM PALMS SPRINGS TO PEBBLE CREEK WAS 
OUR FIRST PRIORITY, PALM SPRINGS NORTH TO THE COUNTY LINE 
WAS OUR SECOND PRIORITY, AND PALM SPRINGS TO BEARSS WAS THE 
THIRD PRIORITY.
AS FAR AS HOW THAT'S MOVING ALONG, MY UNDERSTANDING WAS THE 
DESIGN WAS DONE FOR THE WHOLE CORRIDOR BUT NOTHING IS 
MOVING FORWARD IN FUNDING FOR THAT SOUTHERN PORTION.
>>JOSEPH CAETANO:  RIGHT NOW THERE'S NO FUNDING FOR IT 
EXCEPT FOR DESIGN?
>>WALLY BLAIN:  YES.
>>JOSEPH CAETANO:  THANK YOU.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OKAY.
MARY, MARY MULHERN.
>>MARY MULHERN:  I THINK THIS IS A QUESTION FOR MR. 
SKELTON.
I'M FOLLOWING UP ON THE LANDSCAPING.
HAS THAT BILL BEEN SIGNED?
HAS THE GOVERNOR SIGNED THE --
>>DON SKELTON:  THE APPROPRIATIONS BILL HAS NOT BEEN SIGNED 
YET.
>>MARY MULHERN:  OKAY.
THANKS.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  ANY OTHER QUESTIONS?
IF NOT, IS THERE ANY OTHER -- WE HAVE THREE PEOPLE THAT PUT 
FORMS IN TO SPEAK TO THE BOARD.
I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S REGARDING THE T.I.P. FUNDING OR IF 
IT HAS TO DO WITH OTHER ISSUES.
KELLY, COULD YOU JUST -- KELLY CORNELIUS.
>> IT'S ON THE NEXT ISSUE.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OKAY.
THAT'S ALL THREE OF THEM?
OKAY.
SO WE'LL JUST PASS ON THAT.
ALL RIGHT.
WE HAVE THE POLICY COMMITTEE VOTED ON MAY 20th TO MOVE THIS 
FORWARD TO FDOT, THE CITIZENS ADVISORY COMMITTEE APPROVED 
IT ON MAY 14th, AND THE TECHNICAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE 
APPROVED IT ON THE 19th.
AND SO WE NEED A MOTION TO --
>>ROSE FERLITA:  MOVE THE ITEM, MR. CHAIRMAN.
>> SECOND.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  MOVED AND SECONDED.
ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION?
ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE.
[CHORUS OF AYES]
OPPOSED.
>>ADAM GORMLY:  MR. CHAIR, EXCUSE ME.
THIS IS A ROLL CALL VOTE.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OH, OKAY.
>> COUNCILMAN DINGFELDER.
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  YES.
>> COMMISSIONER BLAIR.
>>BRIAN BLAIR:  YES.
>> COMMISSIONER -- MR. MILLER.
>>LOUIS MILLER:  YES.
>> MAYOR LOTT.
>>RICK LOTT:  YES.
>> MAYOR AFFRONTI.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  YES.
>> COMMISSIONER SHARPE.
>>MARK SHARPE:  YES.
>> COUNCILWOMAN MULHERN.
>> YES.
>> COUNCILWOMAN SAUL-SENA.
>>LINDA SAUL-SENA:  YES.
>> COUNCILMAN CAETANO.
>>JOSEPH CAETANO:  YES.
>> COMMISSIONER FERLITA.
>>ROSE FERLITA:  YES.
>> MR. WAGGONER.
>>JOSEPH WAGGONER:  YES.
>> MOTION APPROVED UNANIMOUSLY.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OKAY.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
>>WALLY BLAIN:  THANK YOU.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THANK YOU, WALLY.
OKAY.
THAT CLOSES THIS PUBLIC HEARING.
WE WILL NOW CONVENE INTO OUR REGULAR MEETING.
WOULD YOU PLEASE STAND FOR THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE AND A 
BRIEF INVOCATION.
[PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE]
HEAVENLY FATHER, THANK YOU FOR ALL THE WONDERFUL BLESSINGS 
THAT YOU GIVE TO US, GIVE US THE OPPORTUNITY TO LIVE IN 
SUCH A WONDERFUL STATE, COUNTY, AND CITY.
WE ASK THAT YOU PROTECT OUR YOUNG MEN AND WOMEN WHO ARE 
FIGHTING FOR OUR FREEDOM AND GIVING UP THEIR FAMILY LIFE TO 
PROTECT US.
IN YOUR NAME WE PRAY.
AMEN.
>> AMEN.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OKAY.
BEFORE WE GET STARTED, I WOULD LIKE TO CONGRATULATE MR. 
MILLER AND HIS STAFF FOR WINNING -- THEY JUST WERE AWARDED 
THE -- TAMPA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT WON THE EAGLE AWARD.
I DON'T KNOW IF ALL OF YOU HAVE SEEN THAT, BUT A LITTLE 
ARTICLE IN THE PAPER SAYS, TAMPA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT HAS 
WON THE INTERNATIONAL AIR TRANSPORT ASSOCIATION'S 2008 IATA 
EAGLE AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN CUSTOMER 
SATISFACTION, COST-EFFICIENCY, AND CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT.
SINCE LATE 1990s, TAMPA INTERNATIONAL HAS SPENT MORE THAN 
$1 BILLION IN RENOVATIONS, CONSTRUCTION, AND CAPITAL 
IMPROVEMENTS WHILE THE AVERAGE AIRLINE COSTS FOR DEPARTING 
PASSENGER DECLINED FROM $5.2 IN 1995 TO $4.26 IN THE PAST 
TWO YEARS.
THIS IS A WONDERFUL AWARD, AND WE'RE VERY PROUD OF YOU AND 
EVERYTHING THAT YOUR STAFF IS DOING, LOUIS.
>>LOUIS MILLER:  THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THANK YOU.
OKAY.
DO WE HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE MINUTES FROM OUR --
>>MARK SHARPE:  SO MOVE.
>> SECOND.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  -- WORKSHOP AND REGULAR MEETING?
MOVED AND SECONDED.
ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION?
ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE.
[CHORUS OF AYES]
OPPOSED?
MOTION CARRIES.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
NEXT -- OH, I WOULD LIKE TO INTRODUCE SOMEBODY HERE, HARRY 
BARLEY, WHO REPRESENTS THE METROPOLITAN THREE-COUNTY MPO.
HARRY, WELCOME.
ALL RIGHT.
WE WANT TO NOW DISCUSS THE EXTENSION -- ACTUALLY, IT'S NOT 
AN EXTENSION.
ALL WE WANT TO DO IS ALLOW MR. CHIARAMONTE TO SERVE AS OUR 
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, INTERIM EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, UNTIL AT 
LEAST SEPTEMBER.
AT THAT POINT WE COULD DISCUSS HIS PERFORMANCE AND DECIDE 
WHETHER OR NOT WE WANT TO GO OUT AND SEARCH FOR A NEW 
DIRECTOR OR APPOINT MR. CHIARAMONTE TO THE EXECUTIVE 
DIRECTOR'S POSITION.
>> DO WE NEED A MOTION?
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THAT WOULD BE GREAT.
>> I'LL MOVE.
>>ROSE FERLITA:  SECOND.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  MOVED AND SECONDED.
ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION?
ALL IN FAVOR -- YES, MR. DINGFELDER.
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  I'M WHOLLY IN SUPPORT OF RAY AND -- MR. 
CHIARAMONTE IN THIS POSITION AS INTERIM DIRECTOR, AND SO 
MUCH SO THAT I -- THAT I WONDER WHY WE'RE JUST LOOKING AT 
SEPTEMBER.
I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, HE'S JUST TAKEN THE POSITION ON IN 
THE LAST, WHAT, MONTH OR TWO, NOW WE GO INTO THE SUMMER, 
YOU KNOW, WHICH INEVITABLY WILL BE A LITTLE SLOWER.
I THINK THAT IF -- IF WE REALLY WANT TO MAKE A REASONED 
DECISION ABOUT, YOU KNOW, SHOULD -- YOU KNOW, SHOULD RAY 
TAKE THE POSITION AND CAN HE PROVE HIMSELF, I THINK WE 
SHOULD GIVE HIM A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME TO PROVE 
HIMSELF, SOMETHING ALONG THE LINES OF PERHAPS A YEAR, AND, 
YOU KNOW, MAYBE BY NEXT SPRING OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT, 
MAYBE EXACTLY A YEAR FROM NOW, NEXT JUNE, THAT WE WOULD 
RECONVENE AND SEE IF -- YOU KNOW, IF WE WANT HIM 
PERMANENTLY OR WHAT WE WANT TO DO IN THAT REGARD.
BUT I THINK ALL OF US HAVE -- VIRTUALLY ALL OF US HAVE 
WORKED WITH RAY FOR MANY, MANY YEARS, PERHAPS LINDA THE 
LONGEST, BUT I HAVE FULL FAITH AND CONFIDENCE IN HIS WORK 
ETHIC AND HIS ENTHUSIASM, HIS DEVOTION TO TRANSPORTATION, 
AND NOW ON THE TRANSIT ISSUE.
RAY'S BEEN LEADING THE TRANSIT BANDWAGON IN THIS COUNTY FOR 
AT LEAST A DECADE, SO I WOULD -- I THINK WE SHOULD MAKE A 
COMMITMENT TO RAY FOR A YEAR AND THEN SEE -- SEE IF THAT 
MEETS THE NEEDS OF THIS ORGANIZATION AS WELL AS THE 
COMMUNITY.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  I THINK THAT'S A GREAT IDEA.
>>LINDA SAUL-SENA:  SECOND.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  YES, ROSE.
>>ROSE FERLITA:  I THINK MR. SHARPE WANTED TO SAY SOMETHING 
FIRST.
I'LL FOLLOW YOU, MARK.
YOU HAD YOUR HAND UP FIRST.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  WE'D HAVE TO AMEND THE MOTION.
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  I'D BE GLAD TO OFFER THAT AS A FRIENDLY 
AMENDMENT --
>>MARK SHARPE:  I'LL DROP MY MOTION FOR THE ORIGINAL AND GO 
ALONG WITH THE --
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OKAY.
>>MARK SHARPE:  I'D LIKE TO SAY AS WELL THAT I THINK THAT 
RAY CHIARAMONTE AS OUR INTERIM EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR HAS DONE 
A SUPERB JOB IN THE SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME THAT HE'S BEEN 
ACTING AS THE INTERIM DIRECTOR.
I'VE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO TALK TO A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT 
ORGANIZATIONS AND GROUPS AND INDIVIDUALS, AND WHAT I'VE 
FOUND IS EXACTLY WHAT I WAS PERSONALLY HOPING FOR, WHICH 
WAS SOMEBODY WHO IS REALLY OUT LEADING.
HE'S BEEN AHEAD OF US, HE'S BEEN ACTING AS A FACILITATOR, 
LISTENING, SPEAKING TO DIFFERENT ORGANIZATIONS AND GROUPS 
TRYING TO SOLVE PROBLEMS, HAS BEEN -- HAS JUST DONE A 
SUPERB JOB.
HE'S GOING TO MAKE A PRESENTATION TODAY TO THIS BOARD THAT 
HE MADE YESTERDAY TO OUR TRANSPORTATION TASK FORCE, WHICH I 
THOUGHT WAS ONE OF THE BEST BRIEFINGS I'VE RECEIVED IN 
PARTICULAR FROM THE MPO ON VERY LARGE ISSUES WHICH ARE VERY 
IMPORTANT TO US, AND I WILL TELL YOU THAT, MR. DINGFELDER, 
I APPRECIATE YOUR COMMENTS BECAUSE ONE OF THE CONCERNS I 
HAD WAS -- AND I WEIGHED THIS EARLY ON WHEN I WAS -- WHEN 
THIS BEGAN -- NOT WANTING TO SET US PACK AT A TIME WHEN 
THERE'S SO MUCH GOING ON AND WHEN WE'VE GOT THE OPPORTUNITY 
PERHAPS TO HAVE A REFERENDUM ON THE BALLOT IN 2010, WANTING 
TO NOT LOSE A DAY, AND I WAS AFRAID THAT WE MIGHT LOSE TIME 
IN GOING THROUGH THIS TRANSITION BUT FELT THAT IT WAS SO 
IMPORTANT TO GET THE RIGHT PERSON WITH THE RIGHT SKILLS WHO 
COULD LEAD THIS AGENCY AND MAKE THIS AGENCY -- PUT THIS 
AGENCY AT THE CENTER OF THE DISCUSSION THAT IT WAS WORTH 
DOING THIS, AND FROM WHAT I'VE SEEN FROM RAY, HE'S DONE A 
SUPERB JOB, SO I WOULD BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO SUPPORT THE 
MOTION OF MR. DINGFELDER AND -- AND I THINK THAT -- RAY, 
AGAIN, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR PASSION AND YOUR 
COMMITMENT TO PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION.
>> I WANT TO SECOND THE MOTION.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OKAY.
DO YOU HAVE --
ROSE.
>>ROSE FERLITA:  YES.
I WANTED TO ADD TO WHAT MR. SHARPE HAS SAID.
I AGREE WITH MR. SHARPE.
THERE'S NEVER BEEN ANY DOUBT FOR ME THAT HE WAS QUALIFIED 
AND ABLE TO SHOW LEADERSHIP.
HE HAS DONE THAT ALREADY.
OF COURSE, THIS IS A LOSS TO ME PAUSE HE'S MY 
REPRESENTATIVE ON THE TRANSPORTATION TASK FORCE, WHICH 
BECAUSE OF CONFLICTS WE HAD TO APPOINT SOMEONE ELSE.
JAN SMITH WILL BE MY REPRESENTATIVE, BUT I THINK HE'S 
EXACTLY WHAT EVERY -- EVERYBODY NEEDS HERE.
HE'S GOT THE EXPERIENCE.
HE'S COMING IN ALREADY WITH THAT.
I KNOW I GOT A LETTER, MAYBE SOME OF YOU ALL RECEIVED THIS 
AS WELL, FROM HUNG MAI ABOUT DOING A NATIONAL SEARCH 
PROCESS TO SELECT A QUALIFIED INDIVIDUAL TO LEAD THIS 
AGENCY.
I THINK THAT'S PROBABLY A GOOD IDEA SOMETIMES IF WE DON'T 
HAVE THE QUALIFIED LEADERSHIP ALREADY IN-HOUSE.
I FIND SOME OF THE COMMENTS AND THE QUALIFICATIONS THAT ARE 
LISTED A BIT AMUSING ABOUT THE ABILITY TO BREAK AWAY FROM 
THE PLANNING COMMISSION, ET CETERA, ET CETERA.
EACH OF YOU COLLEAGUES WITH READ IT FOR YOURSELF, BUT WE 
DON'T WANT SOMEBODY TO HAVE THE ABILITY TO BREAK AWAY FROM 
PLANNING COMMISSION, WE WANT SOMEBODY THAT WILL LEAD US IN 
THE CHARGES THAT WE HAVE AS AN MPO BUT AT THE SAME TIME TO 
BLEND AND COMPLEMENT WHAT THE PLANNING COMMISSION IS DOING, 
SO I THINK HE'S GOT EVERYTHING WE NEED, AND JOHN, IT'S A 
GREAT IDEA, AND I LOOK FORWARD TO A YEAR FROM NOW HAVING 
HIM SAY HE'S INTERESTED IN CONTINUING IN THAT PROCESS AND 
BEATING THE REST OF YOU ALL TO MAKE A MOTION TO CONTINUE, 
BUT IN THE MEANTIME, I WHOLEHEARTEDLY SUPPORT THE MOTION 
THAT'S ON THE FLOOR.
THANK YOU, RAY, FOR YOUR SERVICE.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THANK YOU, ROSE.
I JUST WANTED TO MAKE ONE QUICK COMMENT, AND THAT IS THAT 
WHEN RAY TOLD ME THAT HE WAS INTERESTED IN THE EXECUTIVE 
DIRECTOR'S JOB, I ASKED HIM TO SUBMIT A RESUME, AND WHEN I 
LOOKED AT IT AND THEN I FORWARDED -- I THINK EVERYBODY GOT 
A COPY OF THAT RESUME -- THERE WAS NO QUESTION IN MY MIND 
THAT HE CERTAINLY WOULD HAVE BEEN ONE OF THE FINALISTS.
THE ADVANTAGE THAT WE HAD, OF COURSE, IS THAT HE'S HERE, SO 
I CONGRATULATE YOU ON EVERYTHING YOU'RE DOING, RAY, AND 
THANK YOU.
OKAY.
WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND.
ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION?
IF NOT, ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE.
[CHORUS OF AYES]
OPPOSED.
MOTION CARRIES.
THANK YOU.
OKAY.
PUBLIC INPUT.
>>MARK SHARPE:  LINDA SAYS WE CAN USE THE MONEY THAT'S LEFT 
OVER TO PLANT WILD FLOWERS.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THAT'S GREAT.
[LAUGHTER]
OKAY.
WE HAVE THREE PEOPLE THAT WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK.
KELLY CORNELIUS.
>> GOOD MORNING.
MY NAME'S KELLY CORNELIUS.
CONGRATULATIONS, MR. CHIARAMONTE.
I'D LIKE TO BRING A COUPLE THINGS UP TODAY THAT WERE 
BROUGHT UP IN PUBLIC COMMENT DURING THE POLICY COMMITTEE 
MEETING.
ALSO SOME CONCERNS THAT THIS BOARD HAS BEEN HAVING 
REGARDING THE TBARTA MAPS AND WHERE THEY CAME FROM.
I THINK IT WAS FINALLY PUT TO REST DURING THE POLICY 
COMMITTEE MEETING THAT THOSE MAPS WERE GENERATED FROM THE 
STRATEGIC REGIONAL NEEDS ASSESSMENT DONE BY FDOT, SO I HATE 
TO BEAT A DEAD HORSE OR IN THIS CASE A DEAD SOURCE, BUT I 
THINK THAT'S FINALLY GOING TO BE PUT TO REST.
SOMETHING THAT ALSO CAME UP DURING -- DURING SOME OF THE 
RESEARCH THAT I DID ON THAT WAS THAT TBARTA DOES NOT HAVE 
ONE MPO STAFF MEMBER OFFICIALLY ON ANY OF THEIR COMMITTEES.
IF YOU LOOK AT THEIR -- THEIR TMC, WHICH I WOULD EXPECT TO 
BE TRANSIT, IT'S NOT -- OR TECHNICAL -- IT'S THEIR TRANSIT 
MANAGEMENT MEETING, AND THAT CONSISTS OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FROM HART, FROM THE BUS, BUT I COULDN'T BELIEVE THAT WE DID 
NOT HAVE ONE PROFESSIONAL STAFF MEMBER FROM THE MPO ON 
THEIR COMMITTEE, ON TBARTA, AND I THINK THAT PROBABLY WOULD 
HAVE SOLVED THIS PROBLEM BEFORE IT EVER HAPPENED IF THEY 
WOULD LOOK AT OUR ROW PROFESSIONAL STAFF AND UTILIZE THEM 
INSTEAD OF JUST INVITING THEM, SO MAYBE THAT'S SOMETHING -- 
YOU KNOW, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU CAN BRING THAT UP IN THE 
FUTURE, THAT WE COULD AVOID THESE PROBLEMS BY HAVING SIMPLY 
A PROFESSIONAL STAFF MEMBER AS A REPRESENTATIVE ON THEIR 
COMMITTEES INSTEAD OF THEM JUST BEING INVITED TO THE 
PROCESS.
I BROUGHT THAT UP AT THE LAST TBARTA BOARD MEETING, AND 
THEY WEREN'T VERY RECEPTIVE TO IT.
THEY SAID THEY'RE DOING JUST WHAT THEY'RE MANDATED TO DO BY 
THE STATE, SO I'M A LITTLE BIT CONCERNED ABOUT THAT.
SOME OTHER THINGS THAT CAME UP AT THE POLICY COMMITTEE 
MEETING, THERE WAS A MOTION TO SEND A LETTER TO TBARTA 
AGAINST THE GREEN SWATH OF DEATH, THE BYPASS, CORRIDOR "C" 
AND "D" ON MAP 8, HILLSBOROUGH CONNECTIONS, AND IF THAT 
MOTION PASSES HERE TODAY, I WOULD ALSO ASK THAT YOU SEND A 
COPY TO OUR BOCC BECAUSE WHILE WE ALL THOUGHT THAT THAT WAS 
REMOVED, EVIDENTLY IT'S NOT OFFICIALLY REMOVED UNTIL LATER 
THIS WEEK, SO IF YOU COULD SEND THEM A FRIENDLY REMINDER 
THAT THAT IS NOT WANTED, THAT WOULD CERTAINLY BE 
APPRECIATED BY THOSE WHO HAVE FOUGHT SO HARD FOR THAT.
SO I THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME, AND PAY CLOSE ATTENTION TO 
TBARTA, WHICH IS ALSO ONE BAY, WHICH IS ALSO THE 
PARTNERSHIP, BECAUSE IT SEEMS TO ME THAT THEY'RE 
POSITIONING THEMSELVES TO TAKE OVER NOT ONLY TRANSPORTATION 
IN THIS COUNTY BUT ALSO LAND USE, SO I DON'T KNOW ABOUT 
YOU, BUT I DON'T RECALL VOTING FOR ONE BARTASHIP, SO PLEASE 
STAY STRONG AND WE'RE COUNTING ON YOU GUYS TO PUT IN OUR 
VIEWS ON TRANSPORTATION.
THANK YOU.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  KELLY, JUST A NOTE, WE DID SEND THAT 
LETTER.
THE LETTER'S GONE.
>> COULD YOU SEND THAT TO THE BOCC AS WELL TO REMIND THEM?
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  SURE.
NOT A PROBLEM.
>> THANK YOU.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THANK YOU.
NEXT WE HAVE GEORGE NIEMANN.
>> GOOD MORNING.
I SOMETIMES GET ACCUSED OF JUMPING AHEAD OF THE LADIES.
I THOUGHT SHE WAS NEXT.
I'M SORRY.
GEORGE NIEMANN, DOVER, FLORIDA, A MEMBER OF U-CAN AND A 
MEMBER OF DOVER WOODS HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION.
I WANT TO ECHO SOME OF THE COMMENTS FROM KELLY CORNELIUS.
I WANT TO CONGRATULATE MR. CHIARAMONTE.
I THINK HE HAS THE -- EVEN THOUGH WE DON'T VOTE ON THIS, I 
THINK THE CITIZENS FEEL THAT HE'S VERY PROFESSIONAL, AND WE 
RELY ON HIM, HIS JUDGMENT, AND THE WORK THAT HE'S DOING, SO 
CONGRATULATIONS.
THE REGION -- MY UNDERSTANDING IS THIS REGION HAS MPOs THAT 
ACTUALLY COVER THE ENTIRE REGION.
I KNOW THIS IS -- WE'RE TALKING AFTER THE FACT, BUT IT 
BEFUDDLES ME WHY WE WOULDN'T HAVE HAD OUR OWN MPOs DOING A 
LONG-RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN.
THEY COULD HAVE BEEN DOING IT, THEY SHOULD BE DOING IT ON A 
REGIONAL BASIS.
NEVERTHELESS, TBARTA WAS LEGISLATED INTO BEING, AND WE HAVE 
TO DEAL WITH THAT, AND WE'VE GOT TO SUPPORT THEM.
WE WANT THEM TO SUCCEED, BUT WE WOULD BE BETTER SERVED IF 
THE TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE HAD MPO MEMBERS ON IT.
AS MS. CORNELIUS SAID, IT'S KIND OF AMAZING.
THE PROBLEM WITH TBARTA WITH THOSE MAPS, THEY CREATED THE 
MAPS, AND I DON'T KNOW IF WE HAD -- IF WE HAD OUR LOCAL 
INTERESTS REPRESENTED.
IF WE HAD SOME MPO MEMBERS ON THEIR COMMITTEE, MAYBE THAT 
WOULDN'T HAVE HAPPENED.
I THINK THEY'LL BE ABLE TO DO A BETTER JOB GOING FORWARD IF 
THE REGION HAD THEIR MPO STAFFS AS PART OF THE COMMITTEE.
NOW, THEY FOLLOWED -- ACCORDING TO THEIR BOARD, THEY SAID, 
WELL, WE FOLLOWED OUR LEGISLATIVE MANDATE, BUT THEIR 
LEGISLATIVE MANDATE DOES NOT PRECLUDE THEM FROM INCLUDING 
THE LOCAL MPOs, AND WE WOULD REALLY LIKE TO SEE THAT HAPPEN 
BECAUSE LOOK AT -- EVERYONE'S REPRESENTED EXCEPT AGAIN, YOU 
KNOW -- THIS IS A -- I'M BEATING A DEAD HORSE, BUT I HAVE 
TO KEEP BEATING IT.
CITIZENS ARE NOT REPRESENTED IN TBARTA ON THEIR COMMITTEES, 
AND WE'VE GOT HEAVY REPRESENTATION FROM ECONOMIC 
DEVELOPMENT AND DEVELOPMENT INTERESTS, THE BUILDING 
INDUSTRY, AND WHAT WE'RE MISSING IS HAVING SOME TECHNICAL 
EXPERTISE THAT KNOWS THE STRATEGIC PLANS OF THIS COUNTY AND 
HAS THE TECHNICAL EXPERTISE FROM BEING HERE AND WORKING IN 
THIS COUNTY.
SO I WOULD URGE YOU TO -- ANY WAY YOU CAN, IF YOU CAN 
PRESSURE TBARTA TO MAKE SOME CHANGES, AND NOTHING PRECLUDES 
THEM FROM DOING IT.
I THINK WE'D ALL BE BETTER SERVED GOING FORWARD.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THANK YOU.
MR. SHARPE.
>>MARK SHARPE:  I WANTED TO ADDRESS THE ISSUE OF -- AND I 
THINK PERHAPS -- I DON'T KNOW IF MR. CLIFFORD WANTS TO 
SPEAK TO IT AS WELL.
MY UNDERSTANDING WAS THAT THE MPO MEMBERS SPOKE 
COLLECTIVELY AND SAID THAT AS A -- AS A RESULT OF -- OR 
BECAUSE OF SUNSHINE THEY DID NOT WANT TO BE ON THAT 
COMMITTEE, THAT THEY -- THAT THEY -- BECAUSE AGAIN, WE'VE 
GOT RULES WHICH WE HAVE TO FOLLOW, AND THE SUNSHINE RULES, 
IF THEY WERE ON THE COMMITTEE, WOULD THEN PRECLUDE THEM 
FROM COMMUNICATING AND DOING THE BUSINESS THAT THEY NEED TO 
DO, SO THEY'VE CREATED ANOTHER MECHANISM FOR GETTING 
EVERYBODY TO THE TABLE, BUT GEORGE, I'LL TELL YOU THAT ONE 
OF THE CONCERNS THAT I HAD, AND KELLY, EARLY ON WAS THAT 
THE MPO, OUR MPO WAS NOT IN THE PAST DOING A GOOD ENOUGH 
JOB AT MEETING WITH AND PARTICIPATING IN THE ACTIVITIES OF 
TBARTA, WHICH IS WHAT WE'RE DOING NOW.
THEY'VE ACTUALLY FORMED A COMMITTEE WHERE THEY ARE -- I 
BELIEVE RAY, MR. CLIFFORD, AND I'M NOT SURE WHO ELSE IS 
PARTICIPATING -- ARE NOW MEETING TO ADDRESS THE VERY ISSUES 
WHICH YOU'VE DISCUSSED.
I DON'T KNOW IF, MR. CLIFFORD, YOU WANTED TO ADDRESS THIS 
POINT.
I THINK IT'S A VERY IMPORTANT POINT.
BUT THERE WAS A TECHNICAL REASON WHY THE MPO SAID THEY DID 
NOT WANT TO BE PART OF THIS COMMITTEE.
DO YOU MIND, MR. CHAIRMAN?
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  NOT AT ALL.
>> BOB CLIFFORD, FDOT.
MY TBARTA HAT ON RIGHT NOW.
RELATED TO MPO PARTICIPATION IN TBARTA, FIRST OF ALL, THERE 
IS A BOARD POSITION THAT IS REPRESENTING THE CHAIRS 
COORDINATING COMMITTEE.
CHAIRMAN FRANK HILLSBOROUGH ARD, MAYOR OF -- CLEARWATER, 
THE MAYOR OF PINELLAS MPO IS A REPRESENTATIVE ON THE TBARTA 
BOARD, SO ON THE BOARD THE MPOs ARE REPRESENTED.
RELATED TO THE TWO COMMITTEES, THE CITIZENS ADVISORY 
COMMITTEE, WHICH IS MADE UP OF CITIZENS, NOMINATED AND 
APPROVED BY THE BOARD ITSELF, AND ALSO THE TRANSIT 
MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE, WHICH IN LEGISLATION WAS SPECIFIED 
WHO THOSE MEMBERS ARE, ARE THE TWO SPECIFIC COMMITTEES THAT 
TBARTA HAS.
THE CCC SEVERAL MONTHS AGO, I BELIEVE AT THEIR LAST 
MEETING, HAD A CONVERSATION APPROXIMATE HOW DO MPOs BECOME 
PART OF TBARTA, HOW DO THEY FIT INTO THAT ENTIRE EFFORT?
SUNSHINE ISSUES WERE A SIGNIFICANT CONCERN TO THEM.
THERE WAS A LOT OF DISCUSSION ABOUT THE ABILITY TO SPEAK 
WITH EACH OTHER ABOUT ISSUES THAT COULD BECOME BEFORE 
TBARTA AND THE ABILITY THAT THEY WOULD LOSE IN TERMS OF 
DOING THAT, AND THEY WANTED -- THE DIRECTORS WANTED THAT 
ABILITY.
WHAT WAS DETERMINED AT THAT POINT WAS THERE WILL BE A 
STANDING ITEM ON THE CCC AGENDA, AND WE'LL BE TALKING ABOUT 
TBARTA EVERY CCC MEETING.
THE MPO DIRECTORS MEET EVERY TWO WEEKS.
WE'LL BE TALKING ABOUT TBARTA AS PART OF THAT.
IN ADDITION, THE TMC HAS A STANDING ITEM IN THEIR MEETING 
TO ALLOW MPO INPUT AND SOLICIT THEIR INPUT AS PART OF THAT 
PROCESS, SO WE THOUGHT THAT WAS A GOOD COMPROMISE, IF YOU 
WILL, TO INCLUDE MPOs AS PART OF THE OVERALL PROCESS.
IN ADDITION, AS PART OF THE OVERALL EFFORT -- AND YOU MAY 
HAVE HEARD ME TELL YOU BEFORE, ONE OF THE THINGS WE LEARNED 
EARLY ON WAS THE ISSUE OF DATA AND MAKING SURE DATA IS 
CORRECT, AND PARTICULARLY AS WE GO OUT INTO THE FUTURE AND 
MOVE FORWARD, TBARTA CREATED WHAT IS REFERRED TO AS A LAND 
USE WORKING GROUP THAT INCLUDES REPRESENTATIVES OF ALL OF 
THE MPOs, INCLUDES REPRESENTATIVES OF CITIES, COUNTIES, 
INCLUDES OTHER ORGANIZATIONS, REGIONAL PLANNING COUNCILS, 
INCLUDES CITIZENS.
THERE'S -- AT THE LAST MEETING THERE WAS 80-SOME MEMBERS AT 
THIS MEETING.
WE HAVE ANOTHER MEETING THIS FRIDAY.
WE'RE EXPECTING THAT MANY AND MORE TO TALK ABOUT THE ISSUES 
OF LAND USE AND GET ALL OF THIS INFORMATION OUT THERE SO 
THAT WE ARE ALL COORDINATED FROM THAT PERSPECTIVE AS TBARTA 
MOVES FORWARD.
WE'RE REALLY ENCOURAGED BY THAT PROCESS.
WE THINK THAT WILL BE A GOOD PROCESS THAT WILL WORK WELL, 
AND IT'S GOT EVERYBODY AT THE TABLE, WHICH WE THINK IS VERY 
IMPORTANT AS WE MOVE FORWARD, SO THAT'S REALLY KIND OF 
WHERE WE ARE AT THIS POINT IN TIME RELATED TO COORDINATION 
WITH MPOs AND IN GENERAL REALLY WITH EVERYBODY IN TERMS OF 
THAT LAND USE ISSUE.
>>MARK SHARPE:  THANK YOU.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THANK YOU, BOB.
ANY OTHER COMMENTS?
YES, MARY.
>>MARY MULHERN:  SORRY, BOB.
I WAS TRYING TO CATCH YOU BEFORE YOU SAT DOWN.
THE LAND USE, THE COMMITTEE THAT YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT AT 
THE END --
>> THE LAND USE WORKING GROUP.
>>MARY MULHERN:  LAND USE WORKING GROUP?
AND WHO ARE THE MEMBERS?
>> WE'VE INVITED -- WE ACTUALLY WORKED THROUGH THE REGIONAL 
PLANNING COUNCILS, REALIZING FOR TBARTA'S AREA THERE'S 
THREE DIFFERENT REGIONAL PLANNING COUNCILS WORKING.
THEY ARE CITY REPRESENTATIVE, COUNTY REPRESENTATIVE, MPO 
REPRESENTATIVE, REGIONAL PLANNING COUNCIL, WE HAVE FOLKS 
FROM THE SIERRA CLUB, WE HAVE FOLKS FROM ECONOMIC 
DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATIONS.
YOU NAME IT, IT'S -- THE PUBLIC IS INVOLVED AND INVITED, SO 
THAT GROUP IS OUT THERE TO TALK ABOUT THE ISSUE OF LAND USE 
PLANS AND ISSUES, SPECIFICALLY AS WE THINK ABOUT GROWING 
INTO THE FUTURE AND WHAT DO WE UTILIZE IN TERMS OF TBARTA'S 
WORK.
>>MARY MULHERN:  I HAVEN'T HEARD ABOUT IT ON CITY COUNCIL 
OR ON THE MPO.
HAVE WE --
>> IT WAS ALL -- IT WAS AT THE STAFF LEVEL, WAS SENT OUT, 
AND THEY WERE ALL INVITED.
>>MARY MULHERN:  OKAY.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OKAY.
THANK YOU, BOB.
ANY OTHER COMMENTS?
IF NOT, WE HAVE ONE OTHER PERSON THAT WANTS TO SPEAK, PAM 
CLOUSTON.
>> THANK YOU, MR. CHAIRMAN.
GOOD MORNING.
I THINK KELLY AND GEORGE COVERED A LOT OF MY CONCERNS, AND 
I GUESS MR. CLIFFORD ADDRESSED WHY WE CAN'T HAVE OUR MPO 
THERE, BUT FOR CRYING OUT LOUD, WE HAVE NED, SO HE NEEDS TO 
BE OUR GUARDIAN AT THE DOOR FOR HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY.
HE'S NOT ON THE MPO, I DON'T THINK, SO HE NEEDS TO BE OUR 
GUARDIAN AT THE DOOR SINCE WE HAVE NED REPRESENTING US FOR 
TBARTA.
AND I THINK THAT WE AS A COUNTY THAT INCLUDES OUR 
MUNICIPALITIES NEED TO INSIST THAT OUR REPRESENTATIVES GET 
A CHANCE TO SEE WHAT'S GOING OUT BEFORE IT GETS PUT OUT 
THERE BECAUSE I THINK THAT WE ARE IN GREAT DANGER.
ALL OF THE SEVEN COUNTIES AND MUNICIPALITIES IN THOSE SEVEN 
COUNTIES ARE IN GREAT DANGER OF GIVING UP OUR LOCAL ELECTED 
CONTROL TO A REGIONAL ENTITY, AND TO ME THAT'S A LITTLE BIT 
SCARY IF THEY CAN JUST OVERRIDE WHAT OUR COMP PLAN SAYS, SO 
I THINK WE NEED TO HAVE A GUARDIAN AT THE DOOR TO DO THAT.
I ALSO WOULD ENCOURAGE -- IN ADDITION TO THE LETTER THAT'S 
BEING SENT TO TBARTA OR HAS BEEN SENT AND THE ONE THAT WE 
WOULD LIKE TO SEND TO THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS, 
HOW ABOUT SENDING ONE TO ONE BAY TO LET THEM KNOW AS WELL 
THAT WE WOULD LIKE THIS OFF BECAUSE THERE SEEMS TO BE 
CITIES MAKING PLANS, COUNTIES MAKING PLANS, ONE REGIONAL 
AUTHORITY MAKING PLANS, ANOTHER REGIONAL AUTHORITY TRYING 
TO MAKE SOME PLANS, OR MAYBE THEY'RE NOT QUITE AN AUTHORITY 
BUT THEY WOULD LIKE TO BE, SO WE'VE GOT ALL THESE PEOPLE 
WITH THEIR HANDS IN THE COOKIE JAR, AND I THINK THAT WE 
NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT THERE ARE COOKIES LEFT THERE FOR THE 
CITIZENS OF OUR INDIVIDUAL COUNTIES.
I NEED TO TALK ABOUT THE LANDSCAPING THING.
IF YOU ARE GOING TO PAY FOR SOD TO STICK DOWN IN THE 
MIDDLE, YOU CAN JUST AS EASILY PAY FOR WILDFLOWER SEEDS, 
AND THEN AT LEAST WE HAVE SOME SORT OF LANDSCAPING THAT 
REQUIRES MINIMAL IRRIGATION UNTIL WE HAVE SOME MONEY TO GO 
BACK IN AND PUT SOMETHING REALLY NICE, NATIVE, ATTRACTIVE 
AND MAKE -- I MEAN, THE UGLIEST THING YOU CAN SEE DRIVING 
UP AND DOWN IS A BUNCH OF CONCRETE WITH NOTHING ELSE.
ONE MORE THING.
I DON'T KNOW WHETHER MPO HAS ANYTHING TO DO WITH THIS, BUT 
I LIVE IN A RURAL AREA, AND WE HAVE LIKE DEVELOPERS THAT 
ARE IN THE URBAN SERVICE AREA, AND THEY'RE GOING TO PUT IN 
A HILL DEVELOPMENT, SO THEY'RE REQUIRED TO PUT A SIDEWALK 
FOR A QUARTER OF A MILE.
IT STARTS AT THEIR DEVELOPMENT, GOES A QUARTER OF A MILE, 
AND STOPS AT THE DITCH.
THAT'S USELESS.
IT'S WORTHLESS.
IT'S A WASTE OF TIME AND MONEY ON THE DEVELOPER'S PART AND 
THE COUNTY'S.
THANK YOU.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
YES, MR. DINGFELDER.
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  I REMEMBER IT SEEMS LIKE IT WAS ABOUT 
FIVE OR SIX MONTHS AGO WHEN WE HAD THIS SORT OF HEATED 
DISCUSSION ABOUT THE BYPASS OUT THERE IN THE COUNTY, AND 
WE -- IT SEEMS THAT WE TOOK AN AFFIRMATIVE VOTE.
I CAN'T REMEMBER THE CONTEXT OR THE PROCEDURAL POSTURE THAT 
WE WERE IN WHEN WE DID THAT.
MAYBE -- MAYBE DON CAN HELP, BUT I REMEMBER WE TOOK AN 
AFFIRMATIVE VOTE.
IF WE HAVE TO -- SO IT SEEMS THAT THAT'S THE SENSE OF THIS 
BOARD IS TO, YOU KNOW, NOT MOVE FORWARD WITH THAT -- WITH 
THAT BYPASS AT THIS TIME.
IF WE NEED TO TRANSLATE THAT INTO -- I THINK LETTERS ARE 
KIND OF AMORPHOUS, BUT I THINK IF WE DID IT AS A RESOLUTION 
THAT IT WOULD HAVE A LITTLE MORE MEAT, AND THEN THAT WAY 
IF -- IF IT'S A RESOLUTION OF THIS BODY, THEN THE CITIZENS 
CAN TAKE IT AND MAIL IT TO ANYBODY THEY WANT TO, ET CETERA, 
ET CETERA, AND WE DON'T HAVE TO KEEP BEING -- YOU KNOW, 
WRESTLING WITH THIS SITUATION OVER AND OVER, BUT I DON'T 
KNOW IF -- HAVE WE ALREADY DONE THAT?
DID WE DO A RESOLUTION ON THAT?
>> RAY, WOULD YOU --
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  YES.
YOU HAVE ALREADY TAKEN THAT OUT OF THE MPO PLAN.
IN THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN FOR THE COUNTY IT HAS BEEN VOTED 
TO BE TRANSMITTED UP TO THE STATE WITH THE BYPASS TAKEN 
OFF.
THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS HAS NOT TAKEN THEIR FINAL 
ACTION ON THAT.
THE PLAN HAS JUST COME BACK FROM DCA, AND THURSDAY NIGHT 
THEY'LL BE TAKING THE FINAL VOTE.
ONCE THEY DO THAT, THEN IT'S OUT OF THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN 
LEGALLY ALSO, SO IT WON'T BE IN EITHER PLAN AT THAT POINT 
FOR HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY.
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  I'M JUST THINKING THAT PERHAPS AS SOME 
SORT OF PERMANENT STAND-ALONE DOCUMENT -- I'M GOING TO GIVE 
THIS A TRY JUST SO WE -- IT DOESN'T HAVE TO KEEP COMING UP 
EVERY MONTH, IS -- I WOULD ASK THAT WE ADOPT BY RESOLUTION 
A MOTION THAT -- I DON'T KNOW, WHAT ARE WE CALLING THIS 
THING?
I DON'T WANT TO CALL IT THE SWATH OF DEATH.
[LAUGHTER]
THERE MIGHT BE A -- THERE MIGHT BE A MORE FORMAL NAME 
THAT'S BEEN USED.
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  YEAH, IT'S BEEN CALLED -- IT WAS 
INITIALLY -- THE LEGAL PART THAT WAS IN THE COMPREHENSIVE 
PLAN I BELIEVE WAS CALLED THE BRANDON BYPASS, AND THEN THE 
MEDIA KIND OF STARTED NAMING IT THE BELTWAY, BUT I'M NOT 
SURE IT WAS EVER --
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  LET'S CALL IT -- I WOULD MAKE A MOTION 
BY RESOLUTION THAT THE MPO DOES NOT SUPPORT THE BRANDON 
BYPASS FOR THE REASONS THAT HAD BEEN PREVIOUSLY STATED ON 
THE RECORD, AND MAYBE OUR LEGAL DEPARTMENT CAN DIG THOSE UP 
FROM PRIOR MEETINGS AND PUT TOGETHER A FORMAL RESOLUTION.
>>ROSE FERLITA:  [INAUDIBLE]
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  MARY, GO AHEAD.
>>MARY MULHERN:  I THOUGHT THAT -- WE'VE ALREADY DONE THAT.
I DON'T KNOW WHY WE HAVE TO DO IT AGAIN.
WE'VE DONE IT.
I DON'T KNOW IF THERE'S ANY MEDIA HERE, BUT MAYBE THEY CAN 
WRITE IT UP AGAIN, THAT WE'RE STILL TALKING ABOUT IT EVEN 
THOUGH WE ALREADY DID IT.
I MEAN, I THINK IT'S A PROBLEM, BUT I DON'T THINK WE NEED 
TO -- WE'VE ALREADY PASSED THAT SAME RESOLUTION.
I'M NOT SURE WHAT --
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  THE REASON I MENTIONED IT, IT APPEARS 
THAT THE POLICY COMMITTEE -- AND MS. FERLITA CAN HELP ME 
OUT -- HAD PROBABLY WHAT APPEARS TO BE A LENGTHY DISCUSSION 
ABOUT THIS AND THAT NOW THEY'RE ASKING THE CHAIR TO WRITE A 
LETTER TO TBARTA, AND NOW THEY'RE SAYING WRITE A LETTER TO 
SOMEBODY ELSE AND WRITE A LETTER TO SOMEBODY ELSE.
>>MARY MULHERN:  BUT THAT'S BASED ON THE FACT THAT WE 
ALREADY PASSED THAT RESOLUTION, SO WE'RE GOING TO WRITE THE 
LETTERS.
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  RIGHT.
WHAT I'M TRYING TO DO IS FROM A LEGAL PERSPECTIVE IS TO TRY 
AND FORMALIZE THAT A LITTLE BIT AND SAY THAT THIS IS THE 
LONG-TERM -- THIS IS NOT JUST ONE SINGLE VOTE SIX MONTHS 
AGO, THIS IS THE FORMAL POLICY BY RESOLUTION OF THIS BODY, 
OKAY, AND THAT WAY IT WOULD LAST -- THAT WAY IT WOULD LAST 
THROUGH, YOU KNOW -- FROM THIS YEAR AND ON INTO OTHER 
YEARS.
>>MARY MULHERN:  I TOTALLY AGREE WITH YOU, BUT I THINK WE 
ALREADY DID THAT.
>>ROSE FERLITA:  WE DID.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  MR. SKELTON, YOU HAD A COMMENT?
>>DON SKELTON:  YEAH.
I JUST WANT TO TRY TO CLARIFY THINGS IF I CAN, AND WE'VE 
MADE THIS STATEMENT BEFORE.
WHAT THIS BODY TOOK AN ACTION ON WAS A ROADWAY BYPASS AND 
REMOVED THAT FROM THE LONG-RANGE PLAN.
WHAT TBARTA HAD ON THEIR MAPS UNDER CONSIDERATION WAS FOR A 
TRANSIT CORRIDOR, AND IT IS PART OF THE PUBLIC PROCESS OF 
IDENTIFYING ALL POTENTIAL OPTIONS.
THE ANALYSIS ITSELF IS LEADING TOWARDS THAT COMING OFF THE 
MAP.
THE LETTER BEING SENT TO TBARTA IS TO TAKE THE TRANSIT 
CORRIDOR OFF.
I JUST WANT TO MAKE THAT CLEAR.
TBARTA WAS NOT CONSIDERING THE ROADWAY BYPASS.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  LINDA.
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  CAN I TRY TO HELP CLARIFY THIS?
I THINK THAT IS A CORRECT STATEMENT.
I THINK PART OF THE PROBLEM IS WHAT TBARTA PUT ON THE MAP 
SORT OF LOOKED LIKE TO A LAYPERSON THE SAME THING.
IT REALLY WASN'T EXACTLY THE SAME ROUTE, IT WAS CLOSE, AND 
I THINK THERE WAS CONCERN THAT -- ON THE PART OF THE 
CITIZENS THAT THAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN SOME TYPE OF END RUN TO 
GO BACK TO THAT BYPASS, BUT THAT'S CORRECT, IT FOLLOWED 
THE -- THE RAILROAD RIGHT-OF-WAY, I GUESS, IN SOUTH COUNTY, 
WHICH WAS KIND OF CLOSE TO WHERE THE BRANDON BYPASS IS.
HOWEVER, THE LETTER, AS YOU STATED, REQUESTS THAT THAT BE 
TAKEN OFF THE MAP.
SO I THINK THERE'S BEEN ACTION TAKEN ON ALL OF THOSE 
POSSIBLE ITERATIONS OF IT TO TAKE THEM ALL OFF THE MAP.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OKAY.
LINDA, DID YOU HAVE -- NO?
OKAY.
ALL RIGHT.
WELL, THERE'S A MOTION ON THE FLOOR THAT MR. DINGFELDER 
MADE.
DO WE HAVE A SECOND?
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  I GUESS I WOULD LIKE TO ASK MR. GORMLY 
IF HE SEES ANY DIFFERENCE BETWEEN OUR EARLIER MOTION, NOW 
WE'RE TALKING ABOUT LETTERS, AND THE RESOLUTION THAT I'M 
PROPOSING.
IF THERE'S A DISTINCTION WITHOUT A DIFFERENCE, THEN I'LL 
JUST DROP IT AND WE CAN MOVE ON, BUT IF YOU'VE HAD A 
FEELING THAT THE RESOLUTION MIGHT HAVE SOME, YOU KNOW, MORE 
IMPACT OR IMPORT --
>>ADAM GORMLY:  WELL, AS I UNDERSTAND THE DISCUSSION, THE 
RESOLUTION WOULD BE TO STATE A POSITION OF THE MPO IN 
GENERAL VERSUS THE SPECIFIC ACTION OF TAKING IT OFF THE 
LONG-RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN.
THAT WOULDN'T NECESSARILY BIND THIS BOARD FOR FOREVER -- 
PRECLUDE THE BOARD FROM FOREVER CONSIDERING THAT.
I THINK THAT THE ACTUAL OFFICIAL ACTION TAKEN OFF THE LONG-
RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN WAS THE CONTROLLING ACTION BY THE 
BOARD -- BY THE -- BY THE BOARD HERE.
I DON'T KNOW THAT IT WOULD BE A HARMFUL OR DETRIMENTAL 
THING, BUT I DON'T THINK IT WOULD -- IT'S REALLY JUST, AS I 
UNDERSTAND IT, STATING A POSITION OF THE MPO BOARD.
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  ALL RIGHT.
WITH THAT CLARIFICATION, I'LL WITHDRAW THE MOTION.
>>MARK SHARPE:  THAT'S FINE, BECAUSE I THINK THE REASON FOR 
THE LETTER -- I MEAN, IT'S LIKE WE'RE HAMMERING IT AND 
HAMMERING AGAIN AND HAMMERING AGAIN.
THE REASON FOR THE LETTER -- COMMISSIONER FERLITA CHAIRED 
THE COMMITTEE -- WAS TO KIND OF REAFFIRM THE ACTION WE HAD 
ALREADY TAKEN BY WRITING A LETTER, SO WE DON'T NEED TO 
REAFFIRM THE LETTER WHICH IS ONLY REAFFIRMING THE ACTION WE 
ALREADY TOOK.
I THINK WE'VE TAKEN IT.
WHEN THE PUBLIC COMES AND COMMENTS, THAT'S THEIR RIGHT, BUT 
WE'VE TAKEN THE OFFICIAL ACTION THAT WE NEEDED TO TAKE AND 
LET'S MOVE FORWARD.
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  WE NEED A MOTION TO SEND THE LETTER?
>> I ALREADY GOT IT.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  YEAH, THE LETTER IS GONE.
IT'S ALREADY SENT.
WE COULD SEND A LETTER TO MS. CORNELIUS.
>> [INAUDIBLE]
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OKAY.
>>ROSE FERLITA:  IF YOU'D LIKE, NEXT --
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  GO AHEAD.
I'M SORRY.
HE HAD A MOTION ON THE FLOOR.
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  I WITHDREW THE MOTION.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  YOU WITHDREW YOUR MOTION.
OKAY.
FINE.
>>ROSE FERLITA:  JUST TO ADD TO COMMISSIONER SHARPE'S 
FRUSTRATION, NEXT POLICY MEETING I COULD MAKE A MOTION TO 
SUPPORT THE MOTION WE MADE LAST TIME TO SEND THIS LETTER TO 
SAY WE WANT TO REMOVE THE BELTWAY.
HOW WOULD THAT BE, GOOD?
[LAUGHTER]
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  ALL RIGHT.
THANK YOU.
OKAY.
NEXT ITEM IS THE -- IS THERE ANYBODY ELSE IN THE AUDIENCE 
THAT CARES TO ADDRESS THE BOARD?
IF NOT, THANK YOU.
THE -- NEXT WE HAVE THE CITIZENS ADVISORY COMMITTEE.
>> GOOD MORNING.
LYNN MERENDA, MPO STAFF TO THE CAC.
MR. AMON COULDN'T BE HERE THIS MORNING.
OUR LAST MEETING WAS HELD ON MAY 14th, AND VICE CHAIR ED 
AUSTIN CHAIRED THE MEETING.
MS. YEH PRESENTED THE UNIFIED PLANNING WORK PROGRAM, THE 
FINAL DRAFT, AND THE CAC MOVED UNANIMOUSLY TO FORWARD THE 
UPWP TO YOU FOR YOUR APPROVAL TODAY.
MR. BLAIN PRESENTED THE TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM, 
WHICH YOU'VE ALREADY APPROVED THIS MORNING, SO WE'LL MOVE 
ON TO THE HART BUS RAPID TRANSIT FUNDING REQUEST.
MR. ZAMBITO REVIEWED THE HART APPLICATION FOR FUNDING FOR 
AN EAST-WEST CORRIDOR BUS RAPID TRANSIT PROJECT THROUGH THE 
FEDERAL VERY SMALL STARTS PROGRAM, A COMPETITIVE FUNDING 
PROGRAM ADMINISTERED THROUGH THE FEDERAL TRANSIT 
ADMINISTRATION.
SEVERAL CAC MEMBERS DID EXPRESS DISAPPOINTMENT THAT THE 
SUPPORT FOR TRANSIT IN THE CURRENT COST-AFFORDABLE LONG-
RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN IS MINIMAL, AND THEY HOPE THAT 
THIS EFFORT NOW THROUGH THE MPO TRANSIT STUDY THEY'LL SEE 
GREATER IMPROVEMENT GOING FORWARD INTO THE 2035 UPDATE.
AFTER DISCUSSION, THE CAC MOTION SUPPORTED SENDING A LETTER 
INDICATING THE PROPOSED BRT IS CONSISTENT WITH THE INTENT 
OF THE MPO'S 2025 LONG-RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN.
LATER TODAY YOU'LL SEE THE JOB ACCESS REVERSE COMMUTE NEW 
FREEDOM PROGRAM PROJECT PRIORITIES THAT MS. YEH PRESENTED 
TO THE CAC, AND THEY DID RECOMMEND THAT THEY BE FORWARDED 
TO YOU FOR YOUR APPROVAL TODAY.
TRUCK FREIGHT ANALYSIS, YOU'LL ALSO BE SEEING A 
PRESENTATION TODAY BY MR. MIKE WILLIAMSON OF CAMBRIDGE 
SYSTEMATICS.
THE CAC FOUND THE PRESENTATION TO BE VERY INTERESTING, 
NOTING THAT 61% OF THE FREIGHT IS MOVED BY TRUCKS, 14% BY 
RAIL, AND 25% BY WATER.
THE CAC INDICATED THAT WE SHOULD BE LOOKED AT THE BIG 
PICTURE THAT FREIGHT MOVEMENT IS A REGIONAL MULTIMODAL 
ISSUE, NOT JUST A ROADWAY ISSUE.
AND THEY ARE VERY INTERESTED IN SEEING MORE INFORMATION ON 
FREIGHT STUDIES GOING ON.
CONGESTION MANAGEMENT PROCESS PLANNING ACTIVITIES, MR. BECK 
PRESENTED THE CONGESTION MANAGEMENT PROCESS FOR THE -- FOR 
MANAGING CONGESTION, PROVIDING INFORMATION ON 
TRANSPORTATION PERFORMANCE AND EVALUATING ALTERNATIVE 
MULTIMODAL STRATEGIES TO ALLEVIATE CONGESTION AND ENHANCE 
MOBILITY.
THE CONGESTION MANAGEMENT PROCESS WILL BE INTEGRATED INTO 
THE PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE LONG-RANGE 
TRANSPORTATION PLAN.
THE CAC MEMBERS EMPHASIZED THAT THE T.I.P. AND THE LRTP 
SHOULD CO-RELATE TO THE COMPREHENSIVE LAND USE PLANS, 
VIEWING THE ISSUES AS CONSTRAINED LAND NOT AS JUST 
CONSTRAINED ROADS.
FINALLY THE CAC MEMBERS DID REQUEST A REPORT AND OVERVIEW 
ON OTHER FREIGHT STUDIES, INCLUDING THE FDOT'S GOODS 
MOVEMENT STUDIES, WHICH WILL BE PRESENTED AT OUR JULY 
MEETING.
ALSO, THEY REQUESTED THAT A PORT MASTER PLAN UPDATE BE 
GIVEN IN THE FUTURE AS WELL AS ONE OF OUR CAC MEMBERS, 
PIERRE MATHURIN, WILL BE GIVING US A PRESENTATION ON HIS 
RECENT TRIP TO DENVER REGARDING THE MOTOR BUS SOCIETY AND 
DENVER'S LIGHT RAIL SYSTEM.
ALSO MR. BLAIN DID PRESENT THE TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENT 
PROGRAM APPLICATIONS RECEIVED FOR FISCAL YEARS 2009-10 
THROUGH '13-'14, AND OUR NEXT MEETING WILL BE HELD ON 
WEDNESDAY, JULY 16th, AT 1:15.
DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS?
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  ANY QUESTIONS OF MS. MERENDA?
IF NOT, WE THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
>> THANK YOU.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  ROSE, WHERE ARE YOU?
WE -- IF IT'S ALL RIGHT, I'LL GO AHEAD AND READ THE POLICY 
COMMITTEE REPORT THAT COMMISSIONER ROSE FERLITA CHAIRS.
THE POLICY COMMITTEE MET AT 9:00 A.M. ON MAY 20th IN THE 
PLANNING COMMISSION BOARDROOM.
FOLLOWING APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE APRIL 22nd POLICY 
COMMITTEE MEETING, THE MEMBERS HEARD PUBLIC COMMENT 
REGARDING MAPS THAT WERE SUPPOSEDLY GIVEN TO TBARTA BY THE 
MPO AND ALSO ABOUT THE INFORMATION DISTRIBUTED BY TBARTA AT 
THE CITIZEN WORKSHOP WHERE IT LOOKED LIKE THEY WERE RE -- 
RESURRECTING -- SORRY ABOUT THAT -- THE BRANDON BYPASS OR 
ALSO CALLED THE BELTWAY OR GREEN SWATH.
THE MAP ALSO SHOWED A MAJOR EMPLOYMENT CENTER LISTED IN THE 
MIDDLE OF THE SWATH THAT APPEARED TO BE IN THE MIDDLE OF 
THE PRESERVATION AREA.
>>ROSE FERLITA:  THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  I'M UP TO HERE, ROSE.
>>ROSE FERLITA:  I'M SORRY, MAYOR.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THAT'S ALL RIGHT.
>>ROSE FERLITA:  MR. GORMLY HAD TO CLARIFY SOMETHING.
FOLLOWING PUBLIC COMMENT, A MOTION WAS -- OH, HERE WE GO 
AGAIN.
FOLLOWING PUBLIC COMMENT, A MOTION WAS PASSED TO HAVE THE 
MPO CHAIR WRITE A LETTER TO TBARTA STATING THAT THE MPO IS 
IN SUPPORT OF REMOVING THE BELTWAY FROM THE MAP.
NEXT STAFF PRESENTED THE FINAL DRAFT FOR THE TRANSPORTATION 
IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM, WHICH WE JUST HELD A PUBLIC HEARING ON 
THIS MORNING.
STAFF THEN PRESENTED THE LATEST DRAFT FOR THE UNIFIED 
PLANNING WORK PROGRAM FOR 2008 TO 2010 WHICH WE ACTED ON AT 
THE BEGINNING OF THIS MEETING AS WELL.
AN ITEM REQUESTED BY HART TO FUND A BUS RAPID TRANSIT 
PROJECT FOR AN EAST-WEST CORRIDOR THROUGH THE FEDERAL VERY 
SMALL STARTS PROGRAM WAS WITHDRAWN.
IN ORDER TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR FEDERAL FUNDING, THE PROPOSED 
PROJECT SHOULD BE INCLUDED IN THE MPO'S LONG-RANGE 
TRANSPORTATION PLAN.
AFTER REVIEWING THE LRTP, STAFF FOUND AND THE FEDERAL STATE 
AGENCIES CONCURRED THAT ALL OF THE COMPONENTS OF THE 
PROJECT ARE IDENTIFIED WITHIN THE ADOPTED LRTP.
STAFF PRESENTED THE JOB ACCESS REVERSE COMMUTER NEW FREEDOM 
PROGRAM PROJECT PRIORITIZATION WHICH ALLOWS FOR DEVELOPMENT 
AND MAINTENANCE OF TRANSPORTATION SERVICES DESIGNED TO 
TRANSPORT WELFARE RECIPIENTS AND ELIGIBLE LOW-INCOME 
INDIVIDUALS TO AND FROM JOBS AND ACTIVITIES RELATING TO 
THEIR EMPLOYMENT.
THE NEW FREEDOM PROGRAM IS DESIGNED TO PROVIDE SERVICES AND 
PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION ALTERNATIVES FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH 
DISABILITIES.
THE COMMITTEE ADOPTED A MOTION TO APPROVE THE PRIORITY 
RANKING OF PROJECT AND FORWARD TO THE MPO.
THIS ITEM WAS ACTED ON EARLIER DURING TODAY'S MEETING.
DURING STATUS REPORTS, THE COMMITTEE HEARD A PRESENTATION 
ON THE TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM, APPLICATIONS FOR 
THE NEXT YEAR'S T.I.P., AND A PRESENTATION ON THE FREIGHT 
TRUCK MOVEMENT STUDY, WHICH WE WILL HEAR LATER TODAY, I 
SUSPECT.
THE NEXT POLICY COMMITTEE MEETING IS SCHEDULED FOR JUNE 
17th AT 9:00 A.M. IN THE PLANNING COMMISSION BOARDROOM.
ALL MPO BOARD MEMBERS ARE INVITED TO ATTEND, AND MAYOR 
AFFRONTI, WE HAD A VERY GOOD ATTENDANCE, AND I APPRECIATE 
EVERYBODY'S TIME, AND THANK YOU FOR ATTENDING.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THANK YOU.
ANY QUESTIONS?
OKAY.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
NEXT ITEM, WE'VE GOT THREE ACTION ITEMS.
ONE IS THE UNIFIED PLANNING WORK PROGRAM.
ALLISON YEH.
>>ALLISON YEH:  GOOD MORNING.
ALLISON YEH, MPO STAFF.
I THINK THIS IS GOING TO WORK, SO ONE SECOND.
OKAY.
YOU HAVE BEFORE YOU TODAY THE FINAL DRAFT OF THE UNIFIED 
PLANNING WORK PROGRAM, WHICH, AS I'VE PRESENTED BEFORE, IS 
OUR BUSINESS PLAN FOR THE MPO FOR THE NEXT TWO YEARS.
IT DOCUMENTS OUR PLANNING ACTIVITIES AND CERTIFIES THAT OUR 
ACTIVITIES ARE CONDUCTED IN ACCORDANCE WITH FEDERAL AND 
STATE RULES.
THE MAIN TASK THAT THE MPO ENGAGES IN EVERY YEAR IS 
TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT AND PLANNING, SYSTEM PLANNING, 
THE LONG-RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN, THE TRANSPORTATION 
IMPROVEMENT PLAN, OUR SHORT-RANGE PLAN, OTHER PROJECTS 
WHICH MAY INCLUDE CORRIDOR STUDIES, ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES 
AS THEY ARISE, A GREAT DEAL OF DATA MONITORING AND PUBLIC 
PARTICIPATION AND COORDINATION ON THE STATE AND REGIONAL 
LEVEL.
THE FUNDING FOR 2009 IS APPROXIMATELY $3.1 MILLION, A 
CONGLOMERATION OF ALL THE FUNDS RECEIVED, AND THIS AMOUNT 
INCLUDES FUNDS THAT WERE ROLLING OVER FROM THE PREVIOUS 
YEAR.
IN 2010 THERE'S APPROXIMATELY 2.1 MILLION.
ALONG WITH THIS DOCUMENT, THIS BOARD WILL BE APPROVING A 
SERIES OF DOCUMENTS THAT ARE -- THAT GO ALONG WITH THE 
UPWP.
THE MPO RESOLUTION APPROVING THE DOCUMENT, THE 
TRANSPORTATION TRUST FUND, WHICH IS TD FUNDS THAT WE APPLY 
FOR -- IT'S A RESOLUTION TO GO APPLY FOR THOSE FUNDS, OUR 
TITLE VI NONDISCRIMINATORY POLICY, NEW THIS YEAR IS THE 
LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENCY PROGRAM WHICH -- IT'S A PROGRAM 
DEVELOPED TO HELP THOSE WHO ENGLISH MAY NOT BE THEIR FIRST 
LANGUAGE OR SOMETHING THEY CAN USE TO PARTICIPATE IN THE 
MPO PROCESS, OUR DISADVANTAGED BUSINESS PROGRAM, AND 
FINALLY OUR JOINT CERTIFICATION WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF 
TRANSPORTATION.
THE DRAFT HAS GONE BEFORE COMMITTEES AND THIS BODY -- TWO 
DRAFTS HAVE GONE BEFORE THE COMMITTEES AND BOARD, AND WE 
ARE AT THE FINAL DRAFT STAGE TODAY, JUNE.
AFTER YOU APPROVE THE DOCUMENT, IF YOU APPROVE THE 
DOCUMENT, IT WILL BE SENT TO THE D.O.T. AND BECOME 
EFFECTIVE JULY 1st.
SO WHAT WE'RE ASKING FOR TODAY IS FOR YOU TO ADOPT THE 
DOCUMENT AND HAVE US TRANSMIT THAT TO THE FEDERAL 
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  ANYBODY HAVE ANY -- YES, LINDA.
>>LINDA SAUL-SENA:  THANK YOU.
IT LOOKS VERY COMPREHENSIVE.
MY QUESTION IS BECAUSE WE'RE -- ALL OF US IN LOCAL 
GOVERNMENT ARE BEING IMPACTED BY BUDGET CUTS, WILL YOU BE 
ABLE TO ACHIEVE THESE TASKS WITH THE RESOURCES THAT YOU 
HAVE?
>>ALLISON YEH:  YES.
>>LINDA SAUL-SENA:  GREAT.
THANKS.
>> THAT'S A GOOD ANSWER.
>>ALLISON YEH:  YEAH, WE'RE WITHIN BUDGET.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  ANY OTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS?
IT JUST MIGHT -- IT WAS RECOMMENDED TO MOVE IT FORWARD BY 
THE POLICY COMMITTEE, THE CITIZENS ADVISORY COMMITTEE, AND 
THE TECHNICAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE.
ALL THREE APPROVED IT AND RECOMMENDED APPROVAL.
SO WITH THAT --
>> MOVE APPROVAL.
>> SECOND.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND.
ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION?
ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE.
[CHORUS OF AYES]
OPPOSED.
MOTION CARRIES.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
THANKS, ALLISON, BUT YOU'RE ON AGAIN, ALLISON.
>>ALLISON YEH:  YEP.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  FOR THE JOB ACCESS REVIEW COMMUTE/NEW 
FREEDOM PROGRAM.
>>ALLISON YEH:  RIGHT.
THIS WAS ALREADY MENTIONED AT COMMITTEE REPORTS, SO I'LL 
GIVE YOU JUST A BRIEF OVERVIEW.
I HAVE BEFORE YOU TODAY A PROGRAM OF PROJECTS FOR THE JOB 
ACCESS REVERSE COMMUTE PROGRAM AND THE NEW FREEDOM PROGRAM.
IT'S THE PROGRAM OF PROJECTS FOR 2008 AND 2009.
THE TWO PROGRAMS ARE FEDERAL PROGRAMS.
THEY'RE MANDATED BY FEDERAL TRANSPORTATION LEGISLATION, AND 
LAST YEAR WE CREATED A PLAN, A SORT OF NEEDS ASSESSMENT TO 
LOOK AT HOW TO FUND THESE PROGRAMS.
THE PLAN WAS CREATED BY THE HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, THE PASCO 
COUNTY, AND THE PINELLAS COUNTY MPOs, AND WE USE THAT AS A 
NEEDS ASSESSMENT TO SOLICIT APPLICATION AND THEN FUND THOSE 
APPLICATIONS FOR THESE TWO FUNDING PROGRAMS, SO JUST A 
LITTLE BIT OF BACKGROUND ABOUT WHO THE MONEY IS GOING TO.
IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY WE HAVE 12% OF THE PEOPLE BELOW THE 
FEDERAL POVERTY LEVEL, 12% OF INDIVIDUALS ARE 65 OR OLDER, 
AND 20% OF THE POPULATION ARE PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES, SO 
THIS IS WHAT THE PROGRAMS LOOK TO HELP.
THE AVAILABLE FUNDING FOR 2008, APPROXIMATELY 1.2 MILLION 
FOR THE JARC GRANT AND 1.1 MILLION FOR THE NEW FREEDOM 
GRANT.
IN 2009 ABOUT THE SAME, 1.1 MILLION FOR THE JARC GRANT AND 
810,000 FOR THE NEW FREEDOM GRANT, INCLUDING MONIES THAT WE 
DON'T SPEND IN 2008 AND ROLL INTO 2009.
SIX APPLICATIONS CAME IN, THREE FOR EACH OF THE FUNDING 
PROGRAMS.
THEY WERE SOLICITED PUBLICLY AND RANKED BY COMMITTEE OF THE 
THREE MPOs, THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, AND THE TAMPA 
BAY REGIONAL PLANNING COUNCIL.
I'M JUST GOING TO -- YOU HAVE A MORE DETAILED CHART IN YOUR 
PACKET, BUT BRIEFLY, FOR THE JARC PROGRAMS, PINELLAS COUNTY 
AS A FAMILY SERVICE CENTER WILL BE PROVIDING SMALL LOANS TO 
LOW-INCOME WORKING PARENTS TO PURCHASE AND MAINTENANCE 
CARS.
HART WILL BE PROVIDING MORE LATE-NIGHT AND WEEKDAY AND 
WEEKEND SERVICE TO CONNECT LOW-INCOME WORKERS TO 
EMPLOYMENT.
THE SUNSHINE LINE, WHICH IS ALSO THE BOARD OF COUNTY 
COMMISSIONERS, WILL BE PROVIDING ADDITIONAL TRANSPORTATION 
FOR LOW-INCOME WORKERS TO GO TO INTERVIEWS AND OTHER JOB 
TRAINING-RELATED ACTIVITIES.
FOR 2008 AND 2009 THERE'S ABOUT 1.1 MILLION EACH YEAR.
THE NEW FREEDOM PROGRAM LOOKS AT HELPING PERSONS WITH 
DISABILITIES.
THE CENTER FOR INDEPENDENCE IN PASCO IS LOOKING AT 
CONNECTING THEIR FIXED-ROUTE SERVICE WITH THEIR DISABLED 
PERSONS SERVICE AND ALSO CONNECTING THAT ONTO THE HART AND 
PSTA SERVICE, THE PINELLAS COUNTY.
REGIONAL CONNECTIVITY IS ONE OF THE BIG THINGS THAT WE LOOK 
FOR IN THESE PROGRAMS.
HARTLINE IS STILL USING THAT MONEY TO BUILD MORE ADA 
COMPLIANT BUS PADS AND SIDEWALK IMPROVEMENTS.
THE NEIGHBORLY CARE NETWORK HAS AN EASY RIDE PROGRAM WHICH 
IS A VOLUNTEER-BASED PROGRAM, KIND OF LIKE AN AFFORDABLE 
TAXI PROGRAM FOR SENIORS.
THE PROGRAMS ARE SMALL, ABOUT 505,000 FOR THE FIRST -- 2008 
AND 541 FOR THE SECOND YEAR.
WHAT WE'RE ASKING FOR YOU TODAY IS THE OTHER MPOs HAVE 
ENDORSED THESE PROGRAMS OF PROJECTS, AND JUST ASKING FOR 
YOUR ENDORSEMENT SO WE CAN GO ON AND GET THE FUNDS.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  ANY QUESTIONS OF ALLISON?
YES, MR. DINGFELDER.
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  DID YOU SAY ON THE LOW-INCOME PART OF 
THIS PROGRAM WE ASSIST FOLKS WITH PURCHASING VEHICLES?
IS THAT PART OF THE PROGRAM?
>>ALLISON YEH:  IT'S A LOAN PROGRAM.
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  I'M SORRY?
>>ALLISON YEH:  IT'S A LOAN PROGRAM TO HELP BUY A VEHICLE 
AND THEN MAINTENANCE IT.
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  OKAY.
I HAD A THOUGHT.
ALL OF OUR RESPECTIVE LOCAL GOVERNMENTS, WE ALL SURPLUS OUR 
OLD VEHICLES AT A CERTAIN POINT, AND WE JUST, YOU KNOW, 
SEND THEM OUT TO AUCTION HOUSES AND GET THE BEST PRICE WE 
CAN.
>>ALLISON YEH:  RIGHT.
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  MAYBE IF YOU GOT IN TOUCH WITH THE CITY 
OF TAMPA, HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, PLANT CITY, TEMPLE TERRACE, 
ET CETERA, MAYBE INSTEAD OF JUST SURPLUSING IT AND GETTING, 
YOU KNOW, SOME NOMINAL AMOUNT, MAYBE THOSE -- SOME OF THOSE 
VEHICLES COULD BE FUNNELED INTO A PROGRAM LIKE THIS.
>>ALLISON YEH:  I THINK THAT'S A GREAT IDEA.
THE ONE -- THE PROGRAM I TALKED ABOUT WAS IN PINELLAS 
COUNTY, BUT ACTUALLY HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY HAS A PROGRAM 
CALLED "WHEELS OF SUCCESS" WHICH DOES THE SAME THING, AND 
THEY TAKE CAR DONATIONS, SO IF THE COUNTY OR THE CITY IS 
WILLING TO DONATE VEHICLES --
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  I MEAN, THERE MIGHT BE SOME LEGAL 
CONSTRAINTS, THAT SORT OF THING, ABOUT OF BUT IT MIGHT BE 
SOMETHING THAT AS STAFF YOU COULD WORK WITH OTHER STAFF AND 
SEE IF THERE'S A WAY TO DO THAT.
>>ALLISON YEH:  I CAN DEFINITELY LOOK INTO THAT AND I CAN 
GIVE YOU A LITTLE REPORT BACK ON THAT.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OKAY.
THANK YOU.
>>ALLISON YEH:  THANK YOU.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  ANY OTHER COMMENTS?
THAT WAS ALSO APPROVED BY THE POLICY COMMITTEE, CITIZENS 
ADVISORY COMMITTEE, AND THE TECHNICAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE, 
RECOMMENDED MOVING FORWARD.
MS. SAUL-SENA.
>>LINDA SAUL-SENA:  THANK YOU.
WILL WE GET A REPORT BACK IN PERHAPS A YEAR ON HOW MANY 
PEOPLE HAVE BEEN POSITIVELY IMPACTED BY THIS PROGRAM SO WE 
CAN HAVE A SENSE OF HOW SUCCESSFUL IT'S BEEN?
>>ALLISON YEH:  YES.
ACTUALLY IN OUR APPLICATION PROCESS, WE HAVE A REPORTING 
MECHANISM, SO WE FUNDED -- STARTED FUNDING PROGRAMS THIS 
YEAR.
THE MONEY STARTED COMING IN, SO I SHOULD HAVE INFORMATION 
NEXT YEAR, SURE.
>>LINDA SAUL-SENA:  THANK YOU.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OKAY.
WITH THAT, WE NEED A MOTION.
>> MOVE TO APPROVE.
>> SECOND.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  WE HAVE A MOTION AND SECOND.
ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION?
ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE.
[CHORUS OF AYES]
OPPOSED.
MOTION CARRIED.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
>>ALLISON YEH:  THANK YOU.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THE NEXT IS THE AGREEMENT FOR PROFESSIONAL 
LEGAL SERVICES BETWEEN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, THE 
HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION.
AS YOU REMEMBER, I DON'T KNOW HOW MANY MONTHS AGO WE TALKED 
ABOUT HAVING A SEPARATE AGREEMENT WITH THE -- WITH OUR 
LEGAL STAFF TO GIVE US MORE FLEXIBILITY, FOR THE MPO TO 
HAVE MORE FLEXIBILITY IN BEING ABLE TO HIRE AN OUTSIDE 
ATTORNEY IF NECESSARY.
>> [INAUDIBLE]
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  WHICH WOULD HAVE TO BE APPROVED BY THE 
FULL MPO BOARD FOR THAT PARTICULAR SITUATION.
BUT -- SO RAY, WHY DON'T YOU TAKE IT.
YOU DEALT WITH --
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  OKAY.
ACTUALLY, ADAM AND I HAVE BEEN WORKING TOGETHER ON THIS 
AGREEMENT.
WE ALSO HAD THE MPOAC STAFF IN TALLAHASSEE LOOK AT IT AND 
TRY TO COME UP WITH WORDING THAT WAS AGREEABLE TO BOTH THE 
COUNTY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE AND THE MPO, AND THIS IS THE 
DOCUMENT THAT WE CAME UP WITH.
AS FAR AS IF YOU HAVE ANY DETAILED LEGAL QUESTIONS, I'D 
PROBABLY REFER THEM TO ADAM RATHER THAN MYSELF, BUT THIS IS 
THE AGREEMENT THAT WE'VE COME TO AT THIS POINT.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  I HAD A -- I HAD A COUPLE OF COMMENTS THAT 
I DISCUSSED WITH ADAM BEFORE THE MEETING, AND -- BUT FIRST 
I'D LIKE TO FIND OUT IF THERE'S ANYBODY HERE THAT HAS ANY 
COMMENTS REGARDING THIS AGREEMENT.
THE ONLY THING THAT I HAD A PROBLEM WITH -- NOT REALLY A 
PROBLEM BUT A COUPLE RECOMMENDED CHANGES -- I WOULD REFER 
TO OUR COUNTY ATTORNEY AS OUR PRIMARY GENERAL COUNSEL, 
WHICH IS TRUE, AND THE OTHER THING THAT I WAS A LITTLE 
CONCERNED ABOUT OR THAT -- THAT WE WOULD HAVE THE LEGAL 
RIGHT -- THAT WE WOULD HAVE THE RIGHT TO ENGAGE AN OUTSIDE 
ATTORNEY IF THERE WAS A DISPUTE BETWEEN THE COUNTY AND THE 
MPO, AND I WAS CONCERNED THAT THERE COULD BE OTHER 
SITUATIONS THAT MIGHT ARISE WHERE WE MIGHT AS A BOARD SAY 
WE WANT TO HIRE AN OUTSIDE ATTORNEY, AND I DISCUSSED THAT 
WITH ADAM, AND HE HAS NO PROBLEM WITH THAT.
WE -- I THINK THE WORDING THAT HE HAD IN HERE IS THAT -- I 
DON'T KNOW IF YOU HAVE THE AGREEMENT IN FRONT OF YOU.
>>ADAM GORMLY:  MR. AFFRONTI, I COULD HAVE A MORE 
SUCCINCT -- I'VE BEEN THINKING ABOUT OUR CONVERSATION -- A 
MORE SUCCINCT WAY TO ADDRESS THAT ISSUE.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OKAY.
>>ADAM GORMLY:  ESSENTIALLY IT WOULD BE TO MIRROR THE 
LANGUAGE THAT'S IN THE SERVICES AGREEMENT WITH THE PLANNING 
COMMISSION, AND IT WOULD BE AT THE END OF THE FIRST SECTION 
TO SAY, THE MPO AND THE COUNTY ATTORNEY RECOGNIZE AND AGREE 
THAT THE MPO MAY EMPLOY SPECIAL LEGAL COUNSEL FOR SPECIFIC 
NEEDS, AND THAT LANGUAGE WOULD COVER IT.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THAT COMES --
>>ADAM GORMLY:  RIGHT.
IT COMES DIRECTLY -- THE LAST PART OF THAT COMES DIRECTLY 
OUT.
IT MIRRORS THE LANGUAGE THAT'S IN THE CURRENT AGREEMENT 
WITH THE PLANNING COMMISSION.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THAT WOULD BE GREAT.
ANY OTHER COMMENTS, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, OR -- YES, 
MS. SAUL-SENA.
>>LINDA SAUL-SENA:  IS THIS SOMETHING THAT WILL COME UP FOR 
ANNUAL REVIEW, OR DOES IT JUST SO GO FOR PERPETUITY?
>>ADAM GORMLY:  THE TERM OF THE AGREEMENT IS EFFECTIVE, AND 
IT PROVIDES THAT IT WILL END UPON 30 DAYS' WRITTEN NOTICE 
BY EITHER PARTY, SO IT'S NOT A -- IT'S NOT DRAFTED TO BE AN 
ANNUAL REVIEW, BUT IT DOES HAVE TERMINATION LANGUAGE, 30 
DAYS' NOTICE.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OKAY.
ANY OTHER -- YES, MARY.
>>MARY MULHERN:  I WAS JUST GOING TO SAY THAT THIS -- THE 
OTHER ONE WAS IN FOR US FOR QUITE A WHILE AND THIS JUST 
CAME UP; ISN'T THAT CORRECT?
THIS IS A NEW -- SOME NEW LANGUAGE THAT JUST CAME UP?
>>ADAM GORMLY:  YES, YES, YES.
PREVIOUSLY THE LEGAL SERVICES WAS ADDRESSED IN THE 
AGREEMENT FOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES BETWEEN THE MPO AND THE 
PLANNING COMMISSION, AND IT PROVIDED THE COUNTY ATTORNEY 
WOULD BE THE LEGAL ADVISOR TO THE MPO, AND THAT LANGUAGE 
WAS CHANGED IN THAT AGREEMENT TO MAKE IT MORE GENERIC, SO 
THIS AGREEMENT --
>>MARY MULHERN:  THAT'S WHAT NECESSITATED THIS?
OKAY.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  YEAH.
WE JUST BROUGHT THIS UP LAST YEAR, I BELIEVE, IN ORDER TO 
GIVE US SOME FLEXIBILITY IN THE EVENT THAT WE FEEL WE NEED 
AN OUTSIDE ATTORNEY.
I THINK OUR WHOLE OBJECTIVE IN THE MPO IS GETTING MORE 
WHERE THE MPO HAS MORE CONTROL OVER THINGS THAT WE'RE 
DOING, AND, BY THE WAY -- WELL, BEFORE I GET A MOTION ON 
THIS, I REVIEWED THE MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT WITH THE 
PLANNING COMMISSION, WHICH WE'LL HAVE AT OUR NEXT MEETING, 
AND I THINK IT'S ADDRESSING ALL THE CONCERNS THAT WE HAD 
REGARDING REPORTING AND HIRING AND FIRING THE EXECUTIVE 
DIRECTOR AND SO ON AND SO ON, SO I THINK YOU'LL BE 
SATISFIED WITH THAT ONE.
WE'LL BRING THAT TO THE NEXT MEETING.
YES.
>>LINDA SAUL-SENA:  AND JUST TO CLARIFY, I BELIEVE LEGAL 
SERVICES USED TO BE PROVIDED FOR FREE, AND NOW WE'RE PAYING 
FOR THEM; IS THAT CORRECT?
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  YES.
>>ADAM GORMLY:  THAT'S CORRECT.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  YEAH.
$90 AN HOUR I BELIEVE IS WHAT IT HAD IN HERE.
>>ADAM GORMLY:  YEAH, THAT'S CORRECT.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THAT'S PRETTY EXORBITANT, BUT --
>>LINDA SAUL-SENA:  THANK YOU.
[LAUGHTER]
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OKAY.
WE NEED A MOTION TO APPROVE THIS AGREEMENT.
>> [INAUDIBLE]
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  MOVED AND SECONDED.
ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION?
ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE.
[CHORUS OF AYES]
MOTION CARRIES.
THANK YOU.
THANK YOU, ADAM, AND THANK YOU, RAY, FOR GETTING THIS 
GOING.
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  MR. CHAIRMAN, THAT'S AS AMENDED?
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OH, YEAH.
ABSOLUTELY.
I'M SORRY.
YES.
RAY, IT'S YOUR SHOW.
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  ALL RIGHT.
GREAT.
I'M GOING TO GO TO THE PODIUM SINCE I HAVE THE ITEM RIGHT 
AFTER THAT ALSO.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  WELL, I'LL TELL YOU WHAT.
>> [INAUDIBLE]
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  WE COULD DO THAT.
WE JUST GOT A COUPLE SMALL ONES HERE.
LET'S TAKE THOSE FIRST.
LIVABLE ROADWAYS COMMITTEE.
MARY MULHERN.
>>MARY MULHERN:  THE LIVABLE ROADWAYS COMMITTEE MET ON MAY 
28th AT THE NEW SILVER LEEDS BUILDING ON KENNEDY BOULEVARD 
OF WALKER COMMUNICATIONS.
PRIOR TO THE MEETING WE HEARD FROM NANCY WALKER ABOUT THE 
FORETHOUGHT THAT WENT INTO THE BUILDING'S ARCHITECTURE AND 
OFFICE LAYOUT THAT MAKE IT ONE OF THE MOST ATTRACTIVE 
EXAMPLES OF GREEN BUILDING AND URBAN INFILL IN THE CITY.
THE FOCUS OF THE MEETING WAS PEDESTRIAN-LEVEL LIGHTING.
REPRESENTATIVES FROM TECO WERE PRESENT TO EXPLAIN THEIR 
LIGHTING PROGRAM, THE COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH DECORATIVE 
LIGHTING, AND THE LIST OF APPROVED LIGHTING FIXTURES.
AFTER ENGAGING IN LIVELY DISCUSSIONS, THE FOLLOWING THREE 
MOTIONS PASSED: THE LIVABLE ROADWAYS COMMITTEE FORMED A 
SPECIAL PEDESTRIAN LIGHTING TASK FORCE WORKING WITH TECO 
AND TECHNICAL AND DESIGN STAFF FROM ALL LOCAL JURISDICTIONS 
TO IDENTIFY EIGHT TO TEN ADDITIONAL LIGHTING FIXTURES FOR 
PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION APPROVAL, THEREBY GIVING 
COMMUNITIES MORE OPTIONS TO CHOOSE FROM.
THE COMMITTEE ASKS THE MUNICIPALITIES AND FDOT TO MAINTAIN 
THE QUALITY OF OUR ROADWAY DESIGNS EVEN IF THAT MEANS 
DELAYING A PROJECT SO THAT THE PROJECTS WHICH GET COMPLETED 
INCLUDE LANDSCAPING, PEDESTRIAN LIGHTING, AND OTHER 
TREATMENTS THAT ADD CHARACTER, SAFETY, AND BEAUTY TO OUR 
ROADS, AND COUNCILWOMAN SAUL-SENA BROUGHT UP THE 
LANDSCAPING, AND I THINK WE'LL FOLLOW UP WITH WHETHER THAT 
HAS -- BILL HAS BEEN SIGNED -- THAT THE APPROPRIATIONS BILL 
HAS BEEN SIGNED YET IN CASE MAYBE WE CAN HELP PRESERVE SOME 
OF THE LANDSCAPING.
AS AN INCEPTIVE TO ENCOURAGE SAFE PEDESTRIAN TRAVEL, WE ASK 
COMMUNITIES TO INVESTIGATE PAYING THE DIFFERENCE OF 
INSTALLING ENERGY-EFFICIENT PEDESTRIAN-DIRECTED LIGHTS 
VERSUS WHAT WOULD HAVE BEEN SPENT ON STANDARD LIGHTS.
DISCUSSED UNDER NEW BUSINESS WERE THE EFFORTS UNDERWAY TO 
INCORPORATE THE LIVABLE ROADWAYS GUIDELINES INTO LOCAL 
COMPREHENSIVE PLANS AND TECHNICAL MANUALS.
WE ALSO LEARNED OF THE RECENT RETIREMENT OF RALPH BOSEK, 
WHO REPRESENTED TEMPLE TERRACE ON THE COMMITTEE.
RALPH NOT ONLY EMBRACED LIVABLE ROADWAYS CONCEPTS BUT 
PUSHED FOR THEIR IMPLEMENTATION IN THE DESIGN OF THE TEMPLE 
TERRACE DOWNTOWN REDEVELOPMENT PROJECT.
RALPH WILL BE MISSED, AND MEMBERS LOOK FORWARD TO MEETING 
HIS REPLACEMENT.
OUR NEXT MEETING WILL BE HELD ON JUNE 25th FROM 9:00 TO 
11:00 A.M. IN THE NEW HART OFFICES AT 1201 EAST 7th AVENUE 
IN YBOR CITY.
THAT'S THE STREETCAR BARN.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OKAY.
THANK YOU.
ANY QUESTIONS?
YES, MS. SAUL-SENA.
>>LINDA SAUL-SENA:  I JUST WANTED TO EMPHASIZE THE THIRD 
BULLET POINT ABOUT PEDESTRIANS.
CURRENTLY ALL OF OUR TRANSIT -- OUR TRANSPORTATION MANUALS 
ADDRESS THE LIGHTING THAT'S NECESSARY FOR CARS.
AS WE MOVE TOWARD MULTIMODAL TRANSPORTATION WE HAVE TO 
RECOGNIZE THAT PEDESTRIANS, BICYCLISTS, AND TRANSIT USERS 
ALSO BENEFIT FROM LIGHTING, AND CURRENTLY I DON'T THINK ANY 
MUNICIPALITY OR THE COUNTY REQUIRES ANY PEDESTRIAN-ORIENTED 
LIGHTING, AND I THINK THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE NEED TO 
LOOK AT TOWARD THE FUTURE, SO AS EACH OF US IN OUR 
RESPECTIVE JOBS LOOK AT OUR CAPITAL EXPENDITURES ON 
TRANSPORTATION, IT BEHOOVES US TO SPEND MONEY ON 
PEDESTRIAN-ORIENTED LIGHTING BECAUSE IT WILL ENCOURAGE 
PEOPLE TO WALK IF THEY FEEL THINGS ARE SAFE, IF THEY'RE 
LIT.
I WOULD LIKE TO ENCOURAGE -- I DON'T KNOW THAT A MOTION IS 
NECESSARY, BUT WE HAVE REPRESENTATIVES HERE FROM ALL OF OUR 
DIFFERENT MUNICIPALITIES, TO ENCOURAGE US ALL TO BEGIN TO 
SPEND MONEY ON PEDESTRIAN-ORIENTED LIGHTING AS OPPOSED TO 
JUST LIGHTING FOR CARS.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THANK YOU, LINDA.
ANY OTHER COMMENTS?
OKAY.
IF NOT, I JUST WANT TO LET YOU KNOW THAT THE TRANSPORTATION 
DISADVANTAGED COORDINATING COMMITTEE, MR. SCOTT WAS THE 
CHAIRMAN OF THAT, AND IT'S AN EXCELLENT GROUP.
THE BORED -- THE BOARD OF CIVILIANS THAT MAKE THAT UP ARE 
REALLY, REALLY DEDICATED, AND SO I HAVE VOLUNTEERED TO 
CHAIR THAT.
I CHAIRED IT BEFORE, AND I WILL HAVE A REPORT AT THE NEXT 
MEETING.
>> THANK YOU.
>>ROSE FERLITA:  GOOD DEAL, MR. CHAIRMAN.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THANK YOU.
[LAUGHTER]
OKAY.
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR'S REPORT.
MR. CHIARAMONTE.
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  THANK YOU.
SINCE I'LL BE IN THIS POSITION FOR THE NEXT PRESENTATION, 
I'LL JUST START HERE.
FIRST OF ALL, I REALLY DO SINCERELY WANT TO THANK EACH AND 
EVERY ONE OF YOU FOR EXPRESSING CONFIDENCE IN ME FOR THIS 
POSITION FOR THE NEXT YEAR.
I'M VERY EXCITED ABOUT IT.
I HAVE BEEN INTERESTED IN TRANSIT AND LAND USE MY ENTIRE 
CAREER, AND I FEEL LIKE -- I HATE TO USE -- I TOLD 
COMMISSIONER SHARPE -- THE PERFECT STORM BECAUSE I DON'T 
LIKE THE ENDING OF THAT MOVIE, BUT I THINK WE HAVE THE 
PERFECT STORM FOR SOMETHING GOOD TO HAPPEN, SO THAT'S WHAT 
I WANT TO WORK ON.
I HAVE TO WARN YOU IF YOU ADOPT SOMETHING IN YOUR PLANS, 
I'M GOING TO GO OUT AND REPRESENT IT, SO DON'T PUT 
SOMETHING IN THERE UNLESS YOU TELL ME NOT TO BECAUSE THAT'S 
WHAT I'VE BEEN DOING IN TRYING TO GET ATTENTION TOWARD THE 
MPO PLAN AND LET PEOPLE KNOW WHAT WE'RE DOING.
THERE'S A COUPLE THINGS I WANTED TO TALK ABOUT TODAY.
I KNOW WE'VE BROUGHT UP THIS MAP ISSUE.
I KIND OF WANT TO SEE IF I CAN END THAT ONCE AND FOR ALL AS 
TO WHAT I THINK HAPPENED WITH THE MAPS.
I BELIEVE SOME MAPS WERE DISPLAYED OUT AT THE FIRST TBARTA 
MEETING THAT HAD INFORMATION THAT WAS A BASE MAP.
ONE BASE MAP SHOWS THE DENSITY OF TRANSPORTATION ANALYSIS 
ZONES.
WHEN YOU GET OUT TO THE RURAL AREA, REMEMBER WE'RE DEALING 
WITH DATA THAT COMES FROM THE 2000 CENSUS.
THERE WAS A CONCERN ON A PART OF ONE OF THE CITIZENS THAT 
PART OF FISHHAWK RANCH WASN'T REPRESENTED ON THE MAP.
THE REASON IT WASN'T, FIRST OF ALL, I THINK WHEN THE MAPS 
WERE CREATED, FISHHAWK PROBABLY DIDN'T EXIST IN THAT AREA, 
AND WHEN YOU SPREAD THAT DENSITY OVER A HUGE TRANSPORTATION 
ANALYSIS ZONE, IT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE IT'S VERY DENSE BECAUSE 
IT'S JUST IN ONE CORNER OF THE ZONE.
IT'S NOT THAT THE MAP WAS INCORRECT, IT'S JUST THAT THAT'S 
THE WAY THE DATA THAT WE HAVE, THE LATEST DATA THAT WE HAVE 
REPRESENTS THE INFORMATION.
THE OTHER ISSUE, OF COURSE, WAS TBARTA'S BASE MAP WITH THE 
GREEN LINE ON IT THAT I SAID DID SOMEWHAT RESEMBLE THE 
BRANDON BYPASS, ALTHOUGH NOT EXACTLY.
I THINK THERE WAS A CONCERN ON THE PART OF CITIZENS THAT 
SOMEHOW THAT WAS BEING PUT BACK INTO THE PLAN, WHICH IS 
REALLY NOT WHAT HAPPENED, AND THAT'S REALLY MY TAKE ON THE 
MAP ISSUE.
I THINK IT'S JUST SOMETIMES TECHNICAL PEOPLE REPRESENT 
THINGS IN A WAY THAT CITIZENS MIGHT TAKE IN A DIFFERENT 
WAY.
THERE WAS ANOTHER ISSUE THAT ONE OF THE STREETS, FISHHAWK 
BOULEVARD, WASN'T ON A MAP, BUT AS YOU KNOW, DEPENDING ON 
THE SCALE OF A MAP WE PRODUCE, ALL STREETS AREN'T ON EVERY 
MAP.
IT'S NOT NECESSARILY A MISTAKE IF YOU HAVE A MAP OF THE 
WHOLE COUNTY NOT TO HAVE, YOU KNOW, A LOCAL STREET ON IT.
IT'S NOT GOING TO FIT ON THE MAP, SO, AGAIN, IT'S NOT THAT 
IT'S AN ERROR, IT'S JUST A WAY OF EXPRESSING INFORMATION.
I WILL TELL YOU WE'RE GOING TO TRY TO BE REALLY CAREFUL 
ABOUT HOW WE DO THAT IN THE FUTURE TO MAKE SURE WE'RE NOT 
PUTTING MAPS OUT WHILE TECHNICALLY CORRECT MIGHT LEAD TO A 
DIFFERENT IMPRESSION IN CITIZENS' MINDS.
I'M GOING TO TRY TO REVIEW ALL THE MAPS THAT ARE GOING TO 
BE USED AT ANY KIND OF PRESENTATION AND MAKE SURE I DON'T 
SEE ANYTHING ON THERE THAT I THINK IS GOING TO CITIZENS TO 
BE CONCERNED UNDULY ABOUT ISSUES LIKE THAT.
JUST TO KIND OF LET YOU KNOW WHAT I'VE BEEN DOING, I HAVE 
BEEN PARTICIPATING IN TBARTA'S LAND USE COMMITTEE.
WE HAD A MEETING ON MAY 9th THAT WE BROKE UP INTO GROUPS.
I WAS VERY EXCITED TO SEE SO MANY PEOPLE THERE AT THAT 
MEETING.
THERE'S SUCH AN INTEREST IN THIS.
WE HAVE A MEETING COMING UP THIS FRIDAY WHERE WE'RE GOING 
TO BE PRESENTING HOW HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY AND THE CITY OF 
TAMPA IDENTIFIED THEIR ACTIVITY CENTERS AS GUIDES TO OTHER 
JURISDICTIONS IF THE AREA.
I ATTENDED THE LIVABLE ROADWAYS MEETING THAT MARY MULHERN 
MENTIONED.
I WANTED -- THAT'S ONE OF MY ISSUES IS LIVABLE ROADWAYS, 
AND I WANTED THEM TO KNOW THAT I'M VERY SUPPORTIVE OF THE 
WORK THAT THAT COMMITTEE IS DOING.
ON MAY 19th I PRESENTED THE MPO'S TRANSIT CONCEPT PLAN FOR 
2050, WHICH I'LL BE DOING TODAY, AT THE TAMPA-HILLSBOROUGH 
EXPRESSWAY AUTHORITY.
I HAVE TO SAY THAT WAS MY MOST DAUNTING GROUP.
SINCE THEY'RE THE EXPRESSWAY AUTHORITY, I WASN'T SURE HOW 
THEY'D ACCEPT PRESENTING OF THE TRANSIT PLAN, BUT THEY WERE 
GREAT, VERY SUPPORTIVE, AND SEEMED TO WANT TO WORK 
TOGETHER, SO I WAS VERY PLEASED WITH THAT.
TBARTA'S BOARD MEETING ON JUNE 23rd, I ATTENDED THAT, 
FOLLOWED BY THE WORKSHOP.
I'M ALSO PARTICIPATING IN THE REGIONAL -- VISIONING 
WORKSHOP AND ALL THE THINGS GOING ON WITH THAT.
THAT WAS HELD ALSO ON JUNE 23rd AT TBRPC.
MAY 29th I ATTENDED THE CLEAN AIR PARTNERSHIP MEETING WITH 
THE PLANNING COMMISSION.
MPO RECEIVED AN AWARD AS ENVIRONMENTAL LEADERS IN THE 
COMMUNITY.
YESTERDAY I PRESENTED THE 2050 PLAN THAT SOME OF YOU 
PROBABLY SAW YESTERDAY AT HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY'S 
TRANSPORTATION TASK FORCE MEETING.
JUST TO SAY THE REASON THAT I WANT TO PRESENT THIS TO YOU 
TODAY, I WANT YOU AS A BOARD TO UNDERSTAND WHAT I'M GOING 
OUT AND SAYING IN CASE I'M SAYING SOMETHING THAT YOU WANT 
TO CHANGE A LITTLE BECAUSE I INTEND TO DO THIS ALSO AT THE 
TBARTA MEETING ON JUNE 16th.
THIS IS WHEN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PRESENTS WHAT THEIR GROWTH 
PLANS ARE, WHERE THEY ARE IN THIS WHOLE PLANNING PROCESS, 
AND THAT MEETING -- THAT TBARTA MEETING WILL BE HELD ON THE 
26th FLOOR HERE AT THE COUNTY CENTER.
I'M MAKING A PRESENTATION OF THIS TO THE OPTIMIST CLUB 
DOWNTOWN ON JUNE 11th, LATER THIS WEEK, AND AS I MENTIONED, 
JUNE 16th TO TBARTA.
THE NEXT POLICY COMMITTEE, AS WE MENTIONED, WILL BE ON JUNE 
17th, AGAIN IN THE PLANNING COMMISSION BOARDROOM, AND I'M 
MEETING WITH HART LATER TODAY ALSO TO TALK ABOUT TRANSIT 
ISSUES.
A REMINDER, THIS IS A GOOD THING HOPEFULLY FOR PEOPLE THAT 
WANT TO SKIP A MEETING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SUMMER, WE'RE 
NOT GOING TO HAVE AN MPO MEETING IN JULY, SO THE NEXT MPO 
MEETING WILL BE AUGUST 5th AT 9:00 A.M.
I WANTED TO BRING UP AN ISSUE THAT WAS RAISED, AND I THINK 
BOB CLIFFORD CAN ANSWER THIS EASILY, BUT THERE SEEMED TO BE 
THE IMPRESSION THAT TBARTA PLANS OVERRIDE THE COMP PLANS, 
AND I THINK IT WOULD BE GOOD FOR US MAYBE TO SAY SOMETHING 
ABOUT THAT BECAUSE I DON'T BELIEVE THAT'S THE CASE.
AND MAYBE YOU COULD SHED A LITTLE LIGHT SO AT LEAST 
EVERYBODY KNOWS WHAT THE ISSUE IS.
>> THAT IS EXACTLY CORRECT, RAY, THAT THEY DO NOT OVERRIDE 
THE COMP PLANS.
TBARTA HAS NO LAND USE POWER.
SO IT'S JUST -- JUST TO BE CLEAR ABOUT THAT, THAT'S -- 
WE'RE COORDINATING AND WORKED WITH EACH COMMUNITY AS PART 
OF THEIR PLANS AND COLLECTIVELY TOGETHER, BUT TBARTA -- BUT 
TBARTA DOES NOT HAVE LAND USE POWER TO OVERRIDE THE PLAN.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THANK YOU.
MR. SHARPE HAD A COMMENT, RAY.
>>MARK SHARPE:  FIRST, AGAIN, I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR YOUR 
LEADERSHIP, AND EVEN IN THAT JUST ONE INSTANCE THERE, BEING 
ABLE TO STEP UP AND EXPLAIN AND TO FACILITATE AND 
COORDINATE IN A WAY WHERE WE CAN BE WORKING TOGETHER AS 
PARTNERS RATHER THAN HAVING A LOT OF THESE DISAGREEMENTS GO 
ON AND ON AND ON, SETTING US BACK, THAT'S WHY I THINK 
YOU'RE AN ABLE LEADER.
I DON'T WANT TO BEAT THE DEAD HORSE ANYMORE EITHER, BUT I 
DO WANT TO ASK YOU A QUESTION.
THIS WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA REGIONAL PLANNING MODEL, THAT'S 
WHERE THE -- THAT'S THE SOURCE -- WHAT IS THE WEST CENTRAL 
FLORIDA PLANNING MODEL?
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  I BELIEVE THAT'S THE D.O.T.
I'LL LET DON SKELTON ANSWER.
>>MARK SHARPE:  AND WHERE DOES -- AND THE QUESTION I WAS 
GOING TO ASK MR. SKELTON OR WHOMEVER IS WHERE DID THAT 
INFORMATION COME FROM?
>>DON SKELTON:  THE WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA REGIONAL PLANNING 
MODEL IS THE REGIONAL MODEL DEVELOPED BY THE DEPARTMENT IN 
COOPERATION WITH ALL OF THE MPOs IN OUR DISTRICT, SO IT 
ENCOMPASSES, I BELIEVE, SEVEN COUNTIES.
>> YES.
[INAUDIBLE]
>>DON SKELTON:  SO IT'S -- IT'S THE REGIONAL MODEL WE USE 
FOR EVERYBODY'S TRANSPORTATION PLAN.
THE DATA THAT GOES INTO IT IS SUPPLIED BY THE LOCAL 
JURISDICTIONS, SO WE GET THE SOCIOECONOMIC DATA FROM EACH 
OF THE RESPONSIBLE PARTIES, IN THIS CASE, THE PLANNING 
COMMISSION WOULD PROVIDE HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY'S, THE 
PLANNING DEPARTMENT FOR PINELLAS COUNTY, ET CETERA, SO EACH 
COUNTY PROVIDES THE INPUT DATA, AND THEN WE USE THAT MODEL 
TO DO THE PROJECTIONS AND LONG-RANGE PLANS.
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  TO ADD A LITTLE BIT MORE LIGHT TO THAT, 
THAT'S THE SAME -- THE SAME DATA THEY GET IS WHAT WE WOULD 
USE FOR OUR COMPREHENSIVE PLANS WHERE WE LOOK AT THE CENSUS 
TRACTS AND PROJECT WHAT THE POPULATION GROWTH WOULD BE IN 
THOSE CENSUS TRACTS BASED ON A NUMBER OF TECHNICAL ITEMS.
>>MARK SHARPE:  SO THE INFORMATION, THOUGH, IS COMING FROM 
US?
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  THE INFORMATION ON POPULATION GROWTH IS 
COMING FROM US, YES.
>>MARK SHARPE:  THAT'S WHY I APPRECIATE YOUR COMMENT, WHICH 
IS THAT YOU'RE GOING TO BE WORKING WITH FDOT, TBARTA, AND 
OTHERS TO EXPLAIN -- AND IN FACT, I UNDERSTAND THAT FDOT IS 
ACTUALLY GOING TO BE LOOKED AT USING LAND USE MAPS FOR 
THEIR PRESENTATIONS, WHICH IS A CLEARER WAY OF MAKING THE 
PRESENTATION TO THE COMMUNITY SO WE AVOID ISSUES WHICH WE -
-
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  PART OF THE PROBLEM WITH THAT TYPE OF 
INFORMATION IS JUST THE WAY THE CENSUS IS, AS YOU GET 
FARTHER AWAY FROM 2000, IT GETS A LITTLE MORE OUT OF WHACK 
BECAUSE YOU'VE HAD GROWTH, ESPECIALLY IF THE LAST FIVE 
YEARS, THAT'S OCCURRED IN AREAS THAT APPEARED TO BE -- THAT 
STILL APPEAR TO BE RURAL, AND THE POPULATION'S DIVIDED OVER 
THIS LARGE CENSUS TRACT.
NOW, IN 2010 THOSE CENSUS TRACTS WILL GET DIVIDED UP AGAIN 
AS THEY DO EVERY TIME AS WE HAVE GROWTH AND THEY GET PUT 
INTO SMALLER PIECES, AND THEN THEY BECOME MORE ACCURATE AND 
SLOWLY OVER A TEN-YEAR PERIOD GET MORE OUT OF WHACK AGAIN.
>>MARK SHARPE:  THIS HAS BEEN AN EXCELLENT EXERCISE.
I APPRECIATE IT.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  MR. DINGFELDER, YOU HAD A COMMENT?
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  QUICKLY.
IN REGARD TO THIS ISSUE ABOUT LAND USE CONTROL, I THINK 
IT'S SORT OF A DOUBLE-EDGED SWORD BECAUSE, YOU KNOW -- SORT 
OF GOOD NEWS AND BAD NEWS BECAUSE AT A CONFERENCE I WENT TO 
RECENTLY, I UNDERSTOOD THAT PORTLAND -- THAT THE STATE OF 
OREGON SPECIFICALLY GAVE THE PORTLAND REGIONAL AUTHORITY 
THEIR OWN TBARTA LONG AGO, 15 YEARS AGO OR MORE, GAVE THEM 
LAND -- SOME TYPE OF LAND USE CONTROL AND AUTHORITY.
I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY HOW IT WORKS AND ALL.
I THINK THAT IN SOME WAYS IT WAS REALLY SMART BECAUSE 
OBVIOUSLY THEY'VE PROVEN THAT THEY CAN BUILD A TRANSIT 
SYSTEM AND MAKE GOOD LAND USE DECISIONS ASSOCIATED WITH 
THAT TRANSIT SYSTEM, AND AS WE -- AS WE KNOW, THE TRANSIT 
SYSTEM AND THE LAND USE DECISIONS NEED TO BE MADE IN A 
CONNECTED WAY.
NOW, THE FLIP SIDE OF THAT IS, IS NONE OF US WANT TO LOSE 
THE LOCAL CONTROL THAT WE HAVE OVER THE LAND USE DECISIONS 
THAT ARE MADE.
OBVIOUSLY IT'S SORT OF A BIGGER-PICTURE ISSUE, A 
TALLAHASSEE ISSUE IF WE WERE EVER GOING TO CHANGE THAT, 
BUT, YOU KNOW, THE LAND USE DECISIONS -- LAND USE DECISIONS 
THAT WE MAKE LOCALLY NEED TO BE MADE IN CONJUNCTION -- IN 
DEEP CONJUNCTION WITH THE TRANSIT DECISIONS THAT ARE BEING 
MADE BY THESE VARIOUS BODIES, INCLUDING THIS BODY.
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  RIGHT.
I THINK WE HAVE SOMEWHAT OF A UNIQUE SITUATION HERE, AND I 
KNOW THERE'S ALWAYS DISCUSSION ABOUT WHETHER YOU HAVE ONE-
COUNTY MPOs OR NOT.
THE THING WE HAVE TO REMEMBER IS THERE'S TWO PLACES IN THE 
UNITED STATES THAT ARE LIKE US, AND THE OTHER IS 
MINNEAPOLIS AND ST. PAUL.
WE'RE A UNIQUE -- WE DON'T HAVE ONE CENTRAL CITY -- 
ALTHOUGH TAMPA IS DOMINANT, IT'S NOT DOMINANT LIKE THE WAY 
ATLANTA IS OR SOMETHING BECAUSE WE HAVE PINELLAS COUNTY AND 
ST. PETERSBURG WHICH ARE NOT THAT MUCH SMALLER, SO WE ARE 
KIND OF THE TWIN CITIES OF THE SOUTH, SO THERE ARE VERY 
DIFFERENT INTERESTS IN PINELLAS COUNTY, AND YOU'LL 
UNDERSTAND A LITTLE BIT WHEN I GO INTO MY PRESENTATION 
TODAY.
I MEAN, THE DEMOGRAPHICS, THERE'S A LOT OF DIFFERENCES THAT 
A CITY LIKE PORTLAND WOULDN'T HAVE THAT AGAIN IS ONE 
DOMINANT CITY IN A METROPOLITAN AREA THAT EVERYTHING 
SURROUNDS.
SO WE'RE SOMEWHAT UNIQUE IN THAT SITUATION.
THE MPO LAWS DO SPELL OUT THAT IF YOU HAVE UNIQUE 
SITUATIONS LIKE THAT, NORMALLY YOU MIGHT HAVE MORE THAN ONE 
MPO IN A REGION.
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  THANK YOU.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  ANY OTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS?
OKAY.
>>MARY MULHERN:  JUST QUICKLY, I'M CURIOUS.
SO DO ST. PAUL AND MINNEAPOLIS HAVE SEPARATE MPOs?
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION, AND I DON'T 
KNOW THE ANSWER, BUT I CERTAINLY WILL FIND OUT BEFORE I SAY 
THAT AGAIN.
[LAUGHTER]
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OKAY.
OKAY.
ANY OTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS?
OKAY, RAY.
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  OKAY.
WHAT I'M HERE TO PRESENT TODAY IS WHAT I'VE BEEN GOING 
AROUND PRESENTING IN DIFFERENT PLACES AND WHAT I WANT TO 
CONTINUE PRESENTING AND -- JUST SO YOU UNDERSTAND HOW I'M 
PRESENTING THE TRANSIT PLAN.
WHAT I'VE CHOSEN TO DO IS I DON'T WANT TO PRESENT JUST THE 
TRANSIT PLAN BECAUSE, AS YOU MENTIONED -- AND JOHN 
DINGFELDER GAVE ME GOOD INTRODUCTION -- LAND USE AND 
TRANSPORTATION DO WORK TOGETHER, AND I THINK WE NEED TO 
PRESENT THEM THAT WAY.
THEY'RE NOT IN ISOLATION.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  RAY, COULD I INTERJECT ONE POINT?
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  YES.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  I DON'T KNOW HOW MANY OF YOU HAVE READ THE 
EDITORIAL IN SUNDAY'S PAPER WHERE THE EDITORIAL BOARD 
INTERVIEWED MAYOR IORIO, AND THE ONE THING SHE STATED IN 
THERE NEAR THE END OF THE INTERVIEW WAS THEY ASKED HER IF 
THIS WAS A PLAN THAT SHE WAS PROMOTING THAT WAS SUGGESTED 
BY A FORMER COUNTY COMMISSIONER, AND SHE SAID, NO, IT'S THE 
MPO PLAN, AND SHE NOT ONLY SAID THAT ONCE, SHE SAID IT 
TWICE, SO I THINK THAT'S A GOOD TESTIMONIAL FOR WHAT WE'RE 
DOING.
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  BEFORE I START, I'D LIKE TO REQUEST IF 
THE HTV STAFF COULD ACTUALLY PUT THE PRESENTATION ON THE 
SCREEN FOR THE AUDIENCE.
THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL.
THANK YOU.
OKAY.
WHAT I WANT TO DO IS MAKE A CASE -- STARTING THE 
PRESENTATION JUST TO LET YOU KNOW WHERE WE'RE GOING -- TO 
MAKE THE CASE FOR MULTIMODAL TRANSPORTATION, SPECIFICALLY 
INCLUDING RAIL, HOW OUR COMPREHENSIVE PLANS SUPPORT THAT 
DECISION, AND CREATING PLANS THAT ARE TRANSIT READY, THAT 
SUPPORT A VIBRANT ECONOMY, AND THAT SUPPORT LIVABILITY AND 
SUSTAINABILITY.
THESE ARE THE KIND OF THINGS WE'VE HEARD FROM OUR CITIZENS 
THAT THEY WANT TO SEE IN OUR COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.
LIKE THE UNITED STATES AS A WHOLE, YOU MAY NOT BE AWARE, 
BUT THE UNITED STATES IS ONE OF THE ONLY INDUSTRIALIZED 
COUNTRIES THAT ARE STILL ACTUALLY GROWING AT A FAIRLY RAPID 
RATE, AND CERTAINLY IN FLORIDA WE KNOW ABOUT GROWTH, EVEN 
GROWING AS A MORE RAPID RATE THAN THE UNITED STATES AS A 
WHOLE.
THIS IS OUR ESTIMATES FOR THE GROWTH IF THE SURROUNDING 
COUNTIES.
AGAIN, YOU SEE OUR REGION IS ALMOST AT FOUR MILLION PEOPLE, 
PROBABLY IS AT IT NOW THAT WE'RE IN 2008, GOING TO OVER 5 
MILLION PEOPLE BY 2025, SO WE HAVE LOTS OF PEOPLE TO DEAL 
WITH.
THERE'S CHANGING DEMOGRAPHICS IN THE UNITED STATES BUT ALSO 
IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY.
HOUSING PREFERENCES ARE SHIFTING.
IF YOU LOOK -- IN STUDYING WHAT REALLY HAS BEEN HAPPENING, 
TAMPA'S SALES OF HOUSING AND THINGS LIKE THAT HAVE NOT 
DROPPED TO THE LEVEL THAT THE COUNTY'S HAS, AND MULTIFAMILY 
HAS NOT DROPPED TO THE LEVEL OF SINGLE-FAMILY RIGHT NOW.
WE HAVE A LOT OF THINGS GOING ON OVER THE NEXT TEN YEARS 
DEMOGRAPHICALLY.
WE'RE GOING TO HAVE AN INCREASE IN EMPTY NESTERS.
WE'RE JUST STARTING THAT UPWARD CURVE.
THE ELDERLY, SINGLE-PERSON HOUSEHOLDS.
IF YOU COMPARE 1970 IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY WITH 2006, YOU 
SEE DIFFERENCES IN THE PIE CHART WITH MARRIED COUPLES WITH 
CHILDREN BEING VERY DOMINANT IN 1970 AND THAT SHIFTING A 
LITTLE BIT IN 2006.
HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY IS DIFFERENT THAN THE OTHER COUNTIES IN 
THE REGION.
WE HAVE TO REMEMBER THAT.
WE'RE YOUNGER BY QUITE A BIT THAN ANY OF THE OTHER 
SURROUNDING COUNTIES IN AGE.
WE ALSO HAVE A MUCH HIGHER PERCENTAGE OF THE POPULATION 
THAT IS BORN IN FLORIDA.
NOW, YOU CAN DEDUCE WHAT THAT MEANS.
TO ME WHAT THAT MEANS IS WE'RE MORE OF A TYPICAL -- I HATE 
TO SAY A MIDWESTERN CITY TRANSPLANTED IN FLORIDA, BUT 
THAT'S WHAT COMES TO MY MIND.
WE HAVE A LITTLE BIT MORE OF A CORE HISTORICAL BASE THAT'S 
BEEN HERE A LONGER TIME THAN SOME OF THE SURROUNDING 
COUNTIES.
I HATE TO BRING UP, YOU KNOW, THE TAX VOTE THAT RECENTLY 
WAS ENACTED, BUT IT REALLY DID NOT REACH 60% OF THE VOTE IN 
HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, IT DID IN ALL THE OTHER SURROUNDING 
COUNTIES.
IT ONLY GOT 58% OF THE VOTE.
SO THEORETICALLY THAT WOULD NOT HAVE PASSED IN HILLSBOROUGH 
COUNTY BY THE RULES THAT WERE SET UP.
SO WE ARE SOMEWHAT DIFFERENT THAN THE OTHER COUNTIES IN THE 
REGION.
WHEN WE LOOK AT US ON A NATIONAL LEVEL, COMPARING US WITH 
OTHER CITIES THAT EITHER HAVE EXISTING RAIL OR PLANNED, 
WITH POPULATION, AGAIN, YOU SEE WE ARE SOMEWHERE IF THE 
MIDDLE OF THESE CITIES.
SOME ARE SMALLER THAN WE ARE IN METROPOLITAN POPULATIONS, 
SOME ARE LARGER, SO WE CERTAINLY FIT IN TO A CITY THAT 
SHOULD BE PURSUING THIS DIRECTION.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE DENSITY OF OUR CITIES, SOME PEOPLE SAY 
WELL, WE DON'T HAVE THE DENSITY, BUT IF YOU LOOK AT THE -- 
THESE ARE THE CENTRAL AREAS.
AGAIN, WE ARE VERY COMPARABLE TO THE OTHER CITIES, AGAIN 
SOMEWHERE IN THE MIDDLE, SOME ARE A LITTLE BIT DENSER, SOME 
ARE NOT AS DENSE AS WE ARE, BUT REMEMBER TAMPA DID AT ONE 
TIME HAVE 43 MILES OF RAIL THAT WAS DISMANTLED IN 1946, SO 
WE HAD THE DENSITY THEN, AND THE CITY OF TAMPA HASN'T 
CHANGED THAT MUCH OTHER THAN TO GET BIGGER AND HAVE MORE 
PEOPLE, SO WE DO REALLY HAVE DENSITY COMPARABLE WITH OTHER 
CITIES THAT HAVE RAIL, NEWER CITIES.
WE'RE THE 13th LARGEST TELEVISION MARKET IN THE NATION, 
19th LARGEST IN POPULATION, AND RIGHT NOW IN THE TOP 25, 
AND I'M BEING A LITTLE CONSERVATIVE HERE, IT'S PROBABLY IN 
THE TOP 30 NOW.
I'M GOING TO UPDATE THIS RESEARCH A LITTLE.
THERE'S ONLY TWO CITIES THAT DON'T HAVE PLANS VERY CLOSE TO 
FRUITION OR EXISTING RAIL SYSTEMS, AND THAT'S TAMPA AND 
DETROIT.
IN THE AMERICAN HOUSING SURVEY, THE AVERAGE HOUSEHOLD SIDE, 
THIS SHOWS HOW MUCH AGAIN WE'RE LIKE THE COUNTRY AS A 
WHOLE.
WE'RE ALMOST IDENTICAL TO THE ITS UNITED STATES.
WE HAVE 2.6 PEOPLE PER HOUSEHOLD AVERAGE, THE UNITED STATES 
HAS 2.5.
WE HAVE THE EXACT SAME MEDIAN AGE AS THE ENTIRE COUNTRY.
OUR ADULT POPULATION IS THE SAME, 75%, AT THE UNITED 
STATES.
OUR SENIOR POPULATION, WHICH MIGHT SURPRISE YOU, IS 
ACTUALLY LESS THAN THE UNITED STATES AS A WHOLE.
IT'S 11.5% IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, 12.4 IN THE UNITED 
STATES.
OUR EDUCATION AND PER CAPITA INCOME IS SLIGHTLY HIGHER THAN 
THE U.S. AVERAGE IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY.
THE EMERGING CITIES THAT ARE GETTING INVOLVED IF RAIL 
TRANSIT, WE KNOW THEM, DALLAS, HOUSTON, CHARLOTTE, SAN 
DIEGO, EARLY ARRIVING ON THE SCENE IN ABOUT 1981, SMALLER, 
MUCH SMALLER CITIES LIKE ALBUQUERQUE.
THIS IS A NATIONAL TREND.
PHOENIX'S SYSTEM IS GOING TO OPEN THIS CHRISTMASTIME, AND 
DENVER, WHICH HAS EMBARKED ON A HUGE SYSTEM, A HUNDRED-MILE 
SYSTEM, KIND OF SPEEDING IT UP.
ONCE THEY BUILT THEIR NINE-MILE FIRST LINE, THEY'RE MOVING 
VERY FAST TO EXPAND IT.
WHY NOW?
AGAIN, WE HAVE THE SUCCESS OF OTHER CITIES.
WE HAVE METROPOLITAN STATISTICAL AREA GROWTH TRENDS, WE 
HAVE A NEW ISSUE IN THE LAST COUPLE YEARS, AND THAT'S FUEL 
COSTS, WHICH REALLY IS CHANGING THE WAY A LOT OF PEOPLE 
THINK ABOUT TRANSIT AS SEEN FROM OUR INCREASE IN RIDERSHIP 
WITH HART.
TAMPA AND HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY ARE A REGIONAL EMPLOYMENT HUB 
FOR OUR REGION, AND THERE IS A LIMITATIONS OF A ROAD-ONLY 
APPROACH WHEN YOU REACH A CERTAIN POPULATION LEVEL.
ADDING CAPACITY IN THE FUTURE.
WE ALL KNOW HOW HARD IT IS TO ADD A VEHICLE LANE, BUT YOU 
CAN ALWAYS ADD ANOTHER CAR TO A TRAIN WHEN YOU NEED IT.
IT'S A MUCH EASIER STEP.
ALTHOUGH YOU HAVE TO PURCHASE THE CAR, IT'S EASIER THAN 
GOING OUT AND LESS TIME-CONSUMING THAN BUILDING A NEW ROAD.
TO GIVE YOU AN EXAMPLE THE SPACE, ONE LIGHT RAIL TRAIN 
COMPARED TO 177 SINGLE-OCCUPANT CARS SHOW YOU THE CAPACITY 
AND THE SPACE THAT IT TAKES IN A CITY TO PROVIDE TRANSIT IS 
MUCH LESS.
JUST IN OUR PLANS, OUR CAPITAL INVESTMENT AND OUR NEEDS 
PLAN, IS $7.3 BILLION, AND OUR PRESENT MPO LONG-RANGE 
TRANSPORTATION PLAN, WHICH WE'RE BEGINNING TO UPDATE NOW, 
BUT ONLY 2 BILLION IS FUNDED, SO WE HAVE A LOT MORE NEEDS 
THAN WE HAVE MONEY TO PAY FOR THEM AT THIS POINT IN TIME.
JUST TO GIVE YOU AN EXAMPLE, AND HOPEFULLY I GOT THIS 
FIGURE RIGHT, ADDING THE LANES TO THE FOUR-MILE SEGMENT 
BETWEEN I-275 FROM WESTSHORE TO DOWNTOWN IS ABOUT $700 
MILLION JUST FOR THAT, SO YOU START ADDING UP ALL THESE 
LITTLE PROJECTS WITH ROADS, AND YOU GET TO A HUGE AMOUNT 
THAT'S IN THE BILLIONS OF DOLLARS.
11 OF THE 12 NEW U.S. RAIL SYSTEMS BUILT AFTER 180 HAVE 
ADDED NEW LINES DUE TO INCREASED DEMAND.
PASSENGER MILES ARE INCREASING, TRANSIT MILES BY CITIZENS, 
BY 16% COMPARED TO CAR PASSENGER MILE INCREASE OF ONLY 11%, 
AND I THINK WE'RE -- AND THESE ARE OLDER STATISTICS 
OBVIOUSLY.
I THINK THAT'S PROBABLY CHANGED NOW.
AS PEOPLE CHANGE THEIR DRIVING HABITS -- I WAS READING THAT 
DRIVING ACTUALLY IS STARTING TO DRIVE DROP OFF A LITTLE.
PARK-AND-RIDE FACILITIES ARE VERY IMPORTANT.
AGAIN, THE AUTOMOBILE IS ALL PART OF THIS MIX.
OBVIOUSLY IN SUBURBAN AREAS PEOPLE WILL HAVE TO DRIVE TO A 
PARK-AND-RIDE OR TAKE A BUS TO USE RAIL.
TRANSIT-ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT, THIS IS THE OTHER PIECE OF 
THE PICTURE.
IT'S NOT ONLY TRANSIT, IT'S HAVING DEVELOPMENT THAT 
SUPPORTS TRANSIT.
MULTIMODAL, WALKABLE, ACCESSIBLE, LIVABLE, SUSTAINABLE, 
WHERE PEOPLE ACTUALLY FEEL COMFORTABLE WALKING TO A TRAIN 
OR A BUS STOP.
WE HAVE A COUPLE EXAMPLES IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY.
ONE IS THE CHANNEL DISTRICT, WHICH COMPLETELY TRANSFORMED 
ITS LAND USE PATTERN AFTER THE STREETCAR WAS ANNOUNCED AND 
BUILT, AND WE ALSO HAVE WEST PARK VILLAGE, WHICH WAS BUILT 
IF THE LATE 1990s, SPECIFICALLY STARTED -- ORIENTED TOWARD 
USING THE RAIL LINE THAT RUNS JUST SOUTH OF LINEBAUGH 
AVENUE.
THERE STILL IS A PARCEL OWNED BY NEWLAND HOMES WHERE A 
STATION COULD GO RIGHT ON THAT LINE IF IT'S EVER USED.
IT'S A TOTALLY WALKABLE COMMUNITY WHERE ALL 2,000 RESIDENTS 
OF WEST PARK VILLAGE THEORETICALLY COULD EASILY WALK TO A 
STATION.
TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA OF THE EFFECTS OF TRANSPORTATION ON 
LAND USE, YOU CAN SEE THE STREETCAR AND YOU CAN SEE WHERE 
THE NEW DEVELOPMENTS ARE DOWNTOWN, YOU CAN SEE THERE SEEMS 
TO BE SOME CAUSE AND EFFECT HERE ON THE STREETCAR LINE AND 
WHERE A LOT OF THE NEW RESIDENTIAL IS COMPLETE, UNDER 
CONSTRUCTION, OR PLANNED.
IF YOU LOOK AT A THREE DIMENSIONAL VIEW OF THE TAMPA BAY 
REGION, AGAIN WHAT YOU SEE IS POPULATION DENSITY IN THE 
DIFFERENT AREAS.
YOU CAN SEE WE DO NOT HAVE ONE CENTER.
WE HAVE THE BIGGEST CENTER, WHICH IS TAMPA, BUT WE HAVE 
SOME OTHER CENTERS ALSO TO DEAL WITH ON A REGIONAL LEVEL.
EMPLOYMENT IS VERY MUCH THE SAME.
AGAIN, YOU SEE EMPLOYMENT DENSITIES HERE, AND AGAIN, YOU 
SEE WE HAVE ONE DOMINANT CENTER, BUT WE DO HAVE OTHER 
CENTERS.
WE ARE A MULTICENTERED COMMUNITY.
NOW, GOING RIGHT INTO HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, IF YOU TAKE 
THREE MILES, DRAW THEM AROUND USF, BRANDON, DOWNTOWN TAMPA, 
TWO MILES, TWO MILES AROUND WESTSHORE, YOU'LL FIND YOU HAVE 
ABOUT 7% OF THE LAND IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY.
I WANT TO POINT OUT ON THAT MAP TOO -- I WAS TALKING ABOUT 
TAZs, TRANSPORTATION ANALYSIS ZONES.
THIS IS A MAP OF THOSE ZONES SO YOU CAN SEE AGAIN WHAT I'VE 
BROUGHT UP BEFORE ABOUT THE MAPS, HOW THEY GET BIGGER, AS 
YOU GO INTO THE MORE RURAL AREA THEY GET TIGHTER BECAUSE 
YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO MATCH THE POPULATION.
SO THEY'RE SOMEWHAT EQUAL EVEN THOUGH THE SIZE IS VERY 
DIFFERENT.
20% OF THE POPULATION RESIDES WITHIN THOSE FOUR CIRCLES, 
BUT -- THIS IS I THINK THE KEY -- 42% OF THE JOBS ARE 
WITHIN THESE FOUR CIRCLES, SO WE DO HAVE A CONCENTRATION OF 
JOBS IN THESE FOUR AREAS.
YES, AS CRITICS SAY, WE HAVE A SMALLER CENTRAL BUSINESS 
DISTRICTS -- I'VE HEARD THIS A MILLION TIMES -- COMPARED TO 
OTHER CITY, BUT WE ALSO HAVE TWO THAT ARE RIGHT NEXT TO 
EACH OTHER.
THE KEY IS IF YOU CAN CONNECT THESE AREAS AND THEN CONNECT 
THEM TO WHERE PEOPLE LIVE, THEN IT WORKS.
WE DEFINITELY HAVE ENOUGH JOBS AND ENOUGH CRITICAL MASS.
DAYTIME POPULATION CHAINS.
TAMPA IS AMONG THE HIGHEST.
IT'S THIRD HIGHEST IN DAYTIME POPULATION INCREASE.
AGAIN, YOU HAVE THE PERCENT CHANGE IS 47% DURING THE DAY, 
SO ACTUALLY THE SURROUNDING AREAS GO DOWN IN POPULATION 
DURING THE DAY, THE CITY GOES UP TO PROBABLY AT THIS POINT 
GETTING CLOSER TO 500,000 DURING THE DAY.
TOTAL DAILY CAR TRIPS, THIS IS AN INTERESTING GRAPH.
IT SHOWS FOR OUR THREE BIGGEST EMPLOYMENT CENTERS, WHICH 
ARE USF, TAMPA, AND WESTSHORE -- THIS IS WHERE PEOPLE COME 
FROM.
THESE ARE WHERE THE CARS ARE COMING FROM THAT ARE WORKING 
IN THOSE AREAS, SO YOU CAN SEE EACH ONE HAS A LITTLE BIT 
DIFFERENT CHARACTERISTICS.
USF DRAWS A LITTLE BIT LESS FROM PINELLAS COUNTY.
WESTSHORE DRAWS THE MOST FROM PINELLAS COUNTY, WHICH MAKES 
SENSE AS TO WHY THAT WOULD BE.
AND DOWNTOWN TAMPA IS A LITTLE BIT MORE EVENLY DISPERSED 
OVER THE WHOLE REGION.
HART IS INCREASING ITS RIDERSHIP.
THEY ARE KIND OF BREAKING RECORDS HERE NOW, WELL ON THEIR 
WAY WITH 40,000 THIS YEAR.
AGAIN, THE GAS SITUATION IS CHANGED THE WAY PEOPLE THINK.
THE PLANNING COMMISSION PASSED A RESOLUTION IN NOVEMBER OF 
2006, ENCOURAGING THE APPROPRIATE AGENCIES TO PURSUE A 
COMPREHENSIVE COORDINATED VISION.
THE REASON THEY DID IT AT THIS TIME IS THIS ONE WE WERE 
JUST EMBARKING ON THE FINAL PHASE OF UPDOING OUR FOUR 
COMPREHENSIVE PLANS FOR HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY.
THEY DIRECTED STAFF TO CONSIDER RAIL TRANSIT IN THESE PLANS 
AND TO GO OUT AND DISCUSS WITH THE JURISDICTIONS 
INCORPORATING THAT.
ALL THE JURISDICTIONS ADOPTED RESOLUTIONS SUPPORTING THIS 
AND MIRRORING THIS RESOLUTION, AND OF COURSE, THEN, CAME 
ABOUT THE 2050 CONCEPT PLAN.
NOW, TALKING ABOUT THE COMPREHENSIVE PLANS, FIRST STARTING 
WITH HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, WHAT WE HAVE DONE TO THIS PLAN, 
THIS PLAN IS GOING TO BE ADOPTED HOPEFULLY BY THE BOCC ON 
THURSDAY EVENING.
IT'S ALREADY BEEN TO DCA.
WE HAVE ALREADY ANSWERED ALL THEIR QUESTIONS, HOPEFULLY TO 
THEIR SATISFACTION, AND ARE READY TO MOVE FORWARD.
THE FOCUS IS EFFICIENT, BALANCED -- FOCUSED AND BALANCED 
GROWTH.
THE URBAN SERVICE AREA DID NOT EXPAND IN THIS UPDATE, 
ALTHOUGH THERE WAS A LOT OF DISCUSSION AND DEBATE ON IT, 
WHICH DOES -- WHEN YOU DON'T EXPAND THE URBAN SERVICE AREA, 
YOU DO MAKE A MORE TRANSIT-READY COMMUNITY BY THE VERY 
DEVELOPMENT PATTERN YOU'RE PROMOTING.
WE EXPECT WITHIN THE URBAN SERVICE AREA CLOSE TO ANOTHER 
200,000 PEOPLE BY 2025, IN ALL OF UNINCORPORATED COUNTY 
230,000 APPROXIMATELY, AND IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY ABOUT 
327,000 PEOPLE.
THE IDEA OF THE PLAN WAS TO EFFICIENTLY USE LAND WITHIN THE 
URBAN SERVICE AREA BETTER THAN WE'VE BEEN DOING IN THE 
PAST.
WE'VE ADOPTED CONCEPTS LIKE MINIMUM DENSITY REQUIREMENTS 
AND THINGS LIKE THAT SO WE'RE NOT WASTING THE LAND IN THE 
AREAS WHERE WE HAVE INFRASTRUCTURE SO WE CAN MAXIMIZE THOSE 
INVESTMENTS.
WE STILL WANT TO OFFER A CHOICE OF LIFESTYLES TO PROTECT 
OUR RURAL LIFESTYLE, OUR SUBURBAN LIFESTYLE, AND OUR URBAN 
LIFESTYLE, BUT WE ALSO WANT TO CREATE A DEVELOPMENT PATTERN 
THAT SUPPORTS MORE MOBILITY CHOICES.
AGAIN, WE WANT TO BALANCE LAND USE TO CREATE PLACES WHERE 
PEOPLE CAN LIVE, WORK, AND PLAY IN THE SAME NEIGHBORHOOD 
AND AREA.
WE WANT TO REINVEST IN EXISTING COMMUNITIES FOR 
REDEVELOPMENT AND PROVIDE EMPLOYMENT IN HOUSING LIFESTYLE 
OPTIONS FOR EVERYONE.
ACTIVITY CENTERS ARE IMPORTANT COMPONENT IN THE PLAN.
YOU'LL SEE A LITTLE BIT LATER IN THE PRESENTATION WHERE WE 
PROVIDED THOSE IN THE COUNTY'S PLAN.
AGAIN, THESE BEGIN TO PROVIDE A LAND USE PATTERN THAT 
SUPPORTS TRANSIT AND MAKES IT WORK BETTER IN THE FUTURE.
STUDIES HAVE BEEN DONE THAT SHOW THAT INDIVIDUALS LIVING IN 
HIGHER-DENSITY NEIGHBORHOOD WITH PEDESTRIAN/BIKE-FRIENDLY 
FEATURES DO ACTUALLY DRIVE LESS.
REASON BEING THERE'S MORE THINGS TO WALK TO, SO EVEN IF YOU 
ELIMINATE ONE OR TWO TRIPS A WEEK FOR GOING OUT TO EAT OR 
SOMETHING LIKE THAT, YOU ARE CHANGING THE PATTERN AND 
PERCENTAGES.
WE WANT TO CREATE WALKABLE PEDESTRIAN-FRIENDLY 
ENVIRONMENTS, AND AGAIN ENCOURAGE THE INTEGRATION OF 
COMMUNITY FACILITIES AND PARKS RIGHT INTO NEIGHBORHOOD, AND 
THAT'S WHAT OUR PLAN HAS TRIED TO DO FOR HILLSBOROUGH 
COUNTY.
WE WANT TO TARGET AREAS FOR TRANSPORTATION INCENTIVES SUCH 
AS MULTIMODAL DISTRICTS THAT THE STATE HAS ALLOWED US TO 
USE AND REQUIRE MULTIMODAL DISTRICT ANALYSIS TO BE USED AS 
SPECIAL AREA PLANS FOR THE AREAS WE'VE IDENTIFIED FOR 
ACTIVITY CENTERS, SO WHAT WE'VE DONE IN THE COUNTY'S PLAN 
IS IDENTIFY ACTIVITY CENTERS, AND WHEN DEVELOPERS WANT TO 
TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE INCENTIVES PROVIDED, WE CAN WORK WITH 
THEM ON DOING MULTIMODAL DISTRICTS TO DEAL WITH THE 
TRANSPORTATION ISSUES.
WE WANT AGAIN TO EXPAND OUR DESIGN STANDARDS.
POLICIES SUPPORTING TRANSIT IN THE PLAN, AGAIN, CREATING 
HIGHER DENSITY/INTENSITY MIXED-USE AREAS, FOCAL POINTS, 
COMMUNITY ACTIVITY CENTERS, AND AS I MENTIONED, POTENTIAL 
MULTIMODAL DISTRICTS.
WE ALSO WANT TO USE TRANSIT CORRIDORS AS FOCUSED AREAS FOR 
HIGHER DENSITIES.
WE KNOW WE HAVE THAT NEW BUS RAPID TRANSIT 2 LINES THAT ARE 
BEING APPLIED FOR FUNDING THAT WE WANT TO MOVE AHEAD ON, 
AND THESE ARE KEY AREAS FOR REDEVELOPMENT TO OCCUR.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT PEOPLE HAD THE LEAST CONCERN ABOUT 
CHANGING WAS OUR COMMERCIAL CORRIDORS.
PEOPLE IN TAMPA, AS YOU MIGHT UNDERSTAND WHY, ARE NOT 
PARTICULARLY ENCHANTED WITH THE WAY HILLSBOROUGH AVENUE 
LOOKS OR SOME OF THE STREETS.
WE DIDN'T SEE ANY BIG THING ABOUT PROTECTING THE INTEGRITY 
OF THESE STREETS, SO THESE OBVIOUSLY BECOME OPPORTUNITIES 
FOR REDEVELOPMENT.
WE WANT TO ENCOURAGE COMMERCIAL AND NEIGHBORHOOD 
REDEVELOPMENT IN WAYS THAT SUPPORT TRANSIT, AND WE WANT TO 
HAVE TRANSIT STATION AREAS THAT CAN BE CONSIDERED ACTIVITY 
CENTERS ELIGIBLE FOR BONUSES AND INCENTIVES.
TAMPA'S COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.
RATHER THAN UPDATE TAMPA'S PLAN, WE'LL SEE IF THIS WAS A 
MISTAKE OR NOT -- I HOPE IT WASN'T -- WE BASICALLY THREW 
OUT THE OLD PLAN COMPLETELY AND STARTED FROM SCRATCH.
THE PLAN WAS BASED IN 1989 ON A TOTALLY DIFFERENT DYNAMIC.
IT WAS BASED ON A CITY THAT HAD NOT GROWN IN 30 YEARS, AND 
IT WAS MORE JUST A PROTECTION PLAN, IT WASN'T A VISIONARY 
PLAN FOR THE FUTURE.
CITIZENS SAID THEY WANTED A LIVABLE TAMPA, IDENTIFYING A 
LOT OF IMPORTANT THINGS LIKE PROTECTING NEIGHBORHOODS, ARTS 
AND CULTURE, ALL THE THINGS THAT MAKE TAMPA A SPECIAL 
PLACE, OUR TIMELESS ASSETS.
THEY DON'T WANT GROWTH TO DESTROY THE THINGS IN TAMPA THAT 
MAKE IT A SPECIAL PLACE.
BUT THEY DO UNDERSTAND THAT GROWTH HAS TO OCCUR SOMEWHERE, 
AND THAT'S WHAT WE'VE TRIED TO DO IS IDENTIFY THOSE AREAS.
THE NEW PLAN IS -- HAS A VISION NOW.
IT'S ONE OF LIVABILITY, SUSTAINABILITY, AND BALANCE BETWEEN 
GROWTH AND PROTECTION.
LIVABLE CITY QUALITIES, THAT'S TALKED ABOUT A LOT, BUT 
THESE ARE BASICALLY THE QUALITIES IN ANY COMMUNITY THAT 
PEOPLE IDENTIFY AS MAKING A CITY LIVABLE.
THERE'S SAFETY, THERE ARE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES FOR THEIR 
FAMILY, HEALTHY OPEN SPACES, CHOICES OF HOW TO LIVE YOUR 
LIFE, MIXED-USE MOBILITY, AND A SENSE OF PLACE THAT YOU 
DON'T LIVE IN A DUPLICATE OF EVERY OTHER CITY IN THE UNITED 
STATES BUT YOU LIVE IN A SPECIAL PLACE THAT'S UNIQUE.
TAMPA'S PROJECTED EMPLOYMENT IS PROJECTED TO INCREASE BY 
132,000.
AGAIN, THIS IS AN ASSET FOR US WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT 
TRANSIT.
MOST CENTRAL CITIES IN THIS COUNTRY ARE NOT INCREASING 
EMPLOYMENT AT ANYWHERE NEAR THIS KIND OF PERCENTAGE LEVEL.
CITIES LIKE CHICAGO AND ALL THAT ARE JUST KIND OF HOLDING 
THEIR OWN WITH KIND OF THE BATTLE BETWEEN SUBURBAN AREAS.
THE EMPLOYMENT IS STAYING PRETTY MUCH THE SAME, BUT TAMPA, 
BECAUSE THE THREE MAJOR EMPLOYMENT CENTERS ARE ACTUALLY IN 
THE CITY, WHICH IS SOMEWHAT UNIQUE, THEY'RE NOT IN SUBURBAN 
AREAS.
USF IS IN THE CITY, WESTSHORE IS IN THE CITY, AND 
DOWNTOWN'S IN THE CITY -- MAKE IT RATHER UNIQUE AMONG MAJOR 
AMERICAN CITIES, SO WE'RE STILL GOING TO HAVE EMPLOYMENT 
GROWTH.
IN FACT, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE MORE EMPLOYMENT GROWTH THAN 
WE'RE GOING TO HAVE GROWTH IN PEOPLE, WHICH IS ABOUT 
95,000, SO THE BALANCE IS EVEN GOING TO GET MORE WITH 
PEOPLE COMMUTING TO AREAS LIKE WESTSHORE.
REASONS FOR THAT -- AND YOU'LL SEE A LITTLE BIT LATER -- IS 
BECAUSE WE HAVE HUGE ECONOMIC ENGINES IN THAT AREA.
AGAIN, THE PLAN UPDATE DIRECTED GROWTH INTO CERTAIN AREAS.
THOSE AREAS ARE THE HERITAGE DISTRICT, THE WESTSHORE 
DISTRICT, AND THE UNIVERSITY DISTRICT WITHIN THE CITY'S 
MAN.
THESE ARE THE AREAS WHERE WE'RE GOING TO SEE MOST OF THE 
GROWTH OCCUR OVER THE NEXT 20 YEARS.
THE HERITAGE DISTRICT INCLUDES MOST OF OUR CRAs.
THESE ARE AREAS ALREADY IDENTIFIED FOR GROWTH.
CENTRAL PARK, YBOR CITY, ALL THESE OTHER AREAS.
IT ALSO INCLUDES MANY OF THE THINGS -- THIS IS REALLY THE 
TAMPA OF PRE WORLD WAR II.
THE CITY LIMITS VERY MUCH CLOSELY ALIGNED THE BOUNDARIES OF 
THIS HERITAGE DISTRICT.
THE WESTSHORE DISTRICT, AGAIN, WE SEE THAT CHANGING A LOT 
IN THE LAST DECADE.
WITH THE OPENING OF INTERNATIONAL PLAZA, THEY BEGAN TO 
CHANGE THE WHOLE MIX OF THE WESTSHORE AREA.
WE NOW HAVE NEW VERY HIGH-END HOTELS COMING INTO THAT AREA.
THE NEWEST PROJECTS THAT WE'RE SEEING COME THROUGH THE 
PLANNING COMMISSION ARE MIXED-USE.
MANY OF THEM INCLUDE RESIDENTIAL NOW, NOT JUST OFFICE.
THE CHALLENGE WITH WESTSHORE IS RETROFITTING IT IN A MORE 
PEDESTRIAN-ORIENTED WAY.
THE WESTSHORE ALLIANCE IS VERY SUPPORTIVE OF THAT DIRECTION 
AND WORKING WITH US.
AND THE NEXT DISTRICT IS THE UNIVERSITY DISTRICT.
THIS IS REALLY KIND OF OUR NEWEST DISTRICT IN THE SENSE -- 
AND THE ONE WITH THE MOST OPPORTUNITY.
WE HAVE THE 10th LARGEST UNIVERSITY IN THE COUNTRY HERE.
THEY HAVE MOFFITT CANCER CENTER.
WE HAVE BUSCH GARDENS, WE HAVE A LOT OF THINGS GOING ON.
MUSEUM OF SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY, WHICH I UNDERSTAND IS THE 
6th LARGEST MUSEUM OF SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY IN THE UNITED 
STATES.
SO AGAIN, WE HAVE A LOT OF ACTIVITIES GOING ON.
OUR PROJECTED JOBS, YOU CAN SEE 60% WILL BE IN THE HERITAGE 
DISTRICT, 17% IN WESTSHORE, 12% IN THE USF DISTRICT.
PROJECTED HOUSING, AGAIN SIMILAR.
MOST OF THE NEW HOUSING WITHIN THE CITY OF TAMPA WILL BE IN 
THE HERITAGE DISTRICT AND REDEVELOPMENT AREAS LIKE WEST 
TAMPA, EAST TAMPA, AND AREAS LIKE THAT.
THE REST, 29%, IS IN WHAT WE CALL STABILITY AREAS, WHICH 
WILL BE SOUTH TAMPA AND NORTH TAMPA.
WE HAVE CITY FORM, URBAN VILLAGES, MIXED-USE CORRIDOR 
VILLAGES, WHICH ARE REDEVELOPMENT OF OUR COMMERCIAL 
CORRIDORS, RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBORHOODS THAT WE WANT TO 
PROTECT, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY TRANSIT STATION DEVELOPMENTS.
ONCE WE IDENTIFY WHERE THESE TRANSIT STATIONS ARE AND THE 
TYPE OF STATION IT IS, THE PLAN DIRECTS AREA PLANS TO BE 
DONE FOR THOSE STATIONS TO MAXIMIZE AND SUPPORT TRANSIT 
DECISIONS.
TO GIVE YOU AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT I MEAN BY TRANSFORMING 
AREAS, THIS IS A POTENTIAL SITE, WHICH I WOULD CALL AN 
UNDERUTILIZED SITE IN AN URBAN AREA.
WHAT CAN WE DO WITH THIS?
THE FIRST THING, WE CAN GET IT TRANSIT READY BY IMPROVING 
THE PEDESTRIAN ENVIRONMENT, SO THE POTENTIAL EXISTS FOR 
PEOPLE TO ACTUALLY WALK IN THESE AREAS, AND NEXT WE CAN 
REDEVELOP THAT SUPPORTS TRANSIT.
IF YOU'RE IN A LITTLE MORE INTENSE AREA, YOU MIGHT DO 
SOMETHING LIKE THIS.
IF YOU'RE NEXT TO A LOW-DENSITY NEIGHBORHOOD, UP MIGHT DO 
SOMETHING LIKE THIS, BUT THESE ARE ALL OPPORTUNITIES WE 
HAVE WITHIN OUR COMMUNITY FOR REDEVELOPMENT.
THE CITY FORM MAIN COMPONENTS, AGAIN PEOPLE SAID THEY WANT 
APPEAL STREETSCAPES, MIXED-USE DEVELOPMENT, AND WE WANT A 
TRANSIT-READY COMMUNITY SO WE'RE READY TO MOVE FORWARD WHEN 
THE TIME IS RIGHT.
WE CANNOT FORGET THE ECONOMY.
WE HAVE TO BE A LIVABLE CITY IN THE FUTURE.
PEOPLE HAVE THE CHANCE TO LIVE WHERE THEY WANT TO LIVE.
WE WANT TO MAKE SURE --
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  [INAUDIBLE] CONGESTION THERE, RAY.
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  THAT'S A SPECIAL DAY.
WE ALL KNOW WHAT DAY THAT IS.
PEOPLE ACTUALLY ENJOY THIS CONGESTION QUITE A BIT, I THINK, 
ON THAT DAY.
BUT ANYWAY, WE'RE COMPETING WITH OTHER AREAS, NOT ONLY IF 
THE UNITED STATES BUT IN THE WORLD, TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR 
CITY IS LIVABLE AND A PLACE PEOPLE WANT TO LIVE.
IN OUR HERITAGE DISTRICT WE HAVE LARGE ECONOMIC ENGINES, 
OUR DOWNTOWN, OUR CONVENTION BUSINESS.
WE HAVE THE PORT OF TAMPA.
MANY PEOPLE FORGET HOW IMPORTANT THE PORT IS, ONE OF THE 
LARGEST PORTS IN THE UNITED STATES.
WESTSHORE DISTRICT.
TAMPA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT.
WE JUST TALKED ABOUT THE AWARD THEY WON.
VERY MUCH THE CENTER OF DEVELOPMENT IN WESTSHORE.
A GREAT ATTRIBUTE FOR THE CITY OF TAMPA TO ACTUALLY HAVE AN 
AIRPORT RIGHT IN THE CITY LIMITS BUT ALSO CLOSE TO MANY 
SUBURBAN AREAS AND EVEN PINELLAS COUNTY BEING CONVENIENT TO 
THAT.
THAT'S REALLY THE LINCHPIN OF THE WESTSHORE BUSINESS 
DISTRICT.
THESE ARE ECONOMIC ENGINES THAT ARE NOT GOING TO GO AWAY.
WE'RE PROBABLY NOT GOING TO HAVE ANOTHER INTERNATIONAL 
AIRPORT OF THIS CALIBER, SO THAT'S GOING TO ATTRACT THE 
KIND OF DEVELOPMENT THAT WE'RE SEEING OCCUR THERE.
THE UNIVERSITY DISTRICT, BUSCH GARDENS, USF, AGAIN HUGE 
ECONOMIC ENGINES.
SO THE WHOLE IDEA WITH THE PLAN IS TO BRING PEOPLE 
TOGETHER, SHAPING A LIVABLE CITY FOR THE FUTURE.
TEMPLE TERRACE IS ALSO EMBARKING ON THEIR OWN REDEVELOPMENT 
IN THEIR DOWNTOWN AREA WITH NEW DESIGN STANDARDS TO CREATE 
A NEW URBANIST ENVIRONMENT IN THEIR DOWNTOWN TO TRY TO 
TRAFFIC CALM 56th STREET AND TO HAVE ACCOMMODATIONS FOR BUS 
TRANSIT.
AGAIN, TEMPLE TERRACE IS AHEAD OF EVERYBODY IN WORKING ON 
THEIR MULTIMODAL DISTRICT, WHICH I UNDERSTAND POSSIBLY 
COULD BECOME A MODEL FOR THE STATE, ONE OF THE FIRST ONES 
APPLIED FOR, THAT THE PLANNING COMMISSION HAS BEEN WORKING 
WITH TEMPLE TERRACE ON.
PLANT CITY'S DOING PLANNING OF THEIR OWN.
THEY HAVE A MIDTOWN REDEVELOPMENT VISION FOR THE EXISTING 
AREA AROUND DOWNTOWN PLANT CITY.
THEY HAVE THE MIXED-USE GATEWAY ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF PLANT 
CITY, WHICH CREATES A STRONG NEW ENTRANCE FOR THE SOUTH 
PART OF PLANT CITY THAT ENCOURAGES MIXED-USE DEVELOPMENT 
AND INCREASED DENSITY.
THE NORTHEAST MASTER PLAN, WHICH YOU'LL HEAR ABOUT ALSO 
TODAY, IS A SCENARIO THAT HAS VILLAGE CENTERS AND HIGHER 
DENSITIES IN CERTAIN AREAS, TRYING TO ADDRESS SOME OF THE 
TRANSPORTATION ISSUES FOR PLANT CITY.
HOW DOES TRANSIT FIT INTO THAT?
NOW, THIS IS YOUR CONCEPT PLAN, THE TRANSIT CONCEPT PLAN 
THAT THE MPO ADOPTED.
IT WAS ADOPTED IN NOVEMBER OF 2007.
THE IDEA IS TO INCORPORATE COMPONENTS OF THIS, NOT THE 
ENTIRE THING NECESSARILY, AND MAYBE NOT WITHOUT SOME 
CHANGES, INTO THE 2035 LONG-RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN AND 
ALSO TO ASSIST TBARTA IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THEIR MASTER 
PLAN, TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE ALL WORKING TOWARD THE SAME 
GOALS.
BASIS OF THE CONCEPT AGAIN IS SEAMLESS MOBILITY, ECONOMIC 
VITALITY TO REINFORCE THOSE ECONOMIC ENGINES, OUR QUALITY 
OF LIFE, AND GROWTH MANAGEMENT.
AVERAGE DAILY TRIPS ON ROADS WILL TRIPLE OVER THE NEXT 20 
YEARS.
RAIL TRANSIT WILL PROVIDE CONSISTENT RELIABLE TRIP TIMES.
BUT BUS TRANSIT IS ALSO AN IMPORTANT PART OF THIS THAT WE 
NEED TO COORDINATE WITH.
BUS TECHNOLOGY.
FOR A BUS RAPID TRANSIT ROUTE, THAT CAN EQUAL ONE NEW 
ARTERIAL LANE OF ROADWAY.
AGAIN, THERE'S ALL KINDS OF NEW VEHICLES COMING ON THE 
SCENE THAT KIND OF CHANGE OUR PERCEPTION OF WHAT BUSES CAN 
BE, AND WE NEED TO TRY TO USE THOSE TO THE BEST OF OUR 
ABILITY.
SPECIAL LANES SIGNAL PRIORITY ARE AN OPTION FOR BUS RAPID 
TRANSIT, AND THEY CAN MAKE THEM MORE FLEXIBLE, EVEN IF 
THERE ARE, YOU KNOW, PROBLEMS WITH TRAFFIC.
LIGHT RAIL TECHNOLOGY CAPACITY CAN EQUAL FOUR NEW ARTERIAL 
LANES IF IT HAS HIGH HEADWAYS AS FAR AS QUICK TRIPS IN 
BETWEEN EACH TRIP.
IT'S POWERED FROM ABOVE, RUNS ON ITS OWN TRACK, USUALLY 
FREQUENT ALL-DAY SERVICE.
IT CAN ACCELERATE AND CLIMB AND TURN EASILY, SO IT'S 
FLEXIBLE.
COMPUTER RAIL TECHNOLOGY IS ALSO PART OF YOUR MPO CONCEPT 
PLAN FOR LONGER DISTANCES TO SURROUNDING COUNTIES.
AGAIN, THAT CAN USE FREIGHT TRACKS.
CAPACITY IS EQUAL MAYBE TO ONE INTERSTATE LANE.
AGAIN, THIS IS FOR THE LONG HAUL.
PRIMARILY, THOUGH, IT RUNS FLAT AND STRAIGHT.
BEST OPPORTUNITIES FOR TRANSIT CORRIDORS.
WE HAVE PAST STUDIES, IF YOU REMEMBER THE TAMPA LIGHT RAIL 
PROJECT, WHICH DID RECEIVE A FEDERAL LEVEL OF DECISION BACK 
IN 2002; HOWEVER, WE DID NOT PROCEED FROM THAT POINT, KIND 
OF LOST OUR PLACE IN LINE A LITTLE BIT.
THERE'S A COUPLE AREAS THAT ARE DIFFERENT IN OUR CONCEPT 
PLAN FROM THE TAMPA LIGHT RAIL STUDY, AND THAT'S HOW YOU 
CONNECT DOWNTOWN AND WESTSHORE AND POSSIBLY THE USF AREA, 
HOW WE DEAL WITH THAT.
THESE ARE ISSUES WE NEED TO DISCUSS OVER THE NEXT FEW 
MONTHS TO SEE HOW WE ULTIMATELY WANT TO PUT IT IN OUR LONG-
RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN.
AGAIN, WHEN WE DID THIS PLAN IT WAS A TRANSIT-ORIENTED 
FUTURE SCENARIO.
WE HAD A LOT OF PUBLIC PARTICIPATION.
WE CONSIDERED LAND USE AND WE EVALUATED TECHNOLOGY OPTIONS.
FIRST LINE -- NOT NECESSARILY IN ORDER OF WHEN THEY'D BE 
BUILT, BUT THE FIRST LINE I'M GOING TO TALK ABOUT IS OUR 
RED LINE THAT COULD EXTEND FROM NEW TAMPA, POSSIBLY EVEN UP 
TO PASCO COUNTY -- YOU CAN SEE THE ARROW THERE -- DOWN 
THROUGH USF, DOWN TO DOWNTOWN, TO WESTSHORE, NEXT TO THE 
AIRPORT ON THIS LINE, AND DEPENDING ON WHAT PINELLAS COUNTY 
DOES, POSSIBLY EVEN INTO PINELLAS COUNTY.
BLUE LINE COULD START IN BRANDON, GO THROUGH DOWNTOWN, UP 
THROUGH THE AIRPORT.
I WANT TO MAKE THE POINT THAT I'M VERY PLEASED TO FIND OUT 
THAT THE AVIATION AUTHORITY ACTUALLY CONTROLS ABOUT SEVEN 
MILES OF RIGHT-OF-WAY THROUGH THEIR PROPERTY FROM LINEBAUGH 
AVENUE ALL THE WAY DOWN TO THE SOUTHERN PART OF THEIR 
PROPERTY THAT CAN BE DESIGNATED FOR RAIL, SO THAT COULD 
POSSIBLY -- AND I'M LOOKING INTO THIS -- MAYBE COUNT 
TOWARDS SOME TYPE OF FEDERAL MATCH BECAUSE THAT PROPERTY'S 
WORTH A LOT OF MONEY, AND THAT COULD HELP US LOCALLY.
THIRD LINE IS THE GREEN LINE GOING THROUGH SOUTH TAMPA.
AGAIN, SOUTH TAMPA ACTUALLY IS -- AS A WHOLE, IF YOU TAKE 
SOUTH TAMPA, IT'S THE DENSEST PART OF OUR ENTIRE REGION.
IT'S THE MOST DEVELOPED.
IT'S GOT AN AUTOMATIC SERVICE BOUNDARY CALLED TAMPA BAY, 
AND THAT FORCES GROWTH TO BE IN A MUCH MORE TIGHT FASHION 
THAN IN OTHER PARTS OF OUR COMMUNITY.
COMMUTER RAIL COULD EXTEND DOWN, AGAIN TRYING TO WORK WITH 
TBARTA ON THIS, TO MANATEE COUNTY.
WE HAVE THE POSSIBILITY, AGAIN, TO EXTEND OUT TO THE 
BRANDON/PLANT CITY AREA AND ALSO THE POSSIBILITY TO EXTEND 
UP INTO PASCO, HERNANDO COUNTY.
I BELIEVE THE LINE GOES ALL THE WAY UP TO BROOKSVILLE 
ULTIMATELY.
ALSO, HOW DO WE CONNECT TO OTHER REGIONS SUCH AS ORLANDO.
AGAIN, MAYOR AFFRONTI INTRODUCED THE DIRECTOR OF THE 
ORLANDO METRO PLAN, WHICH IS THE THREE-COUNTY MPO FROM 
ORLANDO, WHO IS VISITING US TODAY.
BUS IS ALSO AN IMPORTANT PART OF THIS.
WHAT TYPE OF BUS SYSTEM DO WE HAVE TO SERVE THE STATION 
AREA?
AGAIN, WE NEED TO LOOK AT A BUS RAPID TRANSIT NETWORK AND 
ALSO A REGULAR BUS NETWORK OF CIRCULATORS IN THE AREAS 
WHERE THERE ARE STATIONS TO MAKE SURE PEOPLE CAN GET AROUND 
AREAS LIKE DOWNTOWN AND WESTSHORE, SO THAT'S A PART OF YOUR 
CONCEPT PLAN AT THIS POINT ALSO.
TO JUST BREAK DOWN A LITTLE BIT, YOU CAN SEE THE DIFFERENT 
LIGHT RAIL WOULD BE 65 MILES TO THE TOTAL COMMUTER RAIL, 
AND THIS IS WITHIN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, 95 MILES, SO YOU 
GET KIND OF AN IDEA THE SIZE OF THE SYSTEM.
IT WOULD BE SIMILAR IN SIZE TO WHAT DENVER IS DOING NOW, 
BUT THIS IS FOR US A LITTLE BIT FARTHER IN THE FUTURE.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF OUR COMPREHENSIVE PLANS.
THIS IS THE COMPREHENSIVE PLANS OF ALL THE JURISDICTIONS 
PUT TOGETHER WITH THE TRANSIT OVERLAY, AGAIN ADDING THE 
ACTIVITY CENTERS FROM THE COUNTY'S PLAN, YOU COULD SEE THAT 
VIRTUALLY ALL OF THESE ACTIVITY CENTERS' AREAS WOULD BE 
SERVED BY THIS PROPOSED PLAN.
AGAIN, I MENTIONED THE AREAS OF INTENSITY.
YOU CAN SEE AGAIN THEY WOULD ALL BE ON THE PLANS FOR EITHER 
FIXED RAIL OR POSSIBLY BUS RAPID TRANSIT.
KIND OF ZEROING IN ON THAT, AGAIN YOU SEE WHERE THE DENSEST 
AREAS ARE, WHERE THE EMPLOYMENT AREAS ARE WOULD BE WELL 
SERVED BY THIS CONCEPT PLAN, AND WE CONSIDERED THAT WHEN WE 
CONSIDERED THE ROUTES.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE STATION TYPES AND THE TYPE OF DWELLING 
UNITS WE'D NEED IN THE AREAS, AGAIN OVER TIME THIS TENDS TO 
HAPPEN.
WHEN WE DID THIS PLAN, WE USED A PROGRAM THAT'S CALLED CORE 
PLAN THAT KIND OF LOOKS AT OTHER COMMUNITIES AND THE TYPE 
OF DEVELOPMENTS THAT HAVE OCCURRED AROUND THEIR STATIONS 
AND INCORPORATED SIMILAR SCENARIOS TO OUR COMPREHENSIVE 
PLAN TO BE SUPPORTIVE.
AGAIN, ENCOURAGING DEVELOPMENT ALONG THESE LINES.
IT'S ALMOST AS IF GOVERNMENT JUST NEEDS TO LET THIS HAPPEN 
BECAUSE PEOPLE TEND TO MAKE LOGICAL DECISIONS.
IF THEY'RE BUYING A HOUSE AND GAS IS $4 A GALLON, A LOT OF 
THEM ARE GOING TO THINK ABOUT WHERE THEY'RE GOING TO LOCATE 
THAT HOUSE IN A WAY THAT THEY WOULD NOT HAVE DONE TEN YEARS 
AGO.
TRANSIT-ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT.
AGAIN, THIS IS IN ONE MILE OF THE CONCEPT PLAN YOU WOULD 
HAVE 34% OF THE HOUSEHOLDS.
INTERESTINGLY, THE HEAD OF TRANSIT FOR THE UNITED STATES, 
BILL MILLAR, SAID ABOUT 20% OF THE HOUSEHOLDS IN THE UNITED 
STATES ARE FAIRLY NEAR TRANSIT, SO THIS WOULD BRING US TO A 
HIGHER LEVEL CERTAINLY THAN THE COUNTRY AT LARGE.
49% OF THE JOBS WOULD BE WITHIN ONE MILE OF THE STATIONS IN 
THE CONCEPT PLAN, WHICH IS VERY GOOD.
AGAIN, TRANSIT AND DEVELOPMENT GO HAND IN HAND.
WE REMEMBER HOW TOWNS STARTED DEVELOPING BASICALLY AT THE 
CROSSROADS OF MOST ROAD AND RAIL HUBS, INCLUDING OUR OWN 
CITY.
WHEN PLANT BROUGHT THE RAILROAD TO TAMPA, IT CHANGED ITS 
WHOLE FUTURE.
WHERE ARE WE NOW?
OKAY.
YOU'VE ALREADY ADOPTED THIS PLAN IN NOVEMBER OF 2007 AS A 
CONCEPT.
THE KEY IS TO REFINE THIS CONCEPT AND PUT IT INTO THE 2035 
LONG-RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN, WHICH CONVENIENTLY WE ARE 
BEGINNING TO DO NOW.
THAT IS DUE TO BE ADOPTED BY THIS BOARD IN NOVEMBER OF 
2009, SO WE'VE GOT A LOT OF STUFF TO DO OVER THE NEXT YEAR 
AND A HALF.
THIS CONCEPT, THE TRANSIT CONCEPT, THEN, IS THE BASIS THAT 
ALSO COULD ASSIST IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TBARTA MASTER 
PLAN.
THAT'S WHY IT'S VERY IMPORTANT THAT WE WORK WITH TBARTA, 
ALSO ON THE LONG-RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN, BECAUSE THAT'S 
MORE OF THE LEGAL DOCUMENT THAT WILL IMPLEMENT OR MOVE THIS 
TRANSIT CONCEPT AHEAD.
THAT IS THE END OF MY PRESENTATION.
I'D BE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS YOU HAVE, TAKE ANY 
SUGGESTIONS ON HOW TO PRESENT THIS MAYBE A LITTLE 
DIFFERENTLY, AND THANK YOU.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  WONDERFUL PRESENTATION, RAY.
ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS?
MR. SHARPE.
>>MARK SHARPE:  I'VE HEARD IT TWICE.
I COULD LISTEN AGAIN.
I'M READY TO START RIGHT NOW.
I THINK THAT'S THE VISION, AND WE'VE GOT TO GET IT OUT TO 
THE COMMUNITY.
THERE'S STILL A LOT OF DETAIL THAT WE NEED TO HAVE.
ONE OF THE CONCERNS I'VE HAD FROM THE VERY BEGINNING, 
THOUGH, IS THERE NOT BE A CITY VERSUS COUNTY TYPE OF 
ATTITUDE OR BATTLE.
I FEEL IF WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A SUCCESSFUL REFERENDUM, 
WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO HAVE EVERYONE SUPPORTIVE, SO WE'RE 
GOING TO HAVE TO FIND A WAY -- MY FIRST ISSUE IS JUST 
MAKING SURE THAT WE CONTINUE TO WORK WITH THE CITIZENS WHO 
LIVE OUT IN THE COUNTY TO EXPLAIN HOW THIS WORKS.
I'VE NEVER -- TO ME -- AGAIN, WHETHER IT'S DOWNTOWN 
FACILITIES OR USF, WESTSHORE, TO ME IT'S ALL PART OF MY 
HOME.
I'VE NEVER STOPPED TO THINK IS THIS THE CITY OR IS THIS THE 
COUNTY, YOU KNOW, AND IF IT MAKES SENSE, IT MAKES SENSE, 
INCLUDING PLANT CITY AND TEMPLE TERRACE.
WE'RE ALL ONE LARGE UNIT.
I REALLY WOULD LIKE TO SEE -- MY FOCUS -- AS -- ON THE 
COMMISSION HAS BEEN ABOUT WORKING IN THAT USF AREA, THE 
MEDICAL AREA, AND WE'RE BEGINNING TO SEE REAL TRACTION.
THE M2GEN PROJECT, THE OPERATION BETWEEN MOFFITT AND MERCK, 
MOFFITT'S NOW LOOKING AT THE SECOND PHASE OF THEIR BIG 
PROJECT, WHICH IS A LARGE PARK WHERE THEY'RE GOING TO DO A 
LOT OF TREATMENT AND RESEARCH, AND WE'VE GOT A PATEL GROUP 
OUT LOOKING TO SEE WHAT THE SITE -- THE NEW LOCATION.
MY SENSE, RAY, IS THAT NOT JUST THIS GROUP BUT ALL THE 
OTHERS THAT -- I MEAN, I MEET WEEKLY WITH OUR ECONOMIC 
DEVELOPMENT TEAMS.
EVERYONE WHO'S TALKING ABOUT COMING TO TAMPA AND 
RELOCATING -- THEY WANT TO BE NEAR A UNIVERSITY, THAT'S 
VERY IMPORTANT -- WE NEED TO TEAM UP WITH USF AND REALLY 
MAKE CLEAR THAT OUR VISION IS TO HAVE CONNECTIVITY, AND I 
THINK BETWEEN -- YOU KNOW, PERSONALLY, BETWEEN THE AIRPORT, 
THE WESTSHORE SHOPPING DISTRICT, DOWNTOWN TAMPA, THIS PORT 
AREA, AND USF WE CAN CONNECT THOSE AREAS BY A RAIL SYSTEM.
EVERYONE KEEPS ASKING ME HOW QUICKLY CAN I GET FROM USF TO 
THE AIRPORT?
IF WE CAN DEMONSTRATE THAT A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF TIME WE CAN 
DO IT, THIS'S CONNECTIVITY, WE'RE GOING TO ATTRACT BILLIONS 
OF DOLLARS IN INVESTMENT AND WORKERS COMING TO THAT USF 
AREA WHERE WE ALREADY HAVE MOFFITT, THE BYRD ALZHEIMER'S 
CENTER, THE VA HOSPITAL, PEPIN, PEPIN HEART.
I MEAN, THERE'S SO MUCH ACTIVITY GOING ON IN THAT AREA, BUT 
WE HAVE IS AN UNDERDEVELOPED AREA.
SOME OF THE MAPS YOU SHOWED WHERE IT'S NOT A WALKABLE -- 
USF IS NOT WALKABLE.
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  NO.
>>MARK SHARPE:  USF IS NOT VISUALLY OF THE AREA APPEALING.
THERE'S A LOT OF OPPORTUNITY, BUT WHEN I TALK TO 
DEVELOPERS, WHY AREN'T YOU REDEVELOPING, THEY SAY, WELL, IT 
JUST ISN'T VIABLE.
WE CAN'T DO IT.
WE NEED INCENTIVES.
AND SO I HOPE YOU'LL COME UP WITH WAYS AND MEANS THAT WE 
CAN CREATE THE INCENTIVES.
BUT MY SENSE IS ONCE THEY KNOW THERE'S A RAIL LINE GOING 
THERE, YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE PEOPLE BUYING IN, AND THAT 
WHOLE AREA'S GOING TO TRANSFORM LIKE YOU HAVE IN RALEIGH-
DURHAM, LIKE YOU HAVE IN OTHER UNIVERSITY AREAS AROUND THE 
COUNTRY.
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  I ABSOLUTELY AGREE WITH YOU.
ONE THING -- AND I JUST CAME FROM PHOENIX, AND I WILL TELL 
YOU PHOENIX IS LOWER-DENSITY THAN TAMPA.
I HAVE NO DOUBT.
WHEN I WENT TO THE DOWNTOWN, I THOUGHT, OH, TAMPA'S BIGGER.
THE BUILDINGS WERE SHORTER.
THERE WAS LESS PEOPLE ON THE STREET, IF YOU COULD IMAGINE 
THAT, BUT IT WAS VERY NOT DEVELOPED, AND THE OUTER AREAS 
WHERE THEY'RE PUTTING THE RAIL TOO ARE VERY MUCH -- LIKE 
THAT SIDE I SHOWED YOU WITH CARS PARKED ON IT OR SOMETHING, 
BUT I SAW SIGNS FOR NEW DEVELOPMENTS, THE SYSTEM HASN'T 
EVEN OPENED YET, AND ACTUALLY SOME DEVELOPMENTS OF TALL 
CONDO PROJECTS THAT WERE ACTUALLY BUILT ALREADY IN 
ANTICIPATION OF A SYSTEM, SO IT DOES CHANGE THE 
DEVELOPMENT.
>>MARK SHARPE:  USF IS TALKING ABOUT BUILDING A NEW MEDICAL 
HOSPITAL, TEACHING HOSPITAL, WHICH I, AS OF THIS POINT, 
STRONGLY SUPPORT, AND TO BE ABLE TO CONNECT THE USF 
TEACHING HOSPITAL WITH TAMPA GENERAL HOSPITAL HERE, AGAIN, 
YOU'VE GOT -- YOU'LL HAVE PEOPLE -- RIGHT NOW WHEN YOU WORK 
AT USF, YOU BASICALLY -- MOST OF THEM LIVE IN NEW TAMPA 
BECAUSE THAT'S -- AND THEY HAVE TO TAKE, YOU KNOW, BRUCE B. 
DOWNS, BUT IF WE CAN HAVE CONNECTIVITY BETWEEN THE USF AREA 
AND DOWNTOWN, RAPID TRANSIT CONNECTING THE TWO AREAS, I'LL 
BET YOU THIS DOWNTOWN AREA WHERE A LOT OF PEOPLE WORK BUT 
DON'T LIVE IS GOING TO FLOURISH WITH PEOPLE WHO NOW ARE 
GOING TO WANT TO LIVE HERE, THEY CAN SHOP IN THE WESTSHORE 
DISTRICT, THEY CAN WORK OUT AT USF, IF THEY FLY OUT THEY 
CAN FLY OUT OF TAMPA INTERNATIONAL WITHOUT EVER HAVING TO 
TOUCH THEIR CAR, NOT TO MENTION ALL THE VACATIONERS AND 
EVERYONE ELSE WHO'S GOING TO COME HERE, HOPEFULLY VACATION 
IN THIS AREA, TAKE A DAY TRIP TO ORLANDO BUT COMING BACK.
WE WANT TO SUPPORT ORLANDO, BUT WE WANT TO BE COMPETITIVE 
HERE, SO I THINK YOU'VE DONE A PHENOMENAL JOB, BUT I WANT 
TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE WORKING THIS PACKAGE BECAUSE A LOT 
OF PEOPLE ARE NEVER GOING TO TOUCH THE RAIL SYSTEM, AND THE 
PEOPLE WHO ARE GOING TO BE VOTING FOR THIS NEED TO SEE THIS 
IS NOT A RAIL PLAN BUT A MOBILITY MAN, AND WE'VE GOT 
TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE A REALLY STRONG COHERENT MESSAGE 
FOR THE CITIZENS WHO LIVE IN WIMAUMA AND GIBSONTON IN SOUTH 
COUNTY AND OUTSIDE THE COUNTY TO SAY WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT 
TO THEM AS WELL.
IF FOR NO OTHER REASON THEN, BY SUPPORTING THIS PLAN, YOU 
ARE NOW PROTECTING YOURSELVES FROM THE VERY SPRAWL THAT YOU 
WANT TO AVOID BECAUSE WE ARE NOW DRAWING THE DEVELOPMENT TO 
AREAS WHERE BEFORE WE SAID WE WANTED IT TO GO BUT HAD NO 
INCENTIVE FOR IT TO GO THERE.
I THINK THE RAIL SYSTEM CREATES THE INCENTIVE FOR PEOPLE TO 
BUILD ALONG THOSE RAIL LINES.
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  I ABSOLUTELY AGREE.
>>MARK SHARPE:  WELL, I THINK IT WAS WELL SAID BY OUR 
CHAIRMAN OR DIRECTOR.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  MAYOR LOTT.
>>RICK LOTT:  THANK YOU, MR. CHAIRMAN.
FIRST OF ALL, RAY, I THINK YOUR PRESENTATION WAS FANTASTIC, 
BUT -- EXCUSE ME.
I DIDN'T HAVE MY MICROPHONE ON YET.
NORMALLY THEY SAY I'M LOUD ENOUGH WITHOUT ONE, BUT --
>> YOU ARE.
>>RICK LOTT:  BUT ANYHOW, I THINK SOME DATA THERE -- AND TO 
ADD ON TO WHAT YOU'RE SAYING THERE, COMMISSIONER SHARPE -- 
IS THAT FOR A REFERENDUM TO BE APPROVED, ALL CITIZENS ARE 
GOING TO HAVE TO SEE THE VALUE OF WHAT THIS IS FOR THE 
COUNTY, BUT I THINK THE ONE SLIDE THERE OR THE ONE BIT OF 
INFORMATION THAT MAKES -- IT MAKES SENSE FOR ALL CITIZENS 
IS THAT WHEN 42% OF THE CITIZENS WORK IN 7% OF THE LAND 
MASS, IT'S SHOWING THAT WE HAVE A TWO-PRONG APPROACH.
"A," WE DON'T WORK WHERE WE -- OKAY -- LIVE, AND THAT'S AN 
ISSUE, OKAY, BUT IT DEFINITELY IS ONE THAT SUPPORTS RAIL, 
BUT IT ALSO SAYS -- AND I'M SURE HOPING THIS IS WHAT COMES 
OUT OF THIS AS FAR AS THE LAND USE IS CONCERNED -- THAT ON 
A GO-FORWARD BASIS, WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE 
CREATING NEIGHBORHOODS WHERE WE WORK AND LIVE AND ENTERTAIN 
WITHOUT HAVING TO HAVE A PROGRAM IN PLACE WHERE 42% OF OUR 
CITIZENS ARE HAVING TO DRIVE AWAY FROM THEIR HOME TO GET A 
JOB OR TO WORK, AND SO I BELIEVE THAT THE CITIZENS WHEN 
THEY RECOGNIZE THE FACT THAT HALF OUR CITIZENS BASICALLY 
ARE HAVING TO DRIVE ELSEWHERE TO WORK VERSUS WHERE THEY 
LIVE THAT THEY'LL BE WILLING TO SUPPORT THIS PLAN, YOU 
KNOW.
>>MARK SHARPE:  AND WHEN -- MR. MAYOR, ONE THING THAT I'VE 
ALWAYS FELT, IF YOU LOOK AT THE USF AREA, IT'S A GREAT 
EMPLOYMENT CENTER, BUT IT'S NOT WHERE FOLKS WANT TO LIVE 
RIGHT NOW.
WHEN THIS TAKES PLACE AND YOU HAVE THIS RAIL SYSTEM COMING 
IN AND TRANSIT COMING IN, YOU'RE GOING TO SEE THE TYPE OF 
DEVELOPMENT AND UPSCALE HOUSING AND OPPORTUNITIES, WHETHER 
IT'S APARTMENTS, CONDO UNITS, PEOPLE ARE GOING TO START 
MOVING THERE JUST LIKE THE NORTHEAST WHERE PEOPLE LIVE AND 
WORK.
THE CLEVELAND CLINIC CREATES JOBS AND IT ALSO CREATES 
RESIDENTS BECAUSE PEOPLE WANT TO LIVE THERE.
THEY DON'T WANT TO HAVE TO TRAVEL 40 MINUTES BY CAR, AND 
THEY'LL LIVE THIS, BUT THEY WON'T LIVE THERE NOW.
THERE'S NO INCENTIVE FOR THEM TO LIVE THERE NOW.
I THINK THIS WILL BEGIN TO CREATE THE INCENTIVE FOR PEOPLE 
TO LIVE IN THAT USF AREA.
>>RICK LOTT:  I THINK THE STREETCAR, TO ADD TO IT, YOU 
KNOW, AS MUCH, YOU KNOW, DEBATE GOES ON ABOUT THE STREETCAR 
AND THE VIABILITY OF THE STREETCAR, YOU CAN'T DENY THAT 
DEVELOPMENT IS OCCURRING ALONG THE RAIL.
WE CAN'T DENY THAT, AND I THINK THAT WHEN YOU MAKE AN 
INVESTMENT LIKE THE STREETCAR OR RAIL, OBVIOUSLY DAY ONE IT 
DOESN'T HAVE THE ABILITY, OKAY, TO SUPPORT ITSELF.
IT'S ONE OF THOSE THINGS THAT YOU HAVE TO PLAN FOR THE 
FUTURE, AND IF WE'D HAVE PUT THIS RAIL SYSTEM IN PLACE 15, 
20 YEARS AGO, OKAY, THE COSTS MAY BE A LOT LESS THAN IT 
WILL BE THIS TIME AROUND, OKAY, BUT IT'S STILL NOT A REASON 
NOT TO DO IT.
BUT ALSO, I THINK THAT THE DEVELOPMENT TRENDS WOULD BE A 
LOT DIFFERENT TOO, THAT INSTEAD OF HALF OUR CITIZENS HAVING 
TO DRIVE TO WORK, OKAY, INTO 7% OF OUR LAND MASS, THOSE 
CITIZENS WOULD BE LIVING AROUND THE STATIONS AND THEY WOULD 
BE WORKED AROUND THE STATIONS THAT WOULD BE BUILT, SO -- 
BUT OBVIOUSLY WE HAVE TO GET STARTED, AND I'M LOOKING 
FORWARD TO GETTING THIS PLAN IN PLACE.
SO THANK YOU, RAY.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  ANY --
>>RICK LOTT:  I WANT TO SAY ONE MORE THING JUST TO 
COMPLIMENT RAY.
I SAY QUITE OFTEN IN OUR COMMISSION MEETINGS IN PLANT CITY 
THAT ONE THING THAT WE HAVE TO HOLD SACRED AS AN MPO BOARD, 
AS A COMMISSION, AS ELECTED OFFICIALS, IS THE RESPECT AND 
WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE WE MAINTAIN THE FAITH IN OUR CITIZENS, 
BECAUSE ONCE THEY LOSE FAITH IN US, YOU KNOW, YOU BASICALLY 
LOST THE ESSENCE OF WHAT GOVERNMENT'S ALL ABOUT, AND I'LL 
SAY THAT ONE THING THAT YOU BRING TO THIS IS THAT YOU NEVER 
GIVE INFORMATION WITHOUT KNOWING YOU'RE ACCURATE AND 
CORRECT, AND I THINK THAT YOU HAVE A BEDSIDE MANNER, IF I 
MAY CALL IT THAT, TO WHERE PEOPLE RESPECT YOU AND TRUST 
THAT WHAT YOU'RE SAYING IS ACCURATE AND IT'S FROM THE 
HEART, AND WE CAN'T DENY YOUR PASSION FOR IT, SO I BELIEVE 
YOU'RE THE RIGHT MAN AT THE RIGHT TIME TO LEAD US RIGHT 
NOW, SO THANK YOU.
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  THANK YOU.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  MR. DINGFELDER, YOU HAD A COMMENT?
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  YES, JUST A COUPLE OF THINGS.
ONE, MARK, I THINK YOU'RE RIGHT ON ABOUT THE USF AREA, AND 
I THINK AN EXAMPLE IS THE 40th STREET CORRIDOR.
TOGETHER THE CITY AND COUNTY HAS IMPROVED THAT SECTION OF 
40th STREET, AND ALREADY YOU CAN SEE HIGH-QUALITY 
APARTMENTS AND CONDOMINIUMS THAT ARE BLOSSOMING THERE ON 
40th STREET.
THEY'RE NOT BUILDING THEM ON BUSCH, FLETCHER, OR FOWLER, 
THEY'RE BUILDING THEM OVER THERE ON 40th SO I THINK IT'S A 
NICE IMPROVEMENT.
GENERALLY, RAY, ONE OF THE CONCERNS I HAVE -- AND I NOTICED 
MAYOR IORIO MENTIONED THIS IN HER EDITORIAL THAT LYNN JUST 
PASSED OUT, IS I HAVE A CONCERN ABOUT THE CSX ISSUE.
OUR COMPADRE HERE IN CENTRAL FLORIDA, THEY'RE WRESTLING 
WITH THIS, YOU KNOW, HOW DO WE GET ALONG, HOW DO WE BUILD 
THE RAIL SYSTEM ALONG THE CSX SYSTEM AND THAT SORT OF 
THING.
I THINK IN THE PAST WHEN ED TURANCHIK PROPOSED THIS A LONG 
TIME AGO -- AND TO USE THE CSX, YOU KNOW, MADE SENSE.
PERHAPS IT WAS A DIFFERENT AND FRIENDLIER CSX, BUT IN 
RECENT YEARS I DON'T GET THE SENSE THAT WE HAVE GREAT 
COOPERATION WITH THEM.
NOW, THAT MIGHT CHANGE AGAIN, AND LET'S HOPE IT DOES, BUT I 
THINK WE HAVE TO BE REALLY CAREFUL NOT TO PUT ALL OF OUR 
EGGS IN THAT CSX BASKET, AND I HOPE THAT EVEN THOUGH 
PERHAPS OUR PRIMARY PLAN USES THE CSX CORRIDOR THAT AS WE 
GO INTO THIS 2035 LONG-RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN THAT WE 
CLEARLY HAVE A SECONDARY FALLBACK OPTION THAT DOES NOT USE 
THE CSX CORRIDOR, ON THE NORTH-SOUTH ROUTE THAT WE USE 
NEBRASKA OR FLORIDA OR WHATEVER -- WHATEVER NORTH-SOUTH 
ROAD IS AVAILABLE AND, YOU KNOW, COMPARABLY THAT WE 
IDENTIFY OTHER VIABLE CORRIDORS PREFERABLY RIGHT IN THE 
MIDDLE OF THE STREET.
I MEAN, WE SAW THAT WITH THE PHOENIX PLAN I THINK THAT WAS 
RECENTLY SHOWN TO US, THAT THEY JUST TOOK BOULEVARDS, WIDE 
BOULEVARDS, AND THEY MADE THE LIGHT RAIL SYSTEM WORK IN 
THOSE WIDE BOULEVARDS, AND I THINK WE COULD AND SHOULD DO 
THAT.
I THINK IT'S A BIG MISTAKE TO TIE OUR FUTURE TO CSX -- THE 
WHIMS OF A CORPORATION LIKE CSX.
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  JUST TWO COMMENTS.
ONE IS I LIKE TO THINK PEOPLE BEHAVE RATIONALLY, BUT 
SOMETIMES I KNOW THEY DON'T, BUT THE THING THAT'S A LITTLE 
DIFFERENT ABOUT TAMPA AND THE PARTICULAR LINES, EXCEPT THE 
BRANDON LINE, WHICH I REALLY DO THINK WE NEED TO DEBATE 
WHETHER THAT SHOULD BE BUS RAPID TRANSIT MAYBE ON TOP OF 
THE CROSSTOWN BECAUSE THAT LINE IS USED A LOT BY CSX, BUT 
REALISTICALLY THE LINE GOING NORTH, THE LINE GOING ON 
LINEBAUGH, I MEAN, I THINK THERE'S LIKE ONE OR TWO TRAINS A 
DAY ON THOSE LINES.
IT WOULD SEEM --
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  ON THE SOUTH TAMPA LINE?
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  -- IT WOULD BE IN THEIR INTEREST TO RUN 
THEM LATE AT NIGHT AND MAKE SOME MONEY OR WORK WITH US.
I WOULD THINK IT WOULD BE MORE IN THEIR INTEREST THAN MAYBE 
SOME OF THE OTHER SITUATIONS THEY'VE BEEN INVOLVED IN.
IF THAT'S NOT THE CASE, YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT, WE DO HAVE 
ALTERNATIVES.
I DON'T THINK THEY'RE AS GOOD, BUT I THINK THEY NEED TO 
UNDERSTAND THAT WE DO HAVE ALTERNATIVES.
IT SHOULDN'T BE WE DON'T DO ANYTHING IF WE CAN'T USE CSX 
BECAUSE WE COULD, AS YOU SAID, PUT IT IN THE ROADWAY.
I DON'T THINK IT'S PREFERABLE, BUT THAT IS AN OPTION.
>>JOHN DINGFELDER:  AND I AGREE I THINK IT'S REALLY 
CRITICAL THAT WE INCLUDE THESE OTHER AREAS, THAT BRANDON 
KNOWS THAT WE ARE GOING TO DO SOME MAJOR THINGS TO HELP 
THEIR TRAFFIC WOES.
NEW TAMPA HAS WORSE TRAFFIC BY FAR THAN SOUTH TAMPA.
WE HAVE TO LET THOSE CITIZENS KNOW THAT WE'RE GOING TO 
ADDRESS THEIR TRAFFIC PROBLEMS, ESPECIALLY IF WE WANT TO 
GET THEIR VOTE IF AND WHEN IT'S TIME TO VOTE.
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  WELL, WHAT WE'VE LEARNED FROM OTHER 
CITIES IN LOOKED AT THEM, THE MOST SUCCESSFUL REFERENDUMS 
HAVE BEEN SOMETHING THAT INCLUDES ROADS, RAIL, BUS, YOU 
KNOW, EVERYTHING YOU NEED, TRAILS, SOME KIND OF PACKAGE 
THAT ADDRESSES THE ENTIRE AREA WHERE EVERY AREA IS GETTING 
SOME BENEFIT FROM VOTING FOR THE REFERENDUM.
IT MAY NOT BE THE SAME BENEFIT, BUT IT'S SOMETHING.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  MARY MULHERN.
>>MARY MULHERN:  YES.
I'M REALLY ENJOYING LOOKING AT THIS MAP, BUT I HAVE A FEW 
THINGS I'M CURIOUS ABOUT.
THERE ARE A LOT OF PARALLEL -- OR NOT A LOT, BUT THERE'S 
SOME PARALLEL, LIKE LIGHT RAIL AND COMMUTER RAIL, I GUESS, 
GOING UP SAY FROM YBOR CITY OR FROM DOWNTOWN ALL THE WAY UP 
TO PASCO, AND -- WELL, NO, IT BREAKS UP AT USF, BUT THEN I 
NOTICE THERE'S NOT A LOT OF CONNECTIVITY EAST-WEST IN THE 
NORTHERN PART.
YOU COME FROM WESTCHASE AND THEN IT JUST GOES STRAIGHT DOWN 
AND THAT THERE'S NO -- I'M JUST CURIOUS WHY WE'VE GOT THOSE 
PARALLELS YET WE DON'T HAVE -- AND WE DON'T HAVE WHAT SEEMS 
TO ME WOULD HAVE MADE MORE SENSE TO HAVE ONE OF THOSE LINES 
BE DIAGONAL TOWARD -- UP TOWARD CARROLLWOOD, CITRUS PARK, 
AND -- OR MAYBE -- YOU KNOW, NEW -- THE NEW TAMPA LINE 
MAYBE HAVING A TRANSFER AND THEN GOING WEST OVER TO 
WESTCHASE.
I KNOW IT HAS TO DO WITH THE TRAVEL PATTERNS.
I'M LOOKING AT IT FROM THE PERSON WHO IS NOT FAMILIAR WITH 
ALL THOSE OLD PLANS, SO I'M LOOKING AT THAT.
SO MAYBE -- I HAVE A COUPLE OTHER QUESTIONS.
I'LL ASK YOU THE QUESTIONS AND THEN --
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  I KIND OF KNOW WHAT YOU'RE SAYING.
JUST -- I BELIEVE THAT THE TAMPA RAIL PLAN -- I KIND OF 
HAVE IT IN MY HEAD, BUT I BELIEVE THAT IT DID ACTUALLY HAVE 
THAT CONNECTION GOING ALONG LINEBAUGH AND BUSCH, SO IT DID 
CUT ACROSS THERE.
I HONESTLY THINK THAT'S SOMETHING WE PROBABLY NEED TO TALK 
ABOUT AGAIN BECAUSE THAT DOES MAKE SOME SENSE.
>>MARY MULHERN:  YEAH.
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  AND THAT'S WHAT WE NEED TO BE DOING 
OVER THE NEXT YEAR IS FINE-TUNING WHERE THERE MIGHT BE WEAK 
SPOTS OR SPOTS WHERE, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE TO CHOOSE, YOU 
KNOW, IS THIS GOING TO BE -- YOU KNOW, DOES THE COMMUTER 
RAIL JUST COME IN TO OR CONNECT TO THE LIGHT RAIL OR DOES 
IT GO ALL THE WAY DOWNTOWN?
THOSE ARE QUESTIONS WE WANT TO WORK WITH TBARTA ON AND SEE 
WHAT MAKES THE MOST SENSE.
>>MARY MULHERN:  ANOTHER INTERESTING THING IS THAT LITTLE 
WEST TAMPA DEAD-ENDER, IS THAT AT THE STADIUM?
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  YEAH.
THAT COULD BE A BUS.
I'M NOT SURE ABOUT THAT.
THAT'S DEFINITELY --
>>MARY MULHERN:  YEAH, I COULD SEE -- I'D LIKE TO REDRAW 
SOME LINES HERE, AND I KNOW IT HAS TO DO WITH WHERE WE CAN 
ACTUALLY BUILD RAIL, AND I AGREE WITH JOHN ABOUT NOT 
RELYING ON THE CSX LINE SINCE THAT COULD BE TROUBLE, BUT 
THIS IS A QUESTION I HAVE FOR BOB OR DON ABOUT -- I DRIVE 
BY THE 275 CONSTRUCTION EVERY DAY, AND I KEEP THINKING 
THAT'S HUGE, THAT ADDITION, AND CAN'T WE JUST PUT LIGHT 
RAIL UP THERE?
I MEAN, IS THERE A POSSIBLY THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE ABLE TO 
USE -- ACTUALLY USE ANY OF THAT FOR LIGHT RAIL?
>>DON SKELTON:  ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT THE CORRIDOR OF I-
275?
>>MARY MULHERN:  YEAH, I'M TALKING ABOUT EITHER THE 
CORRIDOR -- YOU KNOW, YOU'RE BUILDING THE PARALLEL WHERE -- 
WHERE I LIVE AT HOWARD AND ARMENIA, THERE'S TWO DIFFERENT 
ROADWAYS BEING -- OR A BRAND-NEW ROADWAY BEING --
>>DON SKELTON:  RIGHT.
AND THE OVERALL CONCEPT OF REBUILDING I-275 IS EXACTLY 
THAT, KIND OF SIMILAR TO WHAT YOU SEE ON THE RESTRUCTURED 
I-4 IS BUILDING THE OUTSIDE LANES.
THAT TAMPA INTERSTATE STUDY CONCEPT INCLUDES AN ENVELOPE IN 
THE MEDIAN THAT WOULD ACCOMMODATE EITHER HIGH-SPEED RAIL --
>>MARY MULHERN:  THAT'S GREAT.
>>DON SKELTON:  -- HOV TRANSITWAY, WHATEVER IT WOULD BE, SO 
THE CONCEPT IS THERE.
IT'S GOING TO TAKE SEVERAL YEARS BECAUSE WHAT'S BEING 
CONSTRUCTED RIGHT NOW IS ONE PIECE OF IT.
>>MARY MULHERN:  YEAH.
WELL, IT'S GOOD TO KNOW.
IT MAKES ME FEEL BETTER WHEN I DRIVE UNDER THERE.
THEN THE OTHER THING I WANTED TO SAY -- AND I'VE BEEN 
THINKING ABOUT THIS A LOT BECAUSE I'M ON THE STREETCAR 
BOARD -- IS THAT WE HAVE LIGHT RAIL ALREADY, WE HAVE A 
STREETCAR, AND I WANT TO SEE THAT REALLY, REALLY INTEGRATED 
INTO -- YOU KNOW, INTO DOWNTOWN, THAT WE CERTAINLY 
SHOULDN'T BE REPEATING OR, YOU KNOW -- REPEATING THE SAME 
SORT OF DIRECTION WITH A LIGHT RAIL IF WE'VE ALREADY GOT 
THE RAIL SYSTEM THERE, AND THEN FURTHER ONTO THAT, I THINK 
IF YOU LOOK AT OTHER CITIES AND ESPECIALLY IF YOU GO 
FURTHER, YOU KNOW, TO OTHER COUNTRIES, IF YOU GO TO 
AUSTRALIA OR EUROPE, THAT THE STREETCAR -- I NEVER HEAR US 
TALKING ABOUT THIS, BUT STREETCARS CAN HAVE SHARED LANES, 
AND WE DON'T TALK ABOUT THAT, BUT THAT'S SUCH AN ECONOMICAL 
WAY TO START LOOKED AT LIGHT RAIL BECAUSE YOU'RE NOT GOING 
TO HAVE TO USE CSX AND YOU'RE GOING TO BE ABLE TO USE THE 
RIGHT-OF-WAY THAT YOU ALREADY OWN, AND I'D LIKE TO HEAR US 
START TO LOOK AT THAT, ESPECIALLY WITH THE WAY -- YOU KNOW, 
THIS IS THE HUGE, BIG, BIG PLAN, BUT IF WE BRING IT DOWN TO 
JUST HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY AND THEN IF WE START TO LOOK EVEN 
JUST IN THE CITY AND DOWNTOWN AREA, IF YOU -- WE RETHINK 
USING THE STREETCAR AS THE BASIS FOR THAT TRANSIT, IT SAVES 
US A LOT OF MONEY AND IT WORKS IN OTHER PLACES, SO --
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  I THINK IN YOUR HIGH-DENSITY ACTIVITY 
CENTERS, LIKE YOU SAID, MAYBE HAVING IT IN THE STREET AND 
ALL THAT IS GOOD, AND THEN MAYBE WHEN YOU'RE GOING BETWEEN 
THEM, THEN IT GOES A LITTLE FASTER AND IT MIGHT BE IN SOME 
OTHER RIGHT-OF-WAY.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  OKAY.
ANY OTHER COMMENTS?
YES.
>>BRIAN BLAIR:  QUICK QUESTION.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  MR. BLAIR.
>>BRIAN BLAIR:  RAY, YOU WERE REALLY PASSIONATE IN YOUR 
PRESENTATION.
I ENJOYED IT VERY MUCH.
A COUPLE QUESTIONS.
IN OF THE 42% OF THE PEOPLE THAT WERE GOING TO LIVE IN THE 
WESTSHORE/USF/DOWNTOWN AREA --
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  YEAH, WORK.
>>BRIAN BLAIR:  -- THE WORK AREAS THAT YOU POINTED OUT, ARE 
THOSE ALL FROM HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, ARE THOSE ALL 
HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY RESIDENTS?
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  NO.
>>BRIAN BLAIR:  THOSE ARE FROM OTHER COUNTIES AS WELL?
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  YES.
>>BRIAN BLAIR:  OKAY.
THAT'S PRETTY MUCH MY --
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  AND IF YOU GO BACK TO THAT -- ACTUALLY, 
LINDA, I THINK WE HAVE COPIES OF THIS PRESENTATION, DON'T 
WE?
WE COULD PROBABLY HAND THOSE OUT FOR YOU TO HAVE A HARD 
COPY.
I MADE SOME COPIES, BUT IT ACTUALLY SHOWS WHERE THE PEOPLE 
COME FROM THAT ARE WORKING IN THOSE AREAS.
>>BRIAN BLAIR:  RIGHT.
I THINK IT REALLY WASN'T -- I SAW IT, BUT WHEN WE PRESENT 
THE PLAN AS MAYOR LOTT SAID, WHEN THIS COMES TO FRUITION, 
EVERYTHING'S GOT TO BE HONEST AND RIGHT ON POINT WITH THE 
VOTERS BECAUSE YOU CAN'T SACRIFICE INTEGRITY FOR ANYTHING -
-
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  RIGHT.
>>BRIAN BLAIR:  -- THAT IS A VISION OR A WISH.
IT HAS TO BE FACTUAL.
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  I THINK WE REALLY NEED TO BE CAREFUL 
WITH THAT.
>>BRIAN BLAIR:  PARDON ME?
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  I THINK WE REALLY NEED TO BE CAREFUL.
I'VE BEEN KIND OF FOLLOWING MIAMI'S PROBLEMS THE LAST 
MONTH, AND ONE OF THEM IS THEY PASSED A HALF-CENT TAX AND 
THEN DIDN'T USE IT FOR WHAT -- IT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE FOR A 
NEW LINE OF THE METRO RAIL AND THEY USED IT FOR PAST 
EXPENSES OR SOMETHING.
>>BRIAN BLAIR:  EXACTLY.
AND THAT'S WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT.
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  WE DON'T WANT TO DO THAT.
>>BRIAN BLAIR:  SO THE INTEGRITY OF WHAT WE SAY HAS TO BE 
INTACT A HUNDRED PERCENT AND IDENTIFIED CLEARLY.
I APPRECIATE YOUR PASSION.
YOU DID A GREAT JOB.
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  THANK YOU.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THANK YOU.
NO OTHER COMMENTS?
THANK YOU VERY MUCH, RAY.
>>RAY CHIARAMONTE:  I DO HAVE A COMMENT.
I WANT TO THANK LYNN MERENDA FOR HELPING ME WITH THIS 
PRESENTATION.
SHE IS GREAT AT VISUALIZING.
I TELL HER, OKAY, I WANT TO SHOW THIS, AND SHE'D FIGURE OUT 
A WAY TO DO IT.
I THINK LYNN DID A GREAT JOB WITH THIS.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THANK YOU, LYNN.
>>MARY MULHERN:  I JUST WANTED TO SAY ONE MORE THING 
BECAUSE I FEEL REALLY LEFT OUT.
I LOVE YOU TOO, RAY.
I THINK THIS IS FANTASTIC, AND YOU'RE DOING A GREAT JOB.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  GREAT JOB.
OKAY.
NEXT ITEM IS THE NORTHEAST -- NORTHEAST PLANT CITY AREA 
MASTER PLAN.
JOE ZAMBITO.
>>JOE ZAMBITO:  THANK YOU.
JOE ZAMBITO WITH THE MPO STAFF, AND I'M JUST GOING TO 
INTRODUCE OUR PRESENTERS.
WE HAVE JILL QUIGLEY, WHO'S GOING TO BE DOING THE 
PRESENTATION, AND SCOTT PRINGLE, WHO ARE BOTH WITH JACOBS 
CARTER BURGESS, THE CONSULTANTS WHO DID THIS STUDY, AND 
ALSO IN THE AUDIENCE WE HAVE RAY HORWEDEL, WHO IS THE 
ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER OF THE CITY OF PLANT CITY IN CASE 
THERE'S ANY QUESTIONS.
HE MIGHT BE ABLE TO HELP US AS WELL.
>> THANK YOU, JOE.
OKAY.
AS JOE MENTIONED, I'M JILL QUIGLEY WITH JACOBS CARTER 
BURGESS.
WE'VE BEEN WORKING FOR TWO YEARS WITH THE CITY TO CREATE 
THIS MASTER PLAN FOR THE NORTHEAST PLANT CITY AREA, AND 
WE'RE JUST GOING TO GIVE YOU TODAY A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF OUR 
PROCESS AND THE RESULTS OF THIS MASTER PLAN.
THIS GRAPHIC SHOWS THE STUDY AREA, WHICH RUNS ROUGHLY FROM 
THE POLK -- HILLSBOROUGH-POLK COUNTY LINE TO THE EAST, TO 
STATE ROAD 39 VERY ROUGHLY TO THE WEST, I-4 AND U.S. 92 TO 
THE SOUTH, AND KNIGHTS GRIFFIN HALF-MILE ROAD TO THE NORTH.
WHY A MASTER PLAN -- AN ANNEXATION STUDY WAS COMPLETED AND 
THE NORTHEAST AREA WAS IDENTIFIED AS HAVING THE HIGHEST 
GROWTH POTENTIAL OVER THE NEXT FIVE TO TEN YEARS, SO THE 
CITY WANTED TO CREATE A VISION FOR THIS AREA THAT WOULD 
HELP CREATE A COHESIVE COMMUNITY, MAKE SURE THAT ADEQUATE 
PUBLIC SERVICES ARE PROVIDED, AND TO REALLY ENHANCE 
MOBILITY AND CONNECTIVITY THROUGHOUT THE AREA.
SO ONE OF THE KEY COMPONENTS OF THE MASTER PLAN WAS TO 
IDENTIFY ROADWAY IMPROVEMENTS NECESSARY TO ENSURE THAT 
MOBILITY.
SO THROUGHOUT THIS PROCESS WE WORKED TO ENSURE THAT 
COORDINATION BETWEEN LAND USE AND TRANSPORTATION.
THIS GRAPHIC SHOWS THE PREFERRED LAND USE AND 
TRANSPORTATION VISION.
THIS REPRESENTS A POSSIBLE VISION FOR THE YEAR 2035 AND IS 
BASED ON MAXIMUM BUILD-OUT, SO WHEN YOU SEE A CATEGORY THAT 
SAYS "RESIDENTIAL-4," WE ASSUMED IT WOULD BUILD OUT AT FOUR 
UNITS PER ACRE.
I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THE TRANSPORTATION 
COMPONENT IS 2035.
FROM A LAND USE PERSPECTIVE, ESPECIALLY GIVEN WHAT'S GOING 
ON IN THE CURRENT ECONOMY, HAD IS PROBABLY LAND USE BEYOND 
2035.
WE'RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT EACH OF THESE SEPARATELY.
FIRST I'M JUST GOING TO GO THROUGH THE STEPS THAT WE USED 
FOR THE MASTER PLAN.
THE FIRST THING WE DID WAS AN EXISTING CONDITIONS ANALYSIS 
WHERE WE LOOKED AT A VARIETY OF PHYSICAL FEATURES AND 
DETERMINED WHERE WAS DEVELOPMENT MOST APPROPRIATE IN THE 
STUDY AREA.
THROUGHOUT THE PROCESS WE HAD A TECHNICAL WORKING GROUP 
THAT CONSISTED OF REPRESENTATIVES FROM PLANT CITY, 
HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, THE PLANNING COMMISSION, THE MPO, 
D.O.T., BOTH DISTRICTS 1 AND 7, AS WELL AS THE NEIGHBORING 
JURISDICTIONS OF POLK COUNTY, THE POLK TPO, AND THE CITY OF 
LAKELAND, AND THIS TECHNICAL WORKING GROUP MET FOUR TIMES 
DURING THE STUDY, AND THEY REVIEWED ANY OF OUR DELIVERABLES 
TO MAKE SURE THAT WE WERE ON TARGET AND GAVE US DIRECTION.
SO THROUGH THE EXISTING CONDITIONS ANALYSIS, WORKING WITH 
THE TECHNICAL WORKING GROUP, AND SOME STAKEHOLDER 
INTERVIEWS, WE DEVELOPED SOME GUIDING PRINCIPLES FOR THE 
STUDY AREA, AND ALL OF THOSE THREE TOGETHER LED US TO COME 
UP WITH SOME PRELIMINARY LAND USE SCENARIOS.
WE HAD A SCENARIO "A," WHICH WAS BASICALLY A SPRAWL 
SCENARIO, AND SCENARIO "B" WHICH WAS A CLUSTER DEVELOPMENT 
WITH A VILLAGE CONCEPT SCENARIO.
AS I MENTIONED, WE ALSO COORDINATED ALL OF THESE WITH 
TRANSPORTATION, WE CREATED A NETWORK FOR THE STUDY AREA, 
AND DEVELOPED PARALLEL FACILITIES TO I-4 TO HELP MITIGATE 
IMPACTS TO I-4.
IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THE ROADWAY NETWORK WE 
DEVELOPED WAS THE SAME FOR BOTH OF THE LAND USE MODELS, SO 
WHEN WE DID THE MODEL ANALYSIS, IT WAS THE SAME ROADWAY 
NETWORK, JUST WITH DIFFERENT LAND USE PATTERNS.
SO THIS SHOWS THE PREFERRED LAND USE VISION.
I'M JUST GOING TO QUICKLY HIGHLIGHT A COUPLE THINGS.
HERE WE HAVE A VILLAGE CENTER WHICH IS AT THE INTERSECTION 
OF MIDWAY ROAD AND CHARLIE TAYLOR ROAD.
THIS IS SUPPOSED TO BE A MIXED-USE CENTER WHERE THERE WOULD 
BE RETAIL, INSTITUTIONAL, AND RESIDENTIAL ALL IN ONE PLACE.
WE ALSO INCREASED THE RESIDENTIAL DENSITY ALONG SOME OF THE 
MAJOR CORRIDORS WITHIN THE STUDY AREA, SUCH AS CHARLIE 
TAYLOR, WILDER ROAD, THE COMMERCIAL INTENSITY ALONG PARK, 
AND ALSO ALONG STATE ROAD 39.
SOUTH OF I-4 WE PRETTY MUCH MAINTAINED THE CURRENT LAND 
USE -- THE CURRENT FUTURE LAND USE PATTERN IN THAT AREA.
ONE OTHER THING TO NOTE ON THIS MAP, YOU'LL SEE AT THE VERY 
BOTTOM OF THE LEGEND THERE'S A BRIGHT PINK STAR.
FOR TRANSPORTATION MODELING PURPOSES, WE HAD TO IDENTIFY 
SCHOOL SITES BECAUSE THE NUMBER OF STUDENTS WITHIN A TAZ IS 
SOMETHING THAT HAS TO BE INPUTTED INTO THE MODEL.
WE DID WORK WITH THE SCHOOL BOARD TO COME UP WITH 
APPROPRIATE GENERATION RATES, BUT THESE LOCATIONS, REALLY 
THEY'RE JUST PUT THERE FOR PLANNING PURPOSES.
THEY HAVE NOT BEEN COORDINATED WITH THE SCHOOL BOARD AT 
ALL.
GENERALLY SPEAKING, THIS LAND USE VISION IS CLUSTERED 
DEVELOPMENT.
WHILE THERE ARE REDUCTIONS IN AGRICULTURAL AND LOWER-
DENSITY RESIDENTIAL CATEGORIES, THEY'RE OFFSET BY INCREASES 
IN PRESERVATION AND OPEN SPACE.
THE CLUSTERING ALLOWS US TO PUT MORE RESIDENTIAL UNITS ON 
LESS LAND, SO THE CURRENT FUTURE LAND USE DESIGNATION 
ALLOWS ABOUT 13,000 UNITS ON 12,000 ACRES.
THIS VISION REPRESENTS 34,000 UNITS ON ABOUT 7200 ACRES.
IT ALSO INCREASES THE AMOUNT OF NONRESIDENTIAL LAND AND 
THEREFORE THE NUMBER OF JOBS, TRYING TO CREATE MORE OF A 
BALANCE BETWEEN WORKING AND LIVING IN THE SAME AREA.
AND THE LAST THING I'M GOING TO MENTION BEFORE I TURN IT 
OVER TO SCOTT IS THEY'RE A LITTLE DIFFICULT TO SEE, BUT ON 
THIS MAP YOU CAN SEE SOME DASHED GREEN LINES.
WE ALSO CAME UP WITH SOME POSSIBLE GREENWAY CONNECTIONS TO 
PROVIDE ALTERNATIVE FORMS OF TRANSPORTATION CONNECTING 
PRESERVATION AREAS AND RESIDENTIAL AREAS.
AND WITH THAT, I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO SCOTT, WHO IS 
GOING TO TALK TO YOU ABOUT OUR TRANSPORTATION ANALYSIS.
>>LINDA SAUL-SENA:  DO YOU HAVE A PRINTOUT ON THIS OR A 
PRINTOUT OF THE POWERPOINT THAT YOU CAN SHARE?
>> I DON'T HAVE ONE, BUT WE CAN MAKE IT AVAILABLE.
>> GOOD MORNING.
SCOTT PRINGLE WITH JACOBS CARTER BURGESS.
I'VE BEEN WORKING WITH THE CITY OF PLANT CITY AND 
HILLSBOROUGH MPO STAFF TO EVALUATE THE TRANSPORTATION 
INFRASTRUCTURE EFFECTS OF THE PROPOSED MASTER PLAN.
QUICKLY I WOULD LIKE TO START OUT BY IDENTIFYING WHAT'S OUT 
THERE TODAY OR THE EXISTING NETWORK, WHICH IS SHOWN HERE 
BEFORE YOU, WHICH IS BOUNDED TO THE NORTH BY KNIGHTS 
GRIFFIN ROAD, TO THE EAST BY COUNTY LINE ROAD, TO THE SOUTH 
BY 92, AND TO THE WEST BY 39.
THE NEXT SLIDE HIGHLIGHTS THE PLANNED ROADWAY IMPROVEMENTS 
THAT HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED BY THE LONG-RANGE TRANSPORTATION 
PLAN AS COST-FEASIBLE PROJECTS FOR HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY.
THEY ARE THE EXTENSION OF ALEXANDER STREET NORTH TO STATE 
ROAD 39, THE WIDENING OF SAM ALLEN FROM ALEXANDER STREET 
EXTENSION TO WILDER ROAD FROM TWO TO FOUR LANES, AS WELL AS 
THE WIDENING OF PARK ROAD FROM SAM ALLEN TO I-4 FROM TWO TO 
FOUR LANES AS WELL.
THE LAST IDENTIFIED IS THE REPAVING OF I-4.
A PREFERRED ROADWAY NETWORK WAS THEN DEVELOPED TO SUPPORT 
THE PREFERRED LAND USE SCENARIO WHICH JILL JUST DESCRIBED 
TO YOU.
THIS PREFERRED NETWORK IS A RESULT OF SEVERAL ROUNDS OF 
MODELING AS WELL AS CONSULTATION WITH THE PROJECT TEAM AND 
THE TECHNICAL WORKING GROUP.
THE PREFERRED ROADWAY NETWORK INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING: THE 
WIDENING OF KNIGHTS GRIFFIN FROM TWO TO FOUR LANES, 
THE RECOMMENDATION TO EXTEND MIDWAY ROAD FROM ALEXANDER 
STREET EXTENSION TO COUNTY LINE WITH A CONSISTENT FOUR-LANE 
ROADWAY, THE RECOMMENDATION TO ALSO EXTEND SAM ALLEN ROAD 
CONNECTED TO SWINDELL ROAD WITH A CONSISTENT FOUR-LANE 
ROADWAY, THE EXTENSION OF BOTH COUNTY LINE AND PARK ROAD 
NORTH TO KNIGHTS GRIFFIN, AS WELL AS THE FORKED EXTENSION 
OF LAMP ROAD CONNECTING TO BOTH COUNTY LINE AND CHARLIE 
TAYLOR, THE EXTENSION OF WILLIAMS ROAD TO KNIGHTS GRIFFIN, 
AND THE EXTENSION OF JOE McINTOSH TO ALEXANDER STREET 
EXTENSION.
ONE OF OUR INTENSE OR PURPOSES OF DEVELOPING THE PREFERRED 
NETWORK IS NOT ONLY TO SUPPORT THE LAND USE SCENARIO BUT TO 
CREATE PARALLEL FACILITIES TO I-4, WHICH WILL GIVE US THAT 
EAST-WEST CONNECTIVITY FOR LOCAL TRIPS.
WE COMPARED THE PREFERRED ROADWAY -- OR ROADWAY NETWORK TO 
THE BASELINE CONDITIONS, AND THE MASTER PLAN'S PREFERRED 
ROADWAY NETWORK IMPROVEMENTS ARE FORECASTED TO DO THE 
FOLLOWING, AGAIN, LIKE I MENTIONED BEFORE, CREATING THAT 
PARALLEL ROAD FACILITY ALONG I-4 TO MIDWAY ROAD REMOVES 
APPROXIMATELY 17,000 DAILY VEHICLE TRIPS FROM BOTH I-4 AND 
STATE ROUTE 39.
AGAIN CREATING A PARALLEL EAST-WEST FACILITY ALONG SAM 
ALLEN TO SWINDELL ROAD, WHICH REMOVES APPROXIMATELY 5- TO 
10,000 VEHICLE TRIPS DAILY FROM I-4 AND 39, AND AS A 
RESULT, WE IMPROVED THE LEVEL OF SERVICE ALONG KNIGHTS 
GRIFFIN FROM AN "F" TO A "B"/"C," AS WELL AS ALONG MIDWAY 
FROM AN "F" TO A "D," AND AS WELL AS SAM ALLEN FROM AN "F" 
TO A "D."
USING FDOT DISTRICT 7 CONSTRUCTION ESTIMATES, WHICH DO NOT 
CONSIDER RIGHT-OF-WAY COSTS, THE PREFERRED ROADWAY NETWORK 
IS ANTICIPATED TO COST APPROXIMATELY 368 MILLION IN 2007 
DOLLARS.
USING THE ELEMENTS OF THE PREFERRED ROADWAY NETWORK, A FEW 
MAJOR IMPROVEMENTS WERE PRIORITIZED BASED ON COORDINATION 
WITH THE CITY AS WELL AS ANTICIPATED PERFORMANCE AND COST-
EFFECTIVENESS.
A PHASE ONE LAND USE SCENARIO FOR THE YEAR 2025 WAS 
DEVELOPED TO EVALUATE THE PHASE ONE NETWORK.
THESE PHASE ONE ROADWAY PROJECTS ARE THE FOLLOWING: AGAIN, 
THE WIDENING OF KNIGHTS GRIFFIN ROAD FROM TWO TO FOUR 
LANES, THE RECOMMENDATION TO EXTEND SAM ALLEN TO SWINDELL 
WITH A CONSISTENT FOUR-LANE ROADWAY, THE EXTENSION OF 
COUNTY LINE NORTH TO KNIGHTS GRIFFIN, AND THE FORKED 
EXTENSION OF LAMP ROAD CONNECTING TO COUNTY LINE ROAD AND 
CHARLIE TAYLOR.
AS COMPARED TO THE BASELINE 2025 CONDITIONS, THE PHASE ONE 
ROADWAY NETWORKS ARE FORECASTED TO DO THE FOLLOWING:  
AGAIN, THAT FOCUS ON CREATING A PARALLEL ROADWAY FACILITY 
TO I-4 ALONG SAM ALLEN AND SWINDELL ROAD, WHICH IS 
ANTICIPATED TO REMOVE APPROXIMATELY 4- TO 5,000 DAILY 
VEHICLE TRIPS FROM BOTH I-4 AND STATE ROUTE 39, AND AS A 
RESULT, WE ANTICIPATE TO IMPROVE THE LEVEL OF SERVICE ON 
KNIGHTS GRIFFIN ROAD FROM AN "F" TO A "B"/"C," AS WELL AS 
ALONG MIDWAY AND SAM ALLEN FROM AN "F" TO A "D"/"E."
THE ESTIMATED COST FOR THIS PHASE ONE NETWORK IS 
APPROXIMATELY $195 MILLION.
BEFORE I TURN IT OVER TO JILL TO FINISH OUT THE REST OF THE 
PRESENTATION, I'D JUST LIKE TO QUICK HI MENTION THAT WE'VE 
BEEN COORDINATING VERY CLOSELY WITH BOTH THE CITY AND FDOT 
DISTRICT 7 WITH REGARDS TO THE NORTHEAST MASTER PLAN.
FDOT WAS ACTUALLY IN ATTENDANCE AT OUR CITY COMMISSION 
WORKSHOP AND -- EARLIER IN MAY AND VOICED PRELIMINARY 
SUPPORT FOR THE RECOMMENDED MASTER PLAN ROADWAY 
IMPROVEMENTS.
THANK YOU.
>> THANKS, SCOTT.
I JUST WANTED TO SHOW YOU A GRAPHIC.
AS HE MENTIONED, BECAUSE OF THE CHANGES TO THE PHASE ONE 
ROADWAY NETWORK, WE WENT BACK AND REVISED THE LAND USE, AND 
BASICALLY WE JUST MADE SOME REDUCTIONS.
INSTEAD OF ASSUMING MAXIMUM BUILD-OUT AT, SAY, FOUR UNITS 
PER ACRE, WE USED WHAT HAD BEEN THE HISTORICAL TREND, BUT 
IN CERTAIN AREAS WE DID THEN ALSO DECREASE THE PROPOSED 
DENSITY.
THIS SLIDE SUMMARIZES THE PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT RELATED TO THE 
MASTER PLAN.
WE PUBLISHED TWO PROJECT NEWSLETTERS, WE MADE PRESENTATIONS 
TO THE CITY COMMISSION AT VARIOUS MILESTONES.
ALL OF THE INFORMATION HAS BEEN POSTED ON THE CITY'S WEB 
SITE.
WE DID HOLD A PUBLIC WORKSHOP IN OCTOBER.
WE MADE A PRESENTATION ABOUT THE PROJECT TO THE PLANNING 
COMMISSION BACK IN FEBRUARY, AND AS SCOTT MENTIONED, WE 
JUST RECENTLY HAD A WORKSHOP WITH THE CITY COMMISSION AND 
HAD THE ITEM ON THEIR REGULAR AGENDA LAST TUESDAY.
AT THAT TIME THEY APPROVED THE NORTHEAST PLANT CITY AREA 
MASTER PLAN AS A GUIDE FOR FUTURE DEVELOPMENT AND 
INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS IN THE STUDY AREA, AND OUR 
FINAL TASK AS THE CONSULTANT IS MAKING THIS PRESENTATION TO 
THE MPO TODAY.
THE STEPS FOR THE CITY IN TERMS OF IMPLEMENTATION INCLUDE 
FORMALIZING THE MITIGATION FEE PROGRAM FOR TRANSPORTATION.
THIS IS WHAT THEY'RE LOOKING TO DO TO HELP FINANCE SOME OF 
THE ROADWAY IMPROVEMENTS IDENTIFIED THROUGH THE MASTER 
PLAN.
THE CITY IS LOOKED TO ENTER INTO A JOINT PLANNING AGREEMENT 
WITH THE COUNTY FOR THE PURPOSES OF ENSURING THAT WHEN 
DEVELOPMENT OCCURS IN THIS AREA IT OCCURS CONSISTENT WITH 
THE VISION AND ALSO AS A WAY TO HELP PRESERVE RIGHT-OF-WAY 
NEEDED FOR THE ROADWAY IMPROVEMENTS AND ALSO TO CREATE A 
TRANSPORTATION CONCURRENCY BACKLOG AUTHORITY WHICH WILL 
HELP ASSIST WITH SOME OF THE CURRENT ROADWAY DEFICIENCIES.
BEFORE I CONCLUDE, I WANTED TO ASK MR. HORWEDEL IF HE HAD 
ANY COMMENTS HE WANTED TO MAKE.
SO WITH THAT, ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS?
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  YES.
>>RICK LOTT:  I'D LIKE TO [INAUDIBLE] THIS IS SOMETHING 
THAT'S BEEN IN THE WORKS FOR SOMETIME HERE, AND I WANT TO 
THANK OUR CONSULTANTS FOR THE GREAT JOB THEY'VE DONE ON IT, 
BUT ALSO, YOU KNOW, THE PLANNING COMMISSION, THE MPO, YOU 
KNOW, BOTH DISTRICTS WITH FDOT, OUR STAFF AT THE CITY, IT'S 
BEEN A LOT OF WORK, A LOT OF CORROBORATION, BUT ALSO THE 
CITIZENS IN OUR COMMUNITY WITH DIFFERENT WORKSHOPS AND SO 
FORTH AND PUBLIC HEARINGS AND COMMUNITY HEARINGS THAT WE 
HAVE HAD, THIS HAS BEEN SOMETHING THAT HOPEFULLY WE'VE 
REACHED OUT AS MUCH AS WE CAN, BUT WE'RE NOT GOING TO STOP.
WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE TO MAKE SURE WE GET THE FACTS OUT 
TO EVERYONE ABOUT THIS.
I WANT TO SAY, THOUGH, THAT THE -- THE IDEA BEHIND THIS 
PLAN WAS NOT OUR GOAL OF SAYING LET'S GO OUT AND DEVELOP 
THE NORTHEAST PLANT CITY SECTION.
THAT WAS NOT THE REASON WHY WE DID THIS.
THE REASON WHY WE DID THIS IS BECAUSE SLOWLY BUT SURELY 
PROPERTIES WERE BEING VOLUNTARILY ANNEXED INTO THE CITY, 
AND OBVIOUSLY THOSE PROPERTIES -- IT'S KIND OF FIRST IN, 
YOU KNOW -- IF YOU'RE FIRST IN, THEN YOU CAN GET AWAY WITH 
NOT HAVING TO MAKE ALL THE IMPROVEMENTS TO THE HIGHWAYS.
WE SAW PROBLEMS WHERE WE'RE HAVING ENCLAVE NEIGHBORHOODS 
BEING BUILT WHERE YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE 6- OR 700 CARS BEING 
DUMPED ON ONE ROAD AND CREATING A NIGHTMARE.
WE WERE SEEING PROBLEMS WHERE THERE WAS NO FUTURE PLANNING 
FOR SCHOOLS, LIBRARIES, POLICE AND FIRE, AND ALSO WE 
REALIZED THAT IF WE LET IT BE PIECEMEALED ONE PIECE AT A 
TIME AS A PUZZLE THAT SOONER OR LATER WE WERE GOING TO HAVE 
ROADS THAT WOULD RESEMBLE, YOU KNOW, ROADS THAT WE HAVE 
THROUGHOUT OUR COUNTY WHERE WE'RE NOW TRYING TO GO BACK AND 
SPEND HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS TO FIX THEM, SUCH AS 
BRUCE B. DOWNS, LITHIA-PINECREST ROAD AND SO FORTH.
AND SO THE IDEA BEHIND THIS IS THAT WE DIDN'T WANT TO BE 
PIECEMEALED AND HAVE SOMETHING THAT, YOU KNOW, JUST BECAUSE 
IT MET THE LEGAL RAMIFICATIONS TO BE DEVELOPED IT WAS NOT 
GOING TO BE -- ONCE YOU PUT EVERY PROPERTY DEVELOPED 
TOGETHER WOULD NOT BE WHAT WE WERE LOOKING FOR, SO WE SAID 
LET'S STOP IT AND LET'S TRY TO COME BACK WITH A PLAN THAT 
GROWTH PAYS FOR ITSELF ALONG THE WAY, THAT WE GET AWAY FROM 
ENCLAVE NEIGHBORHOODS AND WE PUT IN A GRID TRANSPORTATION 
CITY SO THAT AS ONE PROPERTY OWNER DEVELOPS HIS LAND, OKAY, 
THE FOUR-LANE OF SAM ALLEN ROAD WOULD GO TO THE NEXT 
PROPERTY OWNER, TO THE NEXT PROPERTY OWNER, SO IT PAYS FOR 
ITSELF, AND WHEN IT'S ALL SAID AND DONE, WE HAVE A 
TRANSPORTATION GRID THAT HAD SUPPORT THE POPULATION THAT'S 
THERE.
WE ALSO WERE SAYING THAT WE WANT TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE 
ENOUGH COMMERCIAL INDUSTRIAL PROPERTIES IN THERE TO WHERE A 
HIGH PERCENTAGE OF THE PEOPLE THAT LIVE THERE CAN WORK 
THERE, ENOUGH -- ENOUGH COMMERCIAL PROPERTY THERE SO PEOPLE 
CAN SHOP THERE, YOU KNOW, SO THAT HOPEFULLY WE GET AWAY 
FROM WHAT WE WERE TALKING ABOUT EARLIER WHERE 42% OF YOUR 
PEOPLE HAVE TO DRIVE ELSEWHERE TO WORK, THAT THEY CAN LIVE, 
WORK, AND ENTERTAIN THEIRSELVES AND THEIR FAMILIES ALL IN 
THE SAME AREA.
PARKS AND RECREATION ARE ADDRESSED IN THIS PARTICULAR AREA, 
SO THIS WAS NOT SAYING LET'S GO OUT AND GROW THIS AREA.
THAT'S NOT WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH AT ALL.
WE'RE JUST TRYING TO SAY THAT IF WE LEARN FROM OTHER AREAS 
WE DEVELOP THAT THERE'S A BETTER WAY OF DOING IT AND WE'RE 
SIMPLY SAYING LET'S HAVE A PLAN IN PLACE SO THAT 10, 15, 20 
YEARS FROM NOW IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE CAN LIVE WITH.
THE OTHER THING WE WERE TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH HERE TOO, WE 
WANTED TO MAKE SURE WE HAD RULES IN PLACE SO THAT IF YOU 
WANT TO BUY A PIECE OF PROPERTY, ANNEX IT INTO THE CITY, 
AND SELL IT TO SOMEONE THAT'S GOING TO DEVELOP IT, YOU KNOW 
WHAT WE EXPECT FOR YOU TO DO SO, OKAY, AND IF YOU WANT TO 
PLAY AND WORK WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF THE VISION THAT WE 
HAVE FOR THAT AREA, GREAT.
IF YOU DON'T, THEN DON'T COME TO OUR AREA, YOU KNOW.
WE LITERALLY DON'T WANT YOU TO DEVELOP IN OUR AREA.
SO IT SETS THE STANDARD OF WHAT WE WANT TO ACCOMPLISH IN 
THAT COMMUNITY, AND I THINK IT WAS A PRETTY BOLD DECISION 
BY OUR STAFF AND EVERYONE THAT WAS INVOLVED IN IT AND OUR 
COMMISSION FOR APPROVING IT, AND HOPEFULLY THE COUNTY 
COMMISSION WILL APPROVE THE VISION WHEN WE BRING IT TO THEM 
IN THE UPCOMING MEETINGS.
AGAIN, THANK YOU TO CARTER BURGESS FOR THE WORK THEY DID.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THANK YOU, MAYOR LOTT.
ANY OTHER COMMENTS?
THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
MR. BECK AND MR. WILLIAMSON, WHICH IS THE NEXT ITEM ON THE 
AGENDA, TRUCK FREIGHT TRAFFIC ANALYSIS.
THEY REQUESTED THAT WE POSTPONE THIS UNTIL THE NEXT 
MEETING.
>> YES.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THANK YOU.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
WE'LL DO THAT.
SO WE HAVE A COUPLE -- WE HAVE THREE PEOPLE THAT WANT TO 
SPEAK FOR THE PUBLIC INPUT.
WILFORD SARGENT.
>> THANK YOU, MR. CHAIRMAN.
I'M WILFORD SARGENT, 3626 SHADY [INCOMPREHENSIBLE] DRIVE , 
LARGO, FLORIDA.
I COME OVER FROM PINELLAS COUNTY BECAUSE WHAT YOU ARE DOING 
HERE IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY IS VERY CLOSE TO MY HEART.
I BELIEVE IN ALL THIS TRANSIT STUFF.
I HAVE BEHIND ME A FULL CAREER IN TRANSIT, AND WHAT I HAD 
HEARD RAY CHIARAMONTE SAY TODAY IS MUSIC TO MY EARS.
IT'S BEAUTIFUL.
HOWEVER, AS I LISTENED, I WONDER WHAT YOU ARE IMAGINING 
WHEN HE TALKS ABOUT LIGHT RAIL, LRT.
IS HE SEEING STREETCAR TRACKS IN THE STREETS?
IS HE SEEING THEM MIXED UP WITH AUTOMOBILES?
REMEMBER, IT WAS THE AUTOMOBILE THAT KILLED THE STREETCARS 
50 YEARS AGO.
DON'T PUT STREETCARS BACK IN THE STREETS.
WHAT HAS TO BE DONE IS TO PROVIDE THEM ON A SEPARATE RIGHT-
OF-WAY.
NOW, I'VE SEEN WHERE IT IS IN BARCELONA WHERE THEY CREATED 
AN AISLE RIGHT DOWN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD AND LAID TWO NEW 
STREETCAR TRACKS DOWN.
EXCLUSIVE RIGHT-OF-WAY IS THE ONLY WAY THAT IT CAN BE RAPID 
TRANSIT.
THE NEXT QUESTION THEN IS WHAT HAPPENS WITH RAPID TRANSIT?
THE IDEA IS RAPID, AND IT CAME ORIGINALLY FROM BEING FASTER 
THAN A STREETCAR, SO RAPID TRANSIT WAS EXCLUDED FROM THE 
STREETCARS BUT STILL CONTINUED TO RENDER THE SAME KIND OF 
SERVICE, AND THE SAME KIND OF SERVICE REQUIRES STATIONS 
MAYBE HALF A MILE APART, UP TO TWO MILES APART, BUT THE 
STATIONS ARE RELATIVELY CLOSE TOGETHER, AND THAT IS WHAT 
HAS BEEN TALKED ABOUT GOING DOWN TO SOUTH TAMPA.
EIGHT MILES, NINE STATIONS, SO THE STATIONS ARE CLOSER THAN 
A MILE APART, WHICH IS TYPICAL LIGHT RAIL TRANSIT 
PERFORMANCE.
THEN I SEE THESE MAPS SHOWING ARROWS GOING OUT INTO THE 
COUNTRY.
NOW, LIGHT RAIL TRANSIT IS NOT GOING TO GO OUT INTO THE 
COUNTRY WITH A STATION EVERY MILE, AND THAT'S THE BIG 
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN LIGHT RAIL TRANSIT AND COMMUTER.
NOW, COMMUTER IS DESIGNED FOR THE LONGER HAUL, AND IT HAS 
TO BE DESIGNED WITH THE STATIONS MUCH FURTHER APART.
AS YOU KNOW, I HAVE IN MY BACKGROUND, IT WAS MY 
RESPONSIBILITY TO BUILD THE SAME -- THE FIRST LINES FOR GO 
TRANSIT IN TORONTO.
WE HAD THE LINE 21 MILES IN EACH DIRECTION WITH ONLY FIVE 
STATIONS IN IT, AND THE TRAINS WENT 90 MILES PER HOUR 
BETWEEN THE STATIONS.
THAT'S THE ONLY WAY THAT YOU CAN RENDER RAIL COMMUTER 
SERVICE.
NOW, HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY IS, WHAT, SOMETHING LIKE 50 MILES 
NORTH-SOUTH, 40 MILES EAST-WEST.
YOU CAN'T SERVE THAT WITH JUST EXTENDING THE LRT LINES.
YOU WILL NEED BOTH KINDS OF SERVICE.
SO COMMUTER SERVICE DOES NOT HAVE TO BE TRAINS.
THE SPECIFICATION FOR COMMUTER SERVICE IS STATIONS, 
ANYTHING FROM FOUR TO EIGHT MILES APART, HIGH SPEEDS 
BETWEEN THE STATIONS, AND THE ABILITY TO -- FOR PASSENGERS 
TO MOVE LONG DISTANCE.
THEN THE SPECIFICATION FOR LRT HAS TO BE LOCAL SERVICES, 
STATIONS A MILE OR SO APART.
SORRY.
I WILL QUIT NOW.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THANK YOU, MR. SERGEANT.
OKAY.
PAM CLOUSTON.
>> THANK YOU.
I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT MAYOR PAM HAS DUBBED MR. 
SARGENT THE TRANSPORTATION IDOL, BY THE WAY, AND HE'S A 
VERY WISE MAN.
I'M NOT ALL THE WAY THROUGH HIS BOOK YET, BUT I'M GETTING 
THERE.
MAYOR LOTT, DO YOU KNOW THAT CORRIDOR "D" ON TBARTA'S MAP 
NUMBER 8 GOES RIGHT THROUGH YOUR HISTORIC DOWNTOWN?
OKAY.
JUST IN CASE YOU DIDN'T KNOW THAT, IT DOES.
>>RICK LOTT:  [INAUDIBLE]
>> I LIVE SOUTH OF THERE, ABOUT TEN MILES SOUTH, RIGHT OFF 
OF 39.
SO, YEAH, IT MIGHT BE A LITTLE BIT OF A NIMBY THING TOO.
I WANTED TO TELL YOU THAT I REALLY LIKE THE MPO TRANSIT 
PLAN.
A WEEK OR SO AGO MY GENEROUS, WONDERFUL DAUGHTER BOUGHT ME 
LION KING TICKETS FOR MOTHER'S DAY.
SHE PAID A LOT OF MONEY FOR THEM, AND I WAS VERY EXCITED 
ABOUT COMING DOWN TO SEE IT.
IT WAS SATURDAY AT 2:00 P.M., AND WE CAME IN OFF THE 
CROSSTOWN AND WE CAME STRAIGHT DOWN DEAD KENNEDY BOULEVARD 
TO GO TO THE PERFORMING ARTS CENTER.
THERE WAS -- THERE WASN'T ANYBODY BREATHING ON KENNEDY 
BOULEVARD ON SATURDAY AFTERNOON AT 2:00, AND I THOUGHT HOW 
SAD THAT IS.
I'VE LIVED IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY FOR 25 YEARS.
I GREW UP IN CLEVELAND, OHIO, AND AS A YOUNG ADULT LIVED IN 
MINNEAPOLIS, ST. PAUL, AND YOU CAN'T IMAGINE HOW STRANGE IT 
WAS FOR ME TO COME HERE AND HAVE NOTHING GOING ON DOWNTOWN 
BESIDES DURING THE WORKDAY.
I'M HOPING THAT THIS TRANSPORTATION PLAN IS GOING TO 
BREATHE SOME LIFE INTO THE CITY OF TAMPA WHERE THOSE OF US 
THAT CHOOSE A RURAL LIFESTYLE BUT EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE 
WANT A TASTE OF THE CITY CAN COME HERE.
YOU KNOW, WE GO ON VACATIONS AND GO UP TO THE MOUNTAINS, 
AND WE ALWAYS HIT A CITY SO WE CAN DO A LITTLE BIT OF A 
DOWNTOWN THING SOMEPLACE.
I ALSO WANTED TO MENTION, MY DAUGHTER GOES TO FSU, WHICH IS 
IN TALLAHASSEE, AND EVERY CREDIT HOUR THERE'S A CHARGE FOR 
TRANSPORTATION.
I DON'T KNOW IF THAT APPLIES FOR USF HERE OR NOT, BUT FOR 
EVERY CREDIT HOUR WE PAY ABOUT $7, $8 FOR TRANSPORTATION 
FEE.
SHE CAN GET ON ANY BUS IN TALLAHASSEE, PRETTY MUCH LEON 
COUNTY, I THINK, BY FLASHING HER USF I.D., AND SHE CAN GET 
ON ANY BUS ANYWHERE, NOT JUST ON CAMPUS OR AROUND CAMPUS.
SHE NOW LIVES IN A SUBURB, JUMPS ON A BUS THAT USED TO BE A 
SHORT BUS AND GOES TO A HUB AND THEN TRANSFERS.
NOW THEY'RE SENDING OUT A REGULAR-SIZE BUS BECAUSE SO MANY 
FOLKS ARE USING THAT TRANSPORTATION.
THAT MIGHT EVEN BE SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT TO ENCOURAGE, 
YOU KNOW, FOLKS THAT ARE WORKING THERE OR FOLKS THAT, YOU 
KNOW -- TRANSPORTATION PASS, AND SHE JUST -- SHE'S SAVING 
ME $68 A WEEK BY NOT DRIVING TO AND FROM CAMPUS FIVE DAYS.
THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THANK YOU.
OKAY.
THE LAST ONE IS GEORGE NIEMANN.
>> THANK YOU.
I'M STILL GEORGE NIEMANN, DOVER, FLORIDA.
I REALLY DIDN'T WANT TO SPEAK, BUT MR. CHIARAMONTE MADE AN 
EFFORT TO CLARIFY SOMETHING WITH REGARD TO CITIZENS' 
CONCERNS ABOUT WHERE CITIZENS SAY -- STATE THAT TBARTA CAN 
OVERRIDE OUR COMP PLANS, SO THEN -- NOW I'M FORCED TO COME 
UP AND ELUCIDATE AND CLARIFY WHAT I THINK IS MEANT BY THE 
AVERAGE CITIZEN WHEN THEY SAY THAT.
THAT IS AN OVERSTATEMENT, THAT THEY CAN OVERRIDE, BUT LET'S 
BE CLEAR AND LET'S BE REALISTIC AND PRAGMATIC.
ONE BARTNERSHIP WAS PUT INTO PLACE BY STATE LEGISLATURE, 
AND THEY HAVE -- AND PART OF THEIR MANDATE WAS TO COME UP 
WITH A CONFLICT RESOLUTION PLAN, WHICH THEY'VE DONE.
THEY'VE CREATED IT.
AND I'VE SAT IN ON THE MEETINGS AND I'VE LISTENED TO THEIR 
COMMITTEES, THE CAC, AND THE TMC.
WE ALL KNOW THAT THE TRANSPORTATION PLAN, PARTICULARLY IN 
TRANSIT HUBS, WILL DRIVE LAND USE, AND I WOULD SAY I WOULD 
PROBABLY BE WILLING TO BET MONEY THERE'S GOING TO BE A 
CONFLICT SOMEWHERE ALONG THE LINE AS THEY DEVELOP THIS 
TRANSPORTATION PLAN, PARTICULARLY SO BECAUSE WE'RE DOING 
THINGS BACKWARDS.
WE'RE -- THEY'RE DOING A TRANSPORTATION PLAN AND WE'RE NOT 
DOING SOMETHING COMPARABLE FOR A LONG-RANGE LAND USE PLAN.
NOW, IF YOU'RE GOING TO DO YOUR TRANSPORTATION PLAN FIRST, 
YOU'RE GOING TO RUN INTO SITUATIONS WHERE YOU MIGHT 
CONFLICT WITH A LOCAL COMP PLAN OR LOCAL LAND USE, SO THEY 
HAVE A PROCESS IN PLACE, BUT IT MAY INVOLVE AS ALL THE GOOD 
LAWYERS DO NEGOTIATE, NEGOTIATE, NEGOTIATE, THEN ARBITRATE, 
AND YOU MAY END UP HAVING SOME OF YOUR -- SOME OF OUR LOCAL 
COMP PLAN LAWS OVERRIDDEN, SO CAN THEY JUST OVERRIDE IT?
NO, BUT THIS QUASI-AGENCY CAN -- AND WE MAY FIND THESE 
CONFLICTS MAY NOT BE ABLE TO BE RESOLVED, AND IT'LL GO 
BEFORE AN ARBITRATOR, AND WE MAY END UP ON THE SHORT END OF 
THE STICK.
OH, AND BY THE WAY, IN A MEETING WE HAD, A PRIVATE MEETING 
WITH A MEMBER OF THE PARTNERSHIP, THAT MEMBER ADMITTED THAT 
THEY ARE -- THE PARTNERSHIP IS CURRENTLY WORKING UP IN 
TALLAHASSEE TO TRY AND LEGISLATE A LAND USE VERSION OF 
TBARTA, SO WAIT, IT'S GOING TO HAPPEN, AND WE'RE GOING TO 
HAVE -- ONE BARTNERSHIP IS GOING TO DO OUR TRANSPORTATION 
PLAN AS WELL AS OUR LAND USE PLAN, AND TRUST ME, THERE'S 
GOING TO BE CONFLICTS SOMEWHERE ALONG THE LINE, SO I THINK 
IT'S AN OVERSTATEMENT, IT'S OVERSIMPLIFICATION TO SAY THEY 
CAN OVERRIDE IT, BUT IF THERE'S A CONFLICT AND WE STAND 
FIRM AND SAY, WE WON'T LET YOU DO THAT, WE COULD END UP 
BEING OVERRIDDEN BY AN ARBITRATOR.
THANK YOU.
>>JOE AFFRONTI:  THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
OKAY.
IS THERE ANY OLD BUSINESS?
ANY NEW BUSINESS?
IF NOT, I THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
WE ADJOURN.



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