The Iorio Administration Intimidation Continues...

This is NOT the first time that City Council has been intimidated by the Mayor's administration. (I wonder if Lennie Bennet still has her job (she does!) -- she calls the Mayor a meddler and hints at the control-freakness of it-all-Iorio)I'm not really sure where I view David Smith in all of this. It's almost like he seems to just give advice and stay neutral. Wow, that would be unusual compared to most of the other Attorneys for the City of Tampa. And, here's something I didn't know. I found that while I was searching for the last three ways that the Mayor's staff and Admin. have intimidated the City Council (ergo YOU and ME)

And, of course ---- I have been the recipient of a great and CONTINUING amount of intimidation from this Administration, it's family members, members of the Mayor's Staff, Sheriff's and Police .... countless others .... it goes on and on and on.

But, I guess it's time for me to get more involved with Friends of the River. I think Phil Compton is almost as angry as I am. Good. Now you know what you are dealing with. Gloves off. And keep up the good fight. You too, Ms. Saul-Sena.

Notice: Only Pam Iorio will be heard. Now, is it still a mystery to anyone how all this works??? She was Mayor before the election was a sparkle in someone's eye. It's extremely incorrect. Pull back the sewer cover and see for yourself....


City attorney shushes council on river flowSince the matter may be headed to court, he tells council only the mayor should comment. By JANET ZINK
Published March 30, 2007



TAMPA - Mayor Pam Iorio wants only one person associated with the city to talk about how much water should flow into the lower Hillsborough River.

And that's Mayor Pam Iorio.

City attorney David Smith made that clear to City Council members Thursday as they were about to hear from environmental groups and the Southwest Florida Water Management District about the issue.

Smith told the Council they could listen, but advised them not to comment because the matter is likely to end up in court. (now, remember these are YOUR elected representatives so you have just been GAGGED)

"Anything you say today can be part of the process," he said, adding if council members express an opinion that runs counter to the mayor's, they could end up testifying against the city. (there's this thing in the constitution about free speech and due process or is that the bill of rights?? I know and I want to make sure you do TOO because this is a BOLD FACE attempt to circumvent that)

"There has to be one voice," he said. (okay he reminds me of someone here .... hmmmm)

Smith said river flow is an administrative matter, and the council has no say in it. hhhhhhhhhhmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Last week, an assistant city attorney delivered the same message to the Mayor's Environmental Roundtable, a group formed in 2005 to provide Iorio with perspective on environmental issues.

Smith's advice to the City Council had Phil Compton, a member of the nonprofit group Friends of the River, shaking with anger.

"It's very odd that council is being intimidated by the mayor's office," he said after the City Council meeting.
"They're trying to intimidate the members of the environmental roundtable. They're trying to intimidate the City Council," he said. "It's evil."
Yes it IS and it's just going to get WORSE !!! I bet they'll play nice with Mr. Compton now that I am standing up for him and I hope he will not be fooled. What he saw was what IS.

You can help Mr. Compton by going here and signing the Friends of the River letter to swfwmdCouncil member Linda Saul-Sena said she was frustrated by Smith's advice not to talk.

"I'm going to research our options," she said. "The health of the Hillsborough River is very important to me. The river is one of the city's great assets and I want to have a healthy river."

The council opted to postpone the river flow presentations.

At issue is how much fresh water should flow over the Hillsborough River dam into the lower river to keep fish and plants alive.

The city gets most of its drinkable water from a reservoir above the dam, and city officials say they can't spare a drop for the river's wildlife. The city already takes the maximum allowed by a state permit to meet Tampa's water needs.

The debate over how much fresh water should flow into the lower Hillsborough River began more than seven years ago when Tampa and the Southwest Florida Water Management District, or Swiftmud, set the rate at 10 cubic feet per second.

The nonprofit group Friends of the River questioned the level, saying it wasn't high enough to support snook, baby manatees and other wildlife. The group sued and reached a settlement requiring a five-year study.

In 2005, Swiftmud released a draft report that said the level should be raised to 26 cubic feet per second. The city said the report didn't justify the higher number. Swiftmud and the city negotiated a level of 20 cubic feet per second. But a scientific panel review of the recommendation released this week said that amount "just barely" meets the river's needs. The review recommends at least increasing the flow to 24 cubic feet per second in April through June.

Swiftmud will respond to the recommendations next month.

Rich Brown, an engineer who worked on water quality issues for the U.S. Navy, serves on the Mayor's Environmental Roundtable. He said that in a "spirited" discussion with city officials last Friday, the group said they wanted to weigh in on the matter. But assistant city attorney Jan McLean told them they could not make any recommendations.

"She was sent there, I thought, to squash us," Brown said.

Brown said as a member of Friends of the River, he would like to see at least 30 cubic feet per second flowing over the dam. But as a compromise, the group would accept the recommendations of Swiftmud's scientific review panel.

Brown believes the solution is simple: Let the water flow over the dam to help the river and simply buy water from Tampa Bay Water for the city water customers.

That would require raising the city water rates, he said, but Tampa residents now pay very little for water.

According to city officials, Tampa residents pay about $12 per month for water. Residents in Pinellas County pay twice that, and other Hillsborough residents pay nearly three times more.

"The mayor needs to make a bold move," Brown said. "Just raise water rates in the city of Tampa to match the average of the local area."

Rick right up to here I was holding your hand. She just gouged the rest of us for South Tampa. The water is UNACCEPTABLE. She has raised rates across the board for every service. Are you SERIOUS??? Did she plant you there to say that so it didn't appear to be HER idea? Wouldn't be the first time !!!Janet Zink can be reached at jzink@sptimes.com or 813 226-3401.

[Last modified March 30, 2007, 00:40:23]



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Comments on this article by Tim 04/02/07 11:58 PM
We have to set sustainable levels of flow for the health of the river, then deal with whats left.There are plenty of cities without our rainfall,or even a major river,that have learned to get by just fine.The tecnology is there,we havetosetpriorities
by Chris 03/30/07 02:13 PM
So go from $12/month to $36/month? Seems reasonable to me, but I live by the river and it matters to me. Tampa could fudge it by treating wastewater and piping it into the river above the dam. (Enzymes can chew up birth control hormones.)
by Steve 03/30/07 05:39 AM
Put a lid on the new development, not our public official's opinions. Is this democracy or free enterprise in action? Like Spock said, "The needs of the may outweigh the needs of the few".