Citizens for the Revitalization of Temple Terrace

Latest News November 2, 2003

Latest News (November 2, 2003): 

At the October 21st Temple Terrace Redevelopment Agency (TTRA) meeting (the TTRA is composed of the City Council members, Mayor and City Manager) the TTRA decided to drop the contract stipulations they had placed on the purchase of Terrace Plaza.  Those stipulations included responsibility for any existing property owner claims, closing costs, and related fees.  As you may recall, the owners of Terrace Plaza, the Bickimer brothers, tentatively accepted the City’s latest offer of 7.5 million for the property but rejected the stipulations.  Getting the Terrace Plaza parcel under the City’s control will be a huge leap forward for the revitalization of our downtown area.

The city manager is in final contract negotiations with the selected town planners, Dover, Kohl & Partners.   The Town Planner will be conducting the public charrette to create the master plan for the SE Quadrant (basically the former Publix and Kash N’Karry properties in addition to the previously purchased riverfront property and outparcels yet to be purchased). 

As President of CRTT, I have suggested that the City ask the Town Planner to implement a version of the Smartgrowth SmartCode (one of the principals in our selected planning firm, Joseph Kohl, is quoted in this article) at the time they create the Master Plan as an alternative alongside our existing City Code.   The CRTT Board has not met on this issue, and it is a recommendation I have made because with its loopholes and inconsistencies, I don’t need to tell anyone what a mess our current Codes are so let’s not miss this opportunity!

In the next couple of weeks the City will have a new CRA Director on board.  The City Manager has informed me that a selection committee was formed with representatives from STAR, CRTT and city staff.   The City made short list of four candidates for the CRA Director and the selection committee met to review the final four.  They are (in alphabetical order):

·          Ralph S. Bosek – Resident of Temple Terrace since 1981, past Vice President of TECO, past President and Chief Executive of Bosek, Gibson and Associates, Inc. (a multi-discipline Engineering firm).  Holds a Bachelors degree in Chemical Engineering and a Masters degree in Engineering, both from USF.

·          Wesley A. Hoaglund – Currently employed as a Redevelopment Specialist in Titusville, Florida with past experience as a Planner Level III in Jefferson, La. and a Planner/Historic Preservation Officer in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.  He has a Bachelor of Science in Economics, Urban Planning, and Political Science, and a Masters degree in Economic Planning and Environmental Administration, both from the University of Wisconsin.  He is a Certified Arborist.

·          Glenn D. Vann – Currently employed as a Economic Development Coordinator with the City of Miramar, Florida with past experience as a Community Development Coordinator in Gulfport, Mississippi.  He has a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Alcorn State University, Mississippi, and a Master of Science in Political Science from the University of Southern Mississippi.

·          Gary Wohlforth – Currently employed as an Economic Development Coordinator/Urban Planning Specialist in the City of North Miami Beach, Florida with past experience as a Senior Planner in the City of Miami Beach, Florida and Chief Redevelopment Planner with the City of Daytona Beach, Florida.  He has a Bachelor of Science in Economics/Finance from the University of Central Florida and a Master of Science in Economic Development from Florida State University.

At this juncture, I believe one of the most important qualifications our new CRA Director could have is direct experience with a successful downtown (greyfield) revitalization in Florida, preferably New Urbanist.   In my opinion, if our new CRA Director is not experienced with our Revitalization direction initially the project will suffer in quality and lost time and we will not be satisfied with the outcome.   This knowledge is absolutely critical if we expect our CRA Director (and I firmly believe we should!) to bring in the very best Development Teams, similar to how our previous Director put together a list of the very best Town Planners.  We know this has been a costly process, but I am convinced the expense will be well worth it if we get the desired result. 

Hopefully, we will receive updates from the City Manager on the status of the U.S. Postal Carriers Annex and Parts America parcels and city staff’s research into Doral Oaks’s rumored “condominium conversion” as recommended by the Strategic Teamwork and Redevelopment (STAR) committee on August 21.

 

Lastly, for those of you concerned with the City’s proposed South of Bullard road repair project (They will be installing new water lines and repaving the roads. I’m sure you’ve noticed the ribbons on the trees and marker flags).    City Engineer Joe Motta states:

 

  1. The streets will not be widened.
  2. Every effort will be made to save existing trees.
  3. He is not aware of any speeding problems on Burlingame or Glen Arven so at the time of his response, no traffic calming devices (speed bumps or humps) have been considered.
  4. Once the preliminary design is complete, they will schedule a Public Information Meeting to explain the project to the residents affected by the proposed construction.
  5. The proposed pavement marking (striping, reflectors, etc.) will be determined during final design.”

However, I feel that with regard to #3, it is my view that some type of traffic calming device is needed on Glen Arven and Burlingame, preferably not speedbumps (they're noisy, ugly, and merely shift a speeding problem to another street)—perhaps speedtables or raised intersections might be acceptable. We definitely don't want any streets widened, or street trees/landscape islands removed. 

There will be a Town Hall Meeting December 8th at 7:00pm at the Lightfoot Recreation Center, 10901 56th Street.     The Meeting is open forum but we hope it will concentrate on the South of Bullard road project.     If you would like to prepare for the Town Hall Meeting we suggest that you review Transportation expert Dan Burden's excellent pamphlet "Streets and Sidewalks, People and Cars: The Citizens Guide to Traffic Calming."  It’s a great little booklet and an excellent resource.

Grant Rimbey 11/02/03

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