An open Neighborhood Forum will be held on Thursday, Jan 18 at 7 PM at Kate Jackson Community Center to discuss SOHO parking problems. We received this communication from Jonathan Scott, Traffic Studies Engineer. A Neighborhood Forum will be held on Thursday, January 18 at 7:00pm at the Kate Jackson Community Center, 821 South Rome Ave. The City of Tampa Transportation Division has been directed to collectively gather additional feedback on possible solutions with the community in regards to the parking problems in SoHo. This meeting is open to residents and business owners in SoHo.

Politics, Money, and more - how it maybe playing a part in SOHO's real estate, bars, and restaurants.

The change in zoning requested for the block currently occupied by The Dubliner, Sangrias, SOHOSushi, and others took an interesting turn at the Nov. 16th City Council meeting. Property owner Frank Kane teamed with Whiskey Park owner Tommy Ortiz to address the main questions of increased parking needs that would occur with the planned creation of a cigar bar/restaurant on the second floor.



Rumors have circulated for months that the Whiskey Park group is interested in much more than just the upstairs of the building facing Howard Avenue. With parking already a major problem in SOHO, the addition of another club will only increase the demand. Elimination of over 100 spaces has been in ongoing discussion on one side of the road on parts of Westland, Azeele, and Horatio streets due to the narrowness of the road prohibiting emergency vehicle access.

Mr. Ortiz shocked Council Members when he stated he had either acquired property or negotiated alliances with enough locations to provide a total of 600 parking spaces in SOHO for the full block wet zoning plans. Councilmembers John Dingfelder and Linda Saul-Sena seemed stunned to hear such a large number and even questioned some of the specifics in the plan presented by Mr. Ortiz. This was the final City Council meeting for Rose Ferlita and Kevin White as they are leaving the City Council to become members of the County Commission.

Councilmember Kevin White also questioned the reality of available parking. Additional questions were raised as to why the entire property should be wet zoned, almost from border to border. Council Member Shawn Harrison seemed to be most concerned about the wet zoning licensing and the fact that the wet zoning designation on the property would stay with the property, whether parking was later available or not. Councilmember Gwen Miller stayed quiet through most of the discussion.

Mr. Ortiz produced over a dozen witnesses to testify as to his soundness in business, cooperativeness with the neighbors, and his ability to bridge differing issues. He was most eager to get the issue passed at that meeting. And with this being Councilmember Ferlita's last meeting, it appears clear as to why.

Councilmember Rose Ferlita (newly elected County Commissioner) seemed to aggressively support the Whiskey Park proposal. And it is no wonder why. We saw her during the campaign personally placing campaign signs in front of Whiskey Park SOHO. But it is a lot more than that. Her campaign reports showed she received over $ 5,000 in campaign contributions from Mr. Ortiz and his partner Christopher Scott or companies they are directly involved in. Skybar of Tampa, Precision Marketing & Promotions, Tampa Hyde Park Cafe, Tampa Hyde Park Properties, 309 Holdings, Harmony 420, CPT Acquisitions, Tampa Concessions, 720 South Howard each contributed $500 according to her campaign reports, most reported on June 22, corporate records indicate Tommy Ortiz and/or Christopher Scott as officers of those entities. Campaign contributions also came from South Tampa Rentals owned by Frank Kane, the actual property owner. And contributions from Peter Hannouche who shows up on corporate records with Mr. Ortiz as well. The Rose Ferlita Republican County Commission campaign raised over $400,000 in total contributions.

None of those contributions seem to be illegal. However, we believe Council Member Ferlita should have excused herself from participating in this issue or at the very least acknowledged her relationship with the petitioners. It raises questions in our eyes and in the eyes of the public as to whether our elected officials are bought and sold, not a good way to start a new county elected position.

The final result at the City Council Meeting was to allow time for some compromise discussion and to continue the zoning request to be heard at the December 7th meeting. Additional public input will be allowed at that meeting. Rightfully, most Councilmembers wanted proof of parking leases and property ownership before being willing to approve this zoning change request.

Council members voted to continue the zoning request - including Rose Ferlita. When Mr. Ortiz questioned that, John Dingfelder replied " It is better than being denied."

You can call the City Council at (813) 274-8131

You can see the Ferlita Campaign Finance Reports here. http://www.votehillsborough.org/CFFilingDetail.aspx?type=contribution&file_id=1508

You can verify corporate officers here: http://sunbiz.org/corpweb/inquiry/cormenu.html

Creative Loafing (formerly the Weekly Planet) has a great story about the The Money Men, a discussion of some big money givers in the recent elections. http://tampa.creativeloafing.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A143851

Visit Rose Ferlita's Campaign Website here. http://www.electroseferlita.com