Week in Review

ACTIVISTS, OFF BOARDS, CITE UNFAIR INFLUENCE: Two northwest Hillsborough citizen activists say they were booted from an important government board because they crossed someone who has the ear of Hillsborough County commissioners.

Commissioners say Jan Smith and Joyce Smith, who are not related, were removed from the board of Hillsborough Area Regional Transit, the county bus system, because of their policy stances. Both women are perceived as advocates of light rail and apologists for the HARTline administration, which puts them at odds with a majority of the commissioners who appointed them.

Both women, however, say commissioners weren't the only ones unhappy with them. They say some commissioners have their strings pulled by influential moneymakers who pad their campaigns with cash.

Jan Smith, an accountant who runs her husband's pediatric office, is past chairwoman for the Hillsborough County City-County Planning Commission and the county's Charter Review Board. She also has headed the Lutz Civic Association.

Smith says she received a call from Commissioner Jim Norman about two weeks before the general election. He said he had heard Smith was going to speak at a forum against a proposed charter amendment that would create a county auditor.

Norman asked Smith to think twice about it, she said. The proposal was the pet project of conservative business activist Ralph Hughes, who has pumped thousands of dollars into the campaigns of county officials, including Norman's.

Smith says Norman told her that if she spoke out, it would be difficult for him to appoint her again to any committee serving the county.

Norman acknowledges the phone call. But he says he never implied Jan Smith wouldn't be appointed to future committees for expressing views counter to Hughes'. He even voted to reappoint both Smiths during the subsequent Nov. 7 commission meeting, coming down on the losing side. "It's one of those things where, from my perspective, no good deed goes unpunished," Norman said.

Hughes, meanwhile, calls the allegations "ridiculous," "unbelievable" and "absolutely asinine." While no fan of either woman or HARTline's administration, Hughes said he did nothing to lobby for their ouster. "I do whatever I do out in the open," Hughes said. "If these two ladies were not reappointed, it was not of my doing."

Jan Smith says there was little reading between the lines in her conversation with Norman. She had opposed the auditor position as chairwoman of the Charter Review Commission in 2000, and said she would explain why if asked during the forum.

"His observation was that this is Ralph's baby and he really wanted it passed," Smith said. "And he said he would really like to continue to have the ability to appoint me to other boards. See the implication?"

Joyce Smith, who works at a public relations company and teaches political science at Hillsborough Community College, is the current chairwoman of the county's Citizen's Advisory Committee. She also is past chairwoman of the Town 'N Country Alliance neighborhood association.

Hughes, his family and business associates contributed thousands to the recent campaigns of Norman and fellow commissioners Tom Scott and Ronda Storms.

Norman said he has never talked to Hughes about either woman. Scott said the same. Scott voted for Joyce Smith, but not Jan Smith, at the commission's Nov. 7 meeting. He said by the time his roll call vote was requested, it was clear Jan Smith had no chance.

"My vote was based strictly on what I believe is the long-term best interest of HARTline," Storms said. "It's certainly not because of the charter thing."

COMPROMISE ON RECLAIMED WATER RATES APPROVED: After months of crunching numbers, the county Water Department and several large suburban subdivisions reached a compromise Wednesday on increased reclaimed water rates.

The new rates, approved unanimously by county commissioners, encourage conservation of the popular irrigation source without breaking the budgets of homeowner associations. Commercial clients, including Carrollwood Village and the Northdale Special Tax District, will pay 10 cents per 1,000 gallons for the first 15,000 gallons used each month, and 20 cents per 1,000 gallons for the next 15,000 gallons. Above that, users will pay 50 cents per 1,000 gallons.

Commissioners in April approved much higher reclaimed water rates as a way to reduce commercial use and allow more clients to sign on. But the rates, coming at the height of last summer's drought, caused reclaimed water bills in places such as Carrollwood Village to jump by 300 percent to 500 percent.

"We were concerned about the tremendous rate increase we saw," Northdale property manager Rick Pitrowkski said. "We do everything we can to keep our bills low and to conserve water, but when our water bills tripled, that was kind of scary."

Carrollwood Village property manager Dan Ruskiewicz went on the offensive and appealed to county water managers for some wiggle room. Ruskiewicz pointed out that, despite the neighborhood's lush appearance, he was actually using only about half of the amount of water deemed reasonable to maintain green grass.

"They've done a good job, and we should reward them for that," Commissioner Jim Norman said.

© 2006 • All Rights Reserved • Tampa Bay Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111

Contact the Times | Privacy Policy
Standard of Accuracy | Terms, Conditions & Copyright