Ed Turanchik was stiffed by the Hillsborough County Commission in his sweeping plan to redevelop Tampa's Central Park area. But he can take solace in this:
He apparently had the architect vote.
The Civitas plan, a multimillion-dollar plan to turn one of the city's poorest areas into a community of condos and upscale apartments, was shot down in January by the county commission.
According to a recent survey of area architects, however, 46 percent felt there was enough demand to justify the Civitas project while only 8 percent came down against it. (Still, 47 percent were unsure or had no opinion.) A plurality of the architects dished out an "average" ranking to Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio in the category of fostering responsible growth. Her cross-bay counterpart in St. Petersburg, Rick Baker, garnered a "better-than-average" rating.
The poll, conducted in January by the Tampa Bay chapter of the American Institute of Architects, quizzed about 100 architects on a variety of topics.
As a whole, the group was upbeat on the economy. About 69 percent saw some signs of recovery in the past six months, and another 14 percent saw many signs of recovery. About 65 percent predicted the economy is improving, and 76 percent said they plan to hire more employees this year.
Lee Benson, a St. Petersburg architect and president of the architect institute's Tampa Bay chapter, said his group's members are well-positioned to talk about projects in the pipeline. So, the argument goes, their prognostications of an economic rebound should hold some weight.
