Residents honored for taking on utility The county gives the Moral Courage Award to residents of the Egypt Lake area for battling Tampa Electric.
By BILL VARIAN
Published April 8, 2004
TAMPA - It won't improve the view from their living room windows.
But the Hillsborough County Commission offered residents of the Egypt Lake area a small consolation Wednesday by giving them its Moral Courage Award for their fight against huge power poles installed there last year by Tampa Electric Co.
The Moral Courage Award is presented annually and is the highest honor the commission presents to citizens. The recognition was given despite a recommendation from the commission's citizens advisory committee that none of this year's 11 nominees were worthy.
Commissioner Kathy Castor, who has been a champion of the neighborhood's cause, disagreed with the recommendation.
"They've continued to fight. They continue to fight today," Castor said. "Their actions have resulted in protections for neighborhoods throughout Hillsborough County."
Residents in the Egypt Lake area have been protesting the installation of nearly 80 power transmission poles - some as tall as 125 feet - in their northwest Hillsborough neighborhood since last year. The case is now in court.
Commissioners were powerless to order the removal of the poles because there were few regulations governing where poles can be erected. But as a result of the dispute, commissioners passed new rules governing where such tall pillars may be located and requiring public notice and hearings.
A proposal from Tampa Electric to remove some of the poles and replace them with slightly smaller ones goes to commissioners May 11. Residents in the area immediately affected oppose the plan and want them removed altogether.
"The fortitude and courage of these homeowners, of these Tampa citizens, is remarkable," said Paul Antinori, an attorney representing more than 50 property owners in one lawsuit against Tampa Electric. "The long, stonewalling tactics of Tampa Electric that would intimidate, frustrate and discourage most normal mortals has not worked with these folks. In fact, it has fortified their will to fight even more. That award is more than deserved. It's quintessentially perfect for these people."
The Moral Courage Award, now in its 13th year, has been often controversial, and its intent has been interpreted differently by commissioners since its inception. As it now stands, the award is meant to recognize people who stand up to government for what they believe is the betterment of their community.
Some members of the citizens advisory committee said Egypt Lake's fight was more with Tampa Electric than with government.
Commissioners voted 5-2 to recognize Egypt Lake residents. Commissioners Jim Norman and Ken Hagan voted no, saying the nominees should have been kicked back to the committee.
Other nominees included strip club owner Joe Redner, who has led fights against the Tampa City Council on behalf of his clubs, and Speak Up Tampa Bay, the nonprofit group that runs the county's public access television station. It has been the target of commission efforts to shut the station down because of broadcasts of nudity.
Some commissioners expressed interest in supporting members of the East Bay Little League for their successful efforts to win a facelift for a run-down park where they play.
Tampa Electric spokesman Ross Bannister was brief in his reaction to the vote: "I guess the polite thing to do would be to express our congratulations."
