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Iorio ditches museum plans

The Tampa mayor yielded to the art museum's board, and to public sentiment, by scrapping plans to move the museum to a courthouse.

By MICHAEL VAN SICKLER and BILL VARIAN
Published July 22, 2005

TAMPA - Gauging that support was too shaky, Mayor Pam Iorio late Thursday afternoon scrapped a plan to move the Tampa Museum of Art into the historic federal courthouse.

Her decision came less than 24 hours after dozens of people told the mayor during a downtown meeting that the museum shouldn't move to the courthouse at Florida Avenue and Twiggs Street.

"We need to look at the overarching goal," Iorio said late Thursday after informing the museum's board of trustees about her decision. "We need a museum. If the museum folks say they don't want the museum in the courthouse, they won't raise the money and it won't get built."

Her decision, however, leaves the project in limbo as museum backers and the city seek a new site somewhere in downtown that serves twin goals of providing a suitable home for the museum and encouraging redevelopment.

It also forces the administration to reassess plans to create an arts district along Zack Street between the old courthouse and the river, Iorio said.

Iorio exacted one significant concession from museum backers before announcing that she will walk away from the courthouse proposal: It won't be built where the existing museum is located on the Hillsborough River. She said she still intends to demolish the old building within two years and add that land to an expanded and spruced up version of Curtis Hixon Park.

If all goes as planned, the new park would open in the next three years.

"My opinion doesn't change about the waterfront," Iorio said. "That's a real priority for this administration. We have to have that green space. We need to start fresh and look at a third option.

What that means remains to be seen. But museum board members cheered the mayor's reversal.

Cornelia Corbett, chairwoman of the museum's board, said that Iorio called about 8 p.m. Thursday to say she had changed her mind.

"I lauded her for being able to step out of a position," Corbett said. "She just thought it through. She knows the board is not in favor of the courthouse, and after listening to public opinion (Wednesday) night, she knew it wasn't possible."

Corbett said Iorio promised her that she would include the board in the process of picking a future site.

"She seemed okay that this was the next step in the life of the museum," Corbett said. "I think we're getting close, and now it will be a cooperative decision."

Board member Sara Richter was attending an opening at the museum when she heard the news from staff members about 6 p.m.

"Everyone was happy to hear this," Richter said. "It was good news for us. I'm ecstatic."

As for what's next, Corbett said it's important to take time before selecting a new site. But there isn't much time for any more delays, either, she said.

"We have to do the right thing and make this work," Corbett said. "We can't go through another hiccup. This has been a tennis ball going back and forth. Let's just get together and find a site so we can move forward with the fundraising."

The mayor's vision for the museum at the courthouse placed it as an anchor for an arts district that would line Zack Street to a waterfront park flanked by residences, stores and restaurants. The old museum would be torn down to provide a view of the University of Tampa from downtown.

Money generated by allowing private developers to build on the edges of the park would help pay for upgrades to the park and improvements to Ashley Drive. Critics at a meeting last week blasted the idea of letting private developers build on parkland between Hillsborough River and Ashley Drive.

The city launched a study of the idea of transforming the century-old, shut-down courthouse into a museum after plans for a $76-million art museum on Ashley Drive designed by renowned architect Rafael Vinoly fizzled over financing problems in April.

At the request of museum leaders, the study was expanded to include two sites on Ashley Drive - one perpendicular to the street and another parallel.

Preliminary estimates put the price of moving the museum into the courthouse at $26-million to $43.2-million. Building along Ashley Drive would cost about $46.4-million to $56-million. And a museum on Ashley would cost $35.3-million to $43.8-million.

The city has committed $20-million to build a new museum, and another $1-million a year to operate it. That hasn't changed, Iorio said.

Her latest decision, however, is not likely to please everyone.

It didn't win over former Tampa Mayor Sandy Freedman, who lit into Iorio's courthouse idea last week during a public meeting. Freedman, who was mayor from 1987 to 1995, criticized the courthouse as a poor alternative that would be pricier than estimated and would allow private development of parkland along Ashley Drive.

"I'm still concerned," Freedman said. "Even though she decided not to go with the courthouse, she still doesn't want it on the waterfront site. So where are we? We've essentially lost three years, and now if we go back to square one, we'll lose more time. Donors are getting antsy."

Everyone needs to give a little, Iorio said.

"If we truly want a museum, the current standoff, with strong opinions, is not going to cut it," Iorio said. "They're giving up the waterfront, and there's some members of the TMA who may have strong opinions about that. We're giving up the concept to the courthouse.

"We all have to compromise."

Staff writer Saundra Amrhein and Lennie Bennett contributed to this report.

[Last modified July 22, 2005, 00:32:15]