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Officials debate strategy on stormwater fee hike

A Tampa council member questions the piecemeal approach. A public hearing is Thursday morning.

By JANET ZINK
Published August 24, 2005

TAMPA - Navigating some Tampa streets after a heavy rain can feel more like piloting a ship than driving a car.

City officials say they want to fix that.

Mayor Pam Iorio has proposed raising Tampa's stormwater fee from $12 a year to $36. One City Council member thinks the fee hike may be too low, and the city needs a longer range repair plan. A public hearing on the fee increase is set for Thursday morning at City Hall.

The money is supposed to help fund a $60-million capital improvement plan for the city's aging stormwater system. The five-year plan includes 34 of 95 essential projects. More than $20-million would go to an upgrade of S Dale Mabry Highway between Henderson Boulevard and Neptune Avenue. Other key projects would improve drainage around West Tampa Elementary School, in Drew Park and on Paxton Avenue at Sixth Street in south Tampa.

Additional projects will be added to the "essential" list each year, said Steve Daignault, the city's public works administrator.

If approved, the fee increase would take effect in October.

Tampa's stormwater tax, now in its second year, is among the lowest in the state. It would remain that way even with the increase. Residents pay $24 a year in Lakeland, $48 in Miami, $72 in St. Petersburg, $75 in Tallahassee, $82.56 in Orlando and $103.80 in Clearwater.

The intention is to continue raising the stormwater fee incrementally over time, Daignault said.

"That way people can accommodate it in their budget," Daignault said.

City Council member Shawn Harrison said he supports an increased stormwater fee, but questions the piecemeal approach to establishing it.

"If you're going to cut off a dog's tail you don't do it piece by piece," he said, "You do it all at once."

Harrison said he wasn't sure what level the tax ought to be, but he sees advantages in a broader approach.

"I wonder if there's a different opportunity for us," Harrison said. "I would like to know how much it would cost us if we were to go out to bid on all 95 of those projects and then come up with a plan through a variety of different funding sources, one of which would be a fee increase."

The longer the city waits to take care of stormwater problems, he said, the more it will cost to fix them because of rising construction costs and inflation.

Bidding all the projects at once also might offer a cost effectiveness through economies of scale.

"I can't imagine we wouldn't have contractors jumping at the chance to do 95 large-scale stormwater projects in this community," Harrison said. "It would keep them busy for several years."

A hearing on the fee increase is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Thursday at City Hall, 315 E Kennedy Blvd.

Janet Zink can be reached at 813 226-3401 or jzink@sptimes.com

[Last modified August 24, 2005, 01:14:20]