Sports complex survives a fight

The $40-million, east county facility is narrowly - and conditionally - approved after an hours-long debate about commission Chairman Jim Norman's pet project.

TAMPA - Amateur athletes may one day get to compete at baseball, football, soccer and track at a championship sports complex in eastern Hillsborough County.

That's thanks to considerable wrestling at County Center by Hillsborough commissioners Wednesday.

After nearly three hours of public testimony and commission debate, the board gave conceptual approval to build Chairman Jim Norman's proposed $40-million sports complex. Commissioners Kathy Castor and Brian Blair voted against the plan.

The sports plan was part of roughly $410-million in spending of county Community Investment Tax dollars approved by commissioners Wednesday. Their main focus was on stormwater and roadway construction, along with the amateur sports center and a jail expansion.

Commissioners took two steps back from the controversial sports complex, even as they approved it in concept.

Before it could go forward, they said, there must be a study that shows it will make enough money to pay for the cost to build it. And they decided not to pin the project to the Cone Ranch property north of Plant City, where Norman wants it to go, opting instead to keep the location open for future debate.

Norman was willing to accept those concessions to keep the project alive, as it looked doubtful at times during Wednesday's debate. He predicted the complex will indeed pay for itself after selling advertising at its fields and leasing them out - and likely will pay for other parks programs.

"We will be ahead of the game in terms of what we are putting out there in terms of the fields and the location in the central part of the state," Norman said.

Commissioners have been wrangling for the better part of two years over how to commit more money to transportation and stormwater needs without having to raise taxes. So they turned to the CIT, a half-cent sales tax approved by voters in 1996.

The proceeds are currently committed, but will start to become available again starting in 2008. The county's budget office estimates the tax will generate about $301.5-million for commissioners to spend in the ensuing five years.

Months of discussions resulted in a proposal to commit most of that money: $50-million toward stormwater projects, $66-million for the Phase VII expansion of the Falkenburg Road Jail and $40-million for transportation. This summer, Norman added his sports complex to the mix, saying it would make money and spur economic development.

He proposes building the complex on 425-acres of the Cone Ranch well field off State Road 39 about three miles north of Interstate 4. The county owns the land. The complex would include a 22,000-seat football and soccer arena, a baseball field with stands for 3,000 people and a track that could accommodate another 1,500 spectators.

Norman has said it could hold championship games and headline matchups between youth sports teams, and may draw pro baseball teams interested in holding spring training there.

On Wednesday, several people spoke for and against the project, including representatives of the Tampa Bay Sports Commission, the school district, a professional soccer league and University of South Florida touting its merits. A number of people spoke against the proposal in light of more pressing needs.

"This is the third-world mentality," said Marilyn Smith, a regular critic of big local government spending projects. "Let's build the Taj Majal over here and forget about all these other things over here."

Early in the debate Wednesday, a majority of commissioners appeared to have a similar discomfort. After all, they had sped up discussion of CIT spending largely to address flooding problems revealed by last year's hurricane season.

Blair, a former wrestler and current youth sports coach, said he was sympathetic to Norman's idea. "With that said, we have some serious infrastructure needs," he added.

Commissioner Mark Sharpe wanted a detailed analysis to go along with the general assertions that there is a market for the sports complex. He urged that the vote be delayed.

"I would like the opportunity to delve into this," he said. "I (have) read a lot of assumptions. If these assumptions prove wrong, we run a great risk."

Commissioner Ronda Storms broke the logjam.

Storms was among those who had been pressed for more spending on drainage projects because her district weathered some of last year's worst flooding, and that was a major part of the proposal on the table.

She suggested the commission commit its CIT revenues for eight years following 2008, not five years as the county administration had proposed. That added $150-million more for commissioners to spend.

She also said they should commit all of that extra money to transportation and drainage, with the details to be worked out later, and set aside the sports complex for a separate vote. The board unanimously approved this.

"I had a baby once," Storms said. "It wasn't this hard."

"Mine's on the way," Norman joked.

Then they voted on his plan, and approved it 5-2.

Staff writer Bill Varian can be reached at 813 226-3387 or varian@sptimes.com

Tampa Bay headlines

© 2006 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times 490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111 Contact the Times | Privacy Policy Standard of Accuracy | Terms, Conditions & Copyright