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Mayor recaps year, looks ahead

Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio delivered her annual State of the City address, focusing on the city's quality of life issues.

By JANET ZINK
Published March 28, 2006

	[Times photos: Joseph Garnett Jr.]
	Mayor Pam Iorio answers questions after her State of the City address Tuesday.
	Iorio repeatedly pitched the Riverwalk, a 2.4-mile, $40-million pedestrian walkway along the Hillsborough River. Text of speech

"The state of the city is good," Mayor Pam Iorio declared before she delivered her annual state of the city address Tuesday at the Tampa Convention Center.

Iorio's recap of the year focused on the quality-of-life basics she has made the hallmark of her term in office -- drainage, road and park improvements, redevelopment of faded neighborhoods, residential construction downtown, public safety and a commitment to the arts.

It is easy to ignore crumbling streets, decaying sewer lines and long-neglected neighborhoods, she said. "But when we ignore these problems and refuse to deal with them head-on, we are not creating a quality city," she said. "A strong city is a result of strong neighborhoods."

Iorio also repeatedly pitched the Riverwalk, a 2.4-mile, $40-million pedestrian walkway along the Hillsborough River that will connect Tampa Heights to downtown.Earlier this month, Iorio launched a private fund-raising campaign to pay for the project.

In addition to work on the Riverwalk, in the coming year, she said, Tampa residents can look forward to construction of The Heights, a 2,000-unit development just north of downtown; redevelopment of Central Park Village, a dilapidated public housing complex between downtown and Ybor City; and a new home for the Tampa Museum of Art.

She pledged to improve mass transit in Tampa and announced the city's "Make the Grade Program," intended to funnel resources to Edison, Potter and Just elementary schools, which have been tagged by the state as needing help.

[Last modified March 28, 2006, 13:52:01]