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Hostel owner grateful as many support bid for zoning change

By ALEXANDRA ZAYAS
Published January 26, 2007

TAMPA - Before Thursday night, Mark Holland thought his hostel in Tampa Heights was doomed. He fought 21 code violations last spring that included a rooftop crow's nest, a tree house-style deck and a backyard shed turned "adventure room."

All alone last spring, he pleaded before a stone-faced code enforcement board. One board member's response: "It's offensive."

Holland knew he couldn't comply with their demands - the citations were so extensive, he'd have to tear down the 18-year-old hostel and rebuild from scratch. He could barely afford to keep up with utility bills.

Instead, he cut his ponytail off and applied for a zoning change. He had no idea it would save his hostel.

To Holland's surprise, at least 20 people showed up to support him. They were backpackers in business clothes, neighbors and friends. Former state Rep. Sara Romeo, a family friend, made his case before the council, to rezone his property to allow for a hostel and cancel out his violations. The city received 60 letters of support.

Sharon Keene, who volunteers at the Ybor City Museum, said she often asks European visitors where they're staying in Tampa. Often, it's Gram's Place, 3109 N Ola Ave., the two-building hostel with a different music theme in each of its eight rooms.

Neighbors said Holland got drug dealers out of a park across the street, got a streetlight installed and welcomed evacuees from Hurricane Katrina.

"He is a cultural hero of Tampa," Dan Barshay said.

Only one letter of protest was submitted, by neighbor Marian Amparo. Her daughter Andrea echoed her complaints: "If a hurricane did come through and his 'stairway to heaven' got blown around, where would it go?"

But Amparo's son Adonis took Holland's side. "I don't understand what her motives are," he said of his mother. "I believe it's a personal grudge."

City staffers told Holland he had to cut down a dead palm tree that obstructed vision on a right of way. The council postponed its decision for three weeks - but the outcome looked favorable for Gram's Place.

"I'd really like to see this place," council member Linda Saul-Sena said. "I've never heard a rezoning called a 'cultural enterprise.' "

Afterward, Holland held in tears as supporters surrounded him. He had been quiet the whole time but said, "It's you guys that have saved me."

Alexandra Zayas can be reached at 813 226-3354 or azayas@sptimes.com.

[Last modified January 26, 2007, 01:22:31]