Did an influential developer pay for Brian Blair’s campaign billboards?
September 30, 2008 at 2:39 pm by Wayne GarciaIt sure looks like that could have happened. In a story to be published in our print edition tomorrow, I write about how at least one invoice for a Blair campaign billboard was sent directly to a company owned by developer Stephen Dibbs:
The billboard on Ehrlich Road in north Tampa touting the re-election of Hillsborough County Commissioner Brian Blair reads, in fine print at the bottom, “Political advertisement paid for and approved by Brian Blair, Republican for Hillsborough County Commission, District 6.”
It appears, however, that his campaign did not pay for the billboard advertisement. Blair’s campaign finance reports show no such expenditure. And according to an invoice obtained by Creative Loafing, the bill for the $2,500-a-month roadway sign was sent to North Dale Development, which is owned by Stephen Dibbs, a controversial and prominent developer who has supported Blair in the past.
If Dibbs did pay for the billboard, it would appear to exceed the limits in the state campaign finance law, which caps direct or in-kind contributions to candidate campaigns at $500 and requires disclosure of any contributions.
Among Dibbs’ various holdings is the Bourbon Street Plaza shopping strip center where the billboard is located. It is not clear from the invoice whether Dibbs paid for the board. The invoice was provided to CL by a source who requested anonymity because the source was not authorized to release the document.
The invoice, from CBS Outdoor, which sells the billboard’s advertising space, was dated Aug. 20, 2008, for use of the billboard in the month of August. The 10-foot-by-36-foot sign is highly visible to anyone driving west on Ehrlich from North Dale Mabry Highway. It was still in place last week when CL visited the site.
Neither Dibbs nor Blair responded to numerous telephone and e-mailed requests for comment for this story.
Who paid for this campaign billboard on Ehrlich Road in Tampa?
Read the entire story, which is already on our website.
UPDATE: Neither Blair nor Beckner has spoken to Creative Loafing about this story, but a Tampa Tribune reporter told me Tuesday that Blair has now produced a campaign check cut to CBS Outdoor on Sept. 19 and insists he paid for all his campaign advertising himself. Blair spoke to reporters with the Trib and Times after he was criticized during Tuesday’s county commission meeting about the subject of the story.
