By Kelly Cornelius PoHo contributor & R-LAND activist
In a Hillsborough County Commission meeting last week, Commissioner Rose Ferlita brought up those clandestine raises issued by County Administrator Pat Bean. When Ferlita holds up a mountain of paperwork indicating that she has done her research that usually isn’t good news for whoever might be on the other side of that paperwork. Ferlita didn’t think that Bean had fully informed the Commission prior to giving those raises, and because proper procedure had not been followed, the board’s decision to approve those appointments back in November could be null and void. During the discussion, Ferlita cited agenda documents and ordinances (article 6 section 1) and she even brought up a similar situation from way back in 2005, before she was even on the board.
Other commissioners echoed similar complaints about not having the full information, and this is not the first time they have hammered Bean about this raises. Commissioner Kevin Beckner brought it up several weeks ago. But Bean held firm during Wednesday’s meeting stating she felt “we” had done everything “we” were supposed to (is there a Co-County Administrator that “we” don’t know about or does “we” just mean herself and Commissioner Jim Norman?) Read the rest of this entry »
By Kelly Cornelius PoHo contributor & R-LAND activist
I wasn’t the only one that thought something smelled funny about this Cone Ranch deal, a recent proposal by Commissioner Ken “Half Truth” Hagan (to subdivide and sell public land to private investors) and in the process serve up millions to Republican donors for brokering the deal. The St. Petersburg Times raised some major concerns and inconsistencies in this editorial and, according to this article in the TampaTribune, Mariella Smith says it stinks! Smith is a highly regarded environmentalist and she fights tirelessly and fearlessly on behalf of it. She always comes armed with enough information to make even the most seasoned and highly paid development interests look like buffoons, and I have nothing but respect for her on this or any other issue for that matter. If she says it stinks, bring a clothespin or a gas mask.
Posted by Wayne Garcia on Apr. 6, 2009, at 5:00 am
On the Friday after his Hillsborough County Commission voted 7-0 to start the ball rolling for a 2010 sales-tax increase referendum to pay for transportation improvements, Commissioner Mark Sharpe sat down for the HoCast recording session to talk about how we must embrace better mass transit, including light rail.
n a Hillsborough County Commission meeting last week, Commissioner Rose Ferlita brought up those clandestine raises issued by County Administrator Pat Bean. When Ferlita holds up a mountain of paperwork indicating that she has done her research that usually isn’t good news for whoever might be on the other side of that paperwork. Ferlita didn’t think that Bean had fully informed the Commission prior to giving those raises, and because proper procedure had not been followed, the board’s decision to approve those appointments back in November could be null and void. During the discussion, Ferlita cited agenda documents and ordinances (article 6 section 1) and she even brought up a similar situation from way back in 2005, before she was even on the board.
