Peter Schorsch
For the city of Tampa, it is the best of times.
Yet, for Mayor Bob Buckhorn, it’s almost time to go.
By this time next year, his successor will have been sworn in and he will be a non-lawyer consultant for Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick, the law firm where Hizzoner’s friend, Ron Christaldi – the driving force behind the effort to bring the Tampa Bay Rays baseball team to Ybor City – is a partner.
This week is a special time for Buckhorn. The signature public works project of his two terms in office, the Julian B. Lane Riverfront Park, will open just in time for Mothers Day. Before that happens, he will deliver his final State of the City speech.
As a big fan of Buckhorn, both personally and politically, forgive me in advance if I get a little misty Friday morning.
Predicting who will succeed Buckhorn is almost as hard as figuring out how Tampa will pay for that new Rays stadium.
As I size up next year’s mayoral candidates (admittedly from across the bridge in St. Petersburg), the race is getting off to an awkward start. That’s because the two leading candidates, former Police Chief Jane Castor and philanthropist David Straz, have had to first apologize for glaring sins in their political pasts.
During her time as chief, Castor put in place a program that had officers disproportionately targeting black bicyclists for minor violations. The Tampa Bay Times determined that over a three-year span Tampa police issued 2,504 bike tickets, which was more than Jacksonville, Miami, St. Petersburg and Orlando combined.
A U.S. Justice Department review requested by Castor would determine that the disproportionate ticketing of black bicyclists was unfair and often perceived as harassment even if that wasn’t intended.
Although she defended the policy at the time, Castor now says the biking-while-black ticketing was wrong.
“The bicycling citations were done with good intentions,” Castor said. “Unfortunately the result was is that it caused tension in the very neighborhoods we were working to make safer.
“In hindsight I wouldn’t do that initiative again.”
Just as hindsight is 20/20 for Castor, so too is it for Straz, who now says he regrets voting for Donald Trump in 2016.
“I’m happy to admit I make mistakes,” Straz told Charlie Frago of the Tampa Bay Times. “I wouldn’t vote for him again.”
In a Democratic city like Tampa, Straz would have been better off saying he’s rooting for the Washington Capitals to beat the Tampa Bay Lightning than to cop to voting for Trump.
As St. Petersburg voters witnessed (perhaps ad nauseum) in 2017, when Trump was hung around Rick Baker‘s neck like a fifty-pound weight, even the slightest association with Trump can be fatal. And here Straz said he voted for him!
The direct mail writes itself.
Rarely do you see political candidates having to launch their campaigns by embarking on an apology tour. But that seems to be the case for Castor and Straz. In almost all of the media about their entrances into the race, their individual regrets are featured prominently.
Castor and Straz have already moved past these blips, but they do offer strategic openings to the rest of the announced field, which includes City Councilmembers Harry Cohen and Mike Suarez and former County Commissioner Ed Turanchik.
Of the two, I believe Straz has the most to worry about. A vote for Trump is unforgivable to a large swath of the electorate.
Moreover, Straz’s announcement on Tuesday that he was entering the race was … well … it just whelmed. His press release and video were under-produced, especially for all of the money he has already raised for his campaign.
He also told the Tampa Bay Times that the city should spend about $100 million to help build a new ballpark for the team. A campaign official later had to walk back Straz’s premature proffer.
But a debate about the amount of money the city should spend on a new stadium isn’t the issue. What is (still mildly) concerning is the walk-back coming right on top of Straz’s less-than-dazzling announcement.
It reminded this resident of the ‘burg of the 2011 campaign of Dick Greco – a campaign filled with regrets.
