Hillsborough to Super Size Economic Development
From 83 Degrees Magazine the new media of Tampa Bay.

Hillsborough county heard a presentation Tuesday on the county’s issues and opportunities on Explore and attract new business for credit as they finally start to make small cosmetic efforts on addressing the devastated economy.

The presentation was political theatre for the public, the plan has already been written and decided upon in smoke filled back rooms, these meetings are just trail balloons, shams and sales jobs.

The upshot of the meeting: We have to move past selling Tampa’s brand of fun sun and cheap living to update with a new brand selling the same idea to the same audience. We also need to assure that USF and other stagnant bloated organizations are allowed to continue to stifle the local community. In other words business as usual.

But there were hints at something worth watching. The Industrial Development Authority while an obscure shadowy organization does have the legal right to bonding authority. Expanding the IDA would allow badly thought-out boondoggles to avoid public scrutiny and approval. Rail is expected to be built by the expanded IDA bonds, bypassing the expressed will of the voters while allowing politicians to pretend innocence.

Furthermore the expanded IDA would buy and finance land for economic development as it can do now. The Hillsborough County government creed of “For and by the developers” will be better served by a group of appointees buying the land of the commissioners donors and supporters with government backed bonds.

From 83 Degrees Magazine the new media of Tampa Bay.