Author Archive for Savegandy.com

Page 3 of 5

Letter to Neighborhood Association Presidents

Published on November 13, 2009 in Letter to Neighborhood Association Presidents. 0 Comments

Dear Neighborhood Association President,

My name is Mikael, a business owner in South Tampa located on Gandy Blvd. I am calling upon you to please help your local merchants and residents around South Tampa to preserve our community . Savegandy is a alliance built up of everyday South Tampa residents and business owners trying to stop THEA (generates it’s revenue from tolls), building a concrete elevated toll road on top of Gandy blvd.

The tax payers of Florida just spent 22 million dollars for the beautification on Gandy, and we feel the sole purpose was to lay the foundation for this organization, at our expense. The toll road could never been thought of, until we the taxpayers widened the road. Since we paid for it, we would like the opportunity to see our neighborhood enjoy the new roadway before any further construction process.
Did you also know that THEA (The Hillsbrough County Expressway Authority) will make a decision and said they do not need our voice to decide on this project.They have said they will do it without our vote.
We feel it is every citizens right to have their voice heard I am sure you will agree, so we have developed www.savegandy.com for the voice of the people.

This web site is to educate the public of the pros and cons, and give them the opportunity to sign a petition and so their voice can be heard and let government know we still have rights in our communities.

Please, I am asking you to please forward this to all association members so we can educate them about the project. Without the knowledge and help from our neighbors, the concrete toll will plow into our neighborhood. Please help us get the word out so people can see what is going on and have the opportunity to be a voice for their community. We would do the same for you and thank you for your time.

Thank You,

Mikael

Please don’t support the ruin of our neighborhood for such a minuscule reason

Published on November 13, 2009 in Elevated Gandy will not alleviate traffic and Letter to Mr. Ray Chiaramonte, MPO Executive Director. 0 Comments

Remember the much loved Gandy Friendship Trail bridge, which may never re-open, but at least we gained a worthy contender as a consolation prize, yes a shiny new overhead toll bridge, permanently blocking out the sun. A vast improvement, we the community, think not!.

Bill/Tampa

I close on my house this Monday, a house I plan on living in for years to come. It is two blocks north of Gandy. I pray that I do not have to look at a VERY UNWANTED overhead concrete structure running right down the middle of my neighborhood’s main street. How sad that my neighborhood stands to be seriously degraded so an overdeveloped, overpopulated peninsula (Pinellas County) can have a little bit better evacuation system to accommodate people who wait until the last minute to leave their homes. This is the only merit that this overpass has, and to us residents it is not enough. If we are willing to accept rush hour congestion over a super unattractive overhead structure, why not give us what we want? There is no doubt there will still be bad rush hour traffic even if the proposed project is constructed, and it is shameful to think we will sit in that traffic and be in the shadow of a sparsely used overhead road that is only needed for a couple of hours each business day and maybe once every ten years for possible tropical storm/hurricane evacuation.

Please don’t support the ruin of our neighborhood for such a minuscule reason. Think about our quality of life and what makes us happier people. This is what you, as our community leaders, should want for us. If this project was truly needed we would be asking for it and THEA would have been able to easily sell it. But it is not needed and may never be needed which is why we reject it.

Don’t discount the number of people who have signed the petition to stop this project.

Bill

PS - All due respect to Ray Chiaramonte, he sounded like a desperate salesman when he was telling me how nice it will look. We all know that is just hogwash.

Follow-up response to Ray Chairmonte, Executive Director, Hillsborough County Metropolitan Planning Organization

Letter to Mr. Chiaramonte, MPO Executive Director, Hillsborough county Metropolitan Planning Organization

Published on November 12, 2009 in Letter to Mr. Ray Chiaramonte, MPO Executive Director and Video Time Studies. 2 Comments

Peak Friday evening rush hour with traffic flowing smoothly.
Taken on Gandy Blvd 5:58pm Friday 23 October 2009

Do we really need a concrete monster above our heads creating pollution, noise and blocking out the sun. See the video and imagine a ugly overhead expressway ruining the ambiance of our neighborhood and permanently destroying the South Tampa way of life that we all love and cherish.

Mr. Ray Chiaramonte, MPO Executive Director
Hillsborough County Metropolitan Planning Organization

Thank you for your opinion on the subject. The proposed project is not needed at this time, and it may never be needed as you and your people say. If this unwanted overhead structure is built it is permanent, and we have to live with it even if your traffic projections do not become reality.

THEA is trying very hard to spin this into a project that the people support, but you know as well as I that the majority DO NOT want this structure built over our main street. If you and THEA had the courage to really find out you’d pay an independent agency, selected by someone other than THEA or the MPO, to canvass the neighborhood and get a true measure of the support and opposition. But since we know it will not yield the results you are looking for this will not happen.

THEA has been maintaining that they will not build the project without community support, and as far as I can tell, living in the immediate area, there is a solid majority in opposition. If you and THEA are so convinced there is a majority in support then prove it.

Bill /Tampa

This is the reality of the situation that we will eventually be looking at an unattractive elevated concrete structure right down the middle of our neighborhood thoroughfare because a few people think it’s best for us

Published on October 1, 2009 in Elevated Gandy will not alleviate traffic. 0 Comments

by Bill/Tampa

Why is it the vast majority of the people at every meeting are in opposition? At the PAG #3 meeting last month there were 13 community members who spoke about the project, 11 were in opposition and 2 were in support. This was reported in the September 2009 issue of the South Tampa Community News.

The presenters of this project (THEA and CUTR) were, for lack of a better term, masterful spin doctors, making sure everything sounded rosy. They chose their words very carefully to ensure nothing they said would have any negative feel whatsoever. They stressed how much they would be sensitive to aesthetics, and how this overhead concrete structure would look nice. Unfortunately for us this is not possible, and it’s unfortunate because this unwanted detractor is on a fast track to becoming reality, no matter how many of us are in opposition. You must remember, there are always a few who know what’s best for the rest, it’s just the way it is. I just wish our elected officials would make a concerted effort to get a true gauge on the actual community’s feelings and take a position based on such. Apparently, from what we’ve all seen to this point, this isn’t going to happen. They appear to be about the only chance we have of keeping this hideous structure from being built, and they remain silent. The only other chance we have is if this project is determined to be economically unfeasible, and we all know how easy it is to fudge a couple of critical variables to make the numbers come out favorable. For goodness sakes, the person who presented CUTR’s transportation and economic impact study is a former executive director of THEA!!!

Ask yourself this: How many people do you personally know who want this elevated roadway running right down the middle of Gandy? This is what you should base your opinion on.

Imagine a salesman coming to your home and saying a large portion of your electric bill could be eliminated if you installed a huge windmill on top of your house to generate electricity. Of course you would think seriously about it because it has merit, and maybe the cost savings is worth the aesthetic degradation. But you may decide to stick with your current electric service and not have to look at something so unsightly and out of place. I, as well as the vast majority of those I have spoken with, would rather deal with heavy rush hour traffic for a couple hours five days a week than look at an unsightly overhead roadway through the middle of a neighborhood. This is the reality of the situation, and as it stands right now we will eventually be looking at an unattractive elevated concrete structure right down the middle of our neighborhood thoroughfare because a few people think it’s best for us and they do not care about how it will affect the feel of our neighborhood.

There is no doubt that any bypass will lessen the traffic on Gandy, it’s common sense. But it will not make rush hour traffic go away. It will still be bad, no matter what. And regarding hurricane evacuation, yes it is a negative for us to deal with the Pinellas residents clogging up Gandy trying to get to the Expressway. But how often does this happen? Often enough to accept an unsightly structure to be constructed through our neighborhood? I don’t think so. It may be another 20 years, or more, before any evacuation order is issued for Pinellas due to an approaching hurricane. But for some reason we have to see our neighborhood become less desirable due to these factors.

Since the construction on Gandy was completed a few months back, I have encountered almost no congestion in my daily commutes

Published on September 30, 2009 in Elevated Gandy will not alleviate traffic. 0 Comments

by Jessica/Tampa
via online petition comment

I probably travel on Gandy Boulevard more than the average person. Particularly, I travel between the base of the Gandy bridge (where one side of the proposed overpass would end), and Bayshore Boulevard, and everywhere in between.

I believe that covers the entire area in question.

During peak morning hours I travel from my home at Culbreath Key Condominiums (located near base of bridge), to Dale Mabry Highway; peak “lunchtime” hours are spent traveling on Gandy between Dale Mabry and Macdill; and the rest of the afternoon is spent traveling to various locations, as required by my job, up and down the aforementioned stretch of Gandy.

Since the construction on Gandy was completed a few months back, I have encountered almost no congestion in my daily commutes. In the afternoons when I head home from work- which is anywhere between 5:00 pm and 6:30 pm- it never takes me more than 10 minutes to get home! Traveling on Gandy, from Macdill, west, to the base of the bridge, during rush hour traffic, takes me 10 minutes or less (depending on lights, etc.)

I am insulted by THEA or anyone else’s claims that this overpass is necessary, because I know damn well it is not.

For the sake of our neighborhood, our money, and piece of mind, let’s fight this! This overpass idea shouldn’t even be on the table! Especially not at a time like this one!

Next Gandy Project Public Hearing Tuesday September 29 at 6:30 PM

Published on September 25, 2009 in Public Hearing Schedule. 0 Comments

WHAT: Gandy Project – Project Advisory Group Meeting

WHEN: Tuesday September 29, 2009

6:30 pm – 9:00 pm

WHERE: Monroe Middle School

4716 W Montgomery Ave, Tampa, FL 33616

Get Directions

Idea of elevated lanes on Gandy Boulevard draws community objections – St. Petersburg Times Article

Published on September 15, 2009 in Local Media. 0 Comments

By Robbyn Mitchell, Times Staff Writer
In Print: Wednesday, August 26, 2009

TAMPA — The Tampa-Hillsborough County Expressway Authority faced more opposition Tuesday night when it held another meeting about building an elevated toll road on Gandy Boulevard.

Nearly 200 people came to New Beginnings Church at 4100 S. Manhattan Ave. to hear the results of a study about the 1.45-mile connector’s effects on the 97 businesses between the Gandy Bridge and the Lee Roy Selmon Crosstown Expressway.

Officials commissioned the study through the University of South Florida’s Center for Urban Transportation Research.

Stephen Reich, who presented the results, said the road would negatively affect businesses that directly depend on traffic, such as gas stations and fast food chains, and could cost the area $1.9 million and 13 jobs.

However, the construction and focus of local traffic would generate $800,000 and create five jobs, the study found.

Still, nine of the 11 community speakers opposed the proposal to alleviate traffic, along with most of the crowd.

Many had the same question as Mikael, owner of a furniture store.

“What is an example of a community where businesses have flourished under a bridge?”

The next meeting is Sept. 29 at Monroe Middle School, 4716 W Montgomery Ave.

I travel the Gandy corridor daily during peak times and encounter little if any congestion.

Published on September 11, 2009 in Elevated Gandy will not alleviate traffic and Video Time Studies. 0 Comments

Rush hour but not much traffic. Click on video to see for yourself!
Gandy Blvd 5:11 pm Thursday September 10 2009

by Matthew P./Tampa
via online petition comment

These things are never good for the communities they dominate. Undesirables seek shelter in their shade and the shadows they cast end up dominating the homes and businesses they bisect. Let’s keep South Tampa from becoming something it shouldn’t be, i.e. New Orleans or Miami. Furthermore, such a development is not warranted, since I travel the Gandy corridor daily during peak times and encounter little if any congestion. Oh, and it’s especially nice since the recent improvements have been completed. Let’s not over treat a symptom that does not exist. Let this stimulus money go somewhere it’s needed and most importantly wanted.

Raising Awareness

Published on August 29, 2009 in Elevated Gandy will not alleviate traffic. 0 Comments

The new SaveGandy.com sign, located between Manhattan & Westshore on Gandy Blvd.

This will help in raising awareness, as so many of us are not aware of the unwanted changes that are being proposed to our neighborhood.

Thank you to all those who helped in making this sign a reality.

Gandy Project Public Hearing Tuesday August 25 2009 – 5 pm to 7:30 pm

Published on July 30, 2009 in Public Hearing Schedule. 0 Comments

WHAT: Gandy Boulevard – PD&E Study

Public Hearing

WHEN: Tuesday, August 25, 2009

5 pm to 7:30 pm

Formal Presentation: 6:30 pm

WHERE: New Beginnings Christian Church

4100 South Manhattan Avenue

Tampa, Florida 33611

Get directions

Please try to attend. This may be our communities last chance to show our strong opposition to the proposed Gandy Overhead Expressway project.