Tampa City Council approves bicycle safety ordinance after rejecting it on first reading and scheduling April workshop, while establishing Charter Review Commission and raising multimodal impact fees to fund transportation improvements.

Key People

Alan Clendenin (City Council Chair) — Tampa City Council
- Presided over meeting, expressed frustration with Fire Station 24 delays, supported various initiatives
Harry Cohen (County Commissioner) — Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners
- Gave invocation as former Tampa City Council member, serves as Chairman of Tampa Bay Water
Chuck Carden (General Manager) — Tampa Bay Water
- Provided update on regional water supply system serving Tampa Bay area
Scott Steady (Incoming City Attorney) — City of Tampa Legal Department
- Unanimously approved as new City Attorney to replace Andrea Zelman
Andrea Zelman (Outgoing City Attorney) — City of Tampa Legal Department
- Introduced Scott Steady as her replacement, praised for her service
Luis Viera (Council Member) — Tampa City Council
- Nominated Alan Cohen and Jason Marlow for Charter Review Commission, sponsored resolution condemning derogatory language
Lynn Hurtak (Council Member) — Tampa City Council
- Led motion to reject bicycle ordinance and schedule workshop, nominated Alison Hewitt as Charter Review Commission alternate
Naya Young (Council Member) — Tampa City Council
- New council member expressing concerns about bicycle ordinance impact on youth, advocating for local artists
Bill Carlson (Council Member) — Tampa City Council
- Criticized administration’s lack of transparency and priorities, particularly regarding Fire Station 24 delays
Charlie Miranda (Council Member) — Tampa City Council
- Veteran council member providing historical perspective, serves on Tampa Bay Water board
Guido Maniscalco (Council Member) — Tampa City Council
- Supported various initiatives, serves on Tampa Museum of Art board
Yvette Lewis (President) — NAACP Tampa branch
- Criticized bicycle ordinance as potentially discriminatory, expressed concerns about ‘biking while black’

Public Comments

Elizabeth Thomas — concerned

Topic: Gadsden Park conditions

Requested focused attention on neglected Gadsden Park, describing flooding, lack of ADA accessibility, missing playground equipment, and use as hurricane debris storage site

“This is what long-term neglect looks like” “The land is there. What’s needed now is follow-through”

Connie Burton — angry

Topic: Bicycle ordinance and racial equity

Criticized bicycle ordinance as potentially targeting African American youth, called for sharing public spaces rather than restricting access

“If you want Bayshore Boulevard to be just for white people and tourists, say that” “We have to share Bayshore and the Riverwalk. It has to be shared”

Yvette Lewis — angry

Topic: Bicycle ordinance discrimination concerns

As NAACP president, strongly opposed bicycle ordinance as continuation of ‘biking while black’ targeting, warned it would erode trust between African American community and police

“Racism still exists in the city of Tampa” “You all keep erasing or eroding [trust] based on these knee-jerk reactions”

Pete Edwards — concerned

Topic: Bicycle ordinance racial profiling

Warned that ordinance would lead to racial profiling, comparing how white vs. Black groups would be treated differently by police

“If Bill Carlson had a group of people that dressed in all red and was predominantly white… nobody won’t say a thing. If I had a group of kids all dressed in red… the cops would be all over the place accusing us of being in gangs”

Mentesnot — angry

Topic: African American political representation

Criticized lack of African American mayors in Tampa’s history, called current city council ‘cowards’ and complained about flooding and housing issues in Black communities

“Tampa nothing. Absolutely, positively nothing” “It’s a do-nothing city council. Plain and simple”

John Green — demanding

Topic: NAACP accountability

Demanded accountability from NAACP regarding their $100,000 city contract, questioned their credibility in the Black community

“Hold them accountable. It’s about accountability”

Surgret Doss — angry

Topic: City corruption allegations

Made allegations about corruption involving judges and city officials, referenced legal cases and house theft

“I look at bigots and hypocrites the same” “Black folks are afraid to come down here”

Daryl Hych — disappointed

Topic: Resolution 568 and trust in government

Used crumpled paper metaphor to illustrate broken trust between Black community and city council, criticized delay on reparations resolution

“Once you destroy someone’s trust, you can’t get it back to its original state” “You had us standing here for a year and six months and we got nothing”

Projects & Initiatives

Fire Station 24

New fire station construction project in North Tampa

Owner: Tampa Fire Rescue
Status: Design development phase at 60%, construction to begin September 2026
Timeline: Groundbreaking September 2026, three years after funding approval
Budget: Not specified but within approved budget
Concerns: Significant delays criticized by council members
Design-build project by AGG Architect and Kokolakis Contracting, includes training tower as deduct alternate

Charter Review Commission

Commission to review and recommend changes to Tampa City Charter

Owner: Tampa City Council
Status: Approved and established
Timeline: Starting January 2026, one-year process
Seven council appointees plus two mayoral appointees, with Kenneth Tinkler as attorney and facilitator to be determined

Bicycle Safety Ordinance

Proposed regulations for bicycles and e-bikes on multimodal trails including speed limits and prohibitions on wheelies

Status: Rejected on second reading, workshop scheduled for April 23, 2026
Concerns: Community concerns about racial profiling and enforcement targeting youth of color
Would have increased speed limit from 5 to 10 mph but included restrictions on tricks and stunts

Tampa Museum of Art Expansion

Museum expansion project with community benefits agreement

Status: Approved community benefits agreement
Budget: Not specified in discussion
Includes veteran access programs, art therapy, and 80,000 sq ft external development

USF Stadium Development

Stadium and additional beds added to USF campus master plan

Status: Development agreement amendment approved
City authority limited to infrastructure impacts only, not land use decisions

Money & Spending

Phased increase over 4 years starting July 1, 2026 — Multimodal Transportation Impact Fee increase
- Project: Transportation infrastructure improvements
- Type: new spending
- Payer: Developers
- Recipient: City of Tampa
- First increase since 1989, requires supermajority vote
$990,000 — Water line replacements on South Howard area streets
- Project: Infrastructure improvements separate from South Howard stormwater project
- Type: new spending
- Payer: City of Tampa Water Department
- Recipient: Contractors
- Separated from stormwater project at council request
$110,000 to artist, $200,000 additional for art purchases and maintenance — Fair Oaks Community Center public art commission
- Project: Fair Oaks Community Center art installation
- Type: new spending
- Payer: City of Tampa
- Recipient: Ryan McCullough (artist) and local art purchases
- Includes community coloring book component
Not specified — Charter Review Commission legal services
- Project: Charter Review Commission
- Type: new spending
- Payer: City of Tampa
- Recipient: Kenneth Tinkler, Carlton Fields law firm
- Legal counsel for charter review process
Not specified but noted as expensive per person — Tampa Fire Rescue contract services
- Type: recurring
- Payer: City of Tampa
- Recipient: Service provider
- Council member expressed concern about cost per person served

Decisions

Approved Scott Steady as new City Attorney unanimously
Rejected bicycle safety ordinance on second reading unanimously
Established Charter Review Commission with appointed members and alternates
Approved multimodal transportation impact fee increase with one dissenting vote
Scheduled bicycle safety workshop for April 23, 2026
Approved Tampa Museum of Art community benefits agreement
Approved USF campus development agreement amendment
Approved various water and road improvement projects
Approved public art commission for Fair Oaks Community Center
Approved resolution condemning derogatory language

Action Items

Council staff, TPD, Mobility Department: Prepare bicycle safety workshop with community meetings (due: April 23, 2026 workshop with March community meeting)
Project team: Present Fire Station 24 acceleration plan (due: February 19, 2026)
Fire Station 24 project team: Move GMP contract presentation to earlier date (due: July 16, 2026)
City Attorney’s office: Provide legal memorandum on building permit errors (due: February 5, 2026)
City Council members: Charter Review Commission questions workshop (due: January 13, 2026 at 5 PM)
City staff: Research historical marker for Freedmen’s Bureau office (due: February 19, 2026 written report)
Local 754 and Tampa Fire Rescue: Local 754 fire department master plan presentation (due: February 19, 2026)

Risks & Open Questions

Bicycle ordinance rejection may leave safety issues unaddressed on trails and multimodal paths
Community trust concerns over perceived racial bias in enforcement policies
Fire Station 24 delays continuing to impact emergency response times in North Tampa
Lack of transparency from administration affecting council-staff relationships
Downtown traffic congestion affecting emergency response and public safety
Potential legal challenges to impact fee increases
Charter Review Commission process creating political divisions
Budget constraints limiting public safety infrastructure investments