Did Rose Ferlita sort of announce her candidacy last week for mayor last week, but reporters were simply too weary to notice?
The comments in question came late last Thursday night, after more than 100 people spoke in front of the Hillsborough Board of County Commissioners in a three hour and forty minute discussion on whether the BOCC should approve a ballot measure in November that would let citizens vote on a one cent sales tax for transit.
As expected, the board approved the measure on a 5-2 margin.
One of those voting in the affirmative was Commissioner Rose Ferlita. However, that vote didn't come until after she acknowledged over the course of the past few months, as the rail measure has been discussed, that she's been rather exacting regarding some provisions of the ballot measure.
She continued discussing her range of concerns before she announced her support for the bill, including some of her reticence about the interlocal agreement between the county and the three cities inside it – Tampa, Plant City and Temple Terrace.
It’s no secret that Ferlita has been contemplating a run for Mayor in Tampa next year, and she seemed to telegraph that that’s exactly what she’ll do when she said this before announcing her ‘yes’ vote.
“FOR THE RECORD, I DID NOT SUPPORT NOR DO I AGREE NOW THAT THE 25% OF TOTAL ALLOCATIONS FOR ROAD PROJECTS SHOULD HAVE BEEN DISTRIBUTED AS PROPOSED IN THE INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT. I THINK IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN PUT UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF THE NOW OR FUTURE MAYORS OF PLANT CITY, TEMPLE TERRACE, AND MY CITY OF TAMPA RIGHT AWAY SO THAT LEADERS COULD BE MORE EFFECTIVELY RESPONSIBLE FOR ROAD PROJECTS AND DECISIONS TO THOSE PROJECTS AND REVISIONS AS THEY GO FORWARD. FOR EXAMPLE, IT, TO SOME DEGREE, TAKES THE DECISION-MAKING PROCESS OUT OF THE HANDS OF THE NEXT MAYOR OF TAMPA WHO WOULD CERTAINLY WANT TO BE IN A POSITION TO CHANGE ROAD PROJECTS, PRIORITIES, OR CHOICES, DEPENDING ON THE NEEDS OF HER CONSTITUENTS. “
(italics are ours, as there are no other female candidates in the race now, or expected to be).
CL called Rose Ferlita this morning to ask her if this was in fact, a de facto declaration of her candidacy. She admitted to us that essentially, it was. Though she hasn't filed the papers yet, she expects to at some point between now and the filing deadline.
Although there are many others said to be contemplating running, there are only three official candidates in the race for mayor of Tampa in 2011 so far: City Council chairman Thomas Scott, former city councilman Bob Buckhorn, and former Tampa police officer Marion Lewis (Both Buckhorn and Lewis have ran previously).
Ferlita's first term as commissioner in District One ends this November, and she has not indicated that she will run for re-election. Tampa City Councilman John Dingfelder is the top Democrat in the race, while Trey Rustmann and Margaret Elizabeth Iuculano are the top Republicans in the race.
This article appears in May 13-19, 2010.