After eight hours and nearly 200 speakers, the Hillsborough County Metropolitan Planning Organization voted to keep the controversial Tampa Bay Express project in its long-term plan.
The decision was handed down after 2 a.m. on a 12-4 margin despite concerns over neighborhoods near the project being destroyed by the $6 billion toll lanes project, as seems common with many major roadway projects.
The four who voted against it were Hillsborough County Commission Chair Les Miller, Commissioner Kevin Beckner and Tampa City Council members Guido Maniscalco and Lisa Montelione.
The project will tear through parts of areas like Tampa Heights, a neighborhood that in recent years has sought to reinvent itself, and could disproportionately impact low-income residents and minorities.
CL will have a full report on how it all went down a little later Thursday.
