On April 5th I was fortunate enough to attend the city of Tampa’s public hearing for the architectural review commission. Now although I have little curiosity for architecture and construction, I figured the meeting would spur interest. Boy, was I wrong.
The meeting was quite tedious and boring; however, it was run effectively under a tight ship. There was all the regular public meeting criteria: a call to order, reading of the minutes (always moved to be accepted) and announcements, but structural, the board of commissioner’s exemplified full control.
Being taped and recorded, commissioners did not tend to speak out of turn and when they had questions, they respectfully asked them.
Individuals who represented themselves to the commissioners were quite detailed and had maps, drawings and pictures of the locations or houses they are trying to alter. There were about 6 cases presented , all in through detail.
The commissioners showed great concern of the public’s needs and worries. In one case, an individual needed parking, and the demolition of an accessory structure at their house was needed to build a new one. It may seem odd to have to ask for permission to destroy something on your own property but the city of Tampa remains in full control when a person is attempting to build a structure in city owned land. Thus, after questioning occurred between the women’s agent and the board, a decision was made.
To me, the pictures and diagrams were interesting as well as finding out what parts of Tampa a person would need to seek approval in for a structural change. Who knew that in Hyde Park, Tampa Heights or even Seminole Heights that a person with money or little money would have to go in front of the board of commissioners and have their request assessed.
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