Welcome to the Bay Area Navigator
In this edition: Hurricane Idalia arrives tomorrow. Plus, can more small housing units help relieve Tampa’s housing crisis?
What’s the Bay Area Navigator?
It’s a new, locally produced newsletter for Tampa and Hillsborough County. We added you to this list because you requested it, or we think you’ll like it, or we interviewed you, or your organization sends us news releases.
Hillsborough County suffers from a lack of local news reporting. So we are trying to fill the void. We will publish newsletters a few times each week as we work toward our goal of publishing every weekday.
We’ll do our own reporting while also rounding up the best efforts from other media. Each week, we will bring you a wide variety of content, including news stories and briefs, interviews and features, weather, dining news, stock prices, social media chatter, a civic calendar, and a crime log. We’ll try to provide you with news you can’t obtain elsewhere.
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OK; let’s get to it.
This Week’s Tampa Weather
Tropical Storm Idalia — soon to be a category 3 hurricane — dominates this week’s forecast from The Weather Channel:
MONDAY 🌦 Partly cloudy with showers this afternoon.
🌡️92° / 78° 💦 87% / 72% 🌅 7:06 a.m. / 7:55 p.m.
TUESDAY 🌀 Tropical storm conditions, with rain, high winds and possible tornadoes from likely Hurricane Idalia arriving at night.
🌡️92° / 79° 💦 88% / 79% 🌅 7:06 a.m. / 7:54 p.m.
WEDNESDAY 🌀 High winds and thunderstorms from expected Hurricane Idalia.
🌡️86° / 78° 💦 92% / 87% 🌅 7:07 a.m. / 7:53 p.m.
THURSDAY 🌨️ Rain early, scattered thunderstorms late.
🌡️88° / 77° 💦 82% / 90% 🌅 7:07 a.m. / 7:52 p.m.
FRIDAY ⛈️ Scattered thunderstorms throughout the day.
🌡️86° / 76° 💦 89% / 84% 🌅 7:08 a.m. / 7:50 p.m.
SATURDAY 🌦 Scattered thunderstorms in the morning, giving way to partly cloudy skies.
🌡️88° / 73° 💦 80% / 75% 🌅 7:08 a.m. / 7:49 p.m.
SUNDAY ⛅️ Partly cloudy with chance of a stray thunderstorm.
🌡️89° / 73° 💦 80% / 68% 🌅 7:09 a.m. / 7:48 p.m.
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CURRENTS
A Major Hurricane: Fed by abnormally hot gulf waters, Tropical Storm Idalia is strengthening quickly and is expected to be a “major hurricane” with sustained winds of at least 111 MPH and a local storm surge of four to seven feet. As of this writing, according to the National Hurricane Center, the epicenter appears to be headed for a stretch of the Nature Coast between Steinhatchee and Suwannee. CNN
Contaminated Gas: Three filling stations in Tampa are among the few dozen across the state believed to have sold gasoline contaminated with diesel. The gas could harm engines or make them inoperable, just as people are preparing to evacuate from Idalia. Those stations were the 2K Express 5 at 6202 N. 40th Street, Falkenburg CITGO at 5320 Falkenburg Road, and Perfection Station 5 at 9931 N. Florida Ave. Tampa Bay Times $ (subscription required)
FEMA Fund Depleted: As Florida moves through its peak hurricane season, questions abound surrounding appropriate funding for disaster relief. In July, the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Administrator told Congress that the budget for the Disaster Relief Fund would be spent by the end of August. Senators Marco Rubio and Rick Scott have both asked for the Disaster Relief Fund Replenishment Act — which was introduced in June and would have provided $11.5 billion in disaster relief — to become a priority for the Biden administration after concerns were raised about dwindling funds. The Center Square
Housing Crunch: About 7,400 students moved into dorms at the University of South Florida on Aug. 17 for the fall 2023 semester, though some had tough times getting on-campus student housing and all faced price increases.
Aid Hillsborough Teachers: Education supporters can help Hillsborough County Public Schools teachers by donating supplies to the Hillsborough Education Foundation’s Teaching Tools Resource Center. It’s open for the new school year for all full-time HCPS instructional staff, and it’s easy to participate. Visit the HEF website to learn how.
EU Travel News: Americans traveling to European Union countries in 2024 will need to register for authorization before visiting, according to the Tampa International Airport newsletter. Visitors will be subject to regulations by the European Travel and Information and Authorization System, or ETIAS. It will affect passport holders from 60 countries that currently travel visa-free, and the affected area includes most of central Europe, Cyprus, Bulgaria and Romania but not the United Kingdom or the Republic or Ireland. Learn more at the ETIAS website.
Bucs center Ryan Jensen will miss his second straight season with a knee injury. ABC Action News
Eggs, chicken and other grocery items dropped in price in July as inflation wanes. Stacker
Tampa’s chief judge Ron Ficarrotta is stepping down after four decades on the bench. Tampa Bay Times $
Will there be debates in the Florida Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate? The Florida Phoenix
Tampa may allow the construction of more accessory dwelling units.
REPORTER
Can More Small Housing Units Help Relieve Tampa’s Housing Crisis?
Tampa Heights and Ybor City could be the next neighborhoods approved for accessory dwelling units
By Judith M. Gallman
Tampa residents might soon see more housing density in some of their neighborhoods.
Two city council members are pushing for a review of the city’s policies regarding the tiny homes known as “accessory dwelling units” and “extended family residences.” The fruits of that review will first return to the council next month.
But housing advocates worry that these steps alone are insufficient to address an acute housing shortage exacerbated by the post-pandemic work-from-home revolution.
Accessory dwelling units, or ADUs, are small, finished residential housing units — think mother-in-law cottages, tiny homes and garage apartments — with a finished kitchen, bathroom and sleeping area. ADUs must serve a secondary function on the homeowner’s property. Currently, these smaller, more affordable living options are allowed in defined zoning areas, as a special use, as long as certain criteria and conditions are met. Property owners must get permits for them annually from the city.
ADUs are now allowed in just three parts of Tampa: a square region of town bordered by W. Waters Avenue, North Boulevard, W. Sligh Avenue and N. Armenia Boulevard; a much larger area fitting within E. Bird Avenue, W. Hillsborough Avenue, W. Martin Luther King Boulevard and N. 22 Street; and a tiny area south and west of the Hillsborough River contained by N. Rome Avenue, W. Main St. and the Hillsborough River.
Elsewhere, the city only allows construction of the even-smaller extended family residences, or EFRs. But those are governed by even more restrictions than ADUs. They must house family members, the main residence must be owner-occupied and, like ADUs, they’re permitted citywide as a special use, also with criteria and conditions. Property owners also need to renew permits annually.
Governments in Florida have been generally slow to respond to the steep spike in housing costs set in motion by the work-from-home revolution.
Prior to the pandemic, Hillsborough County’s population growth rate had been dropping. Every year since 2016, growth had slowed down from the prior year. Population in the county actually shrunk in 2020, chiefly due to deaths related to Covid-19. And although growth returned in 2021, the rate was lower than in any other year since 2008.
But population surged in 2022, as working Americans realized that they no longer had to wait until retirement to enjoy Florida’s appealing waters and winters.
Consequently, the median sale price of a home in Tampa is almost double what it was five years ago, rising from less than $225,000 to about $430,000, according to MLS data analyzed by Redfin. And rent prices have followed suit, with the average now sitting at $1,715 for a two-bedroom apartment, according to Apartment List.
Council member Lynn Hurtak is leading the ADU review charge, and council chairman Guido Maniscalco requested workshops on increased density housing options like ADUs/EFRs.
The city surveyed residents in spring 2022 about ADUs, and a new thumbs up/thumbs down survey ended July 31. Those survey results will be brought to the city council at a Sept. 28 workshop. ADU legalization was cited as Best Practice #3 in an April 2023 Florida Policy Project-commissioned report by experts at Florida State University.
“For Hurtak, ADUs are personal,” Tampa planning director Stephen Benson said. She is a Seminole Heights resident, where ADUs are allowed, and has an ADU on her property, he said.
“We think ADUs fill a very narrow but critical gap in the housing supply,” Benson said. They serve an important role, he said, and updating current laws “totally makes sense.”
After all, some residents prefer a single-family home experience over apartments, even affordable ones, which Tampa is also adding to the mix. So Benson said it makes sense to add more ADUs into the equation, and that explains why Tampa has been exploring them for the past year and a half.
ADUs are limited in size to 900 square feet, must have an off-street parking space, can be rented separately, occupancy is limited to two but need not be family, separate utility meters are allowed and ADUs are subject to annual review for a special use permit. The primary dwelling must be owner-occupied.
EFRs are slightly different: They are limited to 600 square feet, no off-street parking is required, it cannot be rented separately, occupancy is limited to two family members, there may not be a separate utility meter and an EFR is subject to annual review for a special use permit. The primary dwelling must be owner-occupied.
Benson conceded that Tampa’s ADU and EFR regulations are less than ideal. The current regulations don’t contemplate changes in a homeowner’s circumstances — such as what should happen to an EFR built for a homeowner’s parents after they die? Reducing housing stock is not the answer, he said.
Regulations prohibit property owners from seeking ADUs on any property that falls short of city requirements. Early platted lots in neighborhoods such as Hyde Park were often smaller than current standards, so property owners in historic districts have no way to seek ADU exceptions.
“All these come up as we have conversations in the community,” Benson said. “We want to see what can be done to really make it easier in its approach.”
For Nathan Hagen, housing solutions, including relaxed ADU regulations and more duplexes, triplexes and quadruplexes, can’t come soon enough. Hagen, co-founder of YIMBY Tampa, is apoplectic over Tampa’s housing crisis.
“Hyde Park in the 1930s and ’40s was full of multifamily housing. Today, such types of housing are not allowed to be built. The most beloved Bungalow Terrace on Hyde Park off Swann, where there are no driveways or parking available, would be illegal today to build.”
Hagen urged the city to cut back on barriers that slow ADU development such as the annual special use permit.
“It is meant to discourage housing,” Hagen said. “So cut the red tape, because the policy is not to provide for safety or well-being. It’s meant to prevent more housing.
YIMBY, he said, is working to legalize ADUs by canvassing locally, lobbying community leaders, and working with the AARP to develop middle housing, duplexes, triplexes, quadruplexes, and small-scale apartments in Tampa.
“We need a place with a variety of housing types with people of differing income levels living in the neighborhoods of their choice,” Hagen said.
The city has been educating the public, collecting information and vetting people’s concerns during the process, Benson said. He cited St. Petersburg as a city that’s doing ADUs right, allowing them in 100 percent of that city.
“It took them a while,” Benson said. “They had to work with each neighborhood and have conversations with them. We’re taking slower and smaller steps.”
City spokesman Adam Smith said in an email that Mayor Jane Castor “supports increasing the city’s supply of ADUs,” but is waiting on the council to act.
Tampa community members, meanwhile, question how their property appraisals and insurance rates will be affected by ADUs, EFRs and regulation changes, all issues the city must explore, Benson said. Others want feedback on code enforcement cases related to short-term rentals and want clarity about related parking requirements, Benson said. Neighborhood organizations have expressed concern about possible spikes in short-term rentals and the effects of increased density on hurricane evacuations.
Hurtak said in a recent AARP interview that Tampa ADUS are gaining traction but also face resistance in part because some residents are concerned they could lead to increased traffic, property taxes, and short-term rentals. Hurtak told AARP she hopes citizens will consider that ADUs “keep the neighborhood solid while making room for new folks to move in.”
So where will ADUs be allowed next? Benson suggested Tampa Heights and Ybor City may be next for legal ADUs, because those neighborhoods indicated the strongest interest in the prior survey. After that, Benson said with council direction, citystaff will look for geographic areas that are “really, really interested, and that’s where we go next.”
GET INVOLVED
Civic meetings of note during the coming week.
MONDAY-FRIDAY: Hillsborough County and the Southwest Florida Water Management District are accepting community feedback regarding regional drainage improvements in Town & Country and along Hillsborough Avenue. The public is invited to offer comments through Sept. 5. Virtual meeting
THURSDAY: City staff and a representative of the Sierra Club will discuss how the city can modify state law and state Department of Environmental Protection guidelines regarding the reuse of wastewater. And a report will be presented in response to a request from council members Charlie Miranda and Luis Viera to change city elections to even years from odd years, aligning city elections with the general election cycle. Tampa City Council Chambers, City Hall, 315 E. Kennedy Blvd., 3rd floor, 9:00 a.m.
THURSDAY: The Tampa City Council will hold several public hearings related to the Westshore Planning and Overlay districts. Tampa City Council Chambers, City Hall, 315 E. Kennedy Blvd., 3rd floor, 5:01 p.m.
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