Tampa City Council voted down a measure to add subpoena power for the Citizens Review Board to the November election ballot on Tuesday.
In a three-to-four loss yesterday afternoon, the Tampa City Council blocked voters from deciding whether or not the Citizens Review Board should have subpoena power in police oversight. They did, however, move forward with the board’s independent attorney request.
The vote came after the Citizens Review Board and city council had already shown strong support of placing both options on a ballot for voters to decide. But by Tuesday, several council members confirmed that they were being lobbied by Tampa Police Chief Mary O’Connor to not let voters decide.
Granting subpoena power to the board would give citizens more police transparency, but council members who voted “no” voiced concerns over the motion potentially interfering with the Fourth Amendment.
For people like National Association for the Advancement of Colored People President Yvette Lewis, public safety should be the priority.
“We all live here, we all want safe communities. We want to live comfortable, just like everyone else, but yet we don’t want to be harassed,” Lewis said.
Post-pandemic mortgage rates push people out of Bay area
Tampa Bay has been in a seller market for months after the pandemic sent mortgage rates through the roof, sending new home owners into surrounding areas.
Finding a home with all the bells and whistles for a good price is far from easy, especially with how expensive housing is in Tampa right now. Buyers aren’t putting up with the high prices, though, and nearby towns are seeing a surge of new residents as a result.
Realtors such as Debbie Sokolowski and Donna Hall from Future Home Realty say they’ve seen the Wesley Chapel and Zephyrhills community build itself from the ground up as a result.
“It is definitely still more affordable to live in Dade City or the Zephyrhills community than in Wesley Chapel and there’s some really nice areas in those locations. There’s some good builders and new communities,” they said.
Communities are continuing to build as demand increases. Land that just two years ago was a cow pasture is now a home for first-time buyers Sueann King and her family.
“Building our home was very exciting…. not only were we excited about the price of the home, we were excited that we got to choose everything for our son,” King said.
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Anchor: Alice Barlow
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