Davis Islands Today

Over objections from the Davis Islands Civic Association, the Tampa Airport Authority unanimously approved the addition of a 175 foot safety extension and the construction of additional hangar space along Seddon Channel.

The efforts by Association President Lisa Devitto and Warren Cohen, along with former City Council Member Rudy Fernandez was a thorough attempt to deter the Authority, but the issue of safety clearly overrode association members’ concerns and led to the unanimous vote.

Several speakers suggested the Civic Association is not representative of Davis Islands’ residents. Homeowner Al Swann expressed disappointment in the Association, and resident John Taylor accused those in opposition of spreading misinformation and of representing a very small minority.

Chairperson Stephen Mitchell called the expansion responsible and necessary for passenger safety. He further complimented the Authority staff for conducting 8 public meetings, none of which were required, in order to allow public comment.

Authority Member Mayor Iorio summed up her vote by indicating that the extension, if not approved, would actually reduce the runway space by 135 feet. It is a “rare exception to have an asset move backwards” she said. “This represents the kind of progress this board is expected to support.”

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 7th, 2008 at 12:35 pm and is filed under Davis Islands. You can subscribe via RSS 2.0 feed to this post's comments. You can comment below, or link to this permanent URL from your own site. Your comments will be moderated but will appear as soon as humanly possible.