HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — Concerns are growing over the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority, or HART, as officials look into potential management issues and next steps to address any problems at the agency.
During a HART committee meeting Monday, officials said they take allegations of management issues very seriously.
Adelee Le Grand, HART’s CEO, said she was disappointed to hear that a member of her team was simultaneously working in New Orleans.
“We changed her status. We put her on part-time,” said Le Grand. “We did our own internal review, and then we determined that it was best for her to leave.”
Committee members urgently asked for another meeting to discuss an investigation into concerns at HART.
“Only the board can move forward to look at or decide that they want to have a special investigation, what the scope of that investigation will be,” said Pat Kemp, Chair of the HART Board. “That’s going to have to be a full board decision.”
Le Grand said she looks forward to the outside investigation that’s being led by the board.
This all comes as other changes boil over at the agency. Le Grand confirmed there were a handful of employees asked to resign recently. She pointed to a reorganization, the transit referendum on the ballot that did not pass, and finding a way to continue to grow within their current financial constraints.
“A part of that, 70 percent of our budget, our operating budget, as you can imagine, is labor. The only way for us to make reductions is making cuts,” said Le Grand. “We make cuts in labor or cuts in service, and with the service that we have right now, that would be our last resort to make cuts in service.”
Le Grand also weighed in on the agency’s current financial situation.
“Right now, we have an operating budget of approximately $115 million, of which $20 million is coming from COVID relief funds, but those dollars are going away,” said Le Grand. “We don’t want to reduce service. We’re trying to be creative. We’re looking at ways to partner with other agencies, organizations to help fund the routes.”
When it comes to residents in Hillsborough County, ABC Action News pressed HART leadership on how all of this trickles down to impact the riders who rely on their service.
“Do not fear,” Le Grand said. “We’re still focused on our key mission, which is to help people get where they need to go here in the Hillsborough area, and we’re committed to delivering that.”
