TAMPA, Fla. — Religion and politics aren’t the only two subject matters that can spark a heated debate.
How to solve the flooding along S. Howard Ave. in Tampa is proving divisive as well.
Thursday night, before a meeting on the topic could even get started, an attendee took the stage, interrupting a city spokesperson, to address the large crowd.
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The City of Tampa muted its microphone to stymie the outburst, but that didn’t dissuade the interrupter.
“I’m dumbfounded,” he shouted at the crowd.
Solving the flooding issue has created two distinct factions: those pushing for the issue to be fixed — a group known as Stop Flooding Parkland Estates — and another group worried about the construction’s impact — known as Stop the Dig.
The flooding issue has been a well-documented issue for years along S. Howard Avenue, W. Swann Avenue, and adjacent neighborhoods, to include Parkland Estates and Palma Ceia Pines.
It flooded most recently during Hurricane Milton.
Tina Adam’s home in Parkland Estates, and many others, became inundated with water.
“We shuttered it, sandbagged it, did everything we could to protect it, and unfortunately the outdated, inundated stormwater system flooded our home,” she said. “We had 12 inches inside and 33 inches outside, I think.”
Some of her neighbors are still in the process of rebuilding, and almost all of them now fear even ordinary rainstorms.
“Every time it rains, I’m worried,” Adams said.
Adams supports the city’s effort to address the flooding, known as the South Howard Flood Relief project.
“There would be a significant reduction of flooding in these areas,” an engineer told the crowd at Thursday’s meeting. “It’s a generational project.”
In the meeting, the City of Tampa laid out its plans to fix the flooding and update the area’s streetscapes.
The project would install a “major stormwater conveyance system” underneath S. Howard Ave. from W. Swann Ave. to Bayshore Boulevard. Work would also be done in Palma Ceia Pines along S. Audubon Ave. from W. Swann Ave. to W. Horatio St.
Stephen Michelini, who represents 35 businesses up and down S. Howard Ave. — a thriving entertainment district of restaurants and bars — believes the huge project will have huge repercussions, as did a similar city flood project in Southeast Seminole Heights. That recent project attracted a large amount of scrutiny and criticism.
“It caused those businesses to close,” Michelini said. “The same thing’s going to happen down here.”
The South Howard project has a different contractor, Kimmins Contracting Corp.
John Zemina, the VP of Kimmins, said he will go to great lengths to soften the impact.
He said construction crews will work in 1,000-foot segments, contact businesses before they feel an impact, and work with the community wherever and whenever possible.
“If you have a question about the project, you call me. You’re not dealing with anybody else. You’ll deal with me. And I’ll meet with you. I’ll talk to you,” he said when asked about how he will communicate with impacted businesses.
“It is going to be disruptive,” Zemina continued. “I don’t want to fool you. It’s a lot of big equipment. It’s messy. It takes time. But we will get there, and we will work together with people to get it done as quickly as possible.”
Adams will also play a role in softening the impact.
“I, for one, am prepared to support the businesses that will be affected by this,” she said.
Adams said she reached out to a city council member to discuss the idea of hosting a regularly scheduled “patronage night” to help impacted businesses.
Adams views the project as a temporary inconvenience for a permanent, important solution.
“I know it’s a tough decision that will be hard for all of us, but I’m hoping that they do the right thing and solve this problem for once and for all,” she said.
Right now, the project is still in its design phase. The major construction is expected to start in the spring of 2026.
