TAMPA -- Five candidates are running in Tampa City Council District 3, which is elected citywide.
Lynn Hurtak, appointed last year and running for a full term, says she took the lead in the campaign against the PURE water recycling program labeled "toilet-to-tap" by critics. Hurtak also points to the establishment of a tenant hotline to help people with rent, landlord, and eviction issues. She says issues she'd like to address in a full term include transportation and sustainability. Hurtak pushes back against the notion that city council is dysfunctional by pointing out that the council chambers are the only place where members can legally discuss issues without running afoul of sunshine laws. She says the four charter amendments on the ballot are "unfinished business" from the 2019 charter review.
Janet Cruz is a former state senator and state representative who says she feels that she "isn't finished" with public service and would like to end her career in City Council, dealing with the public at the closest level on issues such as potholes, parks and quality of life issues. She points to her support from police and fire unions. Cruz says she opposes the PURE program in its current form but insists the city can't just keep pumping wastewater into the bay. Cruz says transportation, housing and workforce issues go hand in hand, and that if people can't find an affordable place to live or commute in easily or cheaply, they'll take a job in the suburbs instead. Cruz insists her relationship to Mayor Jane Castor (her daughter-in-law is Castor's life partner). "I am an independent person... there are very few people that tell me what to do." Cruz refers to herself as "the adult in the room."
George the Hunted Feshev is a Bulgarian immigrant who settled in Tampa and became a U.S. citizen. He decided to run after getting shot in the head while eating dinner with his teenage daughter. He says police told him he was "hunted", which is the origin of the nickname.
KJ Allen is from a military family, with several relatives in the service. Allen became a teacher and says many of the issues faced by Tampa are faced by his students: growing up and finding a good-paying job and a place of their own.
Jose Vasquez has been a Democratic activist and ran for mayor in 2015 against Bob Buckhorn. He says transit needs to be more affordable. He proposes an unusual answer to Tampa's housing crisis: allow more trailer parks.
Listen to all the candidates in D-3 below:
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