TAMPA, Fla. — A city decision that only 14% of subcontracts for the new Fair Oaks Park in East Tampa will go to Black companies has been a point of contention among some community and business leaders. However, the city of Tampa says race-based contracting goals are not arbitrary and must be rooted in law.
"Ol' boy network, I call it,” Michael Reeves said. “I'm not hating on nobody, but there is a network."
Reeves owns a plumbing company and has done work for the city, but says some Black contractors have a tough time securing city business.
“Tampa, over the years, has done a very poor job as it relates to African Americans, Black people, in terms of getting work for the city. And I'm not just talking. The numbers speak for themselves,” he said.
A 2006 disparity study by Mason-Tillman & Associates helps the city determine by law how much work can be set aside for minority contractors. The study shows in many categories African American contractors in Tampa are disproportionately underutilized.
"They haven't been given an opportunity. They haven't been given a chance,” Hillsborough NAACP President Yvette Lewis said.
While the city says 14% of the Fair Oaks job will go to Black subcontractors, those like Lewis and Reeves say for a $34 million renovation project in a predominately Black and underserved neighborhood, the numbers should be higher.
"A lot of the Black contractors, they hire from the community,” Lewis said. “They give people an opportunity, a chance that would not have gotten that chance and help provide them a skill."
But Tampa Mayor Jane Castor says the city’s decision is not arbitrary.
"The individuals that are making those statements are making them without the information that is available,” she said.
Right now, Skanska is the main, or prime contractor for Fair Oaks.
"It's a very deserving community and a much-needed park here,” Skanska project manager Nader Sinno said.
As part of awarding the contract, the city set a goal for subcontractors to get 30% of this job based on all the tasks available to complete.
The city also set a race-based goal, which is allowed, but only legal when there is proof a disparity exists. The Mason-Tillman report helps substantiate the city’s claim.
According to the city, there are 248 city-certified firms available to do 30% of the work that can be subcontracted.
Of those 248 firms, 117— or 47% — are Black-owned. The other 131 — or 53% — are small, local business enterprises.
Forty-seven percent of 30 is 14%, which is how the city decided 14% will go to Black contractors.
Still, Mayor Castor acknowledges the need for more investment in minority businesses, so they’re prepared to take on more projects that are larger in scope.
Her Bridges to Business initiative is one such effort.
“We have to ensure, and we're doing it in a variety of ways, that we are growing small businesses, minority/women-owned businesses from the ground up, providing these types of opportunities for them so they can continue to grow and prosper,” she said.
Reeves said he would like to see more of these efforts, so entrepreneurs who have historically been overlooked can have a shot at big contracts.
‘"We're qualified,” he said. “We're qualified, able and ready to do the work."
Emerald Morrow is an investigative reporter with 10 Tampa Bay. Like her on Facebook and follow her on X. You can also email her at emorrow@10tampabay.com.