Residents learned about local projects, county services and mosquito control.
Tony and Ellen Raisbeck arrived at Plant City High School Tuesday night looking for answers about neighborhood traffic, drainage and maintenance. By the end of the evening, they left with more than a mosquito swatter and a handful of business cards. They had spoken directly with county stormwater experts about culvert maintenance, picked up mosquito control tips and requested the county replace aging neighborhood traffic signs.
The couple reside in Magnolia Green, where Tony serves as homeowners association president. Ellen said she spotted an event on Facebook and immediately told her husband they needed to attend because “we care about our community.”
“This forum gave Tony an opportunity to meet more county employees face-to-face and build relationships he can rely on when neighborhood issues arise,” she said. “We can also share the important information we learned with the community.”
The open house at Plant City High School marked the first in a series of quarterly Public Works community forums Hillsborough County officials plan to hold in neighborhoods across the county. Rather than formal presentations, the event featured information tables staffed by experts in traffic engineering, stormwater engineering, mosquito management, transportation maintenance, customer resolution and capital projects.
Residents were able to ask questions about road resurfacing, sidewalks, bridges, drainage projects and ongoing transportation improvements while learning how county services can address concerns ranging from potholes to speeding traffic.
One popular stop focused on mosquito control, where residents learned that eliminating standing water remains the most effective defense against mosquitoes.
“Half of mosquito management is being a ranger of your own mosquitoes,” said Gabriela Henderson, community relations coordinator for Hillsborough County Mosquito Management Services.
She said mosquitoes, that grow from egg to adult in as little as seven days, need only about an inch of standing water to complete their life cycle, reaching adulthood in as little as seven to 10 days. Buckets, children’s toys, flowerpot saucers, tarps and even some plants can collect enough water to become breeding sites, Henderson said. She encouraged residents to regularly inspect both front and back yards and remove standing water.
The county also hosts free mosquitofish giveaways where county residents take up to 20 fish home to put in their permanent ponds and other standing water. Each fish is capable of eating about 100 mosquito larvae daily. The next distribution is July 18 from 8:00 a.m. to noon at Jan Kaminis Platt Regional Library, located at 3910 S. Manhattan Ave. in Tampa. For more information visit HCFL.gov/Mosquito.
Residents seeking help with potholes, damaged sidewalks, tree trimming, traffic concerns or other Public Works issues can contact the county’s Customer Resolution Unit by visiting hcfl.gov/atyourservice or calling 813-635-5400, where requests are investigated and routed to the appropriate department. County officials also encouraged residents to use the Capital Improvement Projects Viewer at https://hcfl.gov/government/cip-projects-and-resources/county-capital-improvement-projects to track infrastructure investments and stay informed about projects affecting their neighborhoods.
