March 17, 2004
Is Sharon Dent done?
Finally, more people are talking about firing Sharon Dent, the dysfunctional head of HARTline. HARTline seems to have a mission of providing subsidized bus service to tourists and other impulse riders while overcharging regular customers for shoddy and unreliable service.
Hillsborough County's transit agency could get an ultimatum from county commissioners today: Get rid of Executive Director Sharon Dent or forget about $1.3 million the county has promised for enhanced bus service.Posted by Norwood at March 17, 2004 12:15 PMNo commissioner would commit on Tuesday to suggesting such a step, but several said they would support it if proposed, including Chairman Tom Scott.
``The credibility of HARTline is at an all-time low,'' Scott said of the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority.
``If the [HARTline] board wants to move forward and be able to help the transit system,'' he said, ``then they need to take some kind of punitive action to address these concerns with the executive director.
``My position would be to fire Sharon Dent.''
Commissioner Pat Frank said she hadn't heard about a Dent-for-dollars deal.
``But it's not a bad idea,'' she said. ``I've been saying it for two years. I think she's part of the problem.''
A spokesman said Dent, HARTline's boss since 1990, did not want to comment.
The commissioners' comments came a day after County Auditor Kathleen Mathews reported HARTline violated its own spending practices, paid for unfinished consulting work and, contrary to public statements by Dent, used money on the Tampa streetcar system it operates that was meant for bus service.
