Timeout quells Tampa City Hall tempers

TAMPA — A shouting match between two City Council members on Thursday forced Chairman Tom Scott to send them into a timeout.

Council members John Dingfelder and Joseph Caetano were pointing fingers and yelling over each other when Scott banged his gavel and ordered a five-minute recess.

The chaos erupted during a discussion about a request to sell beer and wine by the owner of Koto Japanese Steakhouse, set to open next month on South Howard Avenue.

Dingfelder raised questions about the restaurant's hours. People who live in the South Howard neighborhood have complained about late-night drinking.

Caetano objected to Dingfelder's questioning, saying he should have been at the meeting two weeks ago when the council gave preliminary approval to the restaurant owner's request.

"You should have been here," Caetano charged.

"I was out of town," Dingfelder retorted, and the back-and-forth continued.

"Don't start with me!" Dingfelder yelled.

"I'll start with you," Caetano shouted back.

That prompted Scott to call for the break to cool tempers.

As they returned to the meeting room, council member Charlie Miranda joked to the shocked audience: "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Madison Square Garden!"

Scott apologized to observers.

"We must maintain order. We must remain cordial," he said.

The hearing continued without incident, and the restaurant won final approval to sell beer and wine by a 5-2 vote, with Dingfelder and Linda Saul-Sena voting against it.

Janet Zink can be reached at jzink@sptimes.com or (813) 226-3401.