Linda Saul-Sena

Linda Saul Sena

Linda Saul-Sena was born April 30, 1951 in Tampa, Florida. For 20 years, she served as a member of Tampa City Council. Currently, Saul-Sena is the Chairman of the Board of Community Stepping Stones, Vice-Chair of the Tampa Theatre Board, a board member of The Community Foundation of Tampa Bay, Trustee for the Florida Trust for Historic Preservation, member of the Athena Society, and Urban Landscape columnist for Creative Loafing Tampa and her blog.

Family

Linda Saul was born to Joan Perlman Saul and M. William Saul at Tampa General Hospital. Since 1987, Linda has been married to Mark Sena, an investment banker in communications. Together they have two daughters, Aliza and Gabrielle Sena. Both daughters live and work in New York City.

Education

Linda Saul-Sena attended local Tampa schools: Gorrie Elementary, Wilson Junior High and Plant High School. In 1973, she graduated from Sophie Newcomb College of Tulane University with a B.A. in Art History. She attended Harvard University's JFK School of Government course for elected officials.

Professional

Saul-Sena worked at the Tampa-Hillsborough County Planning Commission as a community planner writing zoning recommendations and neighborhood plans. She produced a film, "City Visions", AbOUT good urban, public spaces, which won a merit award from the AIA (American Institute of Architects). She moved to Cambridge, MA and worked for the Cambridge Multicultural Arts Center. In Philadelphia, she was the national project coordinator for the Architects-In Schools Program funded by the National Endowment for the Arts. Returning to Tampa, she taught Architecture-In Schools and was served as the director of the Tampa Community Design Center.

Linda was hired as the first marketing Director for the Tampa Museum of Art and was outraged when the adjacent Rose Garden was torn down without any public input. At that moment, she decided to run for public office.

Political

Linda Saul ran city-wide as a Tampa City Council Member and after her election in 1987, she hyphenated her name. Her initiative to legalize sidewalk cafes took four years to realize and her vision for Kennedy Blvd as a pedestrian-friendly street took twenty. Saul-Sena founded the Kennedy Boulevard Council, created and named the Channel District, and worked to revitalize West Tampa. She was successfully re-elected without opposition in 1990, and served on a number of committees including the Tampa Arts Council, Public Art Committee, and served as Chairman of the Metropolitan Planning Organization, where she initiated the Livable Roadways Committee.

When Saul-Sena reached her term limits, she left Council and created Ybor City Ghost Walk, an actor-guided walking tour of Tampa's National Landmark district. In 1997, Linda was successfully re-elected to represent South Tampa on Tampa City Council. She was then re-elected to two more terms as an at-large member of Tampa City Council, serving as Chairman in 2002.

In 2010, she ran as a Democrat for a county-wide seat on the Hillsborough County Commission and was defeated by Ken Hagan, Republican.

Accomplishments

In 1988, Linda Saul-Sena led the effort to rename Buffalo Avenue to Dr. Martin Luther King Blvd. In 1990, she championed the adoption of the Human Rights Ordinance. Since 2000, Linda has worked with Bill Jonson, a Clearwater Council Member, founding the Courtney Campbell Scenic Corridor Committee and Courtney Campbell Trail, which will link Hillsborough and Pinellas Counties with a separate bicycle and pedestrian bridge.

Present

In addition to her myriad volunteer activities, Linda is a bi-weekly columnist for Creative Loafing Tampa, writing about the Urban Landscape.

Awards

  • 1989 Tampa Organization for Black Affairs Award for Leadership
  • 1995 Cultural Contributor of the Year from the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce
  • 2007 Bob Graham Architectural Awareness Award from the Florida American Institute of Architects
  • 2007 Outstanding Elected Official Award from the Florida American Planning Association
  • 2008 Brown Bear Award from the Tampa Bay Sierra Club honoring her long standing commitment to the environment