A NEW LINEUP FOR STREETWALKERS

For many Tampa residents, Nebraska Avenue is to prostitutes what Bayshore
Boulevard is to joggers.

The problem seems never to go away, a source of continued frustration for
residents of Ybor City, Seminole Heights and Sulphur Springs. Citizens are
weary of streetwalkers and johns brazenly engaging in transactions near
yards where children play. They are tired of finding used condoms, syringes
and crack cocaine bags in their yards. They are fed up with scantily clad
women and transvestites hanging out on street corners.

People who live near Nebraska have questioned the commitment of city
officials to solve the problem, but this month the Tampa Police Department
stepped up.

Tampa police have created a special task force that has developed a
detailed database of all the prostitutes known to work on Nebraska. So far,
it includes about 100 names. Now, an officer who spots a known prostitute
will stop and interview the person. Sometimes, the person may be arrested
on trespassing charges for failing to follow a judge's order to stay away
from the neighborhood. Others may simply be shadowed, making it nearly
impossible to ply their trade.

Because prostitutes tend to return to the same area, officers believe the
database will be an effective tool for cleaning up Nebraska.

The problems of Nebraska Avenue reflect a quality-of-life issue.
Streetwalkers attract unsavory characters, bring down property values and
generate an atmosphere of lawlessness.

Naysayers will claim that we never can rid society of "the world's oldest
profession" and that if prostitutes are pushed off Nebraska, they will go
somewhere else. Most of the people who say that do not live near the
street, and decent residents who do deserve better.