Media blitz brings attention to Weeki Wachee's struggles
The effort to save the famous attraction and its water show lands on front pages and national TV.
By ROBERT KING
Published August 14, 2003
WEEKI WACHEE - Riding the crest of a national media blitz, the mermaids of Weeki Wachee Springs have devised a plan to raise money for their ailing tourist attraction and put pressure on their landlord who may be considering putting them out of business.
Former mermaid Robyn Anderson, who is now both general manager of the tourist attraction and mayor of Weeki Wachee, announced the "Save Our Tails" campaign during an appearance Wednesday morning on NBC's Today show.
Famous for underwater mermaid shows that have been going on since 1947, Weeki Wachee has decayed over the years from the neglect of absentee owners who, officials say, took profits for themselves while doing little to maintain the park.
The city of Weeki Wachee recently took over the lease to operate the park. But the Southwest Florida Water Management District, which owns the famous spring and 440 acres around it, has been demanding that the decaying structures be fixed.
A deadline for the repairs to be complete passed Tuesday with the work nowhere close to completion. And Swiftmud, as the water district is known, is considering a number of options, including one that would shut down the attraction and turn the area around the spring into a more "passive" public park.
The story of an endangered attraction and its mermaid shows has proven to be a public relations bonanza. Anderson also appeared Wednesday on Good Morning America. A day earlier, the story graced the front page of The New York Times and was featured on NBC Nightly News.
Anderson said People magazine and CNN also called requesting interviews.
The result is that people are calling the park offering to donate their labor to help make repairs. Some park visitors have been giving cash to Weeki Wachee employees, and others have called asking where to mail donations.
Anderson and another former mermaid came up with the "Save Our Tails" slogan and NBC reporter Kerry Sanders latched on to it during the Today show segment Wednesday.
"It's a great feeling just to know that we are being supported," Anderson said. "I am more than pleased. I'm ecstatic."
More than simply raising money, the Save Our Tails campaign is designed to encourage people to lobby Swiftmud for the preservation of the tourist attraction and the mermaid shows.
Robyn Anderson and another former mermaid came up with the "Save Our Tails" slogan and NBC reporter Kerry Sanders latched on to it during the Today show segment Wednesday.
Emily Carsillo of Spring Hill read about Weeki Wachee's plight in the St. Petersburg Times and began looking for a place to send a donation. As a season pass holder at Weeki Wachee, she and her daughter frequently enjoy swimming in the 74-degree spring water.
"It's something that's right in our own back yard," Carsillo said. "We are pleased that we have it and we want to keep it."
Swiftmud spokesman Michael Molligan said it could be weeks before the water district decides what to do about Weeki Wachee's failure to make repairs.
Among the chief concerns is a 1970s era wastewater treatment plant on park property that Swiftmud officials fear could pose a threat to water quality in the Weeki Wachee River. Swiftmud wants the plant shut down and the park tied into Hernando County's sewer system.
If Swiftmud decides to terminate Weeki Wachee's lease, it has many options, Molligan said. Swiftmud could try to find a park operator that has more resources than the city. The agency could close some of the park's attractions and keep others open, or it could restore the spring and the river to a more natural condition and open the location as a public park.
Molligan said that, above all, Swiftmud's priority is protecting the Weeki Wachee spring and the river ecosystem it supplies with water.
- Robert King covers Spring Hill and can be reached at 848-1432. Send e-mail to rking@sptimes.com
