It ought to be possible for people to disagree about proposed changes to a city charter without anyone resorting to lies, exaggeration or sarcasm to make their points. But not in Clearwater this year, thanks to a group called Save the Bayfront.
As an organization, Save the Bayfront is invisible most of the time. But occasionally, like an ill-tempered polar bear lumbering out of its den, it emerges and makes trouble, often just before an election. It is happening again, but we hope Clearwater voters will be smart enough to ignore the ploy.
Tomorrow Clearwater residents will go to the polls and make decisions on 11 questions that relate to the city charter. On Friday many Clearwater households found in their mailboxes a new flier from Save the Bayfront. This flier, which unfolds to poster size, is printed on slick paper in a rainbow of colors. It looks appealing, but it takes Save the Bayfront's trademark tactics - ridicule and misinformation under the cloak of anonymity - to new extremes.
Who are these people who make up Save the Bayfront? You won't find their names on this flier. The chairwoman is Clearwater Beach resident Anne Garris. Save the Bayfront traditionally has been bankrolled by Fred Thomas, a former Clearwater resident who served a term on the City Commission and is the wealthy owner of a chain of pool and patio stores. But neither of their names appears on this expensive flier.
One side of the flier has "before" and "after" drawings that purport to show what Save the Bayfront claims could happen to Coachman Park downtown if voters approve the ballot questions. The "before" drawing shows green space everywhere and undersized images of the current surface parking lots on the downtown waterfront. The "after" drawing shows more of the waterfront devoted to surface parking, a huge parking garage behind Calvary Baptist Church, much less green space, a wrought-iron fence sealing off Coachman Park, stadium-style permanent seating in the amphitheater, a dressing room/restroom building on the west side of the park blocking the water view, a marina with a fuel depot leaking oil into the harbor, a boat ramp with trailer parking, and a restaurant.
The other side of the flier urges residents to vote no on nine of the 11 charter questions. It also makes false claims, sites charter sections out of context, and shows a caricature of City Commissioner Hoyt Hamilton making a comment that he never said.
This is wrong, and an affront to voters and to the 12 hard-working citizens who made up last year's Charter Review Committee and recommended the changes that will be on Tuesday's ballot. The committee mailed out a postcard last week encouraging people to vote yes on the questions. They all signed their names.
There are so many problems with this flier that we don't have space to address them all. But we'd like to make a few points that are important:
The city charter, created by voters, requires that every five years commissioners appoint a committee of residents to review the charter and recommend changes to voters. That is the only reason these ballot questions appear Tuesday.
Only one of the 11 questions on the ballot relates directly to Coachman Park. If approved, the change would allow the city to move ahead with its already debated and already published plan for Coachman Park improvements. That plan would remove most of the surface parking that mars the waterfront now; expand the amount of green space on the waterfront so there is more park to enjoy; add boat slips, but not a marina and not a fuel depot and not a boat ramp; add a parking garage, but behind City Hall and under the new bridge, not behind Calvary Baptist and not blocking any water view; and build a new amphitheater stage on the north side of the park so it blocks less of the water view.
The flier's information and conclusions are wrong on several ballot questions. If you want to see the exact wording of the ballot questions, the full ordinances that would enact those changes, and read the current charter, you can find all that information online at the city's Web site: www.myclearwater.com The Times reported detailed information about the questions Sunday. You can also call and ask questions of city staff or Mayor Brian Aungst or city commissioners Frank Hibbard, Bill Jonson or Hoyt Hamilton. These people are not hiding.
Clearwater city officials know they must do something to make downtown a destination for more residents and tourists. Part of their plan is to improve Coachman Park so it will be more appealing to more people every day. They have a plan. Where is Save the Bayfront's plan?
