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Senator Nelson to speak in Tarpon

U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson plans to hold a town hall meeting next month on a variety of topics.

By NORA KOCH
Published June 23, 2005

TARPON SPRINGS - Florida's highest-ranking Democrat plans to visit Sponge City next month to discuss his work in Washington and hear from constituents.

U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson will hit Tarpon Springs during his upcoming round of town hall meetings in cities across the state.

Nelson is expected to discuss his recent efforts to block oil drilling off Florida's Gulf Coast and to protect financial privacy and Social Security. The hourlong meeting will be held in the city's cultural center, which holds about 80 people.

Nelson, who is expected to face an intense push from the national Republican Party to unseat him when he seeks re-election in 2006, holds about two dozen of these meetings a year across Florida during Senate recesses, said his spokesman Bryan Gulley. This will be Nelson's first town hall meeting in Tarpon Springs.

Mayor Beverley Billiris invited Nelson to Tarpon Springs when she visited Washington earlier this year.

"They were anxious to do it in Tarpon Springs," said Billiris, who recently sent the senator a letter supporting his stance on offshore drilling.

Tarpon Springs is Nelson's only stop on July 5. He will travel from there to Fort Myers to prepare for three more town hall meetings the following day.

Nelson's town hall meetings draw varying crowds, depending on the time and location, Gulley said. In December, about 150 people showed up for a meeting in Boynton Beach and in February, about 40 came to a meeting in DeSoto County.

Billiris suggested the Cultural Center for the meeting because it is commonly used for such events and can contain the crowd, she said.

"When they do this they want something, so they're up close and personal with the people," Billiris said. "They don't want to be sitting up on the dais speaking at people."

Times researcher Carolyn Edds contributed to this report. Nora Koch can be reached at nkoch@sptimes.com or 727 771-4304.

U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., will hold a town hall meeting at 2:30 p.m. July 5 at the Tarpon Springs Cultural Center, 101 S Pinellas Ave. For more information call the senator's regional office at (813) 225-7040.

[Last modified June 23, 2005, 00:45:20]