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Beach redevelopment foes wrongly ousted from park

The St. Pete Beach mayor's wife calls her husband, who calls the city manager, who calls police. But signs, not protesters, are verboten.

By PAUL SWIDER
Published August 17, 2005

ST. PETE BEACH - Police are running protesters out of public places, or it was a misunderstanding, depending on whom you ask.

Thursday, members of St. Pete Beach Citizens for Responsible Growth, a political committee that opposes the city's redevelopment plans, were asked to leave a park in the Belle Vista neighborhood. The city says that was a mistake, that police were instructed merely to tell the group it could not mount signs on public property and could not set up a signature-gathering booth in a city park. But removal of people opposed to city action has turned up the heat in this divided beach community.

"These people have forgotten everything they ever learned about living in a democracy," Lance Peterson, one of those at the park that day, wrote in an e-mail to his colleagues. "This is another cowardly attempt to stifle dissent."

The incident has not been repeated, opponents said, but its circumstances anger them.

Thursday afternoon, as members of the group were gathering signatures in the park, a woman pulled up and started yelling that they had to take their signs down, the opponents say. She offered to take them down herself, they say, but the group warned her off. Soon thereafter, police showed up and asked the group to leave the park.

"The mayor's wife started the problem," said Harry Metz, a member of the opposition group. Metz said he didn't know until later that it was Amber Friszolowski who drove up. "She was yelling at me."

Mayor Ward Friszolowski said his wife did call him that day after seeing the group in the park and he called City Manager Mike Bonfield. Bonfield said he called police and told them the group should not be allowed to attach signs to park property or to set up tables and chairs. He says that instruction was misapplied.

"I contacted the chief," Bonfield said. "Unfortunately, the people were asked to leave. We've corrected that."

Bonfield said the police have been told not to remove anyone from parks. But there can be no signs on public property or in rights of way, and the city will enforce that for any group, he said. He has told police not to worry about people setting up tables and chairs in the parks because the city ordinance is vague on that, he said.

The mayor said he was aware of the complaint, but he didn't know people had been forced to leave the park.

"Certainly people have a right to use the parks," he said. He added that in his 12 years in office, he has seen this issue come up from time to time, usually around elections. He said there is nothing exceptional about enforcing the law. "It's unfortunate that they feel singled out."

Bonfield said there have been other complaints in the past several months as the community has struggled with its redevelopment efforts. He said groups can get permission to use a park, but that it is usually for nonprofit events like art shows. Friszolowski said that he got such permission in 1994 when he first ran for office, but that he was restricted in what he could do then.

Metz said he also has gotten calls from the police about his group handing out leaflets door to door. When he pointed out that city commissioners are doing the same, the police said they would have to check into that.

"I don't think it will go any further than that day," Metz said of Thursday's events. "I think Bonfield overreacted. I think it was a misfortunate accident that day. But it's still not right."

[Last modified August 17, 2005, 01:09:16]