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Will peace come to Weeki Wachee?

By ANDREW SKERRITT
Published May 2, 2006

After years of bickering before judges, paying lawyers and wasting time in mediation, Tom Dabney had had enough. He did something obvious but previously unthinkable.

On Wednesday, Dabney, chairman of the Southwest Florida Water Management District, called Weeki Wachee Mayor Robyn Anderson with a simple proposal:

Let's sit down, one-on-one, and talk about our disagreements and settle the lease agreement that could safeguard the future of the Weeki Wachee Springs roadside attraction. No lawyers, no marketing and PR guys. Just you and me.

This sounds like a modest, practical proposal from a landlord to a tenant. But this isn't just any landlord, or just any tenant.

This is the water management district making an offer to the city of Weeki Wachee, guardian of the underground spring that feeds the crystal clear Weeki Wachee River.

The dispute two years ago generated headlines trumpeting the possible closing of the 60-year-old mermaid attraction and water park. The park had fallen on hard times. It was Florida kitsch turned grungy.

Private owners donated the park attraction to the city of Weeki Wachee, more of a company town, really, but a municipality nonetheless - designated years ago mainly to give the attraction a spot on the map. Anderson is mayor of the city and manager of the park. Swiftmud, as the water district is known, doubted whether the city would safeguard the quality of the spring while keeping the place afloat financially. The agency claimed that the donation of the park was illegal.

Thanks to delays and obstruction tactics largely by Weeki Wachee attorney Joe Mason, both sides have been shuttling between court hearings and mediation sessions since 2004.

In March - when the full Swiftmud board met with Anderson and Mason, Weeki Wachee marketing director John Athanason and a few city other employees - it was pure theater, but the animus that filled the air was real.

Dabney and Anderson sniped at each other, with scripted assists from Mason. The meeting broke up within an hour. They accomplished nothing. Anderson then walked outside and spoke to a bank of waiting news cameras. The mermaid turned mayor plays well on local TV news.

"It's not been a great relationship," said Dabney with classic understatement.

"I don't know what we've done to offend that attraction. It's quite clear the attraction feels offended by us."

Maybe it was all those threats of shutting down the park for lease violations and safety concerns, or all those rumors of a landlord looking for a more upscale tenant.

Dabney is trying to end the legal circus. He isn't some new guy in town without an appreciation for the park's history. When he was in college in Tallahassee, he used to drive by Weeki Wachee on his way home.

"I must have gone 10 times as kids in the '60s and '70s," he said.

Weeki Wachee is a part of Florida history he wants to save. He doesn't want to go down in the history books as the guy who killed the mermaid show.

Anderson didn't respond right away to Dabney's overture, but that didn't have anything to do with the ill will. Anderson wants to meet, Athanason said. She's eager to show off recent improvements to the attraction.

But she's been busy.

The mayor had to plan an underwater wedding this past weekend.

Andrew Skerritt can be reached at 813 909-4602 or toll free at 1-800-333-7505, ext. 4602. His e-mail address is askerritt@sptimes.com

[Last modified May 2, 2006, 01:57:13]