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Letter to the editor

Today's letters: Make sure Otto is remembered

Re: A beloved primate dies at 42 story, June 15

Make sure Otto is remembered

I knew Otto the gorilla for more than five years as a volunteer at Suncoast Primate Sanctuary Foundation Inc. To say he left a void is putting it mildly.

We all truly loved Otto. Our desire to let his old friends into the property to see him has been dashed repeatedly by the U.S. Department of Agriculture refusing to issue a license (for the facility). A federal judge ordered the USDA to issue a license, but they still refuse.

Almost daily, people from our area and other states would come to the front gate asking about Otto and the other animals they knew from their visits many years ago. The St. Petersburg Times and other news media were very helpful in letting the public know that their old friends are still here.

Most of our animals are research or retired show animals and former personal pets. Some, including Otto, were sick and would have been euthanized had they not been adopted by the Chimp Farm and later donated to the sanctuary by the Mae Noell Trust.

We are currently getting the property to the south prepared for a new educational building. It will have a 24-hour veterinary clinic, vet school, meeting-class rooms and a hurricane shelter for people and their pets. It will be named after Otto.

Please check our Web site for information about the sanctuary, www.SuncoastPrimate.org. From that site you can do what I did: volunteer! These have been the best days of my life and would not be possible if not for the Suncoast Primate Sanctuary and all the animals I love.

Janet Stiffler, Clearwater

Re: A beloved primate dies at 42 story, June 15

Primate center a prison for animals

Otto the gorilla is dead and I am relieved. The decrepit Chimp Farm may have gussied up its name, but it's still a concrete and iron penitentiary for primates.

How many decades of good intentions has this facility put forth, with no meaningful improvements implemented? In the jungles and rainforests where they belong, gorillas, chimpanzees and monkeys roam for miles. Yet at this facility, their worlds are measured in square feet.

While the zoo raises funds and "rebuilds, " the animals languish in tiny cages, awaiting relief that never comes.

Jayne Morris, Largo

Re: 'Cafe society' for whose benefit? letter, June 13

Writer doesn't know downtown

I don't expect letter writer David Rodman of Dunedin to really know anything about downtown Clearwater, but I happen to know the truth about how downtown Clearwater's retail stores were made nonviable.

When Sunshine Mall opened on Missouri Avenue in the early 1970s, most of the downtown businesses saw an opportunity to relocate into a brand new air-conditioned mall. Malls were a new concept and shoppers loved shopping in the comfort of an air-conditioned place. This concept spread fast throughout America and many downtowns were stripped of their retail environments.

Downtown Clearwater was already in a run-down condition when the Church of Scientology moved into the run-down and abandoned Fort Harrison Hotel.

Statements in Mr. Rodman's letter are false and misleading. And I think he knows it but continues to spew them out anyway with a complete disregard for the truth.

While I served on the Downtown Development Board, I observed that the Church of Scientology did an excellent job of fixing up and maintaining its buildings. Further, I know that much of the Church of Scientology's property is on the tax rolls and it paid almost $900, 000 last year in property taxes and is the largest taxpayer downtown. They are certainly paying their part.

I don't think Mr. Rodman cares at all about downtown Clearwater's future or past but only cares to spew out his religious prejudices, intolerance and hatred to anyone who will listen.

Our citizens recently voted to allow the city to build 129 boat slips on Clearwater Harbor and by doing so have demonstrated their support for the revitalization of downtown.

Dwight Matheny, chairman, Clearwater Downtown Partnership

Re: City of progress or intolerance? letter, June 14

Divisive rhetoric isn't helpful

Intolerance and bigotry come in many forms. We need to become sophisticated enough to recognize this.

Letter writer JoAnn Lee Frank is doing what she appears to oppose, lumping people together and making snap judgments about them without firsthand knowledge of the facts.

Largo is, to use wording I am sure Ms. Frank is familiar with, a diverse place. Neither she nor I knows what everyone in Largo is like, nor do we all know Joseph Daniel Burnard and the words he may have spoken on any occasion. Let's tone down the divisive rhetoric on all sides.

Michelle Keller, Largo

Re: City of progress or intolerance? letter, June 14

Intolerance charge misses

JoAnn Lee Frank's letter blasting Largo, as if it were a person, not a town of 70, 000 plus, is very telling.

She doesn't actually know if Joseph Daniel Burnard uttered a racial slur. It seems to me that Ms. Frank is the intolerant party here, not the people of Largo she simply disagrees with.

Patrick Michaels, Largo

[Last modified June 22, 2007, 07:30:56]