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Letter to the editor

Petition backers: 'People are just ready for a change'

By NICK JOHNSON, Times Staff Writer
Published October 31, 2007

ST. PETE BEACH - Organizers of the St. Pete Beach political action committee Save Our Little Village say their attempts to promote change in the community are off to a good start.

The committee started a petition drive last week to put six items, including amendments to the city's comprehensive plan, on voters' ballots next year.

SOLV members say the proposed changes would entice developers to build hotels, instead of condos, by increasing the number of rooms and building height that can be built in the city's resort area.

The idea of increasing building height and density has been a dividing line among the city's residents and politicians since a comprehensive plan amendment was repealed by voters two years ago.

SOLV will need to collect more than 700 signatures from beach residents by mid November in order to get the items onto ballots for the January election next year, or by mid January for the March election.

Beverly Garnett, Bette Woods and Al Halpern were sitting under a white canopy in the middle of a grassy lot just south of the Don CeSar on Sunday afternoon.

They had collected about 15 signatures that day. Most of the residents came at the same time and signed the petitions without question.

"Most of the people that have stopped knew what they were signing," Garnett said.

On the other side of town, Annie Fleeting and Barbara Wiener sat under a similar white canopy in the parking lot of a closed restaurant.

They said they had collected about 25 signatures since they got there just two hours before.

"It was really busy yesterday. We had a line of people going back waiting to sign," Fleeting said, gesturing toward the lot.

"People are just ready for a change," Wiener said.

The proposed comprehensive plan amendment also includes a coastal green city initiative aimed at promoting green building.

"We have the opportunity to do something really exciting and lead the way in St. Pete Beach," Fleeting said.

Her family owns the Coral Reef Beach Resort and a number of other properties on the beach. She said the proposed plan would allow them to replace the Coral Reef with another hotel instead of condos.

Marvin Shavlan was one of the last people to sign the petitions Sunday afternoon.

He had read over the petition descriptions but not the 400 pages of supporting documents.

He didn't need to. "I know what these people are about and I want change," he said. "Half these hotels on the beach need to be torn down. It's pitiful."

Shavlan said the height increases were fine with him, if they meant modern resorts in place of the aging hotels along Gulf Boulevard.

"I really don't understand the problem with five stories, 12 stories. It doesn't make a difference. You can't see the water."

Nick Johnson can be reached at nickjohnson@sptimes.com or 893-8361.

[Last modified October 30, 2007, 22:58:26]