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© St. Petersburg Times, published January 31, 2001
The street widening construction on County Road 1 near Tampa Road has resulted recently in two cut cables (both television and cable modem service were interrupted), a cut phone cable (affecting every Verizon customer in Forest Grove for an entire day) and a water truck stealing potable water from our fire hydrants (without a meter or permission from the fire department and only two blocks from a reclaimed water area).
I'm not against progress and will welcome the extra lanes in the street, but couldn't we get some people who are actually capable to do the work? How about one major utility cut per week, perhaps, instead of two or three?
If you can't even widen a lousy two-lane road, how can you even hope for real development? Is that the difference between the highest and the lowest bidder?
And by the way, Verizon, shame on you. When I call you to report my phone service is down, don't tell me there are no outages in the area. I just told you of at least one -- mine! The rest of the neighborhood just isn't willing to hold for 30 minutes to tell you in the hope of having you come and fix it!
-- Henry Dan, Palm Harbor
It is our family's desire to extend our heartfelt gratitude and appreciation for the efforts of the students of the Countryside High Drama Club and their teacher, Maria Gerakios, for the beautiful benefit they provided on our behalf recently.
We also wish to express our sincere thanks to the community that supported this wonderful show in an effort to help our family and assist us as we move forward with the medical treatments necessary for my husband Nick's continued recovery from brain cancer.
As always, under the direction of Ms. Gerakios, the students' talents were showcased with style and exuberance. There was much more than just fabulous artistic talent taking center stage, however. What was most apparent in that auditorium were the genuine feelings of kindness, generosity and love on behalf of the students, teachers, volunteers and audience members, who all showed such incredible support for our family.
In a time when it seems all we read or hear about is the many things that are wrong or bad in people, that evening was a testimonial and reminder of the many things that are good in people.
Our family also thanks Lorri Helfand of the St. Petersburg Times for covering my husband's story with such a tender touch (Drama club students repay acts of kindness, Jan. 17).
Although our family faces an untraveled road ahead, and we continue to pray for the strength to deal with the many unknowns, we cannot help but feel that God has bestowed many blessings upon us.
He has revealed to us the blessings and comfort love provides as it binds people to one another. The love of family, the love of friends, and the love of our neighbors and community sustain us, more than ever. This love has also helped us to know that we are not alone in our trial and has helped make some of the darkness seem so much brighter.
We thank you all for your continued prayers and messages of encouragement. God bless you all.
-- Nick and Ann Gerakios-Arfaras and family
I agree with letter writers Dave Campbell and Jill Rommel and their concerns related to the Harborview Center in downtown Clearwater.
Such a prime piece of property should not be running in the red. Maybe a Harborview manager is needed, someone who would concentrate on new endeavors for the center and nothing else.
Maybe one of the reasons the center is in the red is because of the outside appearance, as Campbell stated. Who wants to have a function in a building whose grounds and outside appear to be neglected? Instead of going inside to inquire about using it for their next affair, they probably just chose another location that was in better condition.
I'm sure we must have a city maintenance crew who should see that the Harborview, as well as all other property in downtown, is kept in prime condition. To do less is to neglect their duties.
Also, if we expect new businesses to buy or rent local downtown property, we should encourage growth by keeping what we have in tip-top shape. Clearwater won't grow if we neglect what's already here.
Even the oldest towns in the country can look great if they are kept neat and clean. Let's clean up our downtown to encourage others to buy and build here. Who can exhibit pride in a rundown city?
-- Fran Glaros, Clearwater
Once again the Clearwater City Commission has made a self-serving decision.
The commission declined the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority's request to locate a much-needed new bus terminal at 110 N Greenwood Ave., a location where many residents are dependent on bus service to conduct their daily activities.
Yet these same city commissioners feel than an 8,000-seat baseball/concert stadium is very compatible with the residential area adjacent to the St. Petersburg Junior College property.
-- R. Padgett, Clearwater
The citizens of Clearwater need to support Commissioner Ed Hart in his quest to achieve accountability in the workings of our city government.
As all in the city are now quite painfully aware, coordination of both the vision of Clearwater as a city and projects designed to further that vision have been extraordinarily difficult. This difficulty has primarily been due to a decisionmaking process that is seen by ordinary citizens as being poorly controlled.
Commissioner Hart's efforts to provide oversight and participation in these processes, as well as providing mechanisms by which the proclaimed benefits of projects might be assessed, are to be applauded.
-- Beth and Tom Goodgame, Clearwater