Bar foe undeterred by bullet on car

By CARY DAVIS

© St. Petersburg Times, published April 27, 2000

LAND O'LAKES -- Dave Johnson didn't like all the heckling he received for leading a movement to close a lounge in the Lake Padgett Estates East clubhouse.

But if a little jeering and an ad on the local cable access channel calling him a "rotten apple" were all he had to put up with, then Johnson was prepared to take it.

Now he's not sure what to expect.

After a heated homeowners association meeting at the clubhouse Monday night, Johnson walked out to his car to find a .22-caliber bullet on the hood, the Pasco County Sheriff's Office said.

Deputies confiscated the bullet, but so far they have no suspects.

Johnson, a 54-year-old retiree, said he was not intimidated.

"This is not going to deter anybody," he said.

Johnson said he and others fighting the lounge, which has served alcohol for 25 years, have retained a lawyer and are considering hiring a private investigator to find who put the bullet on his car.

"We started out as a democratic movement," he said. "Now it's turned into theatrics and antics and threats."

Opponents of the lounge say it encourages drunken driving and sets a bad example for neighborhood kids who gather at the clubhouse and the nearby pool, playground and park.

Bar patrons say the lounge is a friendly place to socialize with other homeowners and guests. They say there have been few incidents of unruliness in its history.

So far, opponents have limited their fight to a petition drive and a plea to the homeowners association, which has shown no interest in shutting down the lounge. But after the incident Monday night, Johnson said, the dispute may end up in court.

"We would like to see a judge get involved in this," he said.

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