Latest on the Baywalk sidewalk issue
- 11/17/11 - Baywalk's new owner takes taxpayer money to fund projects, despite saying otherwise (read).
- 10/27/11 - Baywalk's new owner, Bill Edwards donates $5,000 to St. Petersburg City Council candidate (and Republican) Bob Kersteen's campaign (read). (Note: Under campaign contribution rules, any individual or corporation can give up to $500 to a council candidate per election. Edwards contributed the money through 10 separate companies.)
- 9/22/11 - ACLU letter to St. Pete Mayor Bill Foster regarding the Baywalk sidewalk (read).
- 9/22/11 - St. Pete for Peace statement - You may have read that the Baywalk sidewalk issue is back in the news with the announcement that local businessman Bill Edwards plans to buy the moribund St. Petersburg, FL shopping mall.
The sale of the property has been finalized, and Baywalk now has a new owner (read). As you know, we
have been fighting to keep the sidewalk in front of Baywalk public for
about 7 years. There have been 3 attempts to make protesting illegal
in front of Baywalk, and we have stated all along that we will not
forgo the struggle for the sidewalk, and that ultimately, the sidewalk
would remain in the public's hands. There appeared to
be a setback in October 2009 when the St. Petersburg city council voted
to privatize the sidewalk, but we continued to protest there, and did
so until it became an inefficient use of our time. With the city
ordinance that handed over the sidewalk to Baywalk's owner set to
expire on October 22, last ditch efforts are being explored to make
protests illegal. But we have been quietly working to insure that the
sidewalk remains available to all members of the public. And we will
continue to do so until the U.S. Constitution is respected. We'll keep you
posted, but for now you can check out the latest articles below,
where you can learn more about the current struggle for the Baywalk
sidewalk. You can also read about the unsuccessful attempts to stop
our protests in 2004 and 2005.
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Baywalk and the city are at it again with ANOTHER attempt to stop free speech!
Nov.
14, 2009 - In addition to passing an ordinance last month banning
protests in front of Baywalk, the city of St. Pete and Baywalk's
management last week announced a plan to stop protests on the
OTHER side of 2nd Ave N as well (read). Even though they are just now saying it aloud, it was part of their plan all along. It's right here
on page 8 of the Baywalk Revitalization Plan, which was made
public in July, and we brought it to their attention during the City
Council meetings. How can council member Karl Nurse now say
"That's news to me," when asked about the new proposal to prevent
protests on another public sidewalk? Nurse, Mayor Baker, council
member Polson and others rationalized their approval of the
sidewalk giveaway by saying protesters rights were maintained because
they could still protest across the street. This type of
deceit is not tolerable, and we will not quietly sit by as Baywalk and
city officials stomp on democracy and the Constitution.
According to this article in the St. Pete Times, council member Karl Nurse voted to privatize the sidewalk as a return favor to Mayor Rick Baker: "For instance, Nurse got Baker to sign off on a series of energy efficiency projects.... In return, Nurse supported Baker's plans to privatize the public sidewalk fronting the BayWalk complex and annex the northern edge of Tierra Verde, two wildly controversial measures."
According to this article in the St. Pete Times, council member Karl Nurse voted to privatize the sidewalk as a return favor to Mayor Rick Baker: "For instance, Nurse got Baker to sign off on a series of energy efficiency projects.... In return, Nurse supported Baker's plans to privatize the public sidewalk fronting the BayWalk complex and annex the northern edge of Tierra Verde, two wildly controversial measures."
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We
had a meeting scheduled with representatives of the Mayor's office and
Baywalk's owner, CW Capital, but we got stood up. The Mayor's
office said they would reschedule the meeting, but nothing came
about. So we called CW Capital directly and they said they
could meet with us Tuesday afternoon, but then they said they couldn't
make it. We were also informed on Tuesday by the Mayor's
representative that if we wanted to meet with city officials and CW
Capital it would be up to us to make those arrangements because the
Mayor's office was removing itself as the liaison. This is contrary to
what we were previously told, and makes it practically impossible for
us to meet with everyone before a re-vote takes place in less than two
days. This happened despite the fact that at last Thursday's city
council meeting the Mayor pledged to bring all parties together for
meaningful discussions before another vote takes place. Due to
these developments, we believe the re-vote should not take place this
Thursday since the Mayor's pledge of hearing all parties' voices did
not happen.
Baywalk Sidewalk Fight Take Two (read)
| City council undermines good faith efforts Oct. 7, 2009 - It seems as though the city/Baywalk found itself in a hole and the best way they could think of handling the situation was to dig deeper. After our good faith effort saying we would not protest at Baywalk for at least a year, the city is again attempting to take away our rights. On Thursday, council member Herb Polson changed his vote and joined the four council members who previously voted against 1st Amendment rights. So, this means the council will re-vote on whether or not to privatize the sidewalk next Thursday, Oct. 15th (tentatively scheduled for 3pm). Please contact Mr. Polson (hepolson@stpete.org and herbert.polson@stpete.org, 727-893-7117) and focus on these two issues:
There were some proponents of free speech at Thursday's meeting: council member Wengay Newton again brought up the oath to the Constitution that all members of city council swore to uphold. Deputy Mayor Goliath Davis told the council that the city was involved in good faith talks with protesters and that the vote to reconsider might undermine those efforts. And, council member Leslie Curran said she “won’t sell out” or base her decision on a St. Petersburg Times editorial. The vote on Thursday, Oct. 15th will be made without an opportunity for public comment. (Democracy at it's finest). If you are upset about this smack in the face to the democratic process, please email or call Herb Polson (see above). And you are again invited to stand up for freedom of speech and freedom of assembly next Thursday, Oct. 15th. The city is trying to subvert democracy and silence our voices. But there are ways to speak without words. And they will have a tougher time silencing our actions. Here's some media coverage: BayNews9, St. Pete Times. |
Oct 7 - An Act of Good Faith As an act of good faith, St. Pete for Peace will not hold protests in front of Baywalk for at least twelve months. If after a year’s time, we choose to do so, we will do everything in our power to make sure Baywalk’s customers are treated with consideration and respect. The recent Baywalk/sidewalk proposal was an attack on free speech and would have set a dangerous precedent for our city and our country. In last week’s city council vote, everyone's First Amendment rights were maintained and our right to demonstrate was upheld. This is what we were striving for all along. If the city and/or Baywalk’s owners again try to ban protesters from the public sidewalk in front of Baywalk, we will re-assess our position and again struggle to maintain people’s rights to freedom of speech and freedom of assembly. 
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City Council votes to keep sidewalk public!
(NOTE: The city decided to RE-VOTE on this issue and one week later passed the ordinance). How many times do we the people get to re-vote?)
On October 1, 2009, the St. Petersburg city council voted down the city’s plan to hand over the public sidewalk to Baywalk. As WMNF said, this was a “major victory for local civil rights activists”. This struggle offers an example of how grassroots activism can win out over large, well-funded, media-backed corporate interests. Free speech supporters from the ACLU, Veterans for Peace, The Uhuru Movement, NAACP, The Refuge, Rise Up Tampa Bay, concerned students from Eckerd and USF, city officials and hopeful city officials, and many citizens united to protect First Amendment rights in St. Petersburg. It's not an exaggeration to say that without the efforts of everyone this would not have been possible. Prospective city officials Leonard Schmiege, Pamela Settlegoode, and Kathleen Ford spoke out strongly in support of free speech, and current councilmembers Wengay Newton, Leslie Curran, Jeff Danner, and Herb Polson voted against the sidewalk vacation, protecting people's Constitutional rights. Many people sacrificed their time, energy, and sleep to offer resistance to the city’s proposal. To everyone who wrote letters, held signs, spoke at city hall and otherwise fought to maintain people’s free speech rights, thank you, you did your part to make St. Petersburg a better place to live, work and visit.
Here are a few videos:
(NOTE: The city decided to RE-VOTE on this issue and one week later passed the ordinance). How many times do we the people get to re-vote?)
On October 1, 2009, the St. Petersburg city council voted down the city’s plan to hand over the public sidewalk to Baywalk. As WMNF said, this was a “major victory for local civil rights activists”. This struggle offers an example of how grassroots activism can win out over large, well-funded, media-backed corporate interests. Free speech supporters from the ACLU, Veterans for Peace, The Uhuru Movement, NAACP, The Refuge, Rise Up Tampa Bay, concerned students from Eckerd and USF, city officials and hopeful city officials, and many citizens united to protect First Amendment rights in St. Petersburg. It's not an exaggeration to say that without the efforts of everyone this would not have been possible. Prospective city officials Leonard Schmiege, Pamela Settlegoode, and Kathleen Ford spoke out strongly in support of free speech, and current councilmembers Wengay Newton, Leslie Curran, Jeff Danner, and Herb Polson voted against the sidewalk vacation, protecting people's Constitutional rights. Many people sacrificed their time, energy, and sleep to offer resistance to the city’s proposal. To everyone who wrote letters, held signs, spoke at city hall and otherwise fought to maintain people’s free speech rights, thank you, you did your part to make St. Petersburg a better place to live, work and visit.
Here are a few videos:
- Channel 8/TBO - Baywalk Sidewalk Stays Public
- ABC Action News - Baywalk Sidewalk is Public Property
- 10Connects.com - St. Pete votes down BayWalk sidewalk giveaway
And here are a few articles:
- St. Pete Times - St. Petersburg City Council votes to keep BayWalk sidewalk public
- Creative Loafing - St. Petersburg City Council votes not to privatize Baywalk entryway
- Tampa Tribune - Bid to privatize BayWalk sidewalk ends with tie vote
- Troxler - Was BayWalk vote a sign of new life in a weak St. Petersburg City Council?
INTERESTING NEWS on the Baywalk issue:
- Howard Troxler: Careful with that public sidewalk — you might want it yourself some day (read).
- City Council Chairman Jeff Danner said that he wasn't sure whether there would be enough votes to approve giving the public sidewalk in front of BayWalk to the ailing complex's owners Thursday. Speaking to the St. Petersburg Times editorial board, Danner said he thought it was arrogant to blame protesters for the downtown entertainment complex's failure.
- Mayoral candidate Kathleen Ford said she does not support privatizing the sidewalk fronting BayWalk.
- City Council member Jim Kennedy said Mayor Rick Baker or his staff regularly conduct private meetings with City Council members to discuss upcoming business items before public meetings. Baker is "smart enough" to ensure his ideas will likely receive a majority of the City Council's votes before they come up for vote, Kennedy said. "I don't know if I really buy the concept that protesters and free speech demonstrators are responsible for the demise of BayWalk," he said. (More)
- Howard Troxler: Careful with that public sidewalk — you might want it yourself some day (read).
- City Council Chairman Jeff Danner said that he wasn't sure whether there would be enough votes to approve giving the public sidewalk in front of BayWalk to the ailing complex's owners Thursday. Speaking to the St. Petersburg Times editorial board, Danner said he thought it was arrogant to blame protesters for the downtown entertainment complex's failure.
- Mayoral candidate Kathleen Ford said she does not support privatizing the sidewalk fronting BayWalk.
- City Council member Jim Kennedy said Mayor Rick Baker or his staff regularly conduct private meetings with City Council members to discuss upcoming business items before public meetings. Baker is "smart enough" to ensure his ideas will likely receive a majority of the City Council's votes before they come up for vote, Kennedy said. "I don't know if I really buy the concept that protesters and free speech demonstrators are responsible for the demise of BayWalk," he said. (More)
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| Instead of voting to privatize the sidewalk in front of Baywalk (which is what CW Capital,
Baywalk's owners wanted), the St. Petersburg city council voted to
simply initiate the public hearing process. This means that at
least two public forums will be conducted before a decision is made.
City Attorney John Wolfe reportedly said the final vote would not
happen before October. City council members (most notably Wengay
Newton) expressed concern about the constitutionality of the
plan. The most striking piece
of information made public today was confirmation that Baywalk's owners
are making the potential infusion of $6 million contingent on the city
giving them ownership of the public sidewalk. A
representative of CW Capital told the council that privatizing the
sidewalk is a "deal-breaker," meaning that without it the owners would
not go through with plans to spend up to $6 million revitalizing the
property (read). It's appalling that our city would consider selling our civil liberties for $6 million. What can you do right now?
 Watch ABC Action News coverage. Listen to WMNF's coverage of the day here (scroll down to the bottom to play the archive.)In conjunction with the letter sent by the ACLU and all the other activities we all are doing, we can keep momentum moving in our direction. Aug 5 - ACLU of Florida Warns St. Pete Mayor That Privatizing Public Sidewalk Cannot Stop Free Speech and Assembly. READ MORE Aug 4 - $6 million for Baywalk is contingent on the city of St. Pete giving public sidewalk to new owners:  READ MORE Aug 3 - City Official's Racially Charged Remarks About Baywalk
It has been glaringly
apparent from the beginning of the proposal to privatize the sidewalk
in front of Baywalk that the city of St. Petersburg is targeting people
based on their political affiliation and expression. What has been less
obvious, but surely more insidious, is how race also plays a factor in
the situation. READ MOREThanks to everyone who has sent letters to the mayor or city officials. Additional support has come from Cindy Sheehan (read her letter to the city). Letters on our behalf were published in Sunday's newspaper (read). Send your letters and emails to Mayor Baker (mayor@stpete.org) or members of the St. Petersburg City Council (council@stpete.org). And please ask your friends to send letters. Remember, this is the third time that the city has tried to keep protesters away from Baywalk. The first time was in 2004 (read), the second time was in 2005 (read). Let's keep freedom of speech and freedom of assembly alive in St. Petersburg! |
July 26 - In summary...in an attempt to financially revitalize Baywalk, the city is
considering privatizing the sidewalk and deeding control to Baywalk's
owners. Regardless of a collapsed global economy, the mayor has publicly inferred that protestors and youth have contributed to Baywalk's financial failures. Baker wants the
public to believe that in granting this public space to the mall owner,
protestors and unwanted youth will be kept away, booming business will
return, and Baywalk's vacant stores (now numbering over 50%) will
magically reopen.
considering privatizing the sidewalk and deeding control to Baywalk's
owners. Regardless of a collapsed global economy, the mayor has publicly inferred that protestors and youth have contributed to Baywalk's financial failures. Baker wants the
public to believe that in granting this public space to the mall owner,
protestors and unwanted youth will be kept away, booming business will
return, and Baywalk's vacant stores (now numbering over 50%) will
magically reopen.| A recent report showed that Baywalk's problems are not unique; more than 400 of the 2,000 largest malls in the U.S. have closed in the past two years (read). Other cities appear to be facing the reality of a bad economy. Rather than scapegoating black youth and protesters, maybe the city of St. Petersburg should open its eyes to the reality of government sponsored corporate capitalism and find more sustainable and equitable ways of organizing our economy. |
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July 18 - YOUR ACTION NEEDED - city of St. Pete proposing to stop protests in front of Baywalk
Dear Friends of Peace,
The city of St. Petersburg is again attempting to make the sidewalk in front of Baywalk private (read). This would mean that protests in front of the shopping complex would not be allowed along the north side of Second Avenue, N. Even though we put our regular demonstrations at Baywalk on hold due to their dramatic drop in business, we have always maintained the right for anyone to protest in front of the downtown mall.
As you're probably aware, the city attempted to stop protests in front of Baywalk in 2005 by constructing barricades and threatening to privatize the sidewalk, but the people stood up and the right to demonstrate was maintained. Just like last time, Baywalk and the city claim that demonstrators create a safety threat (even though protesters have never caused any physical harm to pedestrians at Baywalk,) and essentially blame the decline in business at the shopping complex on protesters, young black people and the homeless.
What can you do to help insure the Constitutional rights of people to demonstrate in St. Petersburg?
- Please send an email to the St. Petersburg city council (who will vote on this August 6) encouraging them to keep the sidewalk public and to not take away the Constitutional rights of protesters. They can be reached at council@stpete.org or 727-893-7117. You can also contact Mayor Rick Baker's office at mayor@stpete.org or 727-893-7201.
- A St. Petersburg Times editorial on Saturday (July 18) pretty much gave the green light for the city to privatize the sidewalk in front of Baywalk. The editorial stated that protesters' rights would be maintained by allowing demonstrations on the south side of the street - - but this would make protesters invisible to the majority of the people frequenting Baywalk. Please leave a comment at the bottom of the article or send a letter to the editor.
- Spread the word. Forward this email to people you know and ask them to contact city officials and the St. Pete Times; post your views on blogs; call in to radio shows.
- We have met with lawyers and legal action will be taken shortly, but action from people like you is crucial.
- Other possible actions include a public forum and a demonstration.
Let's again stand
up for free speech and the right to assemble! This is not a St.
Pete for Peace issue, it's an issue of a business entity and city
trying to sterilize public property in a desperate attempt to improve
their bottom-line at the expense of individual rights. As this is
a timely topic, we will probably be sending out more than our
once-per-week update. We apologize in advance for the extra
correspondence and will do our best to keep them to a minimum.
Thank you for being part of the noble cause of preserving our
Constitutional rights!
Peace
July 24 - Letter from Cindy Sheehan to St. Petersburg City Council and Mayor
Subject: DO NOT PRIVATIZE ST. PETE'S SIDEWALKS
It has recently come to my attention that the city of St. Petersburg is considering privatizing the sidewalk in front of the Baywalk retail center as part of a plan to revitalize the area. The reason I feel compelled to contact you is that I recently had the opportunity to visit your beautiful city as part of my latest book tour. My visit was sponsored by St. Pete for Peace and Veterans for Peace, among others, and I was truly impressed by the level of dedication and passion exhibited by the people who made my trip possible. It is my understanding the privatization of this particular sidewalk effectively eliminates a high-traffic, public venue for local protesters without providing a comparable place for peaceful demonstrations. As an activist who was nominated for the Nobel Peace prize, I feel I must share my concern about the city's plan to usurp the people's First Amendment rights in an attempt to boost private, corporate profit. Another disturbing factor is that a portion of this plan will be funded using public money. It seems unconscionable to ask tax-paying citizens to help fund a plan that ultimately requires that they relinquish their First Amendment rights. My hope is that your decision is based on what is Constitutionally mandated rather than a choice that will provide only speculative benefits for a few. The fact that the economy has imploded leads one to believe that at this juncture, simply making certain areas around a retail center off-limits to the public will not be sufficient enough action to rejuvenate profits, although the cost of the erosion of civil rights for certain segments of the population will be incalculable.
Thank you,
Cindy Sheehan
San Francisco
Peace
July 24 - Letter from Cindy Sheehan to St. Petersburg City Council and Mayor
Subject: DO NOT PRIVATIZE ST. PETE'S SIDEWALKS
It has recently come to my attention that the city of St. Petersburg is considering privatizing the sidewalk in front of the Baywalk retail center as part of a plan to revitalize the area. The reason I feel compelled to contact you is that I recently had the opportunity to visit your beautiful city as part of my latest book tour. My visit was sponsored by St. Pete for Peace and Veterans for Peace, among others, and I was truly impressed by the level of dedication and passion exhibited by the people who made my trip possible. It is my understanding the privatization of this particular sidewalk effectively eliminates a high-traffic, public venue for local protesters without providing a comparable place for peaceful demonstrations. As an activist who was nominated for the Nobel Peace prize, I feel I must share my concern about the city's plan to usurp the people's First Amendment rights in an attempt to boost private, corporate profit. Another disturbing factor is that a portion of this plan will be funded using public money. It seems unconscionable to ask tax-paying citizens to help fund a plan that ultimately requires that they relinquish their First Amendment rights. My hope is that your decision is based on what is Constitutionally mandated rather than a choice that will provide only speculative benefits for a few. The fact that the economy has imploded leads one to believe that at this juncture, simply making certain areas around a retail center off-limits to the public will not be sufficient enough action to rejuvenate profits, although the cost of the erosion of civil rights for certain segments of the population will be incalculable.
Thank you,
Cindy Sheehan
San Francisco
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