Comments on: A Santa Claus in Council chambers

By: anonyamous

anonyamous — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 13:37:28 +0000

Why have a “public park” if the public can not use it, including church groups and the homeless?

If there are forces on the council that want to shut out a certain segment of the public, fence it off and allow no one to use it but the birds and squirrels.

By: CityResident

CityResident — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 22:42:17 +0000

Selective enforcement of the codes are the norm for this city. They do not only extend to parks, they are also selectively enforced in all other areas of city government. In Pensacolas cse the Asylum is being run by the inmates (employees).

By: Mike

Mike — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 19:48:07 +0000

Selective enforcement of the codes and special codes for this park?

Don’t know why one park would be permitted any differently than any other park .

They all have grass and maintenance requirements.

By: Derek Cosson

Derek Cosson — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 18:20:45 +0000

This doesn’t really have much to do with the St. Faustina suit… that was just the impetus for all of this. Council decided in 1987 that scheduled events for the general public should be banned. They were essentially just selectively enforcing it. They cannot selectively enforce it anymore, because that’s why they got sued.

They can make it open for everyone under certain conditions (times, permitting, rules) or open for no one. That’s the law, in the opinion of the City Attorney’s office (and mine, for what it’s worth).

So City staff says open it up, but just a little bit, only 3 months a year, with permits, and no stages, vendors, electricity, etc. — because the original goal of the 1987 policy was to protect the grass and landscaping at the Plaza.

Council’s other option is that they could rescind the 1987 policy and let the normal requirements and permitting for all other parks apply the Plaza Ferdinand.

I’m not sure what I would favor, myself.

By: Mike

Mike — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 17:57:50 +0000

so because the “so called” revenend monk can’t use the city park as his church and have unlimited access for unlimited activities

there can be no scheduled events at the park for the general public?

lawsuits work here-logic doesn’t

By: Derek Cosson

Derek Cosson — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:55:21 +0000

wanderinghoo: They said that the streets around Seville Square are too small to load the tour buses. They also argued that that they wanted to keep it in the DIB district, which Seville Square is not in. The DIB was the originator of the event and remains a sponsor.

By: wanderinghoo

wanderinghoo — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:50:49 +0000

I wonder what Winterfest’s objection to Seville Square is. It is a larger space and has a Gazebo which could come in quite handy for Santa and his helpers during inclimate weather.

By: Joe

Joe — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:49:08 +0000

Those “certain elements” certainly are intimidating! I remember one time when I was just minding my own business at Plaza Ferdinand, a whole gang of those ruffians came over, knocked the ice cream out of my hand, pulled my pants down, and made sexually suggestive remarks about the women in my family.

Oh, wait, no they didn’t. They just sit there on the benches, as people tend to do in parks. I’ve never even been panhandled. “Sitting while homeless” is a serious offense indeed.