Mark Kamleiter speaks to St Petersburg FL City Council about Baywalk Sidewalk

Seven members of the city council of St. Petersburg voted to move forward with a plan to continue to move forward with the idea of giving the sidewalk to Baywalk as part of the redevelopment plan. Only Wengay Newton voted against this attack on the constitution. This plan will allow Baywalk management to "control" the sidewalk so that they can arrest anyone they don't like on what normally would be a popular public sidewalk area where dissent is often expressed.

Filmed by Leonard Schmiege, I also spoke to this issue which should be available on the www.stpete.org website after a while. Another speaker that I did not get to film was Mike Fox, thanks to all who had to wait all day to speak on this issue during public input.

Paid for and approved by Leonard Schmiege for city council District 8.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Leonard Schmiege
• city council
• free speech
• freedom of assembly
• mayor baker
• Baywalk

[Gulfporter]

I'm not a dupe. I'm gay and armed and a Democrat and I don't see what that has to do with the Baywalk issue.

The bottom line is that St Pete For Peace is lying by omission. They won't say in public the real reason they want to protest at Baywalk, so they try to wrap it in the constitution. Well, Williams and Straub parks are right there for constitutional protest in the public square. Baywalk is private property.

[willia3r]

No problems. We will just wait until the Supreme Court tilts in another direction. Until then the Corporatcracy will have free reign, unfortunately.

Big Government = Big Corporation

No difference as far as I'm concerned.

[firehawkv8]

Quit with the over dramatic bullshit. One sidewalk was privatized for public safety concerns. That is it. The Supreme Court has already ruled in the cities favor. In fact , one of the opinions in a previous supreme court decision stated that the government had a right to remove individuals or take steps to remove individuals who blocked pedestrian and vehicle traffic. Privatization of sidewalks is not new, it has already been deemed a legal decision, and there is no problem here.

[willia3r]

I served in the U.S. Army with 1188th TTbn out of Decatur, Ga. Privatizing a sidewalk is NOT what I fought for.

I often heard that the road to hell is paved with gold, and this country is doing exactly that with this insistence that everything should be commodified.

[willia3r]

So what if the sidewalk across the street is privatized? What if every sidewalk and street in America is privatized? Your excuse for the way these City Councilman voted lie on a slippery slope to dictatorship, Nobility by wealth, and rulership by Oligarchy my fellow American.

I ain't buyin' it.

[1killertomato]

1% of the Population has DUPED 46% of the population into voting AGAINST their own self interest!! Now that's payin' it forward!!

And they continue to use the SouthernStrategy, Gays & guns to devide and enslave!! Dopes!

[firehawkv8]

Second of all, crowding a large group of people in a small place causes problems that the property is trying to avoid. Since a majority of the protests are not agreed with by a majority of the public. This causes fights, assaults, and more. In order to reduce the threat of violence, we ask that the sidewalks be clear. I want people to speak their mind and to express their opinion, its what I fought for in the Marines. But it should be done in a way that is not disruptive.

[firehawkv8]

Let's be realistic here. No one is losing their right to freedom of speech. They just want you to go across the street. Its not that they don't want people to voice their opinion, they just do not want protestors interfering with customers. When the entrance is blocked by people screaming things at you, throwing paper in your hands and making you feel uncomfortable and unsafe, you leave. Protesting here effects the people who work in those stores who are trying to earn a living.

[csbrudy]

Way to go, we in St. Pete do not want to be paying lawyers because of this shortsighted move.

Give the sidewalk away as a requisite for denying first amendment rights? Wrong decision.

[AnnCKeirns]

Mark, I love this! Hey -- they are just like Bush and Company getting legal opinions to justify torture! The city council in St Pete is blind to civil rights -- has been since I lived there! Go, Mark, GO! You have it right and they are still being dumb about peoples rights!