Face Reality

It's long past time to divide this ''neighborhood'' into two neighborhoods- right down thirteenth Avenue. Why- because it's just to big and it is obvious that class divisions DO exist. Example: no one wants to be president----- and those who have been president go into total burnout.
Example pointed out by our master ''northern neighbor'' at the Monday meeting: they'd rather see these group homes in the southern part of the neighbrohood and take great insult that their ''totally single family'' is being invaded.
Example: the rolling eyes of the madames of the north when they had to sit thru discussions about traffic calming on 8th & 9th Avenues- sorry to bore them! (those that didn't run out of the meeting) Nice face lifts, by the way!

This split been needed for years- jst do it !

Divisiveness

I was a bit upset to hear all the north/south stuff at Monday's meeting, and this exchange isn't helping. A sense of ''clique-ishness'' sometimes emanates from people in the south, and this ''northerner'' found it pronounced last Monday. Maybe it explains why Frank and I are the only active members we know of on our block. (21st Av) And for the record, there are numerous multiple-family units in the northern part of the neighborhood. If we split we'll become much less effective, and energy will have to go into duplicating efforts rather than improving things.

Congratulations

Well, really happy to hear that there is somebody involved that far north in the neighborhood. Good for you! (No sarcasm here.) But those who live at the north end (and benefit most as the whole neighborhood improves) should help out more. I hope you can get some of your close neighbors involved. And thanks for your work.

Being a southerner I find that it is the northerners who are cliqish and somehow look down on the rest of us. Guess it's all in the eye of the beholder.

But until more people get involved I think it hinders the southern part of the neighborhood from moving forward. When you get 50 people at an average meeting, out of 3000 in the neighborhood, the city says big deal. Not too impressive. It is going to be the southern end of the neighborhood that will have the most changes and challenges in the next ten years. They could work more quickly and efficiently without dragging along thousands of people who don't really care or participate. A meeting of 50 residents out of say
1000 would be much more impressive to the city (even though that is a pretty miserable percentage too). The problems
between the north and south are too different and it makes the whole organization to unweildy.

St Pete Times article part 1

Neighbors take issue with group residence

Some North Shore residents are concerned about the proposed group home for mentally retarded clients.
By JON WILSON

?¿½ St. Petersburg Times,
published July 29, 2001


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ST. PETERSBURG -- A planned home for six mentally retarded people has upset some residents in a North Shore neighborhood.

Goodwill Industries-Suncoast plans to open the home on 18th Avenue NE in mid August, the agency's officials say.

Residents got wind of the plans before Goodwill had a chance to schedule an open house to discuss the home. Many attended a neighborhood meeting earlier this month to object, among them former City Council member Ron Mason.

Mason lives near the home, which is about a block off Beach Drive. He declined to discuss the home last week.

''I've been sworn to silence,'' Mason said.

''It's a very delicate situation.''

The North Shore Neighborhood Association, meanwhile, has taken no position and in fact, association president Susan Rebillot said that if the home does open, association leadership ''will go welcome them.''

But Mason and 15 to 20 other residents have asked lawyer Jim Martin to look into the issue.

Martin, who lives on Ninth Avenue NE in North Shore, was a major neighborhood spokesman last year when residents were concerned about a CVS drug store planned for Ninth Avenue N and Fourth Street.

Differences between residents and the developer were resolved, and Martin is hoping for a similar outcome regarding the Goodwill home.

''It's the sort of thing where my clients just want more information,'' Martin said. He expected to meet with Goodwill representatives late Friday.

Martin has asked city government to reconsider its definition of the Goodwill facility as a community residential home, rather than a social service agency. City codes allow community residential homes in areas zoned single-family, as 18th Avenue NE is, but does not permit facilities defined as social service agencies in such neighborhoods.

But the city has no role in this matter, said Pam Cichon, assistant city attorney.

''The North Shore residents should take their complaint to the state,'' Cichon said. She said Florida statutes defining community residential homes ''are unusually clear.''

In recent years, governments have been working toward moving mentally retarded or mentally ill people out of institutions into smaller homes where they can live more normal lives.

The Goodwill home would be about a block off Beach Drive in the heart of a section where owners often pay in the middle to high six figures for their homes. The home at issue is assessed at $169,400, but would doubtless sell for more. Goodwill officials say they will pay owner Steve Gruskin about $2,500 a month in rent.

Gruskin, who lives in San Francisco, could not be reached.

Men and women in their 30s would live in the home. Some would move from a larger Goodwill group home, and all are in Goodwill day programs from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.

''All of them have been with us for a long number of years,'' said Jean-Marie Moore, Goodwill's human services operations director.

The home would be supervised in shifts, but no supervisor would live on the premises.

Martin said his clients are not a ''not-in-my-back yard'' group -- a term generally shortened to ''nimby,'' referring to people who say they support the idea of governments and agencies helping people but don't want facilities near them.

Still, there is concern that the Goodwill home could set a precedent, Martin said.

article continues on part 2 due to a 500 words limit.