Neighborhood politics turn nasty

Has Humpty Dumpty fallen off the wall?

The pieces of this activist-rich neighborhood are plain to see: the executive board of Old Seminole Heights Neighborhood Association, a splintered association membership, the founders of Seminole Heights Foundation and their supporters, and scrappy - sometimes nasty - banter in the blogosphere by a legion (or maybe a handful) of anonymous posters.

The times are unprecedented for Old Seminole Heights.

On May 19 the association's executive board voted to oust three members - and not just any three members. Two are former presidents Randy Baron and Susan Long, and the third is crime watch coordinator Christie Hess.

Old Seminole Heights built a reputation over more than 20 years for its unified, strength-in-numbers brand of political clout. No one can recall the extreme step of expulsion by this or any of the city's neighborhood associations.

The reason given is a bylaw rule for removing members whose "actions or conduct embarrass or jeopardize the best interest of the Old Seminole Heights Neighborhood Association."

Their misdeed as seen by the board was the creation of Seminole Heights Foundation, a group with a goal of raising money for community projects. Its nonprofit status is pending.

The board accuses Baron, Long and Hess of stealing proprietary information and two Internet domain names for the association's own proposed charitable group.

"They take your work and they don't tell you everything," association president Jeff Harmon said.

Baron denies the foundation stole anything. The group will focus on community projects in greater Seminole Heights' neighborhoods rather than what foundation members say were the association's goal of a charitable group focused primarily on Old Seminole Heights and tax deductions for home tour donors.

Hess and foundation board member Allan Weistock recently have attended area meetings including those of the Business Guild of Seminole Heights and the Southeast Seminole Heights Civic Association. They are compiling ideas from the public for future projects such as traffic calming, street lighting, crosswalks and benches.

"I just hope the neighborhood moves forward," Baron said. On a blog posting, Baron asked that no one pull out of the association in protest, as a couple of bloggers suggested.

But hard feelings abound.

Baron, Hess and Long were not at the board meeting when they were voted out. Baron said they had no prior notice and the bylaws don't provide an appeal process. "I question why this was done at a board meeting and not at a general membership meeting," Baron said.

As of last week none of the three said he or she had received official notification from the board.

"It's hard to say how I feel," Hess said. "I would hope the association can get past all this so we can act like a neighborhood again."

Though she no longer is the association's crime watch coordinator, Hess said she will continue working on crime issues as part of a separate Old Seminole Heights watch group that works with Tampa police officers.

In April the board sent a letter to the foundation threatening a lawsuit if the domain names weren't given up. An offer of mediation was made but, Baron said, "You don't unleash hounds to stand over bloody bodies and say you want to work it out now."

Baron recently sent a message to the board offering a sit-down with foundation and board members but without lawyers or mediators.

The board has said it will not file a lawsuit but will pursue arbitration from ICANN, an Internet network for arbitration on domain name conflicts. Board members approved spending $1,300 to pay lawyers for their work on the arbitration, said Harmon.

By all accounts the May 19 board meeting, with Baron, Hess and Long not in attendance, was unpleasant.

As Harmon views events, the board has been under attack since contentious elections in October. Every meeting brings more "pot shots" directed at the board, Harmon said, including profanities at times.

"All we want to do is work together," Harmon said. "Everything that is happening is happening to us - the board. We wish them well but the board needs to be able to function without these distractions."

For the city's part, the expulsion does not put the association in danger of losing its affiliation, according to the city's neighborhood and community relations director Shannon Edge.

In an e-mail, Edge states "Old Seminole Heights Neighborhood Association's current situation is distinct. We are certain the leadership is doing its best to resolve the issue in a manner that best serves the neighborhood."