COURTESY : The Daily Commercial

By Megan Shannon

Published January 6, 2006 

THE VILLAGES — Some Villages residents take issue with a policy requiring citizens to obtain permission to gather, meet, rally, protest or have a parade on any public street, sidewalk, alley or park in non-residential parts of The Villages.

Property Owners Association President Joe Gorman said residents would like to take their grievance to court, but are intimidated by the developer. He thinks the September ordinance would be overturned if it came before a judge.

“No one wants to go up against the big pockets of the developer. Villagers are no different than ordinary Americans who shouldn’t have unreasonable restrictions on their gatherings,” Gorman said.

Some also say the policy was passed in a “secretive” fashion. The item was listed as “approval of policy on special activities relating to district facilities.”

“That’s how it was approved without discussion by anyone at the meeting,” said Irving Yedwab, a Villages resident.

“There was no full explanation to residents of what it contained,” Gorman said.

Documentation describing details of the policy item is available for public view.

The Special Activity Permit must be approved by District Manager Pete Wahl or his “designee” and filed 10 days prior to the date of any special activity — longer if that activity requires the closing of roads.

The policy states its purpose as to provide “a controlled, safe environment for pedestrians, guests, vendors, entertainers, automobile and golf cart traffic.”

Home Owners Association President Doug Tharp said it is a good policy.

“I have no objection to people expressing their opinions, but it should be done in an organized fashion,” he said.

The policy lists application requirements such as date restrictions, cleanup and damage deposits totaling $200 for groups under 100 and $500 for groups more than 100, and a $1 million insurance policy naming the VCCDD as an insured party.

Gorman said this requirement makes the policy unfair.

“I would agree with this policy if it was reasonable,” he said. “This is the absolute best illustration of how extreme this policy is. They are being restrictive and oppressive.”

Tharp disagreed. He said this insurance policy is the only was the VCCDD would be able to properly protect itself.

“In this day’s litigation, someone can get $1 million for spilling a hot cup of coffee at McDonald’s,” he said.

Gorman said he thinks the policy was passed in response to a protest held by Villages residents in June concerning the closing of The Chula Vista Club in The Villages.

During the protest, the police asked the group to move to a different location because of legal matters, but other than that, they reported no disturbance.

“It was quite orderly,” Gorman said. “The police viewed the protest and everything went smoothly.”