COURTESY : The Daily Commercial

By Megan Shannon

Published January 12, 2006 

THE VILLAGES — A Center Hill resident has piqued the interest of the American Civil Liberties Union regarding a policy passed months ago by The Villages.

Louise Racine of Center Hill sent a letter to Sumter County commissioners asking them to cancel their next commission meeting, which is scheduled to be the first meeting held in the Laurel Manor Recreation Center in The Villages, because the policy puts certain requirements on any public gathering on the property.

“America’s Constitution clearly allows the public to meet and peaceably protest,” Racine said.

The policy states that any gathering in designated areas within the Sumter Landing Community Development District and the Villages Center Community Development Distrct must be approved by Distrct Manager Pete Wahl. According to Wahl, the Laurel Manor Recreation Center is not included in these designated areas and would therfore not be subject to policy requirements. He said people would be able to peaceably protest outside of Laurel Manor if they wanted to without district permission.

“We would ask them to not impede automotive and pedestrian traffic,” Wahl said. “The purpose of the policy is to make sure everybody has open access to where they need to go.”

County Attorney Randall Thornton told Racine that the policy would not interfere with the county meeting.

A special warranty deed shows that the SLCDD bought Laurel Manor Recreation Center in November, which would mean the policy would apply there. However, the policy states that activities or functions leased or permitted by the SLCDD or the VCCDD are not covered by the policy. The County Commission meetings are licensed and permitted by the SLCDD.

“The policy doesn’t apply to the place where we’re meeting,” Thornton said. “By the terms of the policy it would not apply.”

Racine argued that any protest outside of the meeting would not be a part of the meeting, and would therefore require the stipulations set forth in the policy.

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.

“The $1 million insurance policy would have to purchased by anyone who would want to gather there,” Anderson said.

According to Becky Steele, director of the West Central Florida Regional Office of the ACLU, the insurance policy requirement is considered an “unreasonable burden on free speech.”

“It’s too high,” she said. “It’s basically taxing free speech.”

She said the ACLU recently sued Polk County last month for installing similar requirements for erecting a display in a First Amendment zone on county property.

The county stated that a $500,000 insurance policy was required. When ACLU filed an application with the county for a display honoring the Bill of Rights but did not include the insurance policy, the county did not process their application. After the ACLU filed suit, the county suspended its policy for thirty days and recently shut down the free speech zone.

Steele said the ACLU erected a 12-foot-tall Statute of Liberty and a 6-foot banner with the text of the First Amendment while the county’s policy was suspended. They also passed out flyers about the Bill of Rights along with Christmas cookies.

Commissioner Dick Hoffman said Thornton told the commission that the policy deals with areas other than Laurel Manor Recreation Center. Commissioners have not canceled the upcoming meeting.

“The policy is up to The Villages,” he said. “It’s private property. If the people who come to the meeting want to picket, they could.”

Hoffman added that he does not think much of the ACLU, so bringing them into the situation does not help.

“It’s a big liberal corporation who are opposed to a lot of things,” he said.

Racine wrote a letter to the commission citing the deed which states ownership of Laurel Manor Recreation center by the SLCDD.

“If you elect to move ahead with this meeting at Laurel Manor, I believe you will be endorsing the oppressive and constitutionally suspect ‘policy’ presently in effect at the district,” she wrote to commissioners.