Green Thumb Festival

The Green Thumb Festival, St. Petersburg's annual Earth Day and Arbor Day celebration, returns to Walter Fuller Park, 7891 26th Avenue N., on April 24 and 25.

In its 24th year, the free family festival features horticultural and environmental exhibits, programs and seminars highlighting ways to landscape effectively, conserve natural resources, recycle, and improve the environment. Featuring more than 150 exhibitors and vendors, the festival runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days at the 133-acre park in west St. Petersburg. More than 30,000 visitors are expected to attend the popular show over the weekend.

The Garden Club of St. Petersburg, a Green Thumb Festival sponsor, also presents a flower show competition with awards for horticulture, artistic design and special exhibits. Flower show hours are from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday April 24 and from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday, April 25.

The Children's Plant Fair will be from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. Children may bring their home grown plants for judging and will receive a gift as long as supplies last. Ribbons will be awarded.

The Green Thumb Festival is sponsored by the city of St. Petersburg, the Garden Club of St. Petersburg, St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce, Pinellas County Extension Service, Pinellas Technical Education Centers, Landscape Maintenance Association and the Florida Nursery, Growers & Landscape Association. Visit www.stpete.org/greenthumb or call 727-893-7335.

Response From Commissioner Hagan

Unable to attend the County Commissioners' meeting earlier this week, I emailed the results of Regency Cove's ballot on the Gandy Overpass project to all seven commissioners. The opposition in our park to the project was 3 to 1 against. Today I received the following response from Commissioner Hagan.

Sandra,
Thank you very much for your email and service on the Regency Cove Board. As the Commissioner who proposed sending a letter to the Expressway Authority in opposition to this project, I really appreciate your comments. Please do not hesitate to let me know if I can ever be of any assistance. Hope you have a great weekend.
Sincerely,
Ken Hagan
County CommissionerDistrict 2

This brings us one step closer to scrapping the overpass, which "would not be built without community support". THEA knows the neighborhoods are against it, Tampa City Council opposes it, and now the Hillsborough County Commissioners have thrown in their support.

OPUS Live!

The University of Tampa, College of Arts and Letters, with the Department of Music present a FREE concert OPUS Live! featuring solos and duets from Broadway Repertoire. The concert will be held on Tuesday April 27, 2010 at 7:30 pm at Falk Theatre at the University of Tampa on Kennedy Blvd. Songs will include selections from Bye Bye Blues, Rent, and Chicago, among others.

Come early, parking is limited in that area.

Falk Theater

428 West Kennedy Boulevard

Tampa, FL 33606

(813) 251-0820

County Commission Meeting Tomorrow

Due to the overwhelming opposition by locals, the Tampa City Council sent a letter to THEA opposed to the overhead. Now we need the County Commission to do the same. This is our opportunity to let the Commission know how we feel about the overpass project. Last month representatives from the two area neighborhood associations, local businesses, and Regency Cove spoke directly to the city council about the importance of keeping Gandy a nice, safe residential shopping area. Apparently they were listening to us.

Please plan to attend the County Commission meeting on April 21, 2009. The Gandy Elevated Project is on the agenda. The Commission meets on the 2nd floor board room at the County Center, 601 E. Kennedy Blvd. at 9:00 AM.

Due to increased security, please allow time to arrive in time to get a speakers card filed out. Parking is available in the garage directly across the street from County Center. We really need as many people as possible to show support to our opposition to this THEA project, Our goal is to have The Commissioners write to THEA just as we did with Tampa City Council. WE NEED YOUR HELP!!!!!! Hope to see a great turn-out.

If you can't attend, you can email all seven commissioners at once at the link below:
http://www.hillsboroughcounty.org/bocc/about/contactus.cfm Do it today!!

Tampa Tax Day Tea Party

A dear friend asked me today what that Tea Party was all about, because she couldn't attend with me, due to health reasons. I was very happy to respond. The rally was an American salute by the middle class reacting to the current Congress over-spending by billions and billions of our tax dollars. Tampa's downtown park was full of people of all ages carrying homemade signs or flags to demonstrate their patriotism.
The early news reports claiming "hundreds" of people in attendance, were grossly under-estimated. Planners predicted 3,000 , many agreed the numbers exceeded the expectatons.

The Tea Party attendees were warned that there may be individuals who would attempt to cause a disturbance. We were asked to be polite. Without a doubt, there was no incidence of any impropriety. The strong winds blew signs which many in the area rescued and recovered. No litter spread over the grounds. Police on the ground and on horseback were poised for any disturbance. Nothing occurred.

This was not a racial or homophobic demonstration, as recently presented nationally by CNN. We saw nothing of this. We DID observe a group of Obama supporters, for about 15 seconds, walking the sidewalk with signs, followed by another group with signs declaring "They are NOT WITH US. Those marchers left the park quickly and with no disturbance.

The main speakers addressed the issues of billions of American dollars destined to remedy a global warming crisis that many scientists agree doesn't exist. As a matter of fact, the damage suffered in the United States by the explosion of Mt. St. Helens a few decades ago created more pollution than the entire Industrial Revolution 150 years ago. This current volcano in Iceland is wreaking financial havoc throughout the world, and it has no political party to blame.
Another speaker addressed the Cap and Trade issue just passed by our Congress, waiting for support from the Senate. This is very threatening to the middle class taxpayer. More billions of American dollars have been promised to third world countries in the next two years. Many new unprecidented taxes will hit the middle class very soon. Watch the progress of our congress very carefully. Your tax dollars are at work.

The message of yesterday's Tea Party was that we will vote out of office our Congress and Senate supporting this unconscienable tax burden on the American public.

The Last Friendship Club Dinner

The final Friendship Club dinner of the season is scheduled for Monday April 19, 2010. This is a first for us... a pizza party, with salad and ice cream dessert. Please wear your membership badge and bring your own beverage and utensils, as usual.
Committee will be expected at 4:00pm, and doors will open for the public at 4:30pm. Sit and relax with your neighbors because dinner is served at 5:30.

Tampa's Tea Party Tomorrow

The Tampa 912 / Tea Party Coalition presents the Tax Day Tea Party April 15th at Chillura Park in Downtown Tampa.
Freedom-loving Americans are coming to take our country back on April 15th at Chillura Park in downtown Tampa. -->Join them for the Bay Area's largest Tax Day Tea Party event ever!
This event is for traditional-minded citizens who want to take our country back to America's founding principles and traditional values. Speakers will address:
Obama-Care
Stimulus Spending
National Security
The Latin Americanization of Federal Finances
Climate Change Alarmism and the Left
Dodgy Climate Change Science
Amnesty
Expensive Floridian Rail Boondoggles
There will be live music, singers and entertainment.
Food will be available in concession stand so you can come straight
from work.-->Sign waving begins at 4:00PMEntertainment begins at 5:00PMEvent begins at 5:30PMEvent will end by 8:00PMPre-event
Old-Time Tea Party Rally on Fowler Ave
in front of USF from 4PM - 5:30PM..-->This will be a revival of the conservative spirit for all freedom loving citizens of the greater Tampa Bay area and is family friendly.

ROC Forum Season Closes

On Friday April 9, 2010, ROC Forum closed this season with its final educational presentation by a dynamic speaker named Charity Cicardo. ROC Forum is the group of resident-owned mobile home communities which banded together 25 years ago, and continues today to present educational forums for the board members and interested residents of those communities. ROC Forum currently has about 45 of the 85 or so resident-owned communities of Pinellas and Hillsborough Counties in its membership, and one or two in Pasco County.

Unfortunately only one of our nine board members was present. Chet Hindman may possibly be the most senior member of our Board of Directors, and apparently the only one who recognizes the value of these seminars. I am just amazed that our newest board members are blowing off these educational opportunitities. I don't know where they expect to learn the Florida Statutes and all the other stuff necessary to making excellent fiduciary decisions. As a shareholder in this park, I can only hope they strive for on-going education.

Eating Florida Fish

The Environmental Protection Commission of Hillsborough County released information in 2009 regarding the consumption of Florida marine and fresh water fish. Although eating fish once or twice a week is part of a healthy diet, residents are warned of the mercury contamination of certain local fish.

"For most people, the risk of eating fish exposed to mercury is not a health concern. However, developing fetuses and young children are more sensitive to the harmful effects mercury has on the brain than other people".

The High Risk (Do Not Eat) list includes: King Mackeral, Shark, Blackfin Tuna, Cobia, and Little Tunny

Moderate Risk (One Per Month) includes: Almaco and Crevalle Jack, Black, Red, Snowy, and Gag Grouper, Greater Amberjack, Red Drum, Red Grouper, Gulf Flounder, Sand Seatrout, Sheepshead, Silver Perch, Snook, Spotted Seatrout, Wahoo, Yellwfin Tuna, to name only a few.

Women of child-bearing age and young children should eat less fish than other age groups to avoid higher health risks. Older people go ahead and do what you want. Many of you rarely listen to health warnings anyways. Older folks are not included in this warning. Your Grandbabies, however, most certainly are.

Don't believe me. Visit:

http://doh.state.fl.us/floridafishadvice or call (813) 307-8059 for more information.

Insurance Petition

A very important petition is circulating the Park through the capable hands of Board Member Susan Dunphy. Citizens' Insurance has been categorically reducing the insurance value of any Florida mobile home roughly 15 years old or older.

FLAROC (Florida Resident-Owned Communities) Inc is working closely with FMO, the Florida organization of mobile home parks that are not resident-owned, to get as many signatures as possible of mobile home owners across the entire state to notify the state legislature of the serious cuts being made by Citizens'. Many residents have chosen to drop their coverage in recent months, rather than pay the steep annual premiums for reduced insurance coverage.

It is estimated that there are over 900,000 mobile homes in Florida. That number represents a significant lobby in Tallahassee. FMO currently has lobbyists representing privately-owned mobile home parks. FLAROC is working to acquire representation for all the resident-owned communities in the state. Their message is growing. For the first time, these two organizations are working together to get the word out to all mobile homeowners in the state. We need to let our legislators know how unfair Citizens' Insurance has become to us.

Please sign the Insurance petition at the board meeting tomorrow. Stay tuned to hear how your signatures will be counted with the other parks across the state. Together we can make a difference!