St. Pete advances updated sidewalk activity ordinance, but critics say it could hurt free speech

Last Wednesday, St. Pete City Council voted 6-2 to advance an ordinance broadening limitations to sidewalk activities and “table-like structures.” If approved at its second hearing, the city would have stricter restrictions on where tables and objects are on sidewalks.

William Kilgore, of the St. Pete Tenants Union or SPTU, told council he’s worried the ordinance would be used to limit free speech.

“When we have a protest or when we have a call to action, you know, we set up a table, it doesn’t block anything and it doesn’t cause any disturbance” Kilgore told the council, “City Hall’s going to be in the purview of that new prohibited zone. So that’s going to affect our organizing abilities and things like that directly.”

Last August, residents camped out in front of City Hall protesting for rent control (which the state has preempted). That night, Allendale Methodist Pastor Andy Oliver was cited for trespassing by St. Pete Police Chief Anthony Holloway. In the aftermath, council member Ed Montanari questioned Holloway about why protestors hadn’t been arrested for putting tents on the sidewalk.

“Tell me about the law, if sidewalks are being blocked and there’s no permit and the police come and see that, are the tents supposed to be removed?” Montanari said.

“Yes sir, when I was here the sidewalk was not blocked,” Holloway said then. “We could only cite one person because he said the tents belonged to him. I made the decision to have the tents removed first thing in the morning.”

Holloway assured Montanari that it “won’t happen again.”

This ordinance expansion could ensure Holloway keeps his promise to Montanari. Council member Gina Driscoll proposed the original sidewalk ordinance in 2019. During last month’s Public Services and Infrastructure Committee, Driscoll asked for an expansion of that ordinance to, “create a safer space for our heavily trafficked space downtown and address some of the crowding issues downtown with tables and table like objects.”

St. Pete’s current table ordinance bans tables in any right of way along a specific area of downtown. Under Driscoll’s expansion, that area would include the Pier, the Edge and Grand Central Districts along with City Hall and other areas downtown. The current definition blocking the right-of-way means the entirety of the stretch of sidewalk is blocked, but the new language could apply to a table blocking just a portion. As Laura Roe, a manager in St. Petersburg’s Police’s Legal Division, said last month “It’s not the crowd that’s the problem. It’s the table that’s drawing the crowd.”

But Kilgore says the current ordinance has stronger language than what Driscoll and the city are proposing. Formal written notice by SPPD is required now but not under the proposed changes. Instead of the current 90 days, removed objects would only be stored by SPPD for 30 days before disposal. SPPD would have discretion to decide what kind of objects are being used as a table or for a “table-like purpose.” Police and the city said last month that it wouldn’t apply to the homeless. But any display, exhibition, presentation or distribution to the public could be applicable.

“I used to go out and play music, busking, on Central Avenue with an acoustic guitar, a milk crate, and a receptacle for tips,” Kilgore told council.“That becomes covered under this. You’re affecting all kinds of people; street performers, artists, non-commercial activities, you’re affecting a wide variety of people.”

Council member Deborah Figgs-Sanders and Richie Floyd voted against the proposal. Floyd said he doesn’t think council should leave these kinds of interpretations up to SPPD.

“I’m very sensitive to issues where we’re regulating what kinds of social behaviors can be allowed,” Floyd said. “I just don’t want us to have to be relying on how we expect our police department to interpret things.”

The second hearing and final vote on St. Petersburg’s updated sidewalk activity ordinance is scheduled for June 15.

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This article appears in Jun 1-7, 2023.