Winter Park officials debate controlling media access

Do Winter Park boards have the right to speak openly with the press?

A proposal to potentially restrict how Winter Park’s advisory board members speak to news media was raised during a meeting last month between Mayor Steve Leary and City Commissioner Sarah Sprinkel.

The idea seemed to be tipped off by recent media coverage of the city. The Orlando Sentinel had written a story in early July quoting board member Jill Hamilton Buss of the Pedestrian and Bicycle Advisory Board, who challenged SunRail’s position that trails can’t go along railways.

The Observer has often quoted board members directly as well.

Leary said such instances of board members disagreeing with officials and the City Commission puts additional pressure on the city in the midst of pursuing capital projects – and it needs to be addressed, he said.

“Is there a standard right now for how [board members] talk to the press?” said Leary during the July 6 meeting. “They do represent the city of Winter Park. We want their opinions, but…I don’t think the guys on the board either understand how it all works or they have their own agenda sometimes.”

Sprinkel said that board members with strong opinions should speak to the city first, joking that they should “just say no” when approached by the press.

“If we have a board going out to the paper to state their case, why didn’t they come to us first?” Sprinkel said. “Why didn’t we hear about this first? We really need to get a handle on that.”

Leary noted that even though board members aren’t technically city employees, they should conduct themselves as such.

“Let me be clear, too," Leary said, "we're not trying to limit their First Amendment rights. But if you represent the city — it's the same with a company.”

"If somebody from my company goes and talks to the press, I'm going to say, 'Guys, we've got to talk about it. This is about the company. It's not about you.'"

Assistant City Manager Michelle Neuner said the city plans to gather all the Chairs together from each advisory board and talk with them about “how to deal with press issues.”

“They need that training that says ‘First step: contact the city’s communications department,’” Neuner said.

But some city board members were hesitant about the idea of Winter Park placing tighter restrictions on media interviews.

“We serve as appointed members by the mayor and commission, so you have to be aware of that, but still we are non-paid people,” Planning and Zoning Board member Tom Sacha said. “To tell me that I can or cannot [give] an opinion to a reporter – I don’t think that’s the right thing to say.”

“If you ask me my opinion on some citywide project or citywide issue, I think I should be able to make my comment on that.”

When asked whether action from the city could cause board members to not speak up during meetings about certain issues, Sacha said, “I hope not.”

Stephen Pategas, vice chairman of the Keep Winter Park Beautiful and Sustainable Advisory Board, said he supported media training for city board members, but added that the press should somehow be involved in the process.

“I’m all for training, maybe some members of the press would be there,” Pategas said. “The members of the press play an important role in getting the word out to residents about what’s going on in the city.”

“[The city] might even consult with [the press] and help develop a policy if a policy is needed.”

Pategas added that being forced to speak with a communications official before talking to a media member seemed “awkward.”

Pedestrian and Bicycle Advisory Board Chairman David Erne said that more communication between the city and the boards can be a good thing, but also noted that boards having differing opinions is part of what makes them successful.

“These meetings are open to the public,” Erne said. “There are times with our opinions where we agree to disagree, but that helps move things forward.”

Mayor Leary’s one-on-one meeting with Sprinkel was one of three publicly noticed meetings he held with individual City Commissioners this summer. A meeting was also held with Commissioner Greg Seidel and another with Commissioner Tom McMacken, in which only the first half was recorded due to “equipment failure.” Florida “Sunshine” laws require policy-related communication between elected officials of the same city only be done during advertised, public meetings.

Neuner said during the July 6 meeting that the city would start working toward media training in “mid-July.”