SANDDOLLAR CONSULTING
Owners/operators of the Brian Dunwoody House at
520 N. Spring Street, Pensacola, Florida 32501
July 9, 2011
The Honorable Janet Napolitano,
Secretary, Department of Homeland Security
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Washington, D.C. 20528
Dear Secretary Napolitano
My husband and I are victims of apparent criminal actions (conspiracy, corruption, grand theft of persons 65 and older, and extortion) on the part of local officials, state officials, and federal officials against us, hardworking law-abiding citizens. My husband and I, both elderly, both veterans and both life-long residents of Pensacola, bought a business in 1998, which had been in operation since 1980, restored the historic building which is listed on the National Registry of Historic Places, and were authorized by Pensacola City Officials and all Boards related to Pensacola City planning and historic properties, to continue the operation of the previous owner, in May, 2000. We won the award for the best restored historic house in 2000.
In addition, our authorized business was approved for the Historic Preservation Tax Exemption Request for 520 N. Spring Street on January 8, 2001. The Pensacola City Council Memorandum dated January 8, 2001, page 2, paragraph 3 states, “According to the attached exemption application, the structure was previously used as an antique shop, art gallery, offices and apartments. The Meads propose to use the structure for an art gallery, antiques, crafts and functions.” These uses were approved based on local zoning requirements and, in addition, were grandfathered. (This memo is located at ci.pensacola.fl.us – council file dated 1/11/2001, in the Pensacola City records section on line and included in this letter).
The tax exemption and business uses were formally approved, to include functions, by the passage of Pensacola City Ordinance 9-01, unanimously, by the Pensacola City Council. Pensacola City Officials then forwarded the certification to Escambia County which also approved and certified the conditions listed in the request, and Escambia County sent it to the State of Florida for their approval. The state approved and awarded us the Historic Preservation Tax Exemption for ten years since we met and exceeded all requirements of this State program which was designed to encourage the restoration of historic properties and to bring businesses into downtown areas.
We operated peacefully for 5 years, (May, 2000 – March 19, 2005) as properly authorized (art gallery, antiques, crafts and functions) but the Pensacola Police Department closed us down at 7:00 PM on March 19, 2005, a Saturday night, during a wedding (a function), without due process and with no legal reason being given, then or now. The false reason they gave was that we were not authorized to have functions which is not true as we had previously been determined to comply with all ordinances plus there was a Pensacola City Ordinance, 9-01, issued to authorize this use (functions) as you can clearly see from the documentation above. City Officials ignored this Pensacola Ordinance in their determination to close us down, keep us closed down and take our property away from us.
The day after our illegal closing, on March 20, 2005, Pensacola City Officials announced, in the Pensacola News Journal Sunday paper, they had been planning and were going to build a 40 million dollar Maritime Park at the end of our street, Spring Street. Since, after 25 years of operation, at the same location, with no complaints, three Pensacola City Departments closed us down within 48 hours, it appears that a conspiracy and corruption took place.
After Hurricane Ivan in September, 2004, some Pensacola City Officials and some prominent people decided to give Pensacola City waterfront property and 40 million dollars to a group, CMPA, to build a Community Maritime Park (baseball stadium) at the end of our street, Spring Street. It appears that some of the individuals in this group had decided to take our property away from us based on their fore knowledge of our property becoming very important. We are on the direct route from the interstate ramp to the entrance of the proposed park. Pensacola City Officials threatened to charge us with a crime if we operated after the illegal closing in 2005, as we are legally authorized to do.
Since our house was one of the few venues for functions able to open soon after Ivan, we had been booked solid for the foreseeable future. Our operation, an art gallery/antique shop holding functions, was a win-win situation for the community, the City of Pensacola and us. As I stated above, the business had been in operation for over 25 years with no complaints before our illegal closing. The people holding the functions hired photographers, caterers, florists, limos and out-of-town guests stayed in the nearby motel. Several local schools conducted walk-throughs of the historic neighborhood and I always invited them in for a tour of our building which was constructed before electricity, refrigeration, cars, and indoor bathrooms.
When the City of Pensacola approved the Historic Preservation Tax Exemption Request for 520 N. Spring Street on January 8, 2001, we essentially entered into a ten year contract with Pensacola where we would keep the property in good order and we would receive a small tax exemption. Written into the contract were the conditions (since May, 2000) under which we had been authorized to operate to “use the structure for an art gallery, antiques, crafts and functions.” Pensacola City Officials violated the terms of this State Program in March 19, 2005, just a little over 4 years into the ten-year period.
This State program was designed to encourage the restoration of historic properties and to bring businesses into downtown areas. We entered into this program with good faith and have upheld our end of the bargain. Unfortunately, Pensacola City Officials’ illegal actions have done the opposite of encouraging the restoration of historic properties and enticing businesses into downtown areas as their illegal actions have become a signal to anyone thinking of opening a business in Pensacola that laws mean nothing and they can close you down, against the law and without due process, at will, as they did to us. Now, we are closed, I am out of work, my contract employees are out of work, caterers and the like have less work, etc., all due to apparent illegal/criminal actions on the part of City Officials.
Since there is no basis in the law for closing us down, and in fact appears to be against the law, it seems that the main purpose of Pensacola City Officials is to illegally close us down, without due process, keep us closed down, without due process, and force us to sell. All of these actions appear to indicate wide-spread government corruption. I have diligently reported these apparent crimes over and over the last 6 years up the chain of command to officials here in Pensacola, to officials in Florida, to the FBI, and to all of our U.S. Congressmen; Senator Nelson and Representative Miller and recently, to Senator Rubio. No one will stop the apparent crimes against us.
Secretary Napolitano, how, in America, can the Pensacola Police Department shut down our authorized business, in operation for over 25 years, with no previous complaints from the City or anyone, for no valid reason given, with no notice, without due process and keep us closed down to this day, over 6 years later? Pensacola City Officials claim that we broke the law by having functions which is a false statement as we were and are completely authorized to have functions. No prior notice was given and no citation was issued and no valid reason has ever been given for our closing. Instead, a Pensacola Police Officer informed us, at 7:00 PM, on a Saturday night, during the celebration of a wedding, that we were breaking the law since, he said, we were not authorized to have functions on our property and that we were closed down entirely – for every use. I have contacted all Pensacola City Council members over the years and they have refused to stop the apparent illegal/criminal actions against us.
I have notified Pensacola City Officials regularly, for over six (6) years that they are breaking the law in this matter but they refuse to stop. Most, like our current Mayor, Mayor Hayward, won’t even answer my correspondence where I show him that we were operating in compliance with all city, county, state and federal laws but he ignores the whole situation. Unfortunately, it appears that Mayor Hayward may be a co-conspirator.
Since we pay taxes on the property downtown to Escambia County, in addition to taxes to Pensacola, we reported the apparent illegal/criminal actions against us to the Escambia County Sheriff who refused to stop the actions against us. He said we were not in his jurisdiction but we are in his jurisdiction enough to pay taxes and the Florida Constitution states that county taxes cannot be charged to citizens of municipalities unless the citizens of the municipalities can receive the county services.
I have reported these apparent illegal/criminal actions on the part of Pensacola City Officials against us several times to the FDLE (Florida Department of Law Enforcement) over the last 6 years. FDLE officials have refused to stop the apparent illegal/criminal actions against us and punish those breaking the law. Instead, they have made false statements to us to excuse their inaction and apparently to cover-up apparent corruption. This is covered in the enclosure titled, “False Statements by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement General Counsel and the Pensacola City Attorney regarding our illegal closing” where the Pensacola City Attorney made false statements and false charges about us to FDLE and FDLE repeated these false statements and false charges to us as a reason for not stopping the apparent illegal/criminal actions against us on the part of local officials. I believe that making false statements to a law enforcement agency, as the Pensacola City Attorney did, is a crime.
.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) made false statements to us and have refused to stop the apparent illegal/criminal actions against us for over 6 years? The FBI website states that the job of the FBI is to “Combat public corruption at all levels.” I believe that the apparent wide-spread corruption, stated above, does come under the jurisdiction of the FBI especially since the FDLE refused to stop the illegal actions against us and appear to be participating in a cover-up of illegal actions on the part of Pensacola City Officials by repeating false statements to us which had been supplied by Pensacola City Officials and, apparently, the Florida State Attorney, Mr. Eddins.
I have previously written the FBI that we are victims of apparent multiple illegal/criminal actions against us, by government officials, followed by cover-ups on the part of each law enforcement agency we have contacted. This is a serious problem which they should address and resolve according to pertinent laws. The FBI’s response was that it was not in their jurisdiction and that the Statute of Limitations had expired. Both of these statements were false as I wrote them. It is in their jurisdiction and the apparent illegal/criminal actions are on-going to this very day. The Statute of Limitations does not even begin until after the event is finished, not during it. The FBI never responded to this letter. An enclosure contains the FBI letter and the State Attorney’s letter which the FBI quoted and the reasons why these letters appear to be more cover-up actions on the part of law enforcement agencies. Again, isn’t making false statements to a law enforcement agency a crime? Please see “False Statements by Mr. Bill Eddings, Florida State Attorney and Mr. James Steward, FBI, Pensacola.”
I contacted our duly elected U. S. Senators (Mr. Bill Nelson and Mr. Marco Rubio) and duly elected representative (Mr. Jeff Miller) and each have refused to stop the apparent illegal/criminal actions against us. Each has refused to honor my requests under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
Each time I have written the Governor (including Governor Bush, Governor Crist and Governor Scott), the Governor sends us back to FDLE who will do nothing to stop apparent illegal/criminal actions against us on the part of officials to take our property away from us (not imminent domain, which would be a civil matter, but an illegal closing without due process).
Several years ago, my husband and I realized that city, state and federal officials were stalling until my husband and I passed away, since we are elderly. My husband of 39 years, Gene, did pass away last year, May 5, 2010, after a long battle with cancer, without us being able to use our property as legally authorized.
The stalling routine is: Pensacola City Officials give a reason for our closing, no Conditional Use, and I counter with the reason we are legal, we are grandfathered. Then city officials think of a new reason for our closing, no parking, and I counter with the reason we are legal, our parking is grandfathered to 1994 and, in addition, we exceed current requirements. Current requirements call for 14 parking spaces and we have 20 parking spaces. The current reason for our closing is that we are violating our Conditional Use and I have countered with the reason we are legal - we don’t have a Conditional Use.
City officials, state officials and federal officials, appear to be violating local ordinances, state laws and the United States Constitution, which is especially egregious since both my late husband and I are veterans and served to protect and defend the United States Constitution. Florida citizens should be protected by the law and not left, abandoned, to be preyed on by illegal actions of government officials.
Secretary Napolitano, I am asking that you stop the apparent illegal/criminal actions against us as our Homeland is not very secure if government officials are freely allowed to break laws which causes great harm to law-abiding citizens such as we are.
Sincerely,
Mary Mead
