Welcome to the Belleview Biltmore Updates by Diane Hein,
President of Save the Biltmore Preservationists.
Friday, February 6, 2015
Biltmore Update
Dear Biltmore Supporter, News Media
and Others,
WE HAVE A KISSES CONTEST GRAND PRIZE
WINNER!!!
The winner for the Kissses for the
Biltmore Contest, is
Virginia Lamboley, from Clearwater
with a winning guess of 424! Congratulations
Virginia! The correct number of kisses in the
glass vase was 432, and Mrs. Lamboley's guess of 424
was only eight
candy kisses short of the correct number! Amazing!
But the story gets even better so PLEASEread on!
What is astounding is
that Mrs. Lamboley chose her 424 winning
number because it was the date she was married to
her husband Lyle on April 24, 2005 (4/24/05) and
then they honeymooned at the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel that night! She said that the Biltmore hotel
staff upgraded their double occupancy room to the
bridal suite free of charge for their stay at the
hotel! Now that is true hospitality and customer
service from the White Queen of the Gulf! So her
ten-year wedding anniversary is coming up in just a
few months!
She choose to receive her
first place prize of all 432 yummy Hershey candy
kisses, a small box of chocolates, heart sayings
candy and a 2015 Biltmore calendar and bookmark over
a $25 gift certificate, a second choice for the
grand prize winner.
Mrs. Lamboley also has played
Christmas Music at the Biltmore every Christmas
Season with all her violin students! So her love
for the Biltmore extends back for years!
Truly an amazing story for our very
first online contest, and we thank Virginia for
participating in it, and for telling us how she
chose the 424 number!
By the way I counted the candy kisses
for the first time on Monday, Feb 2, the day the
contest ended. It took me a full 20 minutes to
accurately count all 432 of them to make sure of the
number. The powerful tantalizing aroma of sweet
chocolate for 20 minutes was overwhelming! Such
temptation at hand! ;-) But I resisted! ;-) It was
a huge surprise to see that there were so many
kisses in that glass vase! I am glad she chose the
kisses as the prize, I could not imagine having that
amount of delicious chocolate in my home for another
day!
There were five runner up winners in
the Kisses for the Biltmore Contest,
Kurt Debban, Andrea Schleicher, Todd Ramquist,
Noreen Kenny and Lynn Harrell,and
they will also receive prizes in the mail. We had
local participants and also participants from around
the country. Runner up prizes include 13 lucky candy
kisses in a pretty Valentine's Day Box, a 2015
one-page Biltmore calendar and Biltmore bookmark.
The runner up guesses ranged from in the 100 range
up to 300. Virginia was the only one who guessed in
the 400 range, ALL based on her wedding anniversary
date!!!
Such an exciting story and ending
to our very first online contest! It was very fun
to write all the winners and let them know they had
won and very gratifying to me personally so thank
you for participating and also a BIG THANK YOU to
EVERYONE who took the time and money to enter our
kisses contest and try to win!
All funds collected in the Kisses for
the Biltmore Contest will be used towards the costs
and expenses of the lawsuit Save the Biltmore
Preservationists filed January 7, 2015 against the
town of Belleair because they violated and broke
their major law, the Comprehensive Plan.
Our nonprofit organization is trying to stop the
demolition of the historic 1897 Belleview Biltmore
Hotel in Belleair, Florida. Donations are
still being accepted at
http://www.SaveTheBiltmore.com
Please remember that it could take
one to two years for the lawsuit to be completed,
and the suit will cost us THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS of
dollars even with a reduced nonprofit rate by expert
land use attorney, Ralf Brookes, Cape Coral,
Florida. So please continue to help support our
lawsuit through your donation.
Mrs. Lamboley, our contest winner,
and her husband Lyle worked together to send me some
photos, so I assembled them into a collage emphasize
her winning number of 424. If you are unable to
view this collage, simply click on
http://savethebiltmore.com/KissesWinnerVirginiaLamboley.htm and
you can easily see her photos of her and her husband
honeymooning at the Belleview Biltmore after they
were married on April 24, 2005. You will note that
the hotel invoice reflects the date they checked in,
and it was April 24, 2005! The link shows the
collage in a larger size.
A BIG BIG THANK YOU:
A big thank you to all of you who HAVE already
donated to our cause, we appreciate it beyond what
words can express on this email! Your generosity
has been overwhelming, and every dollar donated will
help us win to stop the demolition of the Belleview
Biltmore and save it to be the once world famous
1897 Victorian hotel it once was. I had been
researching a bit on the late icon Babe Ruth
baseball player, and the author of the article had
said at that time the Belleview Biltmore Hotel was
"world famous." Well it's
time we all continue to work together to make that
happen again! We MUST win against the Town of
Belleair and let them know the White Queen of the
Gulf will reign again and be a 4 star world-famous
resort with huge convention facilities to make it
financially successful!
Please donate now
to fund our lawsuit and save the Biltmore from
demolition!
OUR RED ROSES ONLINE AUCTION GOING
ON! Remember that
the live red rose and vintage Czech vase silent
auction is going on also until next
Wednesday Feb 11. The total auction
package includes:
1.
One dozen beautiful RED Roses
2.
Czech vintage vase (top two prizes donated by Renee
Burrell owner of Arbor Elle in Antique Alley,
Belleair Bluffs, Florida.
Arbor Elle
Suite #4
596 N. Indian Rocks Road
Belleair Bluffs, FL 33770
3.
Our beautiful Red Roof Biltmore print (worth
$75!!!) (see below for print)
4. Two lovely hand-painted wine/champagne glasses
by local artist Kim Kenney. They are clear glasses,
and Kim has painted red hearts on them.
5. Belleview Biltmore Hotel 2015
one-page calendar and bookmark.
The total auction prize will make a
lovely centerpiece for a very romantic Valentine's
Day dinner or gift. It
is only a $5 DONATION to bid on the prize!
All funds will be used to save the Biltmore from
demolition via our lawsuit! The retail
value is a little over $200 with the red roses,
vintage vase, Biltmore red roof print (see below for
photo) and Kim's hand-painted glass!
NOTE!
If you have already bid on the roses/vase, please
note I HAVE RECEIVED YOUR BID! I will NOT
personally acknowledge the bids because if the donor
wishes to surprise a recipient, I would want to keep
it a surprise in case both parties use the same
email address!
BUSINESS ADVERTISEMENT
OPPORTUNITY: If you
are a business and donate a minimum of $100, you are
entitled to a one-time free ad insertion of your
business in both my Biltmore Updates and our
Facebook page. If you are a business and have
already donated $100 or more, PLEASE
just send me your name and business information, and
I will assemble an ad for you for your approval
before insertion. You may also scan your business
card and send me the jpg for insertion. This
Biltmore Update features an ad of long-time
Belleview Biltmore Hotel supporter Ellen Raymond, an
attorney in Chicago, Illinois. Her web site
indicates her area of knowledge as: election law,
real estate law, zoning/land use litigation/TIF law,
Civic Advocacy, FOIA/OMA/SLAPP Suit Defense. If you
need expert attorney services in any of these areas,
please contact her because of her experience
plus she wants the Biltmore saved!
To purchase your own the beautiful 8
x 10 vintage red roof print of the Biltmore, click
here:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BiltmoreArtandPhotos.htm The
original color of the Belleview Biltmore roof was
red! This vintage photo is from around 1917. The
golf course is an original Donald Ross
design and is available for purchase for
you to hang in your home or office to bring back the
wonderful historic era of years gone by. We are
running a special time period for purchase, from
Tuesday, January 27 through Tuesday, February 9,
2015 only!! The frame and matt are NOT
included. (It will
ONLY BE AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE UNTIL TUESDAY
FEBRUARY 9!!!! Then unavailable for sale until
further notice!) So purchase it TODAY!
GENERAL DONATIONS:
If you have not already done so, pleasemake a general donation towards saving the
Belleview Biltmore Hotel from demolition. Just click
on the and you can donate any amount you wish or
there are specific donation buttons of $25, $50,
$100, $250, $350 and so forth up to $10,000. Your
total donation will go towards funding the lawsuit
that Save the Biltmore Preservationists filed
January 7, 2015 because Belleair town officials
broke their major law, their Comprehensive Plan of
Belleair in which it states the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel is to be preserved. The lawsuit will take one
to two years so please donate now! Thank YOU!
http://savethebiltmore.com/SaveTheBiltmoreDonateNow.htm
Or donate right on Facebook under Social Direct.
Please donate now
to fund our lawsuit and save the Biltmore from
demolition!
DONATE
BY CHECK VIA U.S. MAIL AT OUR
MAILBOX:
Make your check payable to Save the
Biltmore Preservationists.
Save the Biltmore Preservationists,
Inc.
c/o Diane Hein, President
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North #107
Palm Harbor, Florida 34684-4410
"Like" us on Facebook! Remember that the BEST
way to receive ALL my Biltmore Updates is
through our mailing list! NOT Facebook who
arbritrarily decides on who shall receive them,
often based on how many "friends" you have!!!
OUR KISSES FOR THE BILTMORE CONTEST END
TONIGHT! ENTER NOW AND WIN! WIN
either a $25 Amazon Gift Card or POUNDS of Hershey's
chocolate candy kisses for a loved one or yourself or
anyone!
All the Hershey candy kisses in the clear vase, the
chocolate red rose and box of Whitman's chocolates are
now ready to be shipped to the top winner if he/she
chooses that for their lst place prize!!!
SO VOTE AND
ENTER TODAY!
ONE guess for just $5!Guess the number
of candy kisses in the glass vase and which are now
packed in a lovely red Valentine's Day box ready for YOU
to win! You may also enter the contest as many times
as you want for just $5 a guess!
There will be ONE First
Place Winner and Five Runner Up Winners. Delicious
prizes for every winner!
Get your children, grandchildren and teens involved,
they'll love guessing and trying to win! You can teach
them about the importance of saving the 1897 Victorian
Belleview Biltmore Hotel.
We are raising money to
save the Biltmore from demolition through our lawsuit.
It is a very colorful
Valentine's Day website page so be sure to visit it AND
ENTER NOW to win!
ROSES ONLINE AUCTION
GOING ON!MORE PRIZES TO THE WINNER! Remember
that the live red rose and vintage Czech vase silent auction
is going on also until next Wednesday Feb 11. To sweeten
the prize, we are also going to add two more gifts! So the
total package includes:
1. One dozen beautiful RED
Roses
2. Czech vintage vase (top
two prizes donated by Renee Burrell owner of Arbor Elle
in Antique Alley, Belleair Bluffs, Florida.
Arbor Elle
Suite #4
596 N. Indian Rocks Road
Belleair Bluffs, FL 33770
3. Our beautiful Red Roof
Biltmore print (worth $75!!!) (see below for print)
4. Two lovely hand-painted
wine/champagne glasses by local artist Kim Kenney. They are
clear glasses, and Kim has painted red hearts on them.
4. Belleview Biltmore Hotel
2015 one-page calendar and bookmark.
The total auction prize will make a lovely centerpiece
for a very romantic Valentine's Day dinner or gift.
It is only a $5 DONATION to bid on the prize! All funds
will be used to save the Biltmore from demolition via
our lawsuit! The retail value is a little over
$200 with the red roses, vintage vase, Biltmore red roof
print (see below for photo) and Kim's hand-painted
glass!
To purchase on your own
the beautiful 8 x 10 vintage red roof print of the
Biltmore, click here:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BiltmoreArtandPhotos.htm(It will ONLY BE AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE UNTIL
TUESDAY FEBRUARY 9!!!! Then unavailable for sale until
further notice!)
GENERAL DONATIONS:
If you have not already done so, pleasemake a general donation towards saving the
Belleview Biltmore Hotel from demolition. Just click on the
and you can donate any amount you wish or there are specific
donation buttons of $25, $50, $100, $250, $350 and so forth
up to $10,000. Your total donation will go towards funding
the lawsuit that Save the Biltmore Preservationists filed
January 7, 2015 because Belleair town officials broke their
major law, their Comprehensive Plan of Belleair in which it
states the Belleview Biltmore Hotel is to be preserved. The
lawsuit will take one to two years so please donate now!
Thank YOU!
http://savethebiltmore.com/SaveTheBiltmoreDonateNow.htm
Or donate right on Facebook under Social Direct.
Please donate now to fund our
lawsuit and save the Biltmore from demolition!
DONATE
BY CHECK VIA U.S. MAIL AT OUR MAILBOX:
Make your check payable to Save the Biltmore
Preservationists.
Save the Biltmore Preservationists, Inc.
c/o Diane Hein, President
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North #107
Palm Harbor, Florida 34684-4410
So guess and guess again the number of kisses in the red
box...
YOU may win all of the delicious HERSHEY CANDY KISSES IN THE
BOX SHOWN TODAY or CHOOSE A $25 Amazon gift card!
Dear Biltmore supporters and News Media and others:
VICTORIAN FLOWERS: With Valentine's Day coming up soon
in a few weeks, I thought I would share some interesting facts
about the importance of Victorian flowers through this modern
times. The language of flowers, sometimes called floriography,
is a means of cryptological communication through the use or
arrangement of flowers. Meaning has been attributed to flowers
for thousands of years, and some form of floriography has been
practiced in traditional cultures throughout Europe, Asia, and
the Middle East.
Interest in floriography soared in Victorian Englandand in the United States during the 19th century. Gifts
of blooms, plants, and specific floral arrangements were used to
send a coded message to the recipient, allowing the sender to
express feelings which could not be spoken aloud in Victorian
society. Armed with floral dictionaries, Victorians often
exchanged small "talking bouquets," called nosegays or tussie-mussies, which
could be worn or carried as a fashion accessory.
The Victorian use of flowers as a means of covert communication
bloomed alongside a growing interest in botany.
People in the Victorian era took the language of flowers very
seriously. Due to the repressive atmosphere of the times,
flowers became the means by which women communicated with their
suitors. The distinct scent of a particular flower or the
grouping of flowers in a bouquet conveyed unique messages.
Often, these botanical gifts demonstrated feelings and emotions
nobody dared say out loud in public. Even the way flowers were
given to someone had its own hidden message. For instance, if a
man handed a woman an upright bouquet of flowers, he had
something happy and positive to tell her. An upside-down
bouquet, on the other hand, meant he was bringing her some dark
news. Handing a man a flower with the right hand indicates that
she is agreeable to his proposal, while presenting the flower
with the left hand often means that she is declining his offer.
It was important for those in the Victorian age to know what
each flower meant so that they would send the right message to
their lovers or anyone else. Entire dictionaries were written
and published to explain this mysterious language to everyone.
However, it was fairly common for mixed message nightmares to
occur when two people had conflicting version of the "language
of flowers dictionary."
Information comes from wikipedia and Timothy Spencer, from the
web site Ignite Point.
The red rose symbolized love, respect and beauty. Which leads
me to proudly announce our:
Red Rose Silent Auction!
Bid now at our first online silent auction! Win a
stunning Victorian Valentine's Day arrangement of a dozen
beautiful red roses in a vintage Czechoslovakia crystal vase
that can later be used as a candleholder! Sample photo of
twelve roses in this Update and the actual stunning vase that
you can win!
The retail value is approximately $125.
We
have a starting minimum bid of $30 after you donate just $5 to
participate in our online auction.
The red roses and Czech glass vase are being donated by
long time Belleview Biltmore Hotel supporter, Renee Burrell.
Her store is: Arbor Elle, Antique Alley, Belleair Bluffs,
Florida. If you are the winner, you may pick up her arrangement
at her store or we offer a delivery service to the local Tampa
Bay area, but you will need to pay for delivery costs. Floral
stores will not ship her arrangement because we are not using
her beautiful vintage Czech glass.
We realize that out of towners will not be able to
participate in this fun auction, however, we have so many local
supporters, that we want to have the auction for them at this
time.
Remember that our nonprofit Save the Biltmore Preservationists
is trying to stop the demolition of the historic 1897 Belleview
Biltmore Hotel in Belleair, Florida. All funds collected in
this silent auction will be used towards the costs and expenses
of the lawsuit we filed January 7, 2015 against the town of
Belleair because they violated and broke their major law, the
Comprehensive Plan.
BID NOW AND WIN! Our Silent Rose Auction ends
Wednesday. February 11, 2015
Your credit card will only be charged a $5 donation to enter the
auction ONE TIME! After you click the red heart, enter a
minimum bid of $30.00 OR MORE. You will NOT be charged for your
bid below unless you are the winner!! REPEAT: Only a $5
DONATION to enter the auction ONE TIME! You will NOT be
charged for your bid below unless you are the winner! After
the silent auction closes, whoever has the highest bid for the
roses wins. If you are the winner, we will set up an invoice
for you to pay your winning bid right after the auction ends
before the roses AND vase can be picked up.
http://savethebiltmore.com/RedRosesSilentAuction.htm
ONE WINNER RECEIVES WITH HIGHEST BID
1. One dozen red roses with baby's breath flowers and
greenery
2. Beautiful vintage Czechoslovakia crystal vase
3. 2015 one-page Biltmore calendar--perfect to hang on
refrig. with tape or a magnet. Sent via U.S. mail.
4. One Biltmore bookmark Sent via U. S. mail
AUCTION RULES
1. You can enter our auction as many times as you want! Just
$5 donation per each entry. Anyone can enter! Share this
contest with everyone you know! Tell them it is for a wonderful
cause.
It's wonderful to
give from the heart for a Valentine's Day online silent
auction!
It's for a GREAT cause to Save the Biltmore!
2. Silent auction ends Wednesday, Feb 11, 2015.
3.
Winner can pick up his or her beautiful bouquet prize and
Czechoslovakia crystal vase during regular store hours at Renee
Burrell's store at Antique Alley, Belleair Bluffs, Florida AFTER
we receive payment from you. You will LOVE shopping there for
antiques and vintage treasures! Note, the Czech crystal vase
may also later on be used for a candleholder after Valentine's
Day! Her phone number will be given to the winner after
payment. Earliest day for pickup or delivery can be Thursday,
February 12, 2015
Arbor Elle
Suite #4
596 N. Indian Rocks Road
Belleair Bluffs, FL 33770
4. You will be notified by email if you are the winner.
5. If
you are the winner, we will set up an invoice for you to pay for
your roses and crystal vase.
6. If there is a tie, the person entering the most times
will win, or if the winners only enter once, the person entering
the auction first will win.
7. Payment must be received as soon as possible before
the roses and vase will be given or shipped to you!!!
9. Note: Actual arrangement or roses will be similar
to the one depicted. The vintage crystal vase IS the one that
will be won.
10.
If you are unable to pick up your prize at Renee Burrell's Elle
Arbor store, you may have a one-day delivery service of the
flowers, and you can pay for the cost when paying for flowers on
line. Around $20 to $40 delivery to your door in Pinellas
County. More for Hillsborough or Pasco County deliveries.
11.
The winner's name will be announced on our next Facebook post
and Biltmore Update, our FREE e newsletter unless the winner
prefers to be anonymous.
12.
You can simply donate $5 without entering the contest! Any
donations are always accepted $5 and up...of course! Just click
on the bid now button below and donate $5! Remember all that
gas money you saved, donate $5 to save the Biltmore from
demolition! Or donate $5 or more below with our blue buttons.
FUTURE AUCTIONS TO SAVE THE BILTMORE FROM DEMOLITION: If
you would like to donate a prize like a spa day, beauty
treatment, antiques, hair salon styling, dinner for two, golf
outing, merchandise, flowers/bouquets, vacation packages,
cruises, weekend trips and hotel/air packages etc., and the
retail cost is at least $75 or more, and wish to have an online
auction like this with SaveTheBiltmore.com, please contact us!
If you live out of town, we could still publicize it, if you
have a Facebook following you could share the contest post
with. We would give free publicity to the retail store,
restaurant or company who donates the prize of course!
A BIG THANK YOU: I want to personally thank Carol
Kuzmiak, our nonprofit V.P. and Doug Mann, our Secy/Treas for
all the support and help over the past month they gave me
especially in getting our donation page up, our contest going
and just being there to discuss everything including the lawsuit
in such detail for hours on end. They are both unpaid
volunteers like myself, and work very hard behind the scenes to
save the Biltmore with me. I could never do any of this without
their help and support. So a hearty thank you Carol and Doug!
:)
ANOTHER THANK YOU: A BIG BIG thank you to all who have
recently donated or participated in our Kisses for the Biltmore
Contest, which is still going on. YOU CAN STILL ENTER AND
WIN! Win either all the candy kisses in the vase OR a $25
Amazon gift certificate. That's $25 money to use as you wish on
anything Amazon offers! Fun to shop! Contest ends soon Feb. 2!
THIS MONDAY!! Five runner ups too, each winner wins $8 worth of
candy kisses and Biltmore items!
All funds collected will go towards our lawsuit against
the town of Belleair to save this magnificent historic
building: The Belleview Biltmore Hotel!
GENERAL DONATIONS:Please
make a general donation towards saving the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel from demolition. Just click on the DONATE NOW button, and
you can donate any amount you wish or there are specific
donation buttons of $25, $50, $100, $250, $350 and so forth up
to $10,000. Your total donation will go towards funding the
lawsuit that Save the Biltmore Preservationists filed January 7,
2015 because Belleair town officials broke their major law,
their Comprehensive Plan of Belleair in which it states the
Belleview Biltmore Hotel is to be preserved. The lawsuit will
take one to two years so please donate now! Thank YOU!
As noted
above the prize item up for auction is by Renee Burrell who owns a store
at the Antique
Alley.
Arbor Elle
Suite #4
596 N. Indian Rocks Road
Belleair Bluffs, FL 33770
Biltmore Update Tuesday, January 20, 2015
KISSES FOR THE BILTMORE CONTEST!
You
can have sweet fun while saving the Belleview Biltmore Hotel, Belleair,
Florida from demolition! It's wonderful to give from
the heart
for a Valentine's Day contest! And WIN
all the Hershey chocolate kisses in the glass vase!
Contest starts TODAY Tuesday,
January 20, 2015 and ends at 11:59 p.m. Monday, February 2, 2015
SO VOTE AND ENTER TODAY! ONE guess for just $5! Guess the number
of candy kisses in the glass vase. The red foil-wrapped chocolate rose
in the photo does NOT count in the contest, only the number of candy
kisses. You may also enter the contest as many times as you want for
just $5 a guess! (Or donate $5 without entering contest!)
There will be ONE First Place Winner and Five Runner Up
Winners. Delicious prizes for
every winner!
Get your children, grandchildren and teens involved, they'll
love guessing and trying to win! You can teach them about the
importance of saving American history with the 1897 Belleview
Biltmore Hotel. Make a club announcement about the contest to
your readers and members!
We are raising money to save the Biltmore from demolition
through our lawsuit.
Click the red heart to enter contest!
ONE FIRST PLACE - 5 prizes!
1. All of the wrapped kisses you see in the glass vase!
Obviously we do not want to give the exact weight, but the vase
contains pounds of delicious chocolate yummy chocolate kisses! They
will be packaged in a lovely red Valentine's Day box and shipped to
you directly. Perfect for giving to your wife, husband, partner,
your loved one, family, friends, school, community center, your
office or condo or just yourself! ;-)
2. One red foil-wrapped chocolate rose. (see photo of rose
above)
3.Small
box of chocolate hearts.
4. 2015 Biltmore one-page calendar, perfect for attaching
to the refrig with magnets or tape!
5. Biltmore bookmark.
Five Runner Up Winners
(Each of the five runner ups will receive 3 prizes each
1. Lucky 13 delicious Hershey candy kisses in a decorative
Valentine's Day box.
2. 2015 Biltmore one-page calendar. (photo
above)
3. Biltmore bookmark. (photo above)
Click the red heart to enter contest:
Contest Rules
1. You can enter as many times as you wish! But only ONE
VOTE per $5 entry. We are raising money to save the Biltmore from
demolition! Get your children, grandchildren and teens involved,
they'll love guessing and trying to win! You can teach them about
the importance of saving American history with the 1897 Belleview
Biltmore Hotel. Make a club announcement about the contest to your
readers and members!
2. The person guessing the
closest to the
number of kisses (and NOT over that amount) will win.
3. If there is a tie, the person entering the most times
will win.
4. You can simply donate $5 without entering the contest!
Any donations are always accepted $5 and up...of course! Just click
on the red button below and buy/donate $5! Remember all that gas
money you saved, donate $5 to save the Biltmore!
5. Contest starts on Tuesday, January 20 and ends at 11:59
p.m. Monday, February 2.
6.
Anyone can enter! Share this contest with everyone you know! Tell
them how it is for a wonderful cause. It's wonderful to give from
the heart
for a Valentine's Day contest!
7. Winners will be announced the first week of February via
email, and prizes sent to them in time for Valentine's Day.
So
join the fun, donate from your HEART,
and
win pounds of chocolate candy kisses! You can help us save the
Belleview Biltmore Hotel! You can make a difference! All funds
collected from the contest will be used towards the lawsuit designed
to Save the Biltmore from demolition!
KISSES
FOR THE BILTMORE CONTEST FLYER:
PLEASE print our Kisses for the Biltmore Contest flyer to post
around your neighborhood such as: office, library, retail stores,
condo, apartment, coffee shops, beauty salons, nail salons, barber
shops, flea markets, gas stations, and to hand out and so forth.
This will help us many times over! KissesfortheBiltmoreContestFlyer.pdf
You
can enter to win at the top of this page or below and as many times
as you want! One guess for each $5. Guess now!
Click the red heart to enter contest:
GENERAL DONATIONS:Please make a
general donation towards saving the Belleview Biltmore Hotel from
demolition. Just click on the DONATE NOW button, and you can donate
any amount you wish or there are specific donation buttons of $25,
$50, $100, $250, $350 and so forth up to $10,000. Your
total donation will go towards funding the lawsuit that Save the
Biltmore Preservationists filed January 7, 2015 because Belleair
town officials broke their major law, their Comprehensive Plan of
Belleair in which it states the Belleview Biltmore Hotel is to be
preserved. The lawsuit will take one to two years so please donate
now! Thank YOU!
DONATE
BY CHECK VIA U.S. MAIL AT OUR MAILBOX:
Make your check payable to Save the Biltmore
Preservationists.
Save the Biltmore Preservationists, Inc.
c/o Diane Hein, President
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North #107
Palm Harbor, Florida 34684-4410
DONATE BY WIRE TRANSFER OR TO FUND THE ENTIRE
LAWSUIT:
To donate via wire transfer to Save the Biltmore
Preservationists nonprofit bank account, or if you would
like to sponsor the entire lawsuit,
email usfor information on how to do this.
THANK
YOU: Again many thanks to all who donated since my last
thank you! Your support is greatly appreciated. Remember that the
lawsuit will take between one and two years, so we will be
sponsoring many more online contests in the coming future to help
raise funds for the lawsuit. The lawsuit will cost us in the
thousands of dollars to help save the beautiful White Queen of the
Gulf! You can sponsor an event or contest in YOUR home town and help
raise funds for us! We will post your photograph of the event after
we receive $100.
GAS
MONEY: I will be mentioning this many times, donate your
extra gas money you save to help stop the demolition through our
lawsuit!
Anyone
can enter the Kisses for the Biltmore Contest without voting. You
can click on the
RED
HEART below and donate $5 so we want to encourage everyone to
donate at least $5 to help save the Biltmore from demolition through
our lawsuit!
So
guess and guess again...
YOU may win all of the delicious HERSHEY CANDY KISSES IN THE
VASE!
Please
"like" us on Facebook. You may now donate online there under "Donate
Social" at the top of the page. Share this post with
everyoneyou know
to help us!
Biltmore Update Saturday January 17, 2015
Dear Biltmore Supporters, News Media and Others,
In the coming week, we
will be announcing a fun and DELICIOUS
AND SWEET contest just
in time for Valentine's Day! So stay tuned to my Update and Facebook post! You will have lots of FUN
participating in it while helping us raise funds for the
lawsuit to stop the demolition of the Belleview Biltmore Hotel, Belleair,
Florida!
We want to thank
everyone who donated so generously this past week to help fund our lawsuit.
Your support has been crucial in helping to save the Biltmore from demolition.
Your passion to help us has been very heart warming to all of us so a big. big THANK
YOU!
If you have not donated
yet, please donate now by clicking button below. You may donate any
amount or in set denominations like $25, $50, $100, $250, $350,
$500, $1,000 or $10,000. If you choose ANY AMOUNT, you can also check a small
box on your donation checkout to have the funds taken out of your credit card or
Paypal account on a monthly
basisto help fund the lawsuit. The lawsuit could
take one to two years so your contributing on a monthlybasis will help immensely. Give from the heartthis Valentine's Day season!
All the gas money you
have saved recently, contribute all or some of that to save the Biltmore from
demolition!
Please donate now!
NEW FACEBOOK
DONATION LINK: You may also easily donate on
Facebook at any time at the top of the page under our oval-shaped logo: DONATE
SOCIAL. Just click on those words, and you can donate any amount
you wish.
BELLEAIR BEE
ARTICLE: NOTE: I am only printing the quotes
from our attorney Ralf Brookes from an article written by reporter Brian Goff of
the Belleair Bee. Brian interviewed Ralf after our lawsuit was filed by him. I
am not printing the opposing attorney's comments because they are untrue.
Belleair officials broke the law, Belleair's MAJOR LAW, the Comprehensive Plan.
in which it specifically states that the Biltmore is to be
preserved.
Lawsuit aims to
stop hotel demolition (edited for Ralf Brookes comments only)
By Brian Goff
Article published on Friday, Jan. 9, 2015 Belleair Bee Newspaper
BELLEAIR – A lawsuit aimed at stopping the
demolition of the Belleview Biltmore hotel was filed Jan. 7 in Pinellas
County Circuit Court.
The suit contends that by allowing the demolition
of the hotel, the Belleair Town Commission is going against its own
comprehensive plan.
Cape Coral attorney Ralf Brookes filed the suit on
behalf of the Save the Biltmore Preservationists, its President Diane
Hein and Belleair resident T.C. Hayes.
“There is a very specific requirement in the town
of Belleair Comprehensive Plan,” said Brookes. “This is goal number 1 on
page 1 of a very long document. The
goal of the town should be the preservation of the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel in the town of Belleair.”
Brookes said not enough has been done to save the
hotel. “The hotel was built in 1897, it is of Victorian Architecture
and has been the cornerstone of the Belleair Community ever since. All development shall be consistent with the Comprehensive Plan;
we’re bringing this case to enforce the Comprehensive Plan,” he said.
“There are practical ways to preserve the hotel,”
he said. “This is a piece of Florida and the whole state if
not the whole country should get behind and preserve it.”
Brookes, who specializes in environmental and land use issues, opened a
window into their case.
“We will have experts in historic preservation that
we will present to the court at trial. I’ve worked with a great deal of
architects and builders in historic preservation. All it takes is money
and time,” he said. During the years of debate on the future of the
hotel, no one ever doubted that with enough money and time the hotel
could be saved. But where would the money come from? “If there is not
money in the private sector then perhaps there is money at the public
sector level in the form of grants,” he said. “Some developers would
enjoy preserving history.”
The case is likely to find its way into court
quickly. The town has 30 days to file a response to the suit. Ottinger
said putting that response together has already begun. “We intend to
try to move this along as expeditiously as possible,” he said. “It is
costing the town money, jeopardizing the development plans and we want
to limit whatever damage the town is occurring.”
Brookes said the fight is not over.
“People have fought for over a decade to
preserve the hotel and we’re not giving up,” he said.
###
FINAL THOUGHTS:
Thank you Ralf Brookes for standing up for us to
save the Biltmore from demolition!
Our precious Biltmore supporter -- YOU
CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!
Please donate now to fund our
lawsuit and save the Biltmore from demolition!
OR DONATE BY CHECK VIA U.S. MAIL AT OUR MAILBOX: Make your check
payable to Save the Biltmore Preservationists.
Save the Biltmore Preservationists, Inc.
c/o Diane Hein, President
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North#107
Palm Harbor, Florida 34684-4410
DONATE BY WIRE TRANSFER OR TO FUND THE ENTIRE LAWSUIT:
To donate via wire transfer to Save the Biltmore
Preservationists nonprofit bank account, or if you would like to sponsor
the entire lawsuit, email me for information on how to do this.
Please like us on Facebook and share this Update with everyone
you know!
NEW FACEBOOK
DONATION: You may also easily donate on
Facebook at any time at the top of the page under our oval-shaped logo: DONATE
SOCIAL. Just click on those words, and you can donate any
amount you wish.
Biltmore Update Thursday, January
8, 2015
Save the Biltmore Preservationists filed a lawsuit Wednesday, January
7, 2015 against the Town of Belleair!
Biltmore Update Thursday, January 8, 2015
We are
very pleased to announce:
Save the Biltmore Preservationists filed a lawsuit Wednesday,
January 7, 2015 against the Town of Belleair!
Here is our Press Release, for Immediate Release
Two historic preservation advocates and a nonprofit organization are
fighting to save the historic 1897 Belleview Biltmore Hotel from demolition
and have filed a lawsuit to block its sale and demolition.
Save the Biltmore Preservationists and Diane Hein, president of the
nonprofit organization joined with Belleair resident T.C. Hayes as
plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the Town of Belleair in the 6th Circuit
Court in Pinellas. Filing date was January 7, 2015.
The suit accuses the town of Belleair, Florida of approving a rezoning
and issuing a SCOA (Special Certificate of Appropriateness) for demolition
of the historic 1897 Belleview Biltmore Hotel that is inconsistent with Goal
1 of the Town’s Comprehensive Plan that specifically and expressly requires
“preservation of the historic 1897 Belleview Biltmore Resort Hotel” and
specifically references the hotel and notes "The town has a grand landmark –
the historic Belleview Biltmore Resort Hotel – which, at the turn of the
century, was a playground for the leaders of American industry and
society."
Town of Belleair Comprehensive Plan:
"Future Land Use Goal 1: Ensure that the park-like, residential/family
character of the Town of Belleair is maintained and protected while
supporting the continued economic viability of local resorts and the
preservation of the Belleview Biltmore Resort Hotel."
In their request for relief plaintiffs are asking the Court to enjoin
demolition of historic 1897 Belleview Biltmore Hotel.
End of press release
Background Information: Biltmore Hotel owners from KAWA,
Raphael and Daniel Ades, have a contract to sell the Biltmore to St.
Petersburg developer Mike Cheezem the end of January. Mr. Cheezem intends
to demolish most of the structure and save only a small 5 to 10% of the
original hotel. The demolition of the hotel would be most likely in March
2015 unless YOU our Biltmore supporter help us!
You
must help us STOP THIS!
Belleair does NOT need Cheezem's monolith monsters! It
could take six to seven years before all these tall concrete monsters are
constructed, Only one condo tower will be built, then sold, then another and
so forth. This long ordeal would make a mess of dust and dirt and debris
for all the condominium owners who live right by the Biltmore. I hope
Belleair condominium owners start banding together to help us save the
Biltmore!
As stated above, our attorney is Ralf Brookes, land use attorney, Cape
Coral, Florida.
Ed Armstrong by the way is the attorney for KAWA who currently owns the
Biltmore and is also the attorney for Mike Cheezem who wants to purchase the
Biltmore the end of January. How convenient don't you think!
YOUR DONATION GIFT WILL HELP FUND OUR LAWSUIT:
Your donation gift will be used entirely to help fund this lawsuit to
defeat the Town of Belleair and to stop the demolition of the beautiful
Victorian 1897 Belleview Biltmore Hotel. All donations whether
using your credit card, PayPal, check, wire will be anonymous and kept
confidential. We will NOT be doing a crowd funding web site for this
reason. Your contribution will not only help save the White Queen
of the Gulf, but by saving the hotel, once it is purchased and restored, you
will be able to visit the hotel, bring your families there, get married in
the hotel, have conferences etc., and you will also help create 800 jobs in
the local community. Saving the Biltmore has always been about working
together as a team, and now you can help us even further by stopping the
demolition of the Biltmore!
YOU can help in its future with your donation gift, large or small to
come and visit the Queen again and again! You may donate any amount of
money you wish, but we do provide buttons at the link below to make it
easier for your. These range from: Any Dollar Amount, $25, $50,
$100, $250, $500, $1,000, $10,000 and $50,000.
OR DONATE BY CHECK VIA U.S. MAIL AT OUR MAILBOX:
Make your check payable to Save the Biltmore Preservationists.
Save the Biltmore Preservationists, Inc. c/o Diane Hein, President 30725 U.S. Highway 19 North#107 Palm Harbor, Florida 34684-4410
DONATE BY WIRE TRANSFER OR TO FUND THE ENTIRE LAWSUIT:
To donate via wire transfer to Save the Biltmore
Preservationists nonprofit bank account, or if you would like to
sponsor the entire lawsuit, email me for information on how to do
this.
DO PRIVATE FUND RAISING IN YOUR TOWN!
If you have fund-raising ideas that I can post to Facebook and in my next
Biltmore Update as to how Biltmore supporters ACROSS THE COUNTRY can raise
money by themselves for the lawsuit, PLEASE email them to me
IMMEDIATELY! And I will post them to my Updates and Facebook for
other supporters to read and use. We need to get everyone involved in
raising money, from forwarding this email to everyone you know, or sending
the Facebook posts out, to your private donation, to fund-raising events
around the country!
The Biltmore needs NATIONAL EXPOSURE!!
So get involved, have fun telling others about the
Biltmore, ask them to donate, form your own fund-raising event in your town
wherever you live! Then donate these funds for the lawsuit via our donation
page or you can mail a check to us.
You can also start your own private fund-raising events
and donate these monies to us for the lawsuit. That is have a garage sale,
treasures and trash or junk and jewels as they are called, or a club project
to raise money with local events; wine-tasting parties, bake sales, bowling
events, car washes, guessing the number of pennies in a jar, golf events, or
simply emailing your neighbors and friends via email or Facebook to donate
etc. The ideas are endless for you to have fund-raising events in your
local neighborhood or community! Have FUN meeting new
people while telling them about the Biltmore and helping save her!
At your fund-raising event in your town, U.S.A., have supporters donate
directly to our donation page http://savethebiltmore.com/SaveTheBiltmoreDonateNow.htmwith
your tablet or lap top computer. They will be donating to a nonprofit
organization. We have been registered as a nonprofit organization in the
State of Florida on sunbiz.org for the past ten years. Our online donation
page is safe and secure, and supporters may use their PayPal account OR
credit cards right in front of you on your tablet or laptop.
Accepting donations is easy and quick and secure!
Anyone raising $100 or more at a fund-raising event in your town, if you
take photos at your event, I will post them with your permission
only, on my Biltmore Update and Facebook page once we receive the
monies. If you raise money through your organization, we will mention your
organization's name of course if you want us to! We would of course like
you to print out a photo of the the Biltmore (from the donation page) and
post it at your event. The Biltmore photo will bring awareness to the hotel
and will increase donations. We will accept fund-raising event monies by
check in the mail, address below, or online donation at the link below. We
will do the same on Facebook.
BUSINESS ADS:
If your business donates $100 or more to our campaign, I will insert a
business card size ad, via jpg to me for a one-time insertion into 1. My
Biltmore Update AND 2. Our Save the Biltmore Facebook
page. You will reach thousands of people for just $100
plus you will help fund the lawsuit! If you donate $100 every month,
then that would be another ad inserted into BOTH my Biltmore Update
AND our Facebook page. Once you donate the $100 from your
business, just email me your jpg for your business card jpg insertion.
LAWSUIT FEES:
Lawsuits cost in the tens of thousands of dollars, so
please donate NOW!
The kinds of fees that will be incurred in this lawsuit are: $400 filing
fee for the lawsuit, reduced nonprofit rate and his fees to attorney Ralf
Brookes, Cape Coral, Florida, expert testimony fees, other court fees, and
court reporting fees (around $60 an hour). The fees will be mounting
quickly over the course of this coming year and maybe next year, so please
donate throughout the year and also start your own fund-raising event in
your town! You will have a lot of fun meeting new people, and you can help
save the Biltmore!
RECENT DONATIONS:
A most generous Belleair resident anonymously donated $2,000 to start our
fund-raising campaign, and we are very grateful to this citizen! Our Save
the Biltmore Preservationist organization kicked in another $1,000 also.
These monies were enough to start the lawsuit, but I need YOU, our
devoted supporter, to help us raise the rest of the money through
private donations or fund-raising events in YOUR town across the country or
with our upcoming online fund-raising events. YOU
can help us save the Biltmore from demolition!
FACEBOOK:
We are also going to be starting posting regularly on Facebook to raise
funds through donations and fund-raising events, so please "like" us on
Facebook or if you have not signed up on it, simply go to Facebook and sign
up. You do NOT have to post your photo or post any personal information!
But once you "like" Save the Biltmore Preservationists, you will receive
notifications of all my posts. We will still be emailing our Biltmore
Updates, so please sign up here, they are free of course.
5. You can forward this Biltmore Update to as many people you know and
ask them to give to the cause so they can help too!
6. Share my Facebook posts with friends and family.
Let's all work together
ACROSS
THE COUNTRY,you and our nonprofit organization, let's build
a strong team TOGETHER, let's show Belleair that the Biltmore MUST BE SAVED
by winning the lawsuit against them! Belleair broke the law;
YOU can help assure the hotel is saved with winning this lawsuit through
your donations and fund-raising events across the country!
Power up people! Get going today by donating and fund raising in
your town!
OR DONATE BY CHECK VIA U.S. MAIL AT OUR MAILBOX:
Make your check payable to Save the Biltmore
Preservationists.
Save the Biltmore Preservationists, Inc. c/o Diane Hein, President 30725 U.S. Highway 19 North#107 Palm Harbor, Florida 34684-4410
DONATE BY WIRE TRANSFER OR TO FUND THE ENTIRE LAWSUIT:
To donate via wire transfer to Save the Biltmore
Preservationists nonprofit bank account, or if you would like to
sponsor the entire lawsuit, email me for information on how to
do this.
Why there is a Biltmore lawsuit
filed against the Town of Belleair: January 5, 2015
Corruption, collusion and breaking of Belleair town
laws prevailed among the rich and powerful members of the Belleair County
Club, of which the developer Mike Cheezem of JMC Communities is a member of
as well as his and the hotel's owner KAWA, attorney Ed Armstrong and
Belleair politicians and appointed Historic Preservation Board members.
Also please note that Belleair Commissioners Kevin Picaretto
and Steven Fowler are BOTH members of the Belleair Country Club, of which
Mike Cheezem the developer is also, and that Belleair Commissioner Tom
Shelly and Historic Preservation Board head member David Hutcheson ARE
realtors. The last two could make a small fortune selling Cheezem's
condos to the public. Where in the world would these four people have
any motivation to REALLY save the Biltmore anyway in the end!?
In Belleair, officials, whether elected or
appointed, just never felt enough love for historic
preservation; if they did, they would have passed a historic
preservation ordinance long ago in 2004 and 2005 to save the
Biltmore. But they failed on this terribly when the
Biltmore was first faced with demolition. Shame on them!
Politicians who
break our precious laws MUST BE SUED! We as Americans have to take a
stand against corruption and how these politicians want to destroy the White
Queen of the Gulf's future! The 2005 Preservation Ordinance was broken, with
"demolition by neglect" and also failure to follow Belleair's Comprehensive Plan
to preserve the Biltmore and failure to uphold the CLG agreement of 2014.
So laws were broken; unfortunately in our crazy and outdated legal system, it
costs money to get justice when it comes to political issues. No
wonder why politicians are distrusted so much in our country. It all
starts at the local level.
In Belleair, officials, whether elected or
appointed, just never felt enough love for historic preservation; if
they did, they would have passed a historic preservation
ordinance long ago in 2004 and 2005 to save the Biltmore. But
they failed on this terribly when the Biltmore was first faced with
demolition. Shame on them!
Biltmore Update MEETING RESULTS Thursday, December 11, 2014
Dear Biltmore Supporters, News Media and Others,
Unfortunately both the Historic Preservation Board and the
Belleair Mayor and Commissioners voted YES to unanimously approve
the SCOA, thus paving the way for the demolition of 95% of the
Belleview Biltmore Hotel most likely in March, 2015.
The vote for the SCOA thus paving the way for demolition was:
7-0 for the Historic Board
5-0 for the Mayor and Commissioners
So corruption, collusion and breaking of Belleair town laws
prevailed among the rich and powerful members of the Belleair County Club,
of which the developer Mike Cheezem of JMC Communities is a member of as
well as his and the hotel's owner KAWA, attorney Ed Armstrong and Belleair
politicians and appointed Historic Preservation Board members.
Also please note that Belleair Commissioners Kevin Picaretto
and Steven Fowler are BOTH members of the Belleair Country Club, of which
Mike Cheezem the developer is also, and that Belleair Commissioner Tom
Shelly and Historic Preservation Board head member David Hutcheson ARE
realtors. The last two could make a small fortune selling Cheezem's condos
to the public. Where in the world would these four people have
any motivation to REALLY save the Biltmore anyway in the end!?
I often wonder whether the members of the Historic
Preservation Board ever spent any time like we did and others to find
investors to purchase the Biltmore, since KAWA hired a worthless realtor to
do so once Legg Mason gave up after the recession hit??
On a positive note, we certainly appreciate all the support
from you our precious, devoted Biltmore followers whether it be email or
postings or coming to meetings throughout the past years. And thank you for
the thank you letters for our persistence in trying to Save the Biltmore for
ten years! They are very uplifting to me and our other two directors, Carol
Kuzmiak, V.P. and Doug Mann, Secy/Treas.
And remember that the Biltmore was saved in 2007,
but many factors including lawsuits filed by Belleair residents (of all
people!) the Great Recession contributed it to being on the market again.
One of the reasons the officials gave for their ignorant vote
is that 5% will be saved. A MEASLY 5%! This hardly justifies near total
demolition! 95% will be destroyed including the beautiful Tiffany ballroom
among many other historic rooms etc.
Rick Gonzalez, an architect, known for his historic
renovation, recently sent an email to preservationists:
"That small wing will not survive a rotation and
a relocation. It will most likely collapse and eventually a small
replica of a building will be built and after a few years of losing
money it will be converted into a clubhouse for the condos. I don't see
a five story building rotation and 550 ft moving working."
So this measely 5% was saved only to possibly collapse,
but enough for votes to go through for demolition! Pretty sneaky ploy
by Mike Cheezem who will now buy the Biltmore.
Well if all this proves to be true, then Belleair
officials have been duped royally by JMC Communities and Mike Cheezem
and Ed Armstrong!
I hope that you send emails to the following people, Historic
Preservation Board, care of the town manager, Mayor Katica,
Belleair Commissioners, Pinellas County Commissioners who have
participated to demolish the Biltmore showing your protests, your opinions
and obviously your ANGER! Included in this list is also Mike Cheezem of JMC
Communities, the ultimate historic hotel destroyer who contributed to
breaking laws in Belleair.
JMC Communities
2201 4th St N
Suite 200
Saint Petersburg, FL 33704
Some people in Belleair might be filing a lawsuit to
stop the demolition, and we would be offering to help fund it
through you our precious Biltmore supporters. I have received
emails from many supporters saying we need to sue Belleair for
breaking their laws. Politicians who break our precious
laws MUST BE SUED! We as Americans have to take a stand
against corruption and how these politicians want to destroy the
White Queen of the Gulf's future! The 2005 Preservation Ordinance
was broken, with "demolition by neglect" and also failure to follow
Belleair's Comprehensive Plan to preserve the Biltmore and failure
to uphold the CLG agreement of 2014. So laws were broken;
unfortunately in our crazy and outdated legal system, it costs money
to get justice when it comes to political issues. No wonder why
politicians are distrusted so much in our country. It all starts at
the local level. But more on the lawsuit later.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
The lesson learned from the past ten-year fight is to encourage your
children and grandchildren to develop an interest in historic
preservation. Take them to historical museums, historic hotels,
historic homes, historic locations and so forth. Create loving
memories with them of the present with the past. It will build a powerful
interest to save historical buildings in the future.
Remember that some of the children of today will become politicians
and developers in the future, and we must entrust in them the love
of historic preservation so more historic buildings will be saved in
the world.
In Belleair, officials, whether elected or
appointed, just never felt enough love for historic preservation; if
they did, they would have passed a historic preservation
ordinance long ago in 2004 and 2005 to save the Biltmore. But they
failed on this terribly when the Biltmore was first faced with
demolition. Shame on them!
As I wrote in my last Biltmore Update, EDUCATION,
EDUCATION, EDUCATION is the key for saving historic buildings and
locations and artifacts by developing and teaching a love for it
early on with our children and grandchildren.
So to end on a positive note, remember that a
successful lawsuit can still save the Biltmore.
And get going, make a plan for 2015 to instill the
love of historic preservation in everyone!
Note: I often send out information to
Facebook BEFORE sending out Updates. So if you wish to
receive the latest on the Biltmore, sign up for Facebook.
You do not have to post any personal information, just sign
up.
EXTREMELY IMPORTANT BELLEAIR TOWN HALL MEETINGS THIS COMING WEEK:
1. HISTORIC BOARD MEETING TUESDAY,
DECEMBER 9 AT 4:00 P.M. AND THEN
2. THE COMMISSION MEETING FOLLOWING
RIGHT AFTER AT 5:30 P.M.
901 Ponce De Leon Blvd. Belleair, Florida (south of
Gulf to Bay Blvd--Route 60.)
Map to Belleair is at the BOTTOM of this Update
Please come to BOTH meetings and speak out for saving the
hotel, otherwise 95% of the Biltmore will be demolished! LAST CHANCE
TO SAVE THE BELLEVIEW BILTMORE HOTEL! Anyone who lives in Belleair or
outside of Belleair is welcome to speak for up to 3 minutes as to why the
hotel should be saved.
REPEAT! ANYONE LIVING IN OR OUTSIDE OF BELLEAIR MAY
SPEAK TO SAVE THE BILTMORE!
ENCOURAGE VOTE NO TO THE SCOA WHICH WOULD ALLOW
THE BILTMORE TO BE DEMOLISHED!
BEFORE AND AFTER RENOVATION PHOTOS OF THE GALION
HOTEL, OHIO: See how this was BEAUTIFULLY
done in Ohio at the Galion Hotel. The Galion Hotel was in MUCH MUCH
MUCH worse condition that the Belleview Biltmore, and you can see how it was
restored for occupancy!
For those supporters who attend Tuesday's meeting, PLEASE
print out a photo of the before and after picture of the Galion Hotel below.
At Tuesday's meeting, show the crowd how restoration is possible in the
worse possible condition with holes in the roof, falling down walls and so
forth with the Galion Hotel photo! Hold the photo in your lap so if a
naysayer sits next to you they will see what is truly possible!! Even if one
speaker shows the photos, show them again and again! A picture
is worth a thousand words! Wave these photos in the air during the
meeting so all the naysayers can be properly educated about the
possibilities! If you are good with Photoshop,
make the photo as large as you can and glue to cardboard or poster board.
Spread the word the Biltmore can be renovated though this before and after
photo!
To make it easier to print for you simply print the Galion
photo from this link and take to Tuesday's meeting:
Naysayers, condo board leaders and members of the Belleair
County Club who know nothing about the possibilities of renovation need to
be EDUCATED! They must know the TRUTH that the
Belleview Biltmore can be restored successfully
We must STOP
THE LIES that the developer, his attorney, the current owner and the
buyer are spreading! The Biltmore can be successfully restored!
The media also MUST see that it is possible to take a
terribly run down delapidated hotel like the Galion and turn it around
successfully. I hope the media covers this very important photo
and shows it to the public who needs to KNOW THE TRUTH!
I need to reemphasize this over and over again in large bold
letters because I still get Biltmore supporters writing me on
this. The media unfortunately only shows current Biltmore
photos, they never talk about the fact that the hotel CAN BE
RESTORED! That is not their job unfortunately, so it is up
to supporters to realize and look beyond the scope of reporters'
jobs. If you go on YouTube, you will find videos on
how to remove mold for example.
1. Roofs can be repaired or
completely replaced.
2. Walls torn down if need be and
new walls put up.
3. Plaster can be repaired.
4. Mold can be removed.
5. Walls and exteriors can be repainted for
goodness sake!
You don't think Belleview Biltmore Partners or
the hotel company, who recently sent thousands of postcards to
Belleair residents, would spend millions of dollars if they
could not repair the hotel, do you? It will take
approximately three years to restore the hotel, in case I have
not mentioned this in the recent past. But the Biltmore
CAN BE RESTORED!
I published this photo below before but apparently and sadly
some people just do not understand how the hotel CAN BE
RESTORED! If you note, the roof of the house has been
repaired and the exterior obviously restored. Anyone who
has ever watched restoration home projects on TV would realize
that walls could be torn down to make a bedroom larger for
example!
THE BELLEAIR COUNTY CLUB EMAIL:
The exclusive Belleair Country Club (right next to the Biltmore) who sadly
wants the hotel demolished (yes shocking isn't this, but they stand to gain
if the hotel is demolished) has sent an email to hundreds of their
members urging them to come to these meetings, thus encouraging the
demolition of the White Queen of the Gulf! Most do NOT even live in
Belleair! The Belleair Country Club would be purchasing 3.2 acres if
the hotel is demolished. This is just one reason they want the hotel
down. Once the developer builds condos and townhomes right next to the
country club, it's very likely that a good portion of them would join the
country club. Increased memberships EQUALS increased revenue for the country
club.
Bottom line: SELF-SERVING GREED. On the other hand,
if the hotel were restored, the only increase in the club's revenue would be
if they reinstated the Bernie Powell (former Biltmore owner) agreement,
which allowed hotel guests to play on the golf courses for a fee.
To all Belleair residents who are not members of the
Belleair County Club, do you really want the Country Club to run Belleair
even more!? It is imperative that you our Biltmore supporter
stand upto these self-serving people at these two
meetings!
And did you know that golf country clubs are on the
decline in this country! Yes according to Forbes.com online magazine.
"Still, even the country-club set is growing a little nervous about its
future prospects, especially with its
traditional population base (and corporate support of individual
memberships) in decline." So this is why the Belleair Country Club is
so very desperate to get members, willing to sacrifice the beautiful White
Queen of the Gulf for self-serving greedy interests!
Biltmore supporters need to be outraged at this
meeting!
The fact that the executives of the Country Club emailed
their members to "Come Support Your Club!" is like asking their members to
stop thinking and to follow like a group of sheep.
1. How many CC members really know all the details
since many do NOT live in Belleair?
2. How many of the CC members really know that over
800 jobs will be created for the community!
3. How many CC members really know that restoration
of the hotel IS possible!?
4. How many CC members really know that the Country
Club wants to help break Belleair's Comprehensive Plan LAW and the Historic
Preservation Ordinance!? And the CGL agreement?
5. How many CC members know that this past week,
a restored, successful historic hotel sent a large 8.5 x 11 inch postcard to
EVERY Belleair resident saying their hotel can restore and successfully run
the Biltmore through convention space. They spent THOUSANDS OF
DOLLARS with this postcard to some 3,400 Belleair
residents! AMAZING EFFORT! We applaud them! And now to bury their
efforts to save the hotel, a threatening lawsuit has been sent to this hotel
by the current hotel owner, KAWA, and his attorney, see below for more info.
6. How many CC members know that the a restored
Biltmore Hotel will be a 4 or 5 star hotel, the only one in Pinellas County,
something to be immensely proud of that will be a huge tourist draw! And oh
yes, bring in some wealthy clientele, some of whom may move to Belleair and
THEN could join the CC club, and still have the Biltmore to dine at in
luxury!!!
Why the State Historic Preservation Office and State's
Attorney who have an obligation to enforce the CLG Agreement with the town
have failed to take action yet is a mystery. One can only speculate
about the politics involved.
The Belleair County Club is making a mockery of Belleair
by asking its members to band and stand together and support their little
membership-only "city." If CC members do not support the leaders
efforts, they face being ostracized and criticized on their golf course or
clubhouse. There are some members of the CC who do support the hotel, but at
one of the earlier meetings this year after a memo to their members, some
100 of them attended a town hall meeting, again banding together like sheep
in order to please the executives of the Country Club otherwise face
displeasure from them.
I find it utterly amazing that Belleair County Club
members have achieved the American dream, become financially independent, am
able to join a country club, and then they have to stop thinking for
themselves in order to "support the club" with executives suggestions, the
pack leader, otherwise face being ostracized by them.
So for those who aspire to join a country club, you may be
eventually asked to stop thinking for yourself and just to follow the leader
ship otherwise face being shunned and criticized by club leaders!
Pinellas County Commissioner Karen Seel
last month sent an email to one of our Biltmore supporters.
Commissioner Seel has totally washed her hands on helping to save the
hotel and will do nothing. She has copped out on the "matter" as she calls
it completely with one short email. What is most unfortunate
about Commissioner Seel is that in 2009 she participated in a Pinellas
County interview that included former Belleair Commissioner Stephanie Oddo
and our former vice President of Save the Biltmore Preservationists
Ed Jameson (now my late husband who died in 2010) to show the importance
of saving the Biltmore for Belleair and Pinellas County. Now she lives
in Belleair and has done absolutely nothing recently to promote saving the
Biltmore even though she is a
resident of Belleair since 2013!!! So who funds her campaign, that
is the question!? Could it be the specific Belleair people who want
the hotel demolished!!?? I wonder!
The Belleair Commissioners have said that they would like
the hotel saved and that it is not economically feasible. Yet the
Commission has an office of Economic Development which is responsible
for job creations. So why didn't the county step in and help to
save the hotel, which would also be a major job and tax generator?
We hope that the Historic Preservation Board, the Belleair mayor and
commissioners will stand up to the Belleair Country Club finally and the
misinformed condo leaders and uphold their Comprehensive Plan, the CLG
agreement and the Historic Preservation Ordinance.
Then there are the political leaders in Belleair who are
under extreme pressure from the
Country Club to do what CC wants them to do and under pressure from the
misinformed condo leaders, otherwise they may never receive campaign
donations for their next re election, some due as early as 2015!
Does American pride still exist with Belleair politicians?
To honor laws, to preserve a historic hotel, to bring jobs and tourism to
the area? I hope they do Tuesday night and vote NO to the SCOA.
EDUCATION EDUCATION EDUCATION!
WHAT TO SPEAK ABOUT AND DO AT THE MEETING:
Here some points you can talk about on Tuesday, expand on a few or include
all, whatever you feel comfortable with. When you speak at the
meeting, simply turn around and be sure to show the before and after photo
of the restored Galion Hotel so the naysayers can see this photo over and
over again!
1. That over 800 jobs will be created for
the community, a plus for Belleair and Pinellas County and the State of
Florida once the Biltmore is restored. We CAN and should invest in
historic preservation to improve our quality of life and as a basis for the
area's economic development, job creation and tax purposes.
2. That Belleair needs to stop breaking their laws.
They are in violation of their own Historic Preservation Ordinance
(demolition by neglect) put on the books in 2005, their Comprehensive Plan
and their CLG agreement with the state from August of 2014.
3. That historical hotels are valuable financially
successful tourist attractions all over the country.
4. That a restored Biltmore will become a 4 or 5
star hotel, the ONLY one in Pinellas County. The only one in the entire
greater Tampa Bay Area. The closest 4 star according to Forbes (formerly
Mobil) is the Ritz Carlton in Sarasota. We need a 4 or 5 star right
here in Pinellas County!
5. That the Biltmore will succeed financially
because of new large convention space being built. As Gary Rosenberg
of Belleview Biltmore Partners (wish to purchase and renovate the Biltmore)
said "There is a market for non-waterfront grand hotels that have meeting
capacity for large groups. The West Coast of Florida is underserved in this
area. The Biltmore will serve this market in a large way. New and younger
markets will come. They will bring their families again and again. They will
create new family traditions at the hotel and generations will return again
and again. In addition, the hotel will quickly become a wedding destination
venue that will be extremely successful."
6. That the current owner KAWA and Ed Armstrong
(representing the developer Mike Cheezem of JMC Communities threatened
lawsuits against a historic hotel company who could save the Biltmore! Just
late this week, threatening lawsuit letters were sent to the historic hotel
who spent THOUSANDS of dollars sending postcards to Belleair residents
stating that the Biltmore can be saved and managed by them.
These threatening letters were an attempt to cover up and hide from YOU the
supporter the fact that the hotel still can be saved and that a respected
and well-known historic hotel could do it! As a result this hotel
company has pulled out under these vicious threats unfortunately. You
our supporter need to speak out to show your support that a large historic
hotel said the Biltmore was still viable!
7. According to the town of Belleair web site:
Structures at least 50 years old are considered to
have historical value and significance."
Vote NO on the
SCOA.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
1. PLEASE COME to both meetings on Tuesday,
December 9, starting at 4 p.m. for the Historic Board Meeting and 5:30
p.m. for the Commission Meeting. Speak for up to 3 minutes. A
final decision will be made by the Commission officials at the 5:30
meeting on whether to issue a SCOA that if passed will lead to 95% of
the hotel being demolished! And the troubling fact is that we
have absolutely NO guarantee whether the developer will keep his promise
to save a miniscule 5% of the Biltmore anyway. It could be just a
ploy to say he's saving part of it. He could change his mind later
on if a decision is made in his favor! So encourage Belleair
officials to
VOTE
NO ON THE SCOA TUESDAY
NIGHT!!
2.
Bring photos of the before and after restoration of the Galion Hotel,
wave and show to the crowd, prove that forgotten, deteriorated hotels
can be saved and renovated successfully!
We hope you join us and become a member this month. We
have five levels, Copper, Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum with
a variety of gifts included for each. Our Online Gift Shop is
fun to explore for yourself or to purchase a special gift for
someone else. We have much more than what you see above
including Biltmore tote bags, mouse pads, greeting cards,
calendars, license plates, sterling chains, cufflinks, tie
tacks, money clips and a variety of Biltmore artwork. To
go directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
To help us continue to save and preserve the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel for another 100 years, you may make a donation, any
amount. Donations are secure, and you may donate by
PayPal, credit or debit card.
If you would prefer to give a donation by check, make it
payable to our nonprofit organization: Save the Biltmore
Preservationists and send it to:
Save the Biltmore Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North #107
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
COMMISSIONER
STEVEN FOWLER: Regarding the political
leaders in Belleair, I wanted to clarify a matter. Belleair
Commissioner Steven Fowler has always supported saving the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel, and we thank him for his ten year continued support.
THE CLG OR CERTIFIED
LOCAL GOVERNMENT AGREEMENT: As
previously written, Belleair, under pressure from others who stand to gain
financially from the hotel's demolition, is violating it's own Historic
Preservation Law and Comprehensive Plan. In addition they are in
breach of their CLG(Certified Local Government) agreement with the State
which calls on them to designate and protect the historic resources in their
town.
“The Town of
Belleair has taken an important step in the preservation of its
historic resources by seeking designation as a Certified Local
Government” said Secretary of State Ken Detzner. “As a Certified
Local Government, the town will create a process for the survey,
designation, and protection of its historic resources, and will join
a network of 64 other Certified Local Governments around Florida
which have made historic preservation a public policy priority.”
For the full press release
from the State describing that responsibility from August of this
year:
It is pure mockery that
Belleair officials had this agreement with the State and are
breaching it! And in THIS year: 2014!!!
Does the Historic Preservation
Board and elected officials really want their town
to be known for: BELLEAIR:
TOWN OF BROKEN LAWS. No arrests will be made, but
if you and I ever broke a law, well you know what would happen.
JOB CREATION:
Martin Smith who once managed the
hotel pointed out to Biltmore supporter, Jason Aquilar, that a fully
restored hotel with the golf club and spa would have resulted in 800
new jobs based on the prior restoration and operating plan
originally proposed by Legg Mason in 2008. This is the same
plan proposed by Belleview Biltmore Partners who wish to purchase
and renovate the Biltmore. Also Peabody Hotels wants to purchase and
restore the hotel as mentioned previously. We hope the
Historic Board and elected Belleair officials realize this is
BEST for Belleair, not the private wishes of a few
naysayers who will gain privately with the hotel down. These
naysayers have no concept of the financial value that saving the
hotel will bring to many people both in and out of Belleair, let
alone the historical value. It always shocks me that these
supposedly smart, educated, "well-to-do" naysayers continually fail
to see the financial and historical benefits will be for Belleair
and Pinellas County if the hotel is saved.
NEW
BELLEVIEW BILTMORE VIDEO:
Here is a WONDERFUL video
link below of the Belleview Biltmore Hotel This outstanding video
is a very poignant reminder of what is to be lost forever if the town of
Belleair continues to completely ignore its own Comprehensive Plan and
Historic Preservation Ordinance and recently the Certified Local
Government agreement, put in place specifically to protect
the hotel.
As for the developer who wishes to
destroy 95% of Pinellas County's and Belleair's famous iconic
hotel.....Working towards demolition of one of the most significant
historic structures in the state does NOT make you a good citizen, sir.
It only shows your collusion with uncaring naysayers while you
dishonor Belleair's history, its citizens and side with breaking their
law: "demolition by neglect." It always amazes me that the
naysayers who give reasons the hotel will not succeed are in their own
"clique." They fail to see how historic preservation can benefit
Belleair because they have their own personal agenda and it is NOT for
the citizens who live around them in their own community. So much for
community support in Belleair!?
This video was filmed at Biltmore supporter Jason
Aquilar's request on 11/15/14. The
video itself was produced by Wayne Cathel, a respected local,
professional photographer.
Take two minutes of your day and watch this video, and you'll understand
why so many of us have fought relentlessly to save this historic hotel
which is currently listed with the National Register for Historic
Places. This majestic structure constructed using old heart Florida pine
is in absolutely no danger of falling over, as some would have you
believe. As architects have already testified, it can be renovated
and restored!
FINAL THOUGHTS:
In this Thanksgiving week, let's all be thankful that the Belleview
Biltmore is still standing after this ten-year battle! On behalf
of our two other directors, Carol Kuzmiak, V.P. and Doug Mann,
Secy/Treas. and myself, we are very thankful for your support and
dedication for all these years, the meetings you have attended and
letters/emails sent to help save the Biltmore.
As the Belleair web site
indicated: "Structures at least 50 years old are considered to
have historical value and significance" We hope the
Historic Preservation Board and Belleair Mayor and Commissioners uphold
their laws on December 9 and save their BELLEVIEW BILTMORE HOTEL.
We hope you join us and become a member this month. We
have five levels, Copper, Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum with
a variety of gifts included for each. Our Online Gift Shop is
fun to explore for yourself or to purchase a special gift for
someone else. We have much more than what you see above
including Biltmore tote bags, mouse pads, greeting cards,
calendars, license plates, sterling chains, cufflinks, tie
tacks, money clips and a variety of Biltmore artwork. To
go directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
To help us continue to save and preserve the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel for another 100 years, you may make a donation, any
amount. Donations are secure, and you may donate by
PayPal, credit or debit card.
If you would prefer to give a donation by check, make it
payable to our nonprofit organization: Save the Biltmore
Preservationists and send it to:
Save the Biltmore Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North #107
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
ONE LAST CHANCE FOR YOU TO
SAVE THE BILTMORE UNTIL 95% IS TOTALLY DESTROYED!!!
New fast
ONE-MINUTE EMAIL CAMPAIGN below or PHONE CALL CAMPAIGN, keep
reading!
We are encouraging
people to write and especially call the Belleair Historic
Preservation Board IMMEDIATELY to have them
REFUSE to issue a Special Certificate of Appropriateness (SCOA)
at the December 9 meeting. 4 p.m. Once they refuse to issue
this SCOA, their recommendations will be given to Belleair
Mayor and Commission at another meeting at 5:30 p.m. the
SAME DAY for their consideration who will make the final
decision.
We know that the Mayor
of Belleair and three commissioners "say" they want to save
the hotel, but have made no effort the past few months to do
so; so we hope the Historic Preservation Board of Belleair,
of all Boards, can see the value in saving the hotel and
convince them the necessity. KAWA the current owner
has let the hotel run down without repairs
and insulted Belleair's Mayor, the Commissioners and the
Historic Preservation Board over and over again and again by
failure to repair the hotel. These officials need to
change their minds and
stand up to KAWA! I certainly was
absolutely shocked that of all Boards, the Historic
Preservation Board initially voted to favor demolition of
the Biltmore in September 30!!! I thought that they were on
the side of the hotel through thick and thin! There is much
new information in this Update that I hope the Historic
Board takes into consideration in their decision this time
that they did not have before.
If the Historic
Preservation Board issues a SCOA UNFORTUNATELY, the
developer, JMC Communities via Mike Cheezem, who has a
contract to purchase the Biltmore will demolish 95% of the
historic hotel. And these unfortunately include the
beautiful and historic ballrooms like the Tiffany!
To meet the historic
recognition component of the new zoning category, JMC
Communities had planned to build a new inn that incorporated
the overall look of the Belleview Biltmore style and
contained a few structural elements, salvaged from the old
hotel. The new plan they hatched just before a
prior Commission meeting calls for moving the old lobby
entrance, along with guest rooms above it and the rounded,
enclosed porch, to a new location, to be used as the basis
of the new inn.
This
section represents approximately ONLY 5% of the total
square footage of the hotel and still does
NOT save any of the historic Ballrooms,
Promenade, restaurant, tunnels, or the covered carriage
porch in front of the old lobby. They will move the
veranda from the front of the old lobby around to the
back of the small building. This is an
outrageous plan for the White Queen when at least 90%
can still be saved! The fact that the historic and
gorgeous Tiffany ballroom and other historic rooms will
be destroyed by Mr. Cheezem is outlandish!
The Historic Board
initially had a vote of 5-1 UNFORTUNATELY to push the SCOA
through way back in September, but because Mr. Cheezem
changed his design to save 5% of the hotel and demolish 95%,
the entire issue again must be presented to the Belleair
Historic Preservation Board on December 9.
So this is why
the hotel STILL CAN BE SAVED!!
The Historic Board did
NOT have all the facts at their last meeting (like the fact
they were NOT told there are TWO BUYERS for the property
...who
would restore it, or the fact that the damaged areas are the
guest rooms, not the historic ballrooms, promenade and
tunnels, etc.) Now that they have this information, it is
totally INAPPROPRIATE to issue a SCOA.
Also, instead of focusing on the 5% of the property that the
Demolition Triad is now willing to save, we want the
Historic Board to focus on the 95% they want to demolish.
There are currently two groups of investors who want to buy
the contract from the developer and restore the Belleview
Biltmore hotel instead of demolishing it: Belleview
Biltmore Partners and Peabody Hotels. (Peabody Hotels,
famous for their live "Duck Walks" in Memphis, Tennessee and
Orlando, HUGE HUGE tourist draws for Peabody!
Could ducks save the Biltmore in the long run with huge
tourism draws!?
The Biltmore
has only been closed for five years, and yet the Vinoy in
St. Petersburg in St. Petersburg was closed for EIGHTEEN
years before it was renovated! Please take note
Historic Board: EIGHTEEN YEARS THE VINOY WAS CLOSED
BEFORE IT WAS ULTIMATELY SAVED! The Biltmore in Coral
Gables/Miami Florida was closed for ten years before it was
saved! Please note Historic Board:
These two other hotels were extremely dilapidated and yet
were SAVED!
Now that there are TWO
BUYERS who wish to purchase and renovate the hotel, why in
the world would the Historic Preservation Board not want to
save their iconic building! This totally baffles
me, and I hope that with all this new information, they
REFUSE TO ISSUE A SCOA and then the Mayor and commissioners
need to REFUSE TO ISSUE A SCOA also the SAME NIGHT! The
Belleair Country Club and condo board leaders have much to
do with the Demolition Plan with KAWA, Belleair officials
and Mike Cheezem of JMC Communities, the latter wants to
demolish 95% of the hotel. The people living in the
condos have written me that many new nothing of voting
possibilities for them, meetings were never announced
properly, information was not given correctly or not given
at all about the 80 foot condo towers by Cheezem and voting
was never done responsibly in each and every building;
it was all a haphazard approach to our democratic system,
all pushed through by the condo leaders to demolish the
hotel. I hope the "condo people" start rising
up and insist that the Biltmore be saved with two buyers on
the horizon! They have totally been blind-sided by
their condo leaders! If you live in one of the
Biltmore condos, start sending this email to all the other
condo people! YOUR voice needs to count, NOT just the
leaders!
Belleair's
Historic Preservation Board can keep this
wonderful uniqueness of the Victorian Belleview
Biltmore, make their town very special by saving their
hotel by voting NO to the
SCOA!!
Did you know that
there is an entire web site devoted to traveling to
historic hotels!? It is called
http://www.historichotels.org, and is a program
sponsored by the National Trust for Historic
Preservation. These historic hotels (about
250 of them) have all faithfully maintained their
authenticity, sense of place, and architectural
integrity in the United States of America, including 46
states, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin
Islands, and Puerto Rico.
The historic and
iconic 1897 HISTORIC Victorian Belleview Biltmore in
Belleair, Florida deserves to be saved and put on this
list! The Historic Preservation Board of
Belleair can help with this!
How in the world
can Belleair's Historic PRESERVATION Board honor KAWA's
wish to sell and ultimately destroy the hotel when it
was KAWA who let the hotel deteriorate! KAWA has made
total fools of the Historic Preservation Board, the
Mayor and Town commissioners by letting the hotel
be exposed to the rain and wind without repairing
damages. KAWA broke Belleair's Preservation Law of
"Demolition by Neglect."
Why in the world
would the Historic Board reward KAWA for their terribly
bad behavior! ??
The Historic Board
should be standing up to KAWA and JMC and Mike Cheezem
for even thinking of destroying their iconic hotel!
Belleair officials never enforced the blue tarps
flapping in the wind to clean up KAWA's destructive
attempts. The Historic Board needs to realize that
"demolition by neglect" was done on purpose and never
enforced by the Belleair Mayor or town Commissioners!
From the
Town of Belleair's web site it states: "About
the Historic Preservation Board:
This board was established for the purpose encouraging
the preservation and restoration of the town's historic
resources through public awareness and education.
Structures at least 50 years old
are considered to have historical value and
significance."
How can the
Historic Board no longer sees their iconic Belleview
Biltmore Hotel as being significant or of having
historical value!?? Historic buildings like their
Belleview Biltmore are filled with significance and
importance to the growth and development of not only
Belleair but of Pinellas County. The hotel can create
economic growth in Belleair, bring in convention
money, help create jobs and bring in more taxes for
their town. They need to know there are TWO
COMPANIES who are quite aware of the Biltmore's
condition, and yet still know they can renovate it!
Below is a quote
by Richard Heisenbottle, head partner and preservation
architect of Belleview Biltmore Partners who wishes to
purchase the Biltmore and renovate it. They have
sought to purchase the hotel for a few years so I am quoting
them first.
January 2014 "There is no question in my mind
that this building is NOT in the state of deterioration
where you can truly say that this building cannot be
restored." Heisenbottle said. "It definitely can
be restored."
The detailed commentary
below about the feasibility of the Biltmore was written by Gary
Rosenberg also a partner of Belleview Biltmore Partners.
"The hotel is not a
hotel of the past as much as it is a hotel of the future. The
hotel can be completely renovated. It is based purely on the
financial condition of the owner. Physically, it needs to be
stripped down to its basic core and rebuilt from the ground up
including all infrastructure systems. This can be done. This is
the opportunity going forward not the demise of the past.
"There is a market for
the return of this grand ole lady. Having been involved in the
restoration of other grand historic hotels such as The Homestead
in Virginia and others, it is a fact that the market will return
and the new markets will come. It is completely based on the new
product and the marketing efforts. There is a market for
non-waterfront grand hotels that have meeting capacity for large
groups. The West Coast of Florida is underserved in this area.
The Biltmore will serve this market in a large way. New and
younger markets will come. They will bring their families again
and again. They will create new family traditions at the hotel
and generations will return again and again. In addition, the
hotel will quickly become a wedding destination venue that will
be extremely successful. This is not hype. I have seen and
experienced this exact same scenario at such wonderful and
successful old hotels and destinations such as The Homestead,
The Greenbrier, The Del Coronado, The Broadmoor, The Grove Park
Inn, Pinehurst and there are several more.
"An additional huge
benefit of the restoration of the hotel as a destination is the
financial impact on the community of Belleair. Not only the
creation of new employment but the hotel will once again become
the supporter and partner in all community activities that
require participation such as financial support, food and
beverage involvement, meeting space, hotel rooms, etc.. The
support the hotel will have in the community is almost
unmeasurable. Its impact is huge.
Gary Rosenberg
Partner
Belleview Biltmore Partners LLC
Below is commentary
also about the feasibility by Thierry G. Roch, Former
Executive Director, Historic Hotels of America and now
Development Consultant for Peabody Hotels & Resorts.
Peabody Hotels (known internationally for their famous
Duck Walk in Orlando, Florida and Memphis,
Tennessee desire to purchase and renovate the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel. I asked them for commentary and this
is what Mr. Roch wrote:
"As the former
executive director of an organization that advocated for,
and marketed the relevancy of, our nation’s finest historic
hotels (and buildings reconditioned as hotels), I have a
unique perspective to share on the potential rehabilitation
of the Belleview Biltmore despite the testimony of “experts”
who maintain it cannot be saved and thus must be destroyed
in the name of “progress”.
I believe theirs is
simply the opportunistic path of least resistance at a time
when the local/regional economy and Tampa/Clearwater’s
ranking as one of the top 10 hospitality growth markets in
the country clearly support its profitable rehabilitation.
Detractors conveniently forget that Legg Mason, and other
bidders, previously came forth to utilize the bulk of the
current structure, but failed principally per the downturn
in the economic cycle. Perhaps MCA Communities didn’t
act until recently themselves for this same reason?
"Further, there is no
doubt in my mind that after personally witnessing countless
dilapidated historic properties across the country labeled
as “non salvageable” have now been magnificently restored
into profitable operations, that the Biltmore can be
restored by qualified preservation experts who
have actually done this kind of work before.
My clients at Peabody Hotels & Resorts are among those that
can assist in the redevelopment and raising of the capital
required per their wildly successful operational experience
in nearby Orlando away from Disney’s influence. They
further serve as experienced saviors of their flagship
property in Memphis as it was once only a few votes away
from being destroyed forever before an enlightened group of
community and civic leaders refused to reduce their
distinctive historic downtown to rubble.
"It now comes down
to whether local leaders will decide to preserve the
historic facility and optimize the local economy’s tax base
or decide to turn their back on a historic treasure that
could be a source of local pride and inspiration for the
community for generations to come. I understand local
residents are weary and feel that it’s time to turn the
page. In the name of South Beach, Pike Place Market,
the Peabody, the Greenbrier and countless other historic
communities that have lived the same dilemma, I say
this…..give us a few months to prove to you that this can
work and you will forget that you will have ever considered
a pedestrian residential project as a significant successor
to a historic treasure that made your community what it is
today."
Thierry G. Roch
Former Executive Director, Historic Hotels of America*
Development Consultant for Peabody Hotels & Resorts
* A program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation
operated by Preferred Hotel Group
Here are Belleair Historic
Preservation Board names:
Alex
Chamberlain (was unable to attend historic board
meeting in September 2014)
David
Hutcheson
Kathy
Gaston
Peter Marich voted against the
initial SCOA in September 2014,
thank you for seeing the value of
saving the Belleview Biltmore Hotel!
Nancy
Reardon
Donald
White
Cliff
Zurkan
What is
terribly frightening about the Belleair Historic
Preservation Board is that their "advisor" is one of Belleair's
commissioners who wants the hotel destroyed and
demolished! There is no fair or
balanced approached here! This Commissioner is also a
member of the Belleair Country Club who has no use for
the hotel any more and also Mike Cheezem, the owner of
JMC who wants the hotel destroyed also is a member of
the Belleair Country Club!
But now the Historic Preservation Board's has a FINAL
chance to help SAVE THE BILTMORE!
They have a great opportunity to save Belleair's
historic icon THIS YEAR!
And uphold TWO IMPORTANT LAWS IN BELLEAIR, THE
COMPREHENSIVE PLAN AND THE PRESERVATION ORDINANCE.
I would like to
quote from the Belleair Bee from October 1, 2014 (the
meeting was the night before September 30)
Historic
Preservation Board member Peter Marich said he would
vote against the certificate that night.
“This is just another condo development,” he
said. “It doesn’t feel comfortable to me. Maybe the
hotel can be saved, demolish a couple of wings, perhaps
remove a top floor. I’m going to vote against it.” We hope that the other Historic Preservation
Board members take issue with all the facts now, and
DENY the SCOA on December 9.
Has anyone
seen the TV segment recently of Mayor Bob Buckhorn
of Tampa, Florida proudly endorsing the saving
of the historic Kress building into a hotel in
Tampa? He practically was jumping up and
down with joy! We wish Belleair officials would
have the same enthusiasm for saving THEIR historic
hotel now with two interested parties.
The Biltmore has only been closed for five years,
KAWA the current owner purposely let the hotel start
to be damaged so they could claim it was too late to
restore the hotel which is totally UNTRUE!
KAWA also hired a worthless sales rep who did
nothing to help sell the hotel but warned potential
investors of possible downfalls and these were
unproven! KAWA's sales manager would have made
money demolishing the hotel with townhome commission
sales! I had spoken to him directly on the phone,
and he ran the hotel into the ground knowing full
well he would make money from doing so! How in
the world could he ever sell it with that attitude!
Of course not, what a charade, and I hope the
Historic Preservation Board of Belleair will see
through KAWA's charade.
How
many Sheratons and Holiday Inns can you stay in
without feeling a little bored? Now and then you
need to find a more interesting place to end your
day. Here’s a suggestion: why not stay in a historic
property? Gery de Pierpont, a Belgian-based
archaeologist and former curator of the Belgium
History Museum has a passion for history. I
love his statement: "Old buildings have a
soul. They tell stories. That’s why I love them.
Staying in an old building will let you enjoy the
aromas of history. Once in a while, if you are
lucky, the colour, the scent and the flavour of the
precious beverage will truly transport you to
another dimension.
I’ve had the chance to stay in some historical sites
that inspired this kind of deep emotion in me —
feelings I’ll never forget. Not only because I’m an
archaeologist, but simply because their classic
settings were especially evocative. Historic
hotels, guest houses and rental properties are
unique and therefore rare. There is a public that is
ready to pay more for such exclusive venues (between
$125 and $300, depending on the standing of the
rooms). My experience is that you sleep very
quietly in such places. The thickness of the walls,
the proven durability of the construction materials,
the “get-away-from-it-all” state of mind usually
make me sleep like a log. I always expect to
have “historical dreams” when I stay in an old
monument, but I admit it doesn’t occur
systematically. Nevertheless, the last hour before
falling asleep, reading a historical novel or
listening to period music in candlelight, is a
unique moment."
Belleair's Historic Preservation Board can keep this
wonderful uniqueness of the Victorian Belleview
Biltmore, make their town very special
by saving their hotel by voting
NO to the SCOA!!
PHONE CAMPAIGN:
We have an
easy PHONE CALL CAMPAIGN BELOW TO MAKE IT EASY FOR
YOU TO CALL or THE HISTORIC PRESERVATION BOARD
MEMBERS OR CALL BELLEAIR TOWN MAYOR KATICA OR
COMMISSIONERS AND THE PINELLAS COUNTY COMMISSIONERS:
(727) 588-3769
Belleair Town Hall Mayor Gary
Katica, Commissioners Steven Fowler, Tom Shelly,
Mike Wilkinson and Kevin Piccaretto
(727) 588-3769
Belleair Town Hall Historic Preservation Board
Members: Alex Chamberlain (was unable to attend
historic board meeting in September 2014). David
Hutcheson
Kathy Gaston, Peter Marich (voted against the
initial SCOA in September 2014) Nancy Reardon,
Donald White, Cliff Zurkan
Board
of Pinellas County Commissioners: Janet Long,
Pat Gerard, Charlie Justice, Dave Eggers, Karen Seel,
John Morroni and Kenneth Welch.
315
Court Street
Clearwater, FL 33756 (727) 464-3614 Tel
(727) 464-3022 Fax
Five years
ago, the hotel closed for a total renovation,
that the economy tanked and investors could not
borrow the money necessary to finance the
renovation. That was then; this is now.
The economy has improved, and now two groups of
investors are in the wings, ready to buy-out the
developers contract on the property and restore
the historic hotel. Show your support and CALL
them to keep the hotel under the protection of
the Historic Preservation Ordinance. Tell them
it would be TOTALLY INAPPROPRIATE to issue a
SCOA. They need to vote NO on this SCOA
certificate! Thank you!
This is NOT just a Belleair
issue.
The
success of the Biltmore influences the huge
Pinellas County tourism industry and economy.
A tiny hotel in Belleair by Cheezem will
never have the economic impact that a restored,
and large convention capacity the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel will have. The Pinellas
County Commissioners need to get involved
NOW! There is NEW Commissioner leadership in
Pinellas County since the November election.
We hope they can step up to the plate
and encourage Belleair to save Pinellas County's
Belleview Biltmore, which helped establish
Pinellas County!
ONE-MINUTE EMAIL CAMPAIGN
PLEASE PLEASE
send e-mails to the Historic Preservation Board,
care of the Town Manager, Mayor Katica and Belleair
Commissioners and Pinellas County Commissioners at
these email addresses in Belleair and Pinellas
County. Or of course feel free to
write your own email to them.
Dear Historic Preservation
Board: You have
a second chance and opportunity to save the
Belleview Biltmore Hotel on December 9 by voting
NO to the Special Certificate of
Appropriateness. The hotel has only been
closed for five years and because economic
conditions have greatly improved since then,
there are TWO buyers, Belleview Biltmore
Partners and Peabody Hotels, who are interested
in purchasing the hotel and restoring it.
You have a chance to uphold the historic
preservation ordinance AND Belleair's
Comprehensive Plan and the Historic Board's
objectives as outlined on the town of Belleair
web site. Belleair needs to enforce
its own preservation law to protect itself and
its hotel from demolition through devious means
by "demolition of neglect." Belleair
officials never truly enforced "demolition by
neglect" law and now is the chance for you to
uphold your laws. The 1897 Belleview
Biltmore Hotel cannot be rebuilt once the
history and aura are gone. We CAN and
should invest in historic preservation to
improve our quality of life and as a basis for
the area's economic development, job
creation and tax purposes. Baby boomers are now
retiring and are looking for historic hotels to
plan their vacations thus increasing the value
of the Biltmore's economic future. There
has been tremendous community support to save
the Belleview Biltmore Hotel over the past ten
years. Remember that over 500 people
showed up in 2005 to save the Biltmore!
These people and supporters around the world
including myself know that it is up to you to
leave a legacy of historic preservation for
Belleair and Pinellas County.
Uphold your precious laws and the goals of the
Historic Preservation Board, "This board was
established for the purpose of encouraging the
preservation and restoration of the town's
historic resources through public awareness and
education.
Structures at least 50 years old
are considered to have historical value and
significance.".
Vote NO on the SCOA.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
So Biltmore supporter,
help SAVE THE BILTMORE with this
ONE-MINUTE MAIL CAMPAIGN! OR
WRITE YOUR OWN EMAIL TO THEM. OR
CALL THEM! And come to the
December 9th meeting at 4 p.m. Make a
difference this holiday season, get involved,
help save the White Queen of the Gulf so many of
you love! It certainly would seem
that the Historic Preservation Board should do
EVERYTHING in its power to save Belleair's
historic icon!
Let the Historic Preservation Board know that
they can and must STOP uncaring politicians and
destructive developers who break Belleair laws,
insult Belleair's integrity thus making fools of
the Historic Preservation, Mayor and
Commissioners. They need to carry out
their mission and goals of saving "Structures
at least 50 years old are considered to have
historical value and significance" THE
BELLEVIEW BILTMORE HOTEL.
We hope you join us and become a member this month.
We have five levels, Copper, Bronze, Silver, Gold and
Platinum with a variety of gifts included for each. Our
Online Gift Shop is fun to explore for yourself or to
purchase a special gift for someone else. We have
much more than what you see above including Biltmore
tote bags, mouse pads, greeting cards, calendars,
license plates, sterling chains, cufflinks, tie tacks,
money clips and a variety of Biltmore artwork. To
go directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
To help us continue to save and preserve the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel for another 100 years, you may make a
donation, any amount. Donations are secure, and
you may donate by PayPal, credit or debit card.
If you would prefer to give a donation by check,
make it payable to our nonprofit organization: Save
the Biltmore Preservationists and send it to:
Save the Biltmore Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North #107
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
If you support saving and restoring the Belleview Biltmore Hotel, please
take meaningful action right now. If you procrastinate, it might be too
late.
Currently the 20 acres of property on which the 1897 hotel sits is under
contract to JMC Communities, but the purchase is not final. The sale
will only go through if the town first agrees to change the zoning
on the property from H (hotel) to PMU (planned mixed use) so that JMC
Communities can demolish the Belleview Biltmore Hotel and replace it
with a collection of town homes, condos and a small inn.
JMC, as well as the neighboring Belleair Country Club and the current
owners (KAWA of Miami), have formed a ‘Demolition Triad’, bent on
demolishing the hotel. This Demolition Triad stands to profit a great
deal from the destruction of the hotel, so they hired an expert land use
attorney (Ed Armstrong), to represent their interests. They have been
pouring a tremendous amount of time and money into convincing everyone
that no one else would buy the historic hotel, and even if they did, it
couldn’t be saved. This is simply not true! In fact, there are currently
two groups of investors who want to buy the hotel and restore it for
future generations to enjoy.
Please join the fight against the Demolition Triad – don’t let them tear
down this fantastic hotel in order to line their own pockets. Please
encourage the Town of Belleair Commission to refuse to change the zoning
on the hotel property, so that JMC Communities will abandon their claim
on the property. Also encourage them to support investors who are
willing to purchase and restore the Belleview Biltmore Hotel.
PLEASE ACT TODAY! OCTOBER 27th!
Here is what you can do to help right now:
1) If you’re local, please attend
the Special Town Commission Meeting at 5:30 pm on October 27th
TODAY (Town Hall, 901 Ponce de Leon Blvd, Belleair,
FL 33756.) If you are able to stand and speak on behalf of the hotel,
please do so. If not, please cheer for those who do! We know it’s a lot
to ask you to give up a precious evening, but Commission decisions
usually favor those who care enough about an issue to show up. The
developers know this, so they are going to try to fill the room with
people who support demolishing the hotel.
2) Please forward this e-mail to everyone you know, Repost it on your
Facebook Timeline, Tweet about it, and notify any historic conservation
groups you might be in contact with.
3) Send an e-mail to the Town of
Belleair Government,
asking them to please support
those who would restore the hotel by refusing to rezone the hotel
property. Remind them that the hotel is protected by the Historic
Preservation Ordinance and that future generations deserve the
opportunity to visit the iconic hotel. Tell them Belleair is entrusted
with the responsibility to protect this hotel, for the enjoyment of the
entire world. Tell them about your personal love of historic hotels and
what the Belleview Biltmore means to you.
4) Write letters to local
media – if you know someone in the media, call them.
5) DO NOT GIVE UP BUT KEEP PRESSING FORWARD!
HOWEVER ALL LOCAL SUPPORTERS PLEASE
ATTEND, WE NEED OUTWARD PUBLIC SUPPORT IN FRONT OF BELLEAIR
OFFICIALS, THIS CAN NOT BE OVER EMPHASIZED!!
We hope you join us and become a member this month. We
have five levels, Copper, Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum
with a variety of gifts included for each. Our Online Gift
Shop is fun to explore for yourself or to purchase a special
gift for someone else. We have much more than what you
see above including Biltmore tote bags, mouse pads, greeting
cards, calendars, license plates, sterling chains,
cufflinks, tie tacks, money clips and a variety of Biltmore
artwork. To go directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year membership will be given to
anyone purchasing any of our special Biltmore jewelry!
To help us continue to save and preserve the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel for another 100 years, you may make a
donation, any amount. Donations are secure, and you
may donate by PayPal, credit or debit card.
If you would prefer to give a donation by check, make it
payable to our nonprofit organization: Save the Biltmore
Preservationists and send it to:
Save the Biltmore Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North #107
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
A BIG THANK YOU: First of all, a big thank you to
all our Biltmore supporters who wrote letters to officials and who
came to the meeting on Tuesday, April 15 to ask Belleair officials
to vote NO on RM-10. We know many of you have come over and
over to these meetings, or wrote letters and spoke out on issues
favoring saving of the hotel, we are truly grateful for all your
efforts. We had one supporter who with his son drive 90 miles
on Tuesday to help support a NO vote on RM-10 so we are grateful for
his long distance effort!
BELLEAIR: TOWN OF BROKEN
LAWS:
The result of the April 15 meeting was that the Town of Belleair voted 4-1 to approve
RM-10 despite our concerns and objections.
What this means, is that the RM-10 zoning issue has passed, and the
zoning will be changed that would allow condo development should a
developer request it. However, there is still hope of course!
The battle has just begun! Realize of course that the
Comprehensive Plan and the historic preservation ordinance protect the
hotel, so it will NOT be an easy task for these four officials to
demolish the hotel! By the way, the lawful way to demolish the
hotel would be to try to change these two laws first and then change the
zoning to RM-10. Both are still very difficult to do. But
these four officials are trying to push the demolition of the hotel I
guess as fast as they can it seems by breaking laws and working
backwards.
Mayor Katica yes
Commissioner Shelly yes
Commissioner Piccaretto yes
Commissioner Wilkinson yes
Commissioner Fowler NO!
As I said in an earlier update, RM-10 zoning is INCONSISTENT
with Belleair's Comprehensive Law, and yet it was pushed
through without hesitation Tuesday night. It was all orchestrated
it seems ahead of time by these four men, the Mayor and three
commissioners. One proof for this is that this week two of
our Biltmore supporters talked with two commissioners about the RM-10
issue. Both supporters were met with rather curt phone
conversation, One commissioner in fact hung up while our supporter was
still speaking so you see the die was cast before the meeting.
However, let's all thank Commissioner Fowler who has supported saving
the Belleview Biltmore Hotel all these years and voted NO to RM-10.
If you note that even though their vote was unlawful, there were no
police officers to arrest them at the end of the meeting. No,
sadly, that is not how local government is run for these types of town
laws. It was not a criminal act, so no arrests, tickets or even a
citation. But these four men can get easily away with breaking
their own Comprehensive Plan major law like breaking a piece
of bread. The average citizen must obey the law otherwise he/she will
receive a ticket, citation or get arrested etc. The Mayor and
three commissioners just breezed through the meeting like no one was
there or that their Comprehensive Plan did not even exist, and
they approved the zoning. The only thing that can stop them is
having Belleview Biltmore Partners buy the contract from Mr. Cheezem
thus saving the hotel. Or a lawsuit, with expert legal advice,
which we feel would be won, and this would completely negate this
UNLAWFUL vote.
There were about 100 people attending, both supporters and naysayers.
There were more Biltmore supporters who spoke out at the meeting than
against. However, perhaps we would have needed hundreds of angry
supporters out at the meeting in order to stop RM-10. Or better
yet, we needed hundreds of angry residents from Belleair threatening to
never vote for them again and that if RM-10 were passed, a recall effort
would start. That's how local government works in Belleair, no
rhyme or reason, but peer pressure does work on them. Just like in
February, one hundred very angry RPD or "condo" people turned out to try
to reverse the delaying of RM-10 just passed a few weeks before. These
RPD people were misinformed about the implications of RM-10! Yet
out they come under the misguided direction of the heads of the seven
Belleair condos which surround the Biltmore.
But you see how a small group of powerful and angry people including
some members of the Belleair Country Club or the RPD can easily
influence the Mayor and Commissioners. Then they do a slam dunk
vote to push the RM-10 through and never get arrested, receive a ticket
or even a citation for breaking their own laws! Pretty slick
operation don't you think?
We all know the average citizen must obey local laws, otherwise you will
be..... you know the answer! What a different world of law politicians
live in from their citizens.
We wish that Mr. Cheezem and his attorney Ed Armstrong would realize
that saving the Biltmore is the best possible use for that land in
Belleair, but unfortunately all they care about is their
profit. The majority of people who live in Belleair were never
polled on the matter of whether they want the hotel saved. And
the RPD citizens were misled. But we know both
men realize they are contributing to breaking Belleair's law, and
yet so far don't give a &*!#!&*. It's all about the money per
usual in development of property. They too never will
receive any kind of arrest in contributing to
breaking Belleair's law. How different life is for politicians
and developers who just get around this type of law so easily with
absolutely no punishment whatsoever! Unless of course expert
legal action wins the case.
Perhaps this quote from a Belleair resident sums it all up:
"Some say the town should tear down the current Town Hall Building
(and make that property parking for the Dimmitt Community Center),
and move the Town Hall Offices to the Belleair Country Club, because
that's who really runs this town."
Here is some commentary by a Biltmore supporter who attended
the meeting and wrote me:
"Piccaretto asked Charles Kropke of Belleview Biltmore
Partners "at least" five times, how the RM10 would in anyway
affect the Partnership. Charles asked Piccaretto if he was being
disingenuous and Piccaretto stumbled to come up with the word
"genuine"( no wonder) saying that he was genuine. Charles kept
responding, not in so many words: that the RM10 intent is to
make way for the hotel's demolition which affects the prospect
of getting a deal to restore the Biltmore (not rocket science).
Piccaretto was like a pit bull (sorry Pit Bulls everywhere) in
his pursuit, continuing to tell Charles that he still had not
answered his question.... My comment is it is so difficult to
believe that educated people like Commissiner Picarretto act in
such a way, hell it would be difficult to think uneducated
people would act this way. Thinking
that Commissioner Piccaretto's law degree would provide some
measure analytical thinking, well a mystery indeed."
Biltmore supporter
SOME GREAT NEWS THOUGH! The great news is
that Belleview Biltmore Partners still wish to purchase the
hotel, and they assure us they will continue to pursue
efforts to buy it. Two of the partners, Charles Kropke
and Gary Rosenberg were there at the meeting and spoke on
behalf of BBP. The third partner Richard
Heisenbottle, architect, was not able to attend. We
continue to wish them success in their efforts to purchase
the hotel. We all need to be extremely grateful for
their continuing pursuit of buying and restoring the hotel.
BELLEAIR EMAIL ADDRESSES: If you wish to write the
Mayor and commissioners, here are their eaddresses. Again
please if you write them and voice your thoughts and dismay about
the vote, be sure to thank JUST Commissioner Fowler for his NO vote!
Mayor Gary Katica, Commissioners Stephen Fowler, Tom Shelly,
Kevin Piccarreto and Michael Wilkinson and Town Manager, Micah
Maxwell
SAM CASELLA: Sam Casella, from Belleair,
unfortunately passed away this year. He was a former Belleair
commissioner and also a very well-respected town planner. He
helped us greatly since 2005 in his analysis of Belleair's Comprehensive
Plan in which he summarized that the demolition permit applied for was
NOT consistent with Belleair's Comprehensive Plan. Therefore it
would be unlawful to demolish the hotel then. Belleair's
Comprehensive Plan has NOT changed, therefore the law remains
the same and protects the Belleview Biltmore Hotel! As I wrote in
my Sunday Biltmore Update, the Florida Supreme Court ruled that zoning
changes MUST BE CONSISTENT with a town's comprehensive plan! The
passing of RM-10 was unlawful and pushed through.
FINAL THOUGHTS: So to leave everyone with hope
for the Biltmore, I would like to quote information from the
Comprehensive Plan by Sam Casella in 2005. It still applies today.
Evidence from the Town of Belleair Comprehensive Plan
"The town has a grand landmark – the historic Belleview Biltmore
Resort Hotel – which, at the turn of the century, was a
playground for the leaders of American industry and society."
(Page ES-3, dated 2/16/99)
Comprehensive Plan Goals, Objectives, and Policies
"Future Land Use Goal 1: Ensure that the park-like,
residential/family character of the Town of Belleair is
maintained and protected while supporting the continued economic
viability of local resorts and the preservation of the
Belleview Biltmore Resort Hotel." (Page Comp. Plan - 1,
dated 2/16/99)
"Objective 1.6: Historic Preservation
"Development activities, as defined in the town land development
regulations, shall ensure the protection of historic and
architecturally significant resources." (Page Comp. Plan - 5,
dated 2/16/99)
"Policy 1.6.1: The town shall continue to identify historic and
architecturally significant resources to be protected by their
designation as historic sites by the federal government, the
State of Florida, or Pinellas County. (Page Comp. Plan - 5,
dated 2/16/99)
We will continue to fight to
save the Belleview Biltmore Hotel and ensure that Belleair's
Comprehensive Plan is upheld!
We hope you join us and become a member this month. We
have five levels, Copper, Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum
with a variety of gifts included for each. Our Online Gift
Shop is fun to explore for yourself or to purchase a special
gift for someone else. We have much more than what you
see above including Biltmore tote bags, mouse pads, greeting
cards, calendars, license plates, sterling chains,
cufflinks, tie tacks, money clips and a variety of Biltmore
artwork. To go directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year membership will be given to
anyone purchasing any of our special Biltmore jewelry!
To help us continue to save and preserve the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel for another 100 years, you may make a
donation, any amount. Donations are secure, and you
may donate by PayPal, credit or debit card.
If you would prefer to give a donation by check, make it
payable to our nonprofit organization: Save the Biltmore
Preservationists and send it to:
Save the Biltmore Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North #107
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
URGENT REMINDER OF MEETING
TONIGHT, TUESDAY, APRIL 15!
BELLEAR TOWN HALL (Town Hall map is below) Tuesday, April 15, 2014
Time: 6:30 P.M.
901 Ponce de Leon Blvd., Belleair, Florida
ASK THE COMMISSIONERS TO VOTE "NO!" ON RM-10
TONIGHT!
Map to Belleair town hall:
Here are some applicable sections for objections you can use tonight
from the Town of Belleair Code, and Land Development Code (LDC).
Even though Belleair's Code allows for ex parte disclosures the
Jennings/Dade case may give rise to a constitutional challenge to a
rezoning if too many ex parte communications between
individual commissioners/council persons and the applicant or
applicant's lobbyists or representatives have occurred -
Also most codes have a set of criteria or standards that are used
for rezonings such as 1) is it compatible with surrounding existing
uses, etc.
In regards to the above, we have heard that one of the commissioners
helped broker the deal with Cheezem so why is this
commissioner being allowed to vote tonight?
And remember from my last Biltmore Update, the RM-10 zoning is NOT
consistent with Belleair's Comprehensive whatsoever! It needs
to be DENIED TONIGHT BASED ON THIS ALONE!
FROM A NORTH CAROLINA SUPPORTER: We recently
received an order for our Biltmore cookies from North Carolina.
The Biltmore supporter wrote that she is going to distribute them to her
book club members at her next gathering! What a wonderful idea and
DELICIOUS way to talk about the Biltmore but through our cookies!
This supporter said that since the age of one and every year after
through her adulthood, her family made trips to the Biltmore. What
a treasure full of memories she has!
BELLEVIEW BILTMORE COOKIES AND GREETING CARD
I have received many emails over the years from adults who spent many
years coming back again and again with their parents to the Biltmore.
Just think of the precious history that we can teach our children by
having them stay at the Biltmore, walk the hallowed historic halls, tell
about Henry B. Plant, his drive, his success, how the Biltmore helped
establish Pinellas County and Belleair, and all the dignitaries or
celebrities like President George Bush, President Jimmy Carter,
President Gerald Ford, President Obama before he became President, the
former King of England, (the Duke of Windsor) the Vanderbilts, the Pew
family of Sun Oil, the Studebakers, the DuPonts, Thomas Edison, Henry
Ford and Lady Margaret Thatcher, baseball legends Babe Ruth, Joe
DiMaggio, and entertainers Tony Bennett, Bob Dylan and Carol Channing.
From what people tell me, history is not taught as much in schools as
when I was growing up, and saving historical buildings like the
Belleview Biltmore are a rich way to continue the importance of history
in our lives. Yes the community center in Belleair is a wonderful
place for children, but having the addition of a historic building like
the Belleview Biltmore brings an additional depth of education and
richness no center can provide for our young who can learn the
importance of saving history. For those Belleair commissioners who
have children or grandchildren, think of the wealth of historical
information you can teach them right in the Belleview Biltmore Hotel
once restored.
"History teaches us lessons, so the mistakes are not performed again and
great work encourage us. History also teaches you where your ancestors
came from. It shows patterns in human nature. It teaches you how to
predict the future with current events. By knowing history you know what
is fact and what is fiction when it comes to politics."
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_does_history_teaches_us
"The way each city and countryside developed, how neighborhoods and
business centers and farmsteads grew up, what their people were like at
various periods, where they came from, how they lived, worked,
worshiped, and had fun; this is the stuff of history that embraces all
social and economic classes, finds meaning in the ideals, folkways, and
manner of life of all regional or ethnic groups, and treats every
individual life as an important moment in the story of the human race.
All this is imbedded in buildings approached with an open mind and
studied with the proper tools.
"Uncovering the pieces of history hidden in each building's story can be
as exciting as a treasurehunt.
In fact it adds a layer of suspense and surprise, for the aim is not to
find something we already know but to lay bare facts and associations
that may be utterly lost to current record or memory. As in an
archaeological dig, we can only make educated guesses about the nature
or the significance of what we will find; the actual discovery may lead
us somewhere else altogether. Being open to where the discoveries about
a building and its history might lead is essential to the study of local
architecture. We might think we are researching a site of early black
settlement, only to find that the extant structure was built by a white
merchant who eradicated all traces of his predecessor's occupancy. Or in
looking into the chain of occupancy of a sophisticated Federal Period
store we find that it originated as a furniture factory powered by
horses. Those are the sorts of discoveries that change the way we look
at things."
http://www.lib.niu.edu/1998/iht529825.html
The Belleview Biltmore, was the heart beat of Biltmore for over
100 years forming its history and providing wonderful
vacations, weddings, conferences for thousands of people over the years
both in and out of Belleair. And now it's under a stress test by Cheezem
and some Belleair officials who are no longer patient and only because
it has been closed for five years; part of that closure because of law
suits stalling renovation. This crazy treadmill of ups and downs for ten
years can end, if only TWO Belleair officials decide they want to uphold
the preservation ordinance and Comprehensive Plan. Only TWO
officials must have the fortitude to withstand critiques from the
others. Only TWO officials are needed to vote NO tonight to RM-10
to help save the Biltmore. Only TWO officials are needed to go
against the ridiculous undemocratic "vote" that the board directors of
the condos forced on their residents. Only TWO officials are
needed to restore their precious historic pulse of Belleair so the
Biltmore can again be a thriving hotel again, generating income for
their tax base.
BELLEVIEW BILTMORE RENOVATION: I need to reemphasize
this over and over again in large bold letters because I still get
Biltmore supporters writing me on this. The media unfortunately
only shows current Biltmore photos, they never talk about the fact that
the hotel CAN BE RESTORED! That is not their job unfortunately, so
it is up to supporters to realize and look beyond the scope of
reporters' jobs. If you go on YouTube, you will find videos
on how to remove mold for example.
1. Roofs can be repaired or completely replaced.
2. Walls torn down if need be and new walls put up.
3. Plaster can be repaired.
4. Mold can be removed.
5. Walls and exteriors can be repainted for goodness sake!
You don't think Belleview Biltmore Partners would spend millions of
dollars if they could not repair the hotel do you? It
will take approximately three years to restore the hotel, in case I
have not mentioned this in the recent past. But the Biltmore
CAN BE RESTORED!
I published this photo below before but apparently and sadly some
people just do not understand how the hotel CAN BE RESTORED!
If you note, the roof of the house has been repaired and the
exterior obviously restored. Anyone who has ever watched
restoration home projects on TV would realize that walls can be torn
down to make a bedroom larger for example!
IN ATTENDANCE TONIGHT: Please note that two
of the partners, of Belleview Biltmore Partners, Charles Kropke and
Gary Rosenberg, will be at the meeting tonight, so please
come and welcome them with open arms! BBP has proved to
Belleair officials they have the funding to buy and renovate the
hotel, and presented their paperwork to Belleair officials April 1.
EMAILS TO BELLEAIR OFFICIALS: For anyone out
of town or unable to come to the Tuesday meeting and wish to write
letters to Belleair officials, see
bottom of this Update for their eaddresses. I know that
so many of you write and want to help but live too far away to
attend meetings. So if you wish to write letters, feel free,
Just remember that if you write a letter, please emphasize that the
RM-10 is NOT even consistent with Belleair's Comprehensive Plan and
MUST be denied TONIGHT Tuesday, April 15! However, for the
local community you need to come to this meeting and speak
AGAINST the RM-10 zoning!
FINAL THOUGHTS: Saving a historical building
like the Belleview Biltmore Hotel usually boils down to taxes,
profit and loss and who will profit the most by saving or
demolishing the structure. It has been said over and over
again that the town of Belleair will profit most by saving the hotel
through increased taxes. Yet some officials still want the
hotel down, so what other profit motive is being gained if they do
not save the hotel, you will have to ask them tonight.
In the meantime, be sure to come to the meeting tonight and ask
Belleair officials to vote NO on the RM-10! By voting NO you
will help ensure the saving of the Belleview Biltmore Hotel.
Now is the time to do your part to save history and to save the
hotel.
Let's SAVE THE WHITE QUEEN OF THE GULF TONIGHT!
6:30 p.m. Belleair Town Hall
ASK THE COMMISSIONERS TO VOTE "NO!" ON RM-10 TONIGHT!
We hope you join us and become a member this month.
We have five levels, Copper, Bronze, Silver, Gold and
Platinum with a variety of gifts included for each. Our
Online Gift Shop is fun to explore for yourself or to
purchase a special gift for someone else. We have
much more than what you see above including Biltmore
tote bags, mouse pads, greeting cards, calendars,
license plates, sterling chains, cufflinks, tie tacks,
money clips and a variety of Biltmore artwork. To
go directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year membership will be given
to anyone purchasing any of our special Biltmore
jewelry!
To help us continue to save and preserve the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel for another 100 years, you may make a
donation, any amount. Donations are secure, and
you may donate by PayPal, credit or debit card.
If you would prefer to give a donation by check,
make it payable to our nonprofit organization: Save
the Biltmore Preservationists and send it to:
Save the Biltmore Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North #107
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
BELLEAR TOWN HALL (Town Hall map is below) Tuesday, April 15, 2014
Time: 6:30 P.M.
901 Ponce de Leon Blvd., Belleair, Florida
A second reading and a final vote will be taken so PLEASE COME
OUT TO DISCOURAGE THIS RM-10 zoning from being passed! If
approved this RM-10 zoning would allow the area of the hotel property to
be rezoned for condominium development in the future if a developer
requests it, thus setting the stage of the demolition of the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel! YOU our precious Biltmore supporter must not let
this happen! The hotel property is now zoned for a hotel!
This must be maintained! By delaying or voting NO on
the RM-10,
it will show Mike Cheezem that officials want their hotel to be saved
and that Cheezem needs to sell his contract on the hotel to Belleview
Biltmore Partners. BBP has proved in a private meeting to the
Mayor and Commissioners that they have the funds/money to purchase and
renovate the hotel!
From the Tampa Bay Times article Keyonna Summers wrote April 2,
2014:
(Belleair Commissioner Mike Wilkinson) "Wilkinson told
the Tampa Bay Times he was satisfied with signed financials BBP
produced during his private meeting." With Belleview Biltmore
Partners, April 1, 2014.
The Belleair Country Club's manager has just sent a memo
to its members, interestingly his name and title were on this memo this
time (!), encouraging them to come to the April 15 meeting. So
please be there to show your support for the Biltmore by having the
RM-10 denied!
Map to Belleair town hall:
A NATION OF LAWS: The United States is a Nation of
Laws. I have heard this expression many times in my lifetime. On
a local, state, and national level, tens of thousands of laws are
passed each year. The legal system is supposed to protect our
liberties and guard against tyranny and corruption. Yet this
imperfect legal system only works if laws are enforced.
Belleair's two important laws, the Comprehensive Plan and the
Historic Preservation Ordinance are being disregarded at this point
in regards to the Biltmore. We need Belleair Commissioners and the
Mayor to bring these two laws back to life so they have meaning in
them and then enforce them. Then on April 15 Belleair can
become ATOWN OF ENFORCED LAWS.
LEGAL CASES ON ZONING:
The information below has come to our attention, and Mayor Katica and
Belleair Commissioners are on my Update mailing list so they will see this.
Remember Belleair's Comprehensive Plan specifically states that the
Belleview Biltmore Hotel must be protected, and yet why is
the zoning being questioned or possibly changed to RM-10 if it is not even
consistent with their major law!? How absurd!
"There is a new standard of review for rezonings set forth by the
Supreme Court in
Brevard County v. Snyder, 627 So.2d 469 (Fla. 1993). The
Court in
Snyder wrote:
“We hold that a landowner seeking to rezone property has the burden of
proving that the proposal is consistent with the comprehensive
plan and complies with all procedural requirements of the zoning
ordinance.
At this point, the burden shifts to the governmental board to
demonstrate that maintaining the existing zoning classification
with respect to the property accomplishes a legitimate public purpose.”
Also helpful is the Pinecrest Lakes, 2001 case:
There are two separate ways to challenge a rezoning in court if
approved:
1 - A rezoning that is not consistent with the Comp
Plan is subject to a de novo challenge in circuit court under 163.3215,
Florida Statutes that must be filed within 30 days of approval.
Pinecrest case.
2 - A rezoning that does not meet the LDC (or which violates procedural
due process or lacks competent substantial evidence) is subject to a
challenge via Petition for Writ of Certiorari also must be filed within
30 days of rendition of the approval and is based on the record
transcript created at the rezoning hearing.
So supporters, the RM-10 is NOT even consistent with
Belleair's Comprehensive Plan and must be denied April 15, come to this
meeting and say so!
Here is a quote from the Tampa Bay Business Journal, Margaret Cashill
April 2, 2014
“Our budget starts at minus $800,000 every year. This has gone on for
five years,” Katica said. “That’s crazy. I would love to see this place
restored. It’s beautiful. But I am interested in getting something
done.”
Well Mayor Katica, something CAN be done and you can lead the way
for your Commissioners!
1. You know now that Belleview Biltmore Partners has PROVEN to
you and the Commissioners privately that BBP can purchase and renovate the
hotel.
2. You know now that you can start earning $800,000 a year in tax
dollars once the hotel is purchased and renovated.
3. You know now that you can uphold your preservation ordinance that
you PERSONALLY supported back in 2005.
4. You know now that you can uphold your Comprehensive Plan,
Belleair's main law, and save the hotel.
5. You know you can save your legacy of a powerful leadership of
saving Belleair's history for its citizens.
YOU can save the hotel with just one other Commission vote! It only
takes two votes out of five to REJECT the RM-10. Four commissioners equal
four votes and one mayor equals another vote for a total of FIVE votes, for
our new readers.
And to our readers, if just TWO commissioners deny the RM-10 amendment, then
also these two votes will count towards denying the RM-10!
So TWO OUT OF FIVE VOTES will DENY the RM-10 zoning, which is NOT
even consistent with Belleair's Comprehensive Plan!
The point is that the Mayor and Commissioners can EASILY SAVE THE BELLEVIEW
BILTMORE HOTEL!
Only two of them need to deny the RM-10 and the hotel is
saved because no zoning will be allowed for a developer to build condos by
destroying the Biltmore!
Back in January 2014, Commissioners Fowler, Shelly and Wilkinson ALL three
voted to delay the RM-10 on the first reading. It was a wonderful night for
Biltmore supporters! But in February they agreed to revisit the issue
most unfortunately due to extreme pressure from the misinformed Resident
Planning Development or people in the condos and around the hotel. So
we hope that again that these three Commissioners join together to
vote against the RM-10.The RM-10 is INCONSISTENT with
their Comprehensive Plan! By voting NO to the RM-10, this will
show Mike Cheezem these Commissioners mean business to save the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel! By turning down the RM-10, Cheezem will NOT be allowed
to build condos in place of the Biltmore. Cheezem will have to let his
contract expire or preferably sell to Belleview Biltmore Partners who now
has the funding to purchase and renovate the hotel.
You can see why you MUST attend this meeting on Tuesday!
IN SUMMARY: We need TWO votes out of FIVE VOTES to stop this RM-10
zoning change, ultimately saving the Biltmore!
JIM BETTS, BELLEAIR, HIS LETTER TO THE EDITOR:
Here is part of Mr. Betts's excellent letter to the
editor to help explain RM-10 and its effect it would have on Belleair:
The controversial RM-10 proposal that was introduced for consideration
by the Belleair Town Commission a few weeks ago was offered originally
to protect the town from being overbuilt. (It would limit residential
construction to 10 units per acre.) However, potential developers of the
hotel property seized upon the height provision in RM-10 as the
necessary authority to build 80-foot-tall condominium buildings — 40
feet above the tree canopy — to provide a view of the water and justify
the high-end prices required to make the project profitable. The
developer (my note, the developer is Mike Cheezem) who currently has an
option to buy the Biltmore property confirmed, following a recent Town
Commission meeting, that he intended to build to the 80-foot height.
So, in the end, the choice for the town is relatively simple: a restored
hotel or twin towers (to accommodate about 130 condominiums) reaching at
least 40 feet above the tree line, shattering forever the
park-like atmosphere of the Residential Planned Development.
"The addition of another 160 housing units — the developer plans to
build approximately 130 condominiums and 32 townhouses — can only
further depress property values in Belleair, certainly in the RPD, and
probably in the rest of the town through a domino effect. As the
town's population ages, residents will look for opportunities to
downsize in the new development, vacating single-family homes and
creating another downward pressure on residential property prices.
Adding more residential units to an already depressed market can only
have a negative impact on real property values.
"As residents and taxpayers, we should have been more insistent that the
town aggressively enforce the specific requirement of the town's
Comprehensive Plan: "...to preserve the Belleview Biltmore Hotel."
As our elected representatives, commission members should have been more
mindful of that obligation. In any event, our combined neglect and
the present condition of the hotel should not be used as an excuse to
avoid the town's duty to preserve the hotel. That obligation is
undiminished and ongoing.
"With a fully restored hotel, no one gets hurt and the park-like
atmosphere of the RPD would remain intact.
"In the last month, I have knocked on the doors or rung the
doorbells of close to 300 Belleair residences and spoken with more
than 100 residents. Only two openly opposed the restoration of the
hotel. Some made no definitive comment, but a clear majority
expressed their
support for restoring the Biltmore. I have not
heard a single resident of Belleair express a preference for two
high-rise condominium towers stretching well above the tree line on
the highest point in the town, over a restored, historic Belleview
Biltmore Hotel."
Jim Betts, Belleair, Florida
BILTMORE SUPPORTER LETTER: I received an
interesting email from a supporter. He said why not let BBP
buy and restore the hotel. He wrote that even if something
falls though with them a few years down the line, the town can
always go back and do other options. But by giving BBP a shot, they
will give it one last try with someone who has the money to buy the
hotel and make a go of it.
Belleair officials need to say NO to the RM-10 or delay it again thereby
encouraging Cheezem to sell to BBP so that the HISTORIC hotel can be
saved! As I wrote before: Cheezem says he wants to
continue his "vision." Vision? What vision? Condo
development is a vision? Who is he kidding! Since when!?
Will history remember condos? Are the seven condos already around
the Biltmore a vision? Does Belleair ever brag about those?
I never once noticed that. Cheezem is asking Belleair officials to zone
property that is NOT even consistent with its Comprehensive Plan!
He is a real estate developer; he should know better.
A restored Belleview Biltmore Hotel by BBP is
a vision, that is VISION! That has community pride!
OLDSMAR, FLORIDA HISTORIC TOUR: On the front page of
the Clearwater and North Pinellas Times on Wednesday February 12, there was
a wonderful article by Terri Bryce Reeves with many photos called: "Tour to
show off historic Oldsmar." Oldsmar, Florida for those out of towners
on my mailing list is a small town of around 13,600 people. One of
their City Council members Gabby McGee has purchased a historic 1918
Craftsman bungalow. This 27-year-old fell in love with the history of
the Oldsmar.
Take note Belleair Mayor and commissioners! So an Oldsmar
City Council member is going to conduct a small Oldsmar historic tour and
Belleair officials want to destroy their outstanding history of the
Belleview Biltmore Hotel! Will Mayor Katica conduct a tour of their
community center or condos to tourists? I think not! Congratulations
to Oldsmar and Gabby McGee for realizing the importance of history to their
town.
HISTORIC PRESERVATION SUMMIT, PINELLAS COUNTY: We
certainly hope Mayor Katica and Belleair commissioners attended this summit
on Wednesday, February 19! It was at the Largo Historical Society in
which Timothy McLendon of the University of Florida Center for Governmental
Responsibility and talked about the ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF HISTORIC
PRESERVATION. Pinellas County Commissioner Charlie Justice
was to provide an update on the County Historic Task Board and introduce the
keynote speaker. We certainly hope
both men mentioned the plight of the Belleview Biltmore Hotel and how
they need to convince Belleair officials to save this hotel! It seems
a total mockery to have this summit in Pinellas County on historic
preservation if the Biltmore is going to be destroyed by Belleair
officials!
BILTMORE SUPPORTERS, you can email PINELLAS COUNTY
Commissioner Charlie Justice and ask him to speak out and save the Biltmore
cjustice@pinellascounty.org
EMAILS TO BELLEAIR OFFICIALS: For anyone out of town
or unable to come to the Tuesday meeting and wish to write letters to
Belleair officials, see
bottom of this Update for their eaddresses. I know that so many
of you write and want to help but live too far away to attend meetings.
So if you wish to write letters, feel free, Just remember that if you write
a letter, please emphasize that the RM-10 is NOT even consistent with
Belleair's Comprehensive Plan and MUST be denied Tuesday, April 15!
However, for the local community you need to come to this meeting and
speak AGAINST the RM-10 zoning!
BELLEVIEW BILTMORE ARCHITECT:
We recently received an email from a Jeffrey Bell. Francis J. Kennard
was the junior architect for the Belleview Biltmore Hotel and is the great
grandfather of Mr. Bell, so we want to thank him for taking the time to
write us: "Great buildings like this are rare in Florida and should be
preserved." Mr. Kennard designed the original Pinellas County Courthouse as
well as many other Florida buildings in the Tampa Bay area. Michael J.
Miller was the senior Biltmore architect. What a wonderful
legacy for his family if the Biltmore is saved and restored by another
architect, Richard Heisenbottle of Belleview Biltmore Partners.
Frances J. Kennard, one of two original Belleview Biltmore
architects
INFO ABOUT THE BELLEVIEW BILTMORE HOTEL LIEN AND THE BELLEAIR
COUNTRY CLUB: KAWA
the Biltmore Hotel owner, wants the Town to release another 2.3 acres from
the lien, so they can sell the property to the Belleair Country Club (BCC)
to provide additional parking for its members, the majority of whom do not
live in Belleair. It would be absurd for the Commission to agree to this
demand without at least demanding a percentage equal of the current fine be
paid.
The
current amount of the fines owed by KAWA is over $250,000. The 2.3 acres
they want to sell to the BCC represents less than 10% of the total 20 acres
of hotel property that is still bound by the lien. That means that KAWA
should be required to pay money before the Town agrees to release the
property from the lien. Until such time that this amount is paid,
KAWA should NOT be allowed to sell any of the property to the BCC.
On the
other hand, IF KAWA/Cheezem was willing to sell the property to the BBP with
the condition that the hotel roof (as well as the rest of the hotel) would
be restored, then the Town could be much more forgiving with regard to the
lien and fines owed.
TUESDAY, APRIL 15. 6:30 P.M. Bring family and friends
on April 15 because large numbers count! Organize your
neighbors and friends and get going to attend in groups in car loads.
We appreciate anyone speaking out loud and clear at the meeting for up to
three minutes on to save the Biltmore by voting no to the RM-10
zoning to help SAVE THE BILTMORE!
ASK THE COMMISSIONERS ON APRIL 15 TO DENY RM-10 ZONING CHANGES AT
THIS TIME!
Remember that the RM-10 zoning amendment is NOT
consistent with Belleair's Comprehensive Plan law!
YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!
FINAL THOUGHTS:
1. The question remains now, can the commissioners finally and firmly
withstand intense pressure from the condo board leaders and the Belleair
Country Club to vote NO on the RM-10 zoning change? (Remember that it
was the condo board leaders who failed to tell their citizens that RM-10
would include 80 foot high condo towers)
2. Can they do the "right thing" and realize that the RM-10 zoning is
NOT even consistent with their Comprehensive Plan, per the Synder case
quoted above, to Save the Belleview Biltmore Hotel?
3. Can they stand up and show their citizens and the world that they
honor and respect all the work and support hundreds of citizens have given
over the past ten years to save the hotel?
4. Can they resist the crowd of nasty naysayers who might show up this
April 15 or those working behind the scenes who for some reason want the
hotel destroyed even though Belleview Biltmore Partners can now save it?
In other words, can they vote with their conscience and not out of fear this
time like they did in February?
5. Can they give Belleview Biltmore Partners a chance to buy and
restore the Biltmore; they never gave up after four years!
6. Can they, and most importantly, uphold the laws of the land in
Belleair, their historic preservation ordinance and the Comprehensive Plan
once and for all?
We hope you join us and become a member this month. We have
five levels, Copper, Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum with a
variety of gifts included for each. Our Online Gift Shop is fun to
explore for yourself or to purchase a special gift for someone else.
We have much more than what you see above including Biltmore tote
bags, mouse pads, greeting cards, calendars, license plates,
sterling chains, cufflinks, tie tacks, money clips and a variety of
Biltmore artwork. To go directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year membership will be given to anyone
purchasing any of our special Biltmore jewelry!
To help us continue to save and preserve the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel for another 100 years, you may make a donation, any amount.
Donations are secure, and you may donate by PayPal, credit or debit
card.
If you would prefer to give a donation by check, make it payable
to our nonprofit organization: Save the Biltmore
Preservationists and send it to:
Save the Biltmore Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North #107
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
While there was a 4-1 vote by the Belleair Mayor and Commissioners this past
April 1 to reduce the Biltmore plot size the WONDERFUL news is that
Belleview Biltmore Partners STILL want to purchase and renovate the
Belleview Biltmore hotel!
Commissioner Stephen Fowler was the lone official who wanted the Biltmore
property to remain as is, so we thank him for his vote!
Now we must turn our
attention immediately to the April 15 meeting in
which the RM-10 zoning MUST BE DENIED! The RM-10 zoning
would allow the Biltmore to be demolished if Cheezem continues with this
contract to buy the hotel and destroy it; condominiums could be built as
tall as 80 feet creating more obstructing views for the RPD. THIS MUST
NOT HAPPEN!
Please come to the April 15 meeting and ask Belleair officials to
DENY the RM-10 zoning. This is the final reading of this
issue, and Belleair officials will take a vote. What is also SO
important is that Belleview Biltmore partners showed the proof of
their funding/money
to Belleair town officials in a private meeting on April 1, 2014 by showing
the paperwork to them. BBP wishes to purchase the hotel, but to make
it possible, it is extremely important that the RM-10 zoning must
be DENIED on April 15 by Belleair Commissioners!
So PLEASE come to the April 15 meeting at the town hall!
So Mayor Katica, the preservationists by the name of Belleview
Biltmore Partners HAVE come forward so they now can save Belleair's historic
hotel. You will get your needed tax dollars you want so badly!
So there is absolutely NO need to change to change any zoning at this time!
You can still save Belleair's history and economic growth!
Belleair officials have the authority to vote NO on the April 15 meeting and
NOT approve any zoning changes thus saving the Biltmore!! No matter
what you recently read in the newspapers, the hotel can still be restored by
Belleview Biltmore Partners! Show your support and attend
this IMPORTANT MEETING to Save the Biltmore. LAST CHANCE TO SAVE THE
BILTMORE!
Show this flyer below to ten people or hang this flyer up around your
community in condominiums, RPD area, retail stores, antique stores, malls,
your office, libraries, events, gas stations, restaurants etc. Bring family
and friends! BE THERE! Urge and ask Belleair officials to vote
"NO" to zoning changes!
Where: Town Hall, 901 Ponce de Leon
Blvd. Belleair, Florida, Date: Tuesday, April 15, 2014 Time: 6:30 P.M. Second reading and final vote of RM10 and
discussion of mixed-use zoning option
What to
speak about: Ask officials to vote "NO" on any zoning changes!
Here are some
important newspaper quotes in the past from the Tampa Bay Times and the
Belleair Bee:
Mayor Katica:
January 2014
“We want what is best for the town,” he said. “It would be best if
the hotel was restored, .” Katica
Mayor
Katica:
April 2012: “I am loaded with optimism,” he said. “Richard
Heisenbottle is a terrific architect and we have to be 100 percent
behind him.”
Commissioner
Fowler: January 2014: “Belleair is not broken,” he
said. “We don’t need new laws to fix what we have. I think the town
should pursue an injunction to prevent anyone who wants to buy the
property to build townhouses on it from doing so.”
Commissioner
Shelly: 2012 "Then it was the commissioners turn to have
their say before the vote. Commissioner Tom Shelly proposed the motion
to support the ordinance and grant the tax exemption." And in 2012
"Commissioner Tom Shelly said he also plans to support the extension
because he thinks the majority of Belleair residents, about 90 percent,
are in favor of preserving the Biltmore." By the way
Commissioner Shelly was married in the Biltmore, and I wrote him that
one day I hope and his wife can celebrate a wedding anniversary at the
renovated hotel!
Commissioner Wilkinson: February 2014 “I have lived here
for 20 years, and I truly believe the hotel is what would be best for the
town,” he said.
Commissioner
Piccaretto: I could not find any specific comments by him in
the newspaper media. If he suports the saving of the hotel, he is certainly
welcome to write me, and I will quote him before the April 15 meeting.
Richard Heisenbottle of Belleview Biltmore Partners and
preservation architect: January 2014 “There’s no question in my mind
that this building is not in the state of deterioration where you can truly
say that this building cannot be restored,” Heisenbottle said. “It
definitely can be restored.”
To clarify a matter:
I received an email from Tom duPont, Belleair resident, so I thank him for
writing and clarifying matters. His online bio for the company where he is
on the board of directors originally stated that he was president of the
Belleair Country Club, which is where I had received my original information
for my Update this past week. He emailed me that he changed his online bio
to reflect that he is PAST president of the Belleair
Country Club. Mr. duPont also wrote me that he was not interested in Jim
White's job so I want to mention that also. Mr. duPont has
unfortunately made many statements at the Commission meetings that he wants
condos to be built and the Biltmore demolished. These statements
have been reported in the newspapers. The underlying reason overall was that
he states was because the Biltmore not been repaired since it closed in
2009. (The reason as we all know unfortunately "demolition by
neglect" has not been fully enforced.) Mr. duPont writes he does not
wish to run the town of Belleair, but let us all remember that he is a
very influential man in this town wanting the demolition of the
Belleview Biltmore! He unfortunately speaks out at Commission meetings
to this regard with passion. He cheered at the end of the April 1 meeting
when the plot size of the Biltmore property took place so we know where he
stands on this issue. As I recently wrote, the board of the Belleair
Country Club or perhaps the management of the Country Club sent out memos to
their members. These memos unfortunately had NO signature on them, and
they encouraged the plot size reduction of the hotel property, which we did
not want to see happen.
I do hope now that now
after Belleview Biltmore Partners has showed their proof of funding
to Belleair officials on April 1, that Mr. duPont will now support the
SAVING of the historic Belleview Biltmore Hotel since as
Mayor Katica has stated over and, this is the best choice for
Belleair.
EMAILS TO THE
MAYOR AND COMMISSIONERS: I feel it is so important for people to
ATTEND the commission meetings and express their support in place of emails.
If you live out of town and still wish to write them, however, a list of
their e addresses are at the very bottom of this Update.
MY EMAIL EXCHANGE
WITH JIM WHITE, PRESIDENT OF THE RPD: (Condo area around the
Biltmore)
Some Biltmore supporters
who live in the RPD area have written me that
1. Either they were
not contacted personally through the mail about their opinions on the RM-10
matter or not even contacted at all in any manner whether the hotel should
be saved or not, or
2. Some say that they
were not informed that 80-foot tall condos could be built if the Biltmore
were destroyed.
3. Some never heard about
Micah Maxwell's meetings for RPD members.
So a fair vote with an
actual ballot was not done on EVERYONE in the RPD to see if
they wanted the hotel to remain or not! Then the board directors
of the condos somehow miraculously came to the opinion and
the vote that people in the RPD wanted the RM-10 zoning to take place, thus
allowing Cheezem to destroy the hotel and build condos as tall as 80 feet!
Obstructing the RPD view even more.
I
emailed Jim White if he could take charge of polling EVERYONE in the condos
and RPD because
1. Either no one or very few citizens were told that 80-foot tall
obstructing condos could be built
2.
Belleview Biltmore Partners NOW have the proper funding and PROOF that they
have the money to buy and renovate the hotel! These two
factors COMPLETELY change everything! The RPD residents should
ALL
be allowed to vote in a proper DEMOCRATIC MANNER. However
the board of directors of the RPD were not interested in doing this! I
find it shameful that the other directors do not want to be bothered redoing
a more accurate vote. So many RPD people have expressed the fact that
they were not properly heard and are quite angry but do not know how to
change the situation which is a sad commentary of how the RPD is
governed. Mr. White wrote me this today:
Diane,
With 90% responses in. No Board Member, thus far,
wants to have a Special Meeting to reconsider the Board's Position on
RM-10.
Jim White
Here is my letter back to Mr. White:
Hi
Jim,
I am sorry to hear this, and I would think you are terribly
disappointed also to not have all RPD citizens recontacted on all this
new information they did not have in the first place.
I keep seeing democracy being chipped away more and more in
Belleair, and it is a frightening commentary on the way local
government operates.
With a restored Biltmore, the RPD would have wonderful places to go
right in their own gated community, restaurants they could dine at,
shops to go to, gardens to walk through, hold parties and weddings
and events there, and have their friends and relatives stay at the
Biltmore if they come to visit. All this would be taken away
from all these RPD people if condos were built, and they would have
to mainly go outside Belleair to do all these things. It
just makes more sense to keep all this wonderful activity
inside your gated community for social and economic reasons. And
of course the Mayor and Commissioners would have a show piece where
they can bring guests, hold meetings, dinners etc. rather than have
other people's money go outside of Belleair.
You probably know a lot of RPD people (obviously!) and for those who
support the hotel, I hope you encourage them to attend the April 15
meeting, where then and there they can be truly be heard.
Thanks again.
Diane
I would like to add readers that Jim White was originally for the
saving of the hotel, but delays caused him to change his mind.
With all this new information, and the fact that BBP has proven
their financial paperwork to Belleair officials, I hope that he
personally can again throw his support behind the saving of the
hotel and the denial of RM-10 on April 15.
RESTORATION OF
THE BILTMORE
We are concerned over the naysayers saying inaccurate things like the
hotel can not be restored. The people who generally say this are
only influenced by the tragic media photos that are
sensationalizing the plight of the Biltmore over and over and over
again. As a result citizens think the worse. Also people
shockingly have no idea it seems that a roof can be replaced or fences
repaired or grass cut or mold cleaned away!! Are some of these
people not homeowners who are faced with home repairs over the years who
have to take care of many of these conditions over time!
ANOTHER RENDITION OF THE FUTURE SWIMMING POOL OF THE BELLEVIEW
BILTMORE:
For those of you who like myself and my late husband and vice
president of our nonprofit, Ed Jameson, were able to dine in the
beautiful area in front of the swimming pool, I hope this rendition
brings back wonderful memories for you. With this area open to
the public, the RPD, all of Belleair, tourists and foreigners can
enjoy this special historic atmosphere in the fresh air and have a
delightful dining experience once the hotel is purchased and
renovated.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Print out the flyer, hang it everywhere, hand to everyone! Get
out and Save the Biltmore by asking the Commissioners to vote NO on
the RM-10 zoning issue! Plan ahead and be there on April 15!
Let's SAVE THE QUEEN and treasure her history and magnificence
forever!
ASK THE COMMISSIONERS ON APRIL 15 TO DENY ANY ZONING
CHANGES AT THIS TIME!
We hope you join us and become a member this month.
We have five levels, Copper, Bronze, Silver, Gold and
Platinum with a variety of gifts included for each. Our
Online Gift Shop is fun to explore for yourself or to
purchase a special gift for someone else. We have
much more than what you see above including Biltmore
tote bags, mouse pads, greeting cards, calendars,
license plates, sterling chains, cufflinks, tie tacks,
money clips and a variety of Biltmore artwork. To
go directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year membership will be given
to anyone purchasing any of our special Biltmore
jewelry!
To help us continue to save and preserve the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel for another 100 years, you may make a
donation, any amount. Donations are secure, and
you may donate by PayPal, credit or debit card.
If you would prefer to give a donation by check,
make it payable to our nonprofit organization: Save
the Biltmore Preservationists and send it to:
Save the Biltmore Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North #107
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
Mayor Gary Katica, Commissioners Stephen Fowler, Tom Shelly, Kevin
Piccarreto and Michael Wilkinson and Town Manager, Micah Maxwell
This is a just an urgent and friendly reminder to
PLEASE attend the workshop commission meeting
TONIGHT AT 5:30 p.m.
Even with the good news that Belleview
Biltmore Partners has succeeded in finding funding for the
purchase and renovation of the Biltmore, Mike Cheezem still has a
contract out on the hotel to purchase and destroy it! He "says" he
will save part, but from what Belleair citizens write me, he keeps
changing his mind about what he will save, so there is no trust here on
what he says at all! I keep hearing that he will tear it all down,
and we MUST NOT let that happen to
the historic Queen!
Thank you for all your emails you wrote recently.
One question I received over and over are what are the names of the
three partners in BBP. Here they are: Richard
Heisenbottle (preservation architect), Gary Rosenberg, partner and
Charles Kropke, partner. It is Mr. Heisenbottle's
beautiful drawings in the last Update showing his renovation plans for
the Biltmore. They are the same ones when Legg Mason had hired him
back in 2007.
There is a correction from my Sunday Update.
Chris Renfro is the President of the Belleair Country Club.
I will give other information about Tom duPont in another Update.
I also be discussing how the RM-10 voting by the RPD came out and what
Belleair residents feel about this so stay tuned!
Please note that NONE of the recent emails sent out
by the Belleair Country Club say who wrote them most unfortunately.
A mystery writer perhaps!? Please
note that when the Country Club sent out recent notices for their
members, it certainly seems it has "board" approval for doing
so. Unless I hear from them, from now on I will say the
board of the Belleair Country Club sends out these emails
since I like to think there is board approval on them! They are
welcome to write me if some other entity sends them out!
For the record, I will always give my name, Diane
Hein, and title, President of Save the Biltmore Preservationists, on my
Biltmore Updates at the end! Why can't they?
By the way, I looked around the Belleair Country
Club's online web site, and no where could I find the president's name
or other board members! At least as of today, perhaps they may add
them after this Update? Only staff names are listed.
Also on the history of the Belleair Country Club on
its history of the golf course, they do mention Henry B. Plant's name
(he built the Biltmore back in 1896) but NOWHERE does it include the
Belleview Biltmore Hotel name which is PART of the history of the
Belleair Country Club's golf course! Perhaps this explains
why they (the board) do not care ripping up part of the Biltmore
property. It is as if they want to make the hotel invisible on their
web site to others around the country like it did not exist! When
Henry B. Plant built the Biltmore he built TWO golf courses! One
eventually was named the Pelican or Belleview Biltmore Golf Club and the
other the Belleair Country Club. So to deny the Biltmore as part
of its history is a most unfortunate commentary on the club,
which is LOCATION IN Belleair right by the Biltmore!
BELLEAR TOWN HALL (Town Hall map is below) Tuesday, April 1, 2014
TONIGHT!!
Time: 5:30 P.M.
A second reading for reduction of plot size of the Belleview Biltmore
property A final vote will be taken UNLESS YOU COME OUT TO DISCOURAGE
THIS REDUCTION!
901 Ponce de Leon Blvd., Belleair, Florida
Map to Belleair town hall:
FINAL THOUGHTS:
Please attend the Belleair town hall meeting on April 1st TONIGHT
at 5:30 p.m. and speak out to discourage the
Biltmore plot size reduction The beautiful green
space MUST be preserved for the hotel restoration, not a Country
Club parking lot!
Bring family
and friends because as you can see by the February 4 meeting,
large numbers count! Organize your
neighbors and friends and get going to attend in groups in car
loads. We appreciate anyone speaking out loud and clear
at the meeting for up to three minutes to avoid plot size
reduction to keep the beauty around the hotel for BBP's
renovation plans.
We hope you join us and become a member this
month. We have five levels, Copper, Bronze, Silver,
Gold and Platinum with a variety of gifts included for each.
Our Online Gift Shop is fun to explore for yourself or to
purchase a special gift for someone else. We have much
more than what you see above including Biltmore tote bags,
mouse pads, greeting cards, calendars, license plates,
sterling chains, cufflinks, tie tacks, money clips and a
variety of Biltmore artwork. To go directly to the
shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year membership will be given to
anyone purchasing any of our special Biltmore jewelry!
To help us continue to save and preserve the
Belleview Biltmore Hotel for another 100 years, you may make
a donation, any amount. Donations are secure, and you
may donate by PayPal, credit or debit card.
If you would prefer to give a donation by
check, make it payable to our nonprofit organization:
Save the Biltmore Preservationists and send it to:
Save the Biltmore Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North #107
Palm Harbor, FL 3468
If for any reason you wish to email the Mayor and
Commissioners, here are their eaddresses. But it is more
important to attend the meetings rather than send support
letters any more!
EXCITING PRESS RELEASE AND BILTMORE
UPDATE, Monday March 31, 2014
Press Release and Biltmore Update,
Monday, March 31, 2014
Dear Biltmore Supporter, News Media
and Others:
We have an EXCITING
press release from Bay Proby who represents
Belleview Biltmore Partners, the firm who has been trying to purchase and
renovate the Belleview Biltmore Hotel. For everyone who said it
could not be done for BBP to raise the money to buy the hotel, THEY
HAVE DONE IT! Please read the press release and remember to come
to the April 1 tomorrow and April 15 meetings at the town hall!
Dear Mayor Katica and Commissioners:
There is absolutely NO need to change reduce the plot size or change the
zoning now!
13221 Southwest
69th
Court, Suite 200, Miami, FL 33156
TO
PURCHASE AND RESTORE THE BELLEVIEW BILTMORE RESORT
Key
Step Toward Restoration of Historic Hotel Property
BELLEAIR, FL – March
31, 2014 -- Belleview Biltmore Partners, LLC (BBP) today announced it has
secured a funding commitment to purchase and
renovate the historic Belleview Biltmore Resort and Spa, and purchase the Biltmore Golf Course
currently owned by the Town of Belleair.
"Restoration of one
of America's landmark vintage resorts would be a great step forward for the
entire community, and bring
an end to the division among town residents that has lasted for too long,"
said Gary Rosenberg managing
member of BBP. "Resolving the future of the Belleview Biltmore will also
provide a clear path to the future for the Town of Belleair and help restore
its tax base."
Rosenberg said the
funding commitment from a private equity source would allow BBP to close on
one or both transactions within 30 to 45 days, provided agreements can be
reached with the Town of Belleair and St. Petersburg developer, Michael
Cheezem, who currently holds a contract to purchase the hotel site. "We plan
to reach out immediately to Mr. Cheezem and town officials to see if we can
reach a win-win agreement for all parties," Rosenberg said.
Rosenberg, a
veteran hospitality professional who has been involved with more than 25
hotel transactions, was instrumental in the direction and restoration of The
Homestead Resort in Hot Springs, Virginia, a small community similar to the
Town of Belleair. The significant impact and financial contributions to the
Hot Springs community was immeasurable.
"When pioneer
railroad magnate Henry Plant chose to build the Belleview Biltmore on this
bluff in 1895, he laid the foundation for the Town of Belleair," said
Rosenberg. "Since then, the hotel has been the centerpiece of the community,
and we are dedicated to preserving the past in order to help secure the
town's future.”
In keeping with
that commitment, Rosenberg said BBP will work with the town and Belleair
Country Club to resolve the club's parking issue without subdividing the
hotel property. "As a good neighbor, we will work closely with the club and
the town to find the right solution," he added.
A RESTORED
BELLEVIEW BILTMORE HOTEL, THAT is a VISION FOR BELLEAR! That has
community pride!
Here is a quote from the Tampa Bay Times
from February 18th:
"Wilkinson echoed Mayor Gary
Katica's statements that a full hotel restoration is preferred. Even if the
new zoning options pass, he noted, a preservationist could still come
forward to purchase the hotel."
Well Mayor Katica, the
preservationists by the name of Belleview Biltmore Partners HAVE come
forward so they now can save Belleair's historic hotel. You will get
your needed tax dollars you want so badly! So there is absolutely NO
need to change to change any zoning at this time!
BELLEAR TOWN HALL (Town Hall
map is below) Tuesday, April 1, 2014
Time: 5:30 P.M.
A second reading for reduction of plot size of the Belleview Biltmore
property A final vote will be taken UNLESS YOU COME OUT TO DISCOURAGE THIS
REDUCTION!
901 Ponce de Leon Blvd., Belleair, Florida
AND
Tuesday, April 15, 2014
Time: 6:30 P.M.
A second reading of RM-10 and discussion of mixed-use zoning option A final vote will be taken UNLESS you come out to delay the RM-10
zoning for six months!
901 Ponce de Leon Blvd., Belleair, Florida
Map to Belleair town hall:
FINAL THOUGHTS:
Even with this absolutely wonderful news that BBP has the funding to
purchase the Biltmore, the only thing that matters NOW is for all of the local community to attend the Belleair
town hall meeting on April 1st in mass and discourage the Biltmore
plot size reduction and delay the RM-10 zoning change for six months
just like the January 21 vote. The beautiful green space MUST be
preserved for the hotel restoration, not a Country Club parking lot!
Then come again on April 15 to
be sure the zoning is NOT changed! We must have Cheezem leave
Belleair so BBP can save and renovate the Biltmore now that they have
the funding!
Bring family and
friends because as you can see by the February 4 meeting,
large numbers count! Organize your neighbors and friends and
get going to attend in groups in car loads. We appreciate anyone
speaking out loud and clear at the meeting for up to three minutes on
these topics to save the Biltmore by delaying the RM-10 zoning for six
months and avoiding plot size reduction to keep the beauty around the
hotel.
YOU CAN MAKE A
DIFFERENCE!
And now that BBP has
obtained the funding, we can all help them save the hotel by showing our
enthusiasm at the town council meetings for the beautiful and historic
White Queen of the Gulf! BE THERE!
CONVINCE THESE
COMMISSIONERS TO NOT REDUCE BELLEVIEW BILTMORE PROPERTY!
CONVINCE THESE
COMMISSIONERS TO KEEP THEIR WORD AND THEIR VOTE FROM JANUARY 21ST!
CONVINCE THE
COMMISSIONERS TO DELAY THE RM-10 ZONING FOR SIX MONTHS!
We hope
you join us and become a member this month. We have five
levels, Copper, Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum with a variety of
gifts included for each. Our Online Gift Shop is fun to explore for
yourself or to purchase a special gift for someone else. We
have much more than what you see above including Biltmore tote bags,
mouse pads, greeting cards, calendars, license plates, sterling
chains, cufflinks, tie tacks, money clips and a variety of Biltmore
artwork. To go directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year membership will be given to anyone
purchasing any of our special Biltmore jewelry!
To help
us continue to save and preserve the Belleview Biltmore Hotel for
another 100 years, you may make a donation, any amount.
Donations are secure, and you may donate by PayPal, credit or debit
card.
If
you would prefer to give a donation by check, make it payable to
our nonprofit organization: Save the Biltmore Preservationists
and send it to:
Save the Biltmore Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North #107
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
If for any reason you wish to email the Mayor and Commissioners, here
are their eaddresses. But it is more important to attend the
meetings rather than send support letters any more!
Urgent Meetings! Biltmore
Update, Sunday March 31, 2014
Biltmore Update, Sunday March 30, 2014
Dear News Media, Biltmore supporters and others:
There are two extremely important meetings THAT BILTMORE SUPPORTERS
NEED TO ATTEND coming up in regards to the FUTURE OF THE Belleview
Biltmore Hotel.
This information is from Micah Maxwell, Town Manager of Belleair who
wrote me on Friday March 28:
"The second reading of the ordinance on the hotel lot size is
April 1, the second reading of the ordinance on RM-10 is April 15, the
discussion of mixed use is April 15."
Tuesday, April 1, 2014
Time: 5:30 P.M.
Belleair Town Hall, 901 Ponce de Leon Blvd, Belleair
Tuesday, April 15, 2014
Time: 6:30 P.M.
Belleair Town Hall, 901 Ponce de Leon Blvd, Belleair
"The Belleview Biltmore is part of Belleair's identity and
should be cherished."
Quote by Gary Katica, February, 2005. He ran on a platform stating he
supports saving the Belleview Biltmore, as a candidate for Mayor of Belleair.
He wants the Biltmore demolished now, so why is he still Mayor?
To refresh everyone's memory, on January 21, 2014, when the RM-10 zoning
was first discussed, approximately 200 people turned out most in
support of the hotel, and the RPD (Residential Planned
Development or "condo people" were NOT even there in force to hear
the discussion. Then a vote of 3-2 was taken in favor of delaying
the zoning change for six months. By voting to delay the RM-10
zoning, we had hoped Mike Cheezem of JMC Communities would change his mind
on demolishing the Biltmore, building condos, and either let the contract
expire or sell to someone else who would save the hotel: the
preservation architect who wants to STILL buy and renovate the Biltmore.
However this 3-2 vote on January 21 upset Belleair resident and Belleair
Country Club president Tom duPont who then organized the RPD to protest in
mass on February 4. There never was any straw poll done of Belleair
citizens or a referendum to see just how many people outside the RPD wanted
the hotel to be saved. The commissioners only changed their minds on the
RM-10 zoning because approximately 100 RPD people organized by Tom
duPont via RPD email lists and close contact with all the condos into a
very intimidating group, filled with hostility and anger
on February 4.
The RPD intimidated the Mayor and four Commissioners when
Tom duPont asked the RPD people to stand up when the
meeting started, and they acted in a very angry manner. What is most
unfortunate are that many of the RPD are "snowbirds" and do not even live in
Belleair half the year and are not even registered to vote in Florida! And
yet some of them came to the meeting in protest. So the 3-2 vote to delay
the RM-10 zoning from January 21 was reversed that night.
The zoning was reversed by a very undemocratic process on
February 4: through anger and intimidation!
Commission meetings are not like court-room procedings where there is
order and respect. In Belleair and across the country, commission meetings
are filled with anger, outbursts, belligerence, unfairness, rudeness and
intimidation on many levels. So this is how small town governments are
run across America: disorganized chaos. All this was seen at
the February 4 meeting, and yet with all this controversy over saving the
hotel, Belleair officials refuse to take any kind of straw poll or
referendum with its citizens on the hotel even after ten years!
Is democracy dead in Belleair in regards to the Biltmore?
Just recently on March 25th, the mayor and commissioners voted 4-1 at this
first reading to allow the RM-10 zoning to proceed!! The
second reading will be April 15th. A vote will be taken at that
time unless YOU, our precious Biltmore supporter come to
this meeting to stop this RM-10 zoning change and delay it for six months
like the Commissioners originally voted January 21st!
Unfortunately on February 4, the commissioners yielded due to extreme
pressure by this highly intimidating group that night. It
has been appalling that such unruliness was allowed by Belleair officials
and by a group of people who never attended the January 21 meeting in the
first place and who may not even live year round by the hotel!
Some supporters of the Belleview Biltmore were not even allowed to speak.
One was interrupted during her allowed time allotment and told to go sit
down!
So the turn of events can be attributed to Tom duPont as well as Mayor
Katica who failed to enforce the "demolition by neglect" aspect of the
preservation ordinance. The unfortunate situation is that this Tom duPont,
also president of the Belleair Country Club, basically runs Belleair
now! He can organize masses of people quickly and can assemble people
quickly. They can attend the commission meetings, act intimidating and
cause fear among Town Council about their future political careers by voting
them out. So instead of the Mayor and Commissioners standing
STRONG and adhering to their oath of office, they are not in charge of
Belleair anymore. It appears that Tom duPont is the leader!
Then compounding this issue is the Belleair Country Club led by this same
man, Tom duPont, president, who with a flick of an email "send"
button not only can contact the RPD condo people via RPD email lists but
also mobilize his 400 members to come out in force to the commission
meetings to break up two acreas of Belleview Biltmore property!
And many Country Club members are
not even citizens of Belleair! So they too are
secondarily running Belleair now instead of the commissioners! The
Belleair Country Club wants to purchase a little over two acres of the
Belleview Biltmore property for an unsightly parking lot even though they
could do other construction. By losing this acreage, the hotel will lose
its ambiance. A part of the historic hotel's draw is its ability to
surround itself with gardens that shield it from surrounding buildings. The
area is better served as a garden, green space or other object of beauty.
The Country Club could instead build a second level parking area on
its existing parking lot. Why are these options not considered
seriously? Because the Country Club led by Tom duPont rule Belleair
now!
So you see, to the Mayor and Commissioners, it doesn't matter that
HUNDREDS and HUNDREDS of Biltmore supporters have come out over the past ten
years or written dozens and dozens of support letters for
saving the Belleview Biltmore Hotel the past ten years. All that matters is
how many people attend the town commission meetings, how angry they get
and how they can influence the political futures of Belleair
Commissioners. That is what Belleair officials are listening to and changing
their vote and not enforcing their own historic preservation ordinance and
Comprehensive Plan!
We have all heard the expression "the squeakiest wheel gets the oil." Well
in this case the more forceful and intimidating group led by Tom duPont gets
their way: the demolition of the beautiful and historic
Belleview Biltmore Hotel. Unless of course you stop him and
come out on April 15 to the second reading of the RM-10 zoning and convince
them otherwise!
There is also another important figure in all of this and that is Jim
White who is president of the Residential Planned Development or Homeowners
Association. (condos and area around the Biltmore) He complained
over the years about the condition of the hotel, yet accomplished nothing to
this regard but then eventually took a vote among the area he governs, and
it was decided to vote FOR the RM-10 changes. So he also speaks
out at the meetings in favor of the RM-10 unfortunately. He says he
supports saving the hotel and yet does nothing to encourage saving it at
this point by encouraging delaying the RM-10 vote for six months! He
cares about continuing to be RPD president, that is his concern now. I
have heard that Tom duPont would like to be RPD president again, so Jim
White had better watch his back!
If you think there is a democracy left in Belleair, think again.
A straw poll or referendum was never taken to see what other citizens in
Belleair wanted in regards to the Biltmore. With all the controversy now
after ten years of trying to save the hotel, town officials have made no
attempt to ask everyone in Belleair what do do! I guess
that would take too much effort? All that matters to town
officials is the intimidation and fear factor at commission meetings and
their future political careers. And in Belleair so many
people in the condos are snowbirds that do not live there full time and many
members of the Country Club are not voting citizens.
The results of the February 4 meeting showed that what matters to the Mayor
and Commissioners is how many people turn out at a meeting and how
intimidating and angry they can be.
THE MAYOR AND COMMISSIONERS STILL HAVE THE POWER TO DENY ANY
DEMOLITION PERMIT OF THE HOTEL. BUT WILL THEY?
It is up to YOU, the Biltmore Supporter. We need every one of
YOU to attend the meeting on Tuesday April 1 and Tuesday, April 15th
to show that all of you want the Biltmore SAVED by saying NO to plot size
reduction and by delaying the RM-10 zoning like the commissioners did
January 21.
It is important for town officials to follow the HISTORIC PRESERVATION
ORDINANCE. It could take up to two years to change Belleair's
Comprehensive Plan. This would allow public meetings with supporter’s
viewpoints before any demolition can occur. The hotel can still
be saved if the Mayor and Commissioners would enforce their own two laws
which they have sworn to uphold when they took office, and if people
continue to support the hotel. The Biltmore has only been
closed five years, whereas, the Vinoy, St. Petersburg's iconic pink
palace, was in horrible condition and was closed a long 18 years before it
was restored successfully.
Remember that Legg Mason bought the Biltmore back in 2007 with the full
intention of restoring it. That means they were going to spend about
$200 million for restoration. Because of frivolous lawsuits taken out
by three Belleair residents compounded by the 2008 recession, they lost the
mortgage. The point I am making is that Legg Mason was going to
spend this
huge amount of money to restore the hotel. Their
architect who designed new renovation plans (shown below) stepped in to try
to save it. They have partnered with a new man to help raise money to
purchase it so the town needs to allow them a little more time to do so.
That's why delaying the RM-10 zoning is so important.
With so much controversy over the hotel, the Mayor and Commissioners can not
wait just another six months? Surely something is wrong with this
picture! The problem are the new Belleair rulers: Tom duPont and Jim
White!
We feel that Mayor Katica failed to uphold Belleair's HISTORIC
PRESERVATION ORDINANCE in regards to the section on "demolition by neglect"
because he did NOTHING to enforce it. Then he says it's time to move on and
it's too late, when it is not too late! He is
the one responsible for letting the hotel to deteriorate in the first place.
However, preservation developers have assured us over and over again
that the hotel still can be restored and renovated. We need
to have citizens demanding of the Mayor and Commissioners that the
hotel CAN be saved now and they should do something about this
IMMEDIATELY!
All the commissioners need to do is delay any zoning changes on April
15th for six months and deny any demolition permit in the future.
This will discourage Mike Cheezem so he would sell his contract to
preservation developers who will then purchase the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel and save it.
By the way only around 20 RPD people showed up at Mike Cheezem's
presentation on Monday March 24 to answer questions and show his
"vision"! This is out of some 800 condo people. You can tell how
UNEXCITED those people are about Cheezem's condo
development! What a laughing stock of a turnout for condo development!
A total mockery of Cheezem's so-called "vision." I was
informed that he "tapped danced" around questions, so what was he hiding?
Our nonprofit organization and Belleair supporters have been working to
save the hotel for ten years, and it is NOT possible to get 100 or
200 supporters out for every Biltmore meeting for this length of time.
We wish! There is no way Mr. duPont would be able to mobilize his
group for ten years either and get 100 people to turn out over and over and
over again. And yet Belleair town officials are bowing to him because
of just a few emails he wrote to his members!!
Belleair officials need to IMMEDIATELY delay any zoning changes that
would allow condo development! They need to encourage Cheezem to sell
to a preservation developer so that their HISTORIC hotel can be saved!
Cheezem says he wants to continue his "vision." Vision? What
vision? Condo development is a vision? Who is he kidding!
Since when!? Will history remember condos? Are the seven condos
already around the Biltmore a vision? Does Belleair ever brag
about those ugly tall towers? I never once heard that in the ten
years I have been involved.
A RESTORED BELLEVIEW BILTMORE HOTEL, THAT is a VISION!
That has community pride!
Will Belleair be hanging photos of new condos in their town hall meeting
room and taking their photos of the Biltmore down? Belleair does not even
have photos of their seven ugly condos in their town hall meeting room!
We need Pinellas County Commissioners to urge Belleair officials to save the
Biltmore. Saving the Belleview Biltmore Hotel is a COUNTY issue as well as
a Belleair issue! But where are they? Town officials are paid to
enforce their laws!
If zoning changes are allowed right now, Cheezem may wind up building
tall 8 story 80 foot high condos in place of the Biltmore, through
demolition of OUR beautiful hotel! Then Belleair will turn into a
retirement community instead of the family oriented lovely town it is today.
There will be over 900 condos and only 1363 family residences! For
those who live in the area, you can see what happened over in Clearwater
Beach, a concrete condo canyon.
By the way, NONE of the Belleair officials live in the gated
Biltmore community so why would they care what if 80 foot ugly tall condos
are built there?
With all the issues lately surrounding the Biltmore, it is like a
group of vultures are swooping down on our historic Queen and picking her
apart, YOU must stop this feast of corruption!
Has ANYONE ever seen a history book honoring the memory of demolished
condos! Below is the condo "vision" thus far in Belleair and after that
these are the beautiful renderings of a developer's vision of the Biltmore.
Is there any comparison?
Currently seven ugly condo "vision" and Belleair officials want
more of this?
Restoration of the Biltmore, Belleair needs THIS below!
RECALL/IMPEACHMENT: If Belleair's elected
officials do not enforce their laws, some Belleair citizens can start a
recall (impeachment) process on them and then they should re-elect people
who will enforce the historic preservation ordinance and Comprehensive Plan!
ED ARMSTRONG: Here are some interesting facts
about attorney ED ARMSTRONG
He is the attorney for KAWA, THE HOTEL OWNER
He is the attorney for MIKE CHEEZEM, THE DEVELOPER WHO WANTS TO
DESTROY THE HOTEL
He is the attorney for BELLEAIR COUNTRY CLUB WHO WANTS TO CHOP UP
HOTEL PROPERTY (he is also is a Country Club member!)
He is the attorney for SCIENTOLOGY.
He is the attorney for TAMPA BAY TIMES who has published two
editorials of theirs suggesting the Biltmore be demolished! The Times
could make more money with newspaper advertising by Cheezem.
He is the attorney who helped create the CONTROVERSIAL RM-10 ZONING which
sets the stage for the demolition of the Biltmore!
A tangled web!
THANK YOU: I want to thank all those supporters who
wrote letters to the Mayor and Commission recently and over the years.
They were wonderful to read, and I have posted them to our Message
Board. But if you live locally, PLEASE attend the meetings below to be
heard!
IMPORTANT MEETINGS APRIL 1 AND APRIL 15
BELLEAR TOWN HALL (Town Hall map is below) Tuesday, April 1, 2014
Time: 5:30 P.M.
A second reading for reduction of plot size of the Belleview Biltmore
property A final vote will be taken UNLESS YOU COME OUT TO DISCOURAGE THIS
REDUCTION!
901 Ponce de Leon Blvd., Belleair, Florida
AND
Tuesday, April 15, 2014
Time: 6:30 P.M.
A second reading of RM-10 and discussion of mixed-use zoning option A final vote will be taken UNLESS you come out to delay the RM-10
zoning for six months!
901 Ponce de Leon Blvd., Belleair, Florida
Map to Belleair town hall:
FINAL THOUGHTS:
The only thing that matters NOW is for all of the local community to
attend the Belleair town hall meeting on April 1st and especially the
April 15th meeting in mass and discourage the Biltmore plot size reduction
and delay the RM-10 zoning change for six months just like the January 21
vote. Bring family and friends because as you can see by the February
4 meeting,
large numbers count! Organize your neighbors and friends
and get going to attend in groups in car loads. We appreciate anyone
speaking out loud and clear at the meeting for up to three minutes on these
topics to save the Biltmore by delaying the RM-10 zoning for six months and
avoiding plot size reduction to keep the beauty around the hotel.
YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!
CONVINCE THESE COMMISSIONERS TO NOT REDUCE BELLEVIEW BILTMORE
PROPERTY!
CONVINCE THESE COMMISSIONERS TO KEEP THEIR WORD AND THEIR VOTE
FROM JANUARY 21ST!
CONVINCE THE COMMISSIONERS TO DELAY THE RM-10 ZONING FOR SIX
MONTHS!
We hope you join us and become a member this month. We have
five levels, Copper, Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum with a
variety of gifts included for each. Our Online Gift Shop is fun to
explore for yourself or to purchase a special gift for someone else.
We have much more than what you see above including Biltmore tote
bags, mouse pads, greeting cards, calendars, license plates,
sterling chains, cufflinks, tie tacks, money clips and a variety of
Biltmore artwork. To go directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year membership will be given to anyone
purchasing any of our special Biltmore jewelry!
To help us continue to save and preserve the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel for another 100 years, you may make a donation, any amount.
Donations are secure, and you may donate by PayPal, credit or debit
card.
If you would prefer to give a donation by check, make it payable
to our nonprofit organization: Save the Biltmore
Preservationists and send it to:
Save the Biltmore Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North #107
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
If for any reason you wish to email the Mayor and Commissioners, here
are their eaddresses. But it is more important to attend the
meetings rather than send support letters any more!
Save the Biltmore Update,
Sunday, February 16, 2014 (due to illness this Update was unfortunately
never sent, but we wanted to include it for the reader to see.)
Save the Biltmore Update,
Sunday, February 16, 2014
To Biltmore Supporters, News
Media and Others:
MEETING RESULTS:
To refresh everyone's memory, on January 21, Commissioners Steve Fowler, Tom
Shelly, and Mike Wilkinson voted to DELAY the RM-10 zoning issue which would
allow condos and townhomes to be built where the Biltmore now stands!
This was great news. However due to EXTREME pressure from the RPD
(Residential Planned Development, which are the condos and homes around the
Biltmore) in which about 100 RPD people stood up at the meeting, these three
Commissioners failed to uphold this delay vote at the February 4th meeting!
Now the RM-10 issue or another mixed use zoning issue is
again going to be brought up
on February 18th!
We obviously are
extremely disappointed with this outrageous decision
since the RPD represents such a SMALL area in Belleair. But the RPD accomplished
what they wanted through organization, size and physical
intimidation! I hope that everyone realizes that Belleair
officials have honored these 100 sore losers
who never showed up on January 21 in the first place. Our Biltmore
supporters should be outraged at their decision!
So this is what it takes to
change a vote in Belleair: get an angry crowd together and
instill physical intimidation into officials, maybe fearing for their
safety, by these 100 angry "condo" people ALL standing up
at the beginning of the meeting and there are only five officials sitting
down!?
Belleair officials by changing
their minds at this meeting have just honored people who may not even be
registered to vote in Florida.
Belleair officials have just
honored these people who may live here only part of the year!
Belleair officials have just
honored these people who never showed up at the January 21st meeting!
Belleair officials have just
honored these people who are sore losers!
Would Belleair officials have
continued with upholding their original January 21st decision to delay the
RM-10 issue for six months had they had armed guards by their sides and been
behind glass on February 4th? Is this what it would take in Belleair
for officials to peacefully to enforce their own Comprehensive Plan and
historic preservation ordinance!? They are reversing their January
21st decision because of these 100 angry standing,
physically intimidating people!
Is there a democracy in
Belleair or is Belleair run now by angry people who represent such a small
number in Belleair? So many of these RPD residents are seasonal and
are not even registered to vote in Florida, and yet they
stand up for changing the zoning, which could result in the demolition of
the Biltmore, when half the year they do not even live in Belleair! Preposterous.
Belleair officials needed
to stand up and refuse to change their January 21st vote because the RPD was
NOT not even there during the first discussion!
So are we as Biltmore
supporters to come up with 101 angry people standing in front of these
sitting officials and then we win to delay the zoning because we outnumber
the bad guys by one standing person!? How ridiculous but that is the
interpretation Belleair officials are giving to the community!
I am not sure what is
worse, Belleair officials flip flopping on their vote or 100 pitiful sore
losers.
And where were these people
January 21 when the Mayor and Commissioners were listening to discussion and
then taking a vote on the RM-10 zoning issue? Why were they not
attending then? So they were sore losers and then had to round
themselves up and come at a time when they knew supporters would not be
there in mass? And then physically intimidate the officials?
Are Belleair officials going to
do a head count as to which side has the most people Tuesday night?
What about the people who are unable to attend that night, where is their
vote? The whole idea is totally ridiculous!
See how ludicrous this gets
considering that there are TWO LAWS in Belleair to protect the hotel!
These laws are designed to save
the hotel and which the officials have taken an oath to uphold. Yet
because of this group of 100 standing angry people,
the three commissioners reversed their vote to delay zoning changes as if
their historic preservation ordinance and Comprehensive Plan do not even
exist! Obviously the RPD does not care that their officials could
begin to break their law or simply are unaware of these two powerful
Belleair laws. Either way, the angry crowd ruled over elected
officials February 4th by PHYSICAL INTIMIDATION! Two of the three
commissioners are up for re-election in 2015, so Belleair citizens must
remember this when voting at that time! If they fail to delay the
zoning Tuesday night, VOTE THEM OUT!
Pinellas County commissioners
are on this mailing list, help Belleair keep their hotel in a legal manner!
We urge EVERYONE both in and out
of Belleair to attend this extremely CRITICAL
meeting on February 18 to again ask the commission to DELAY the
RM-10 or any rezoning issue for six months. The idea is to
stand firm on NO ZONING CHANGES now in order to force Mike Cheezem and JMC
Communities to sell its contract to a preservation developer so the hotel
can be saved! If zoning changes are allowed right now, Cheezem may
wind up building tall high-end condos in place of the Biltmore through
demolition of this beautiful hotel! Then Belleair will turn into a
retirement community instead of the family oriented lovely town it is today.
There will be over 900 condos and only 1363 family units! For
those who live in the area, you can see what happened over in Clearwater
Beach, a concrete condo canyon.
Belleair officials MUST resist
this pressure from just a small part of their town! They must stand up
to them and enforce their own laws to SAVE THE BILTMORE! Just because
100 people stand up acting angry as they did on February 4th, does not mean
these people rule the town! There are almost 4,000 people living in
Belleair, and these people must be taken into consideration! Is rule
by the RPD overtaking Belleair, I hope not but it appears so!
The town officials MUST enforce
their own historic preservation ordinance and Comprehensive Plan to save the
Biltmore and allow a preservation type developer to purchase Cheezem's
contract and save the Biltmore!
The Belleair Country Club just
sent out a notice to THEIR members to urge them to come to the meeting to
change the zoning so they can purchase two acres of the Biltmore Hotel
property for parking space! If two acres are chopped off Biltmore
property, we believe that any reduction in the hotel's existing property
would reduce the chance of someone being willing to purchase and restore the
historic hotel.
So dear Biltmore supporter, you
MUST and I mean MUST attend
this Tuesday meeting if you want the hotel saved! You MUST speak out
and demand that the hotel be saved with no zoning changes now!
BELLEAR TOWN HALL
(Town Hall map LINK is below)
Tuesday, February 18, 2014
Time: 6:30 P.M.
901 Ponce de Leon Blvd.
Belleair, Florida
ATTEND THE FEBRUARY
18TH MEETING! So it is IMPERATIVE that
all Biltmore supporters who live in this area to come to this Tuesday
meeting to show Belleair officials and Mike Cheezem of JMC that you want the
hotel saved by turning out in mass and speak out that you want the RM-10
zoning issue DELAYED. Demand that they keep their promise to DELAY any
zoning changes! Let the contract expire or let Cheezem sell it to a
preservation developer! Let JMC and Cheezem know that you will NOT
tolerate demolition of the Biltmore and that you only want it saved.
DO NOT
LET THESE 100 SORE-LOSING CONDO PEOPLE WIN THIS WAR!
Back in 2005, hundreds of
supporters came to the Belleair town meeting hall and their enthusiasm for
saving the Biltmore resulted in the developers (DeBartolo) backing down and
out! We MUST do this again with all of your help!
By the way, JMC Communities is
the group that DEMOLISHED the beautiful Clearwater Beach Hotel! So for
everyone, who loved that hotel as much as I did, JMC fails to see the value
in historical or old hotels like you and me, which are treasures to the
community.
No matter what article you have
read recently, even though the hotel is under contract, the hotel STILL can
be saved, so be there this Tuesday! Motivate this townhouse/condo
developer Mike Cheezem to give up!
AND CONVINCE THESE
COMMISSIONERS TO NOT FLIP FLOP!
ONE-MINUTE EMAIL CAMPAIGN TO MIKE CHEEZEM AND JMC COMMUNITIES: I
want everyone to continue to send JMC Communities and Mike Cheezem emails
from Belleair and across the country telling him he is NOT wanted in
Belleair and to take his ugly condo development elsewhere! Click this
link below and copy and paste one of two sample letters to him and email,
his e address is on link.
http://savethebiltmore.com/One-MinuteEmail-MikeCheezem.htm
JMC Communities
2201 4th St N
Suite 200
Saint Petersburg, FL 33704
We must
stop this man and his company from destroying Belleair and Pinellas Country
history and the Biltmore!
OLDSMAR, FLORIDA
HISTORIC TOUR: On the front page of
the Clearwater and North Pinellas Times on Wednesday February 12, there was
a wonderful article by Terri Bryce Reeves with many photos called: "Tour to
show off historic Oldsmar." Oldsmar, Florida for those out of towners
on my mailing list is a small town of around 13,600 people. One of
their City Council members Gabby McGee has purchased a historic 1918
Craftsman bungalow. This 27-year-old fell in love with the history of
the Oldsmar.
Take note Belleair Mayor and commissioners! So an
Oldsmar City Council member is going to conduct a small Oldsmar historic
tour and Belleair officials want to destroy their outstanding history of the
Belleview Biltmore Hotel! Will Mayor Katica conduct a tour of their
community center to tourists? I think not! Congratulations to Oldsmar and
Gabby McGee for realizing the importance of history to their town. May Belleair officials RESIST THE RPD SORE
LOSERS AND come to the same conclusion THIS Tuesday, February 18.
And why oh why are the condo
people still complaining about the area around the Biltmore, why did they
never do anything to protect the area, but just complain and complain.
If they had any sense, they would have demanded Belleair officials clean up
the area or done it themselves!
HISTORIC PRESERVATION
SUMMIT, PINELLAS COUNTY: We
certainly hope Mayor Katica and Belleair commissioners can attend this
summit this coming Wednesday, February 19! It is at the
Largo Historical Society in which Timothy McLendon of the University of
Florida Center for Governmental Responsibility will talk about the
ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF HISTORIC PRESERVATION. Pinellas
County Commissioner Charlie Justice will provide an update on the County
Historic Task Board and introduce the keynote speaker. We
certainly hope
both men mention the plight
of the Belleview Biltmore Hotel and how they need to convince Belleair
officials to save this hotel! It seems a total mockery to have this
summit in Pinellas County on historic preservation if the Biltmore is going
to be destroyed by Belleair officials! Email Commissioner Charlie
Justice and ask him to come and speak out to save the Biltmore this Tuesday,
February 18th!
cjustice@pinellascounty.org
ANTIQUE AUTOS:
Again, more historic preservation activities took place in downtown
Clearwater Sunday night for antique autos and motorcycles.
All these wonderful preservation
activities were right here in Pinellas County, so take note Belleair
officials, where do you fit in if you destroy your historic hotel!
Will you be showing off your community center at a historic preservation
summit! Hardly!
BELLEVIEW
BILTMORE ARCHITECT:
We just received an email from a
Jeffrey Bell. Francis J. Kennard was the junior architect for
the Belleview Biltmore Hotel and is the great grandfather of Mr. Bell, so we
want to thank him for taking the time to write us: "Great buildings like
this are rare in Florida and should be preserved." Mr. Kennard designed the
original Pinellas County Courthouse as well as many other Florida buildings
in the Tampa Bay area. Michael J. Miller was the senior Biltmore architect.
Frances
J. Kennard, one of two original Belleview Biltmore architects
STRAW POLL OR
REFERENDUM: The "condo people" or Residential Planned Development
around the Biltmore is only a very small
part of Belleair. The rest of the Belleair residents MUST BE taken
into consideration! But why aren't they? Someone needs to
address this to the Commissioners and Mayor over and over at the February
18th meeting! Perhaps a straw poll or referendum can be done in
Belleair to see how the homeowners living outside the hotel property feel
about saving the hotel!
RECALL/IMPEACHMENT:
If Belleair's elected officials do not enforce their laws Tuesday night,
perhaps some Belleair citizens can start a recall (impeachment) process on
them and then they should re-elect people who will enforce the historic
preservation ordinance and Comprehensive Plan!
We hope you join us and become a member this month.
We have five levels, Copper, Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum with
a variety of gifts included for each. Our Online Gift Shop is fun to
explore for yourself or to purchase a special gift for someone else.
We have much more than what you see above including Biltmore tote
bags, mouse pads, greeting cards, calendars, license plates,
sterling chains, cufflinks, tie tacks, money clips and a variety of
Biltmore artwork. To go directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year membership will be given to anyone
purchasing any of our special Biltmore jewelry!
To help us continue to save and preserve the
Belleview Biltmore Hotel for another 100 years, you may make a
donation, any amount. Donations are secure, and you may donate
by PayPal, credit or debit card.
If you would prefer to give a donation by check,
make it payable to our nonprofit organization: Save the Biltmore
Preservationists and send it to:
Save the Biltmore Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North #107
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
Save the Biltmore
Update, Saturday, February 1, 2014
Hello Biltmore Supporters,
media and others:
IMPORTANT MEETING:
BELLEAR TOWN HALL (Town Hall map is at link below)
Tuesday, February 4, 2014
Time: 5:30 P.M. (note, this meeting is earlier at 5:30
p.m.)
901 Ponce de Leon Blvd.
Belleair, Florida
ANYONE in the Tampa Bay area
or the country/world may come to the second and final hearing on
February 4th meeting in Belleair at 5:30 p.m. and ask Belleair officials
to continue to vote to DELAY the RM-10 zoning changes FOR SIX MONTHS and
ask them to continue to SAVE THE BILTMORE!
We urge everyone to
attend this second hearing of the issue of the RM-10 zoning, which was
voted to be delayed for six months at the first hearing on January 21,
2014. As you may recall, the three commissioners who voted to
delay the zoning issue were: Commissioner/Vice Mayor Stephen
Fowler, Commissioner Tom Shelly and Commissioner Michael Wilkinson.
So we owe them a
huge thank you
for their voting to delay making any RM-10 zoning changes!
Mayor Katica and Commissioner Piccaretto did not want the zoning delayed
and voted no. While normally the voting would be the same at the
second hearing, we always urge people to come out again in support of
this vote to delay any RM-10 zoning changes. And of course when
you come, be sure to thank these three commissioners, they deserve a big
thank you!
The Tampa Bay
Times: In an article in print on
Wednesday, January 28 by Keyonna Summers called "Builder Mike Cheezem
still has eye on Belleview Biltmore" she reports that the
developer who has a contract to purchase the Belleview Biltmore Hotel,
Mike Cheezem of JMC communities, still is seeking to destroy it and to
build condos and townhomes. I was asked for my reaction to this
and the quote in the newspaper was this: "Diane Hein, president of
Save the Biltmore Preservationists, a grassroots group of residents and
hotel admirers fighting for the hotel's restoration, said in an emailed
statement that two preservation architects have confirmed that
renovation is possible. The Biltmore has been on the "11 Most
Endangered" lists of both the national and Florida branches of the Trust
for Historic Preservation.
"She pointed out that
Belleair passed a historic preservation ordinance in 2005.
Ms. Summers explains further
in the article the extremely lengthy process it would take to demolish
the Blitmore: "The ordinance says any developer who wants to raze
a historic structure must appear for quasi-judicial hearings before the
town's historic preservation board and town commissioners, and obtain a
special certificate of appropriateness. The stringent demolition
certificate criteria require commissioners to consider questions such as
whether the structure is the last of its kind or its demolition would
affect the character of the surrounding neighborhood.
"The ordinance also lets the
commission approve a demolition permit but defer its effective date for
a year while the commission "takes such steps as it deems necessary to
preserve the structure," such as consulting with civic groups,
interested citizens and public or private agencies.
"It was designed to protect
the historic and iconic Belleview Biltmore so developers like Mr.
Cheezem would not destroy this hotel as he wants to do," Hein wrote.
"Belleair needs to enforce its own preservation law as well as its
comprehensive plan to protect itself and its hotel from demolition."
TWO IMPORTANT
FACTS: 1. What is
important to remember is that the hotel still can be saved from
demolition because of the historic preservation ordinance and the
Comprehensive Plan in Belleair. 2. Also that the hotel
can still be RENOVATED AND RESTORED according to TWO preservation
architects. So everyone, disregard any media photos that
might make you think otherwise, the hotel still can be renovated and
restored!
Belleair Bee:
Brian Goff reports from article two years ago, February
8, 2012, but still pertinent today:
"Meeting Feb 3, 2012 A few
dozen people gathered at Belleair Town Hall Feb. 3 to hear presentations
on the future of the Belleview Biltmore Hotel. Those who were there to
hear that the demolition of the hotel was going to be difficult or even
impossible went away happy. Sam Casella, a Belleair resident,
former town commissioner and professional planner said “The hotel is
protected by a strong historic preservation ordinance and by the town’s
comprehensive plan. In fact the hotel is named in the comprehensive
plan. You can’t get stronger than that in a comprehensive plan, and I
know comprehensive plans,” he said.
"Sam McClelland,
former Pinellas County assistant property appraiser and deputy tax
collector. And what is really ignored is the Tangible Personal Property
tax that the hotel, if functioning, would have to pay. “That tax is
levied on such things as furniture, kitchen equipment, desks, side
tables and cabinets. That would amount to a considerable sum of
money, money that would be lost if the hotel were torn down and replaced
with housing,” he said. The tax does not apply to homes. Also lost, he
said, would be the sales tax generated by the resort and tourist
development tax. He warned the residents that without the Biltmore most
of the
tax burden in the town would fall on
theshoulders of the homeowners.
"The final speaker was Frank
Fage, a St. Petersburg Realtor who specializes in high-end homes and
condominiums for Coldwell Banker. He said he has heard that
as many as 120 townhomes will be built on the site. “I have
serious reservations about that,” he said. “We are going through the
toughest real estate market in our lifetime. Even now homes over
$300,000 are on the market for seven or eight months before they sell. I
don’t know how a new development will go.” He noted that the
townhomes on the Biltmore site would have to compete with others on the
market with water views so they wouldn’t be as attractive.
LATEST NEWS:
Commissioner/Vice Mayor Stephen Fowler had asked for an injunction at
the January 21 meeting to stop the sale of the hotel to JMC Communities
based on the fact that the hotel is under Belleair's historic
preservation ordinance. However Belleair town attorney David
Ottinger made the point that there is adequate protection as the hotel
is protected by the historic preservation ordinance. Mr. Ottinger
is still researching for information regarding a demand that the current
hotel owners repair the hotel for its "demolition by neglect."
Tampa Bay Times Article info, Keyonna Summers, January 31, 2014
HISTORIC COSBY
HOTEL, KANSAS CITY: The upper floors
of this historic 1881 building were closed in 1964, and the building was
completely vacated when Lane Blueprint left in 1995. With the west
wall of the three-story, 15,000-square-foot Cosby Hotel building on the verge of collapse, the city had placed the structure
on its dangerous buildings list and ordered emergency demolition. But
after the “Save the Cosby Hotel” campaign, the city decided to
temporarily shore up the building, allowing preservationists and
building owner Rick Powell time to find a buyer willing to restore it.
With less than 24 hours to spare — and thanks to efforts by the Downtown
Council and the drive "Save the Cosby" — those officials called off the
wrecking crew and agreed to spend the $4,000
necessary to "shore up" and keep the west wall from falling. But the
building still needed new ownership. Cosby's final developers,
Booher and Swords, were awarded a 10-year property-tax abatement from
the Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority. Here's how the money
breaks down: $493,025 in state historic tax credits; $335,498 in federal
historic tax credits; $150,000 in developer equity; and a $1.9 million
loan. (Removing lead-based paint and asbestos has already cost the
developers around $130,000.)
Belleair take
note: Here was a town who spent
$4,000 to save their historic hotel!
ONE-MINUTE EMAIL
CAMPAIGN TO MIKE CHEEZEM AND JMC COMMUNITIES:
I want everyone to continue to send JMC Communities and Mike Cheezem
emails from Belleair and across the country telling him he is NOT wanted
in Belleair and to take his ugly condo development elsewhere!
Cliick this link below and copy and paste one of two sample
letters
to him and email, his e address is on link.
http://savethebiltmore.com/One-MinuteEmail-MikeCheezem.htm
We must stop this man and
his company from destroying Belleair and Pinellas Country history and
the Biltmore!
FINAL THOUGHTS:
Please attend the February 4, 2014 meeting in Belleair at 5:30 p.m.
And again ask officials to DELAY the RM-10 zoning for six more months
and of course to SAVE THE BILTMORE!
Preservation minded
journalists, such as New York Times' Ada Louise Huxtable, proved to be
one of preservation's greatest allies during the fight to save the
historic 1910 Penn Station10, New York City. In her 1963 editorial,
"Farewell to Penn Station," she wrote, "Any city gets what it admires,
will pay for, and, ultimately deserves. And we will probably be
judged not by the monuments we build but by those we have destroyed"
We hope you join us and become a member this month.
We have five levels, Copper, Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum with
a variety of gifts included for each. Our Online Gift Shop is fun to
explore for yourself or to purchase a special gift for someone else.
We have much more than what you see above including Biltmore tote
bags, mouse pads, greeting cards, calendars, license plates,
sterling chains, cufflinks, tie tacks, money clips and a variety of
Biltmore artwork. To go directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year membership will be given to anyone
purchasing any of our special Biltmore jewelry!
To help us continue to save and preserve the
Belleview Biltmore Hotel for another 100 years, you may make a
donation, any amount. Donations are secure, and you may donate
by PayPal, credit or debit card.
If you would prefer to give a donation by check,
make it payable to our nonprofit organization: Save the Biltmore
Preservationists and send it to:
Save the Biltmore Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North #107
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
FACEBOOK:
Like us on
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notifications of news I post on Facebook within 24 to 48
hours so join Facebook TODAY to receive immediate
information about the Belleview Biltmore!
Save the Biltmore Update, Saturday,
January 25, 2014
Hello Biltmore Supporters, media and
others:
WONDERFUL NEWS FROM THE BELLEAIR MEETING
TUESDAY NIGHT!
On Tuesday night,
January 21, the
commission agreed to
table a vote on changing
the zoning for another
six months. It was
a 3-2 vote. The reasons
are below so continue to
read. There were over
200 people attending and
about 40 citizens spoke,
most in favor of saving
the Biltmore!
Remember however that
JMC Communities with CEO
Mike Cheezem have a
CONTRACT on the Biltmore
to purchase it and
demolish it and build
condos!!! So the
battle is NOT over yet
at all! HOWEVER please
note, there is NO
approved
demolition permit on the
hotel, only a contract
to purchase it. The
hotel still can be saved
by either Belleair
officials if they
continue to enforce
their own preservation
ordinance which stops
condo development there
OR if Mike Cheezem of
JMC
Communities withdraws or
lets the contract
expire. THEN there
is the opportunity of
other preservation
type developers, of
which there are two, to
purchase the Biltmore
and restore it!
NOTE: This was a
preliminary vote on
January 21, 2014, and
the absolute final
decision will be on
February 4 starting at
5:30 p.m. at the second
and last hearing on the
matter. So please
plan on attending this
meeting too!
Normally the vote on Jan
21 would be confirmed on
the final hearing on
February 4, but we
ALWAYS encourage
supporters to come out
and make sure!
Commissioner/Vice Mayor
Fowler: voted YES
to delay vote for
another six months,
thank you!
Commissioner
Shelly: voted YES
to delay vote for
another six months,
thank you!
Commissioner
Wilkinson:
voted YES to delay vote
for another six months,
thank you!
Mayor Katica:
unfortunately voted NO
to delay the vote for
six months
Commissioner Piccarreto:
unfortunately voted NO
to delay the vote for
six months
While obviously we had
hoped Belleair
officials would have
completely denied any
zoning changes, we are
certainly happy for the
delay vs changing the
zoning!
If you ever wish to find
out results of voting in
Belleair or current
events about the
Biltmore, please visit
our Facebook site or our
web page
http://www.savethebiltmore
under "Today's Alerts"
as I post info to them
as soon as I know them.
When you sign up for
Facebook, you will
receive a message within
24 to 48 hours that I
made a post.
Over 200 people came to
this January 21st
meeting! Photo
taken by: Paul
Mueller of BayNews9.com
As I wrote many times
in some of my previous
Save the Blitmore
Updates, and especially
my recent January 14,
2014 Update, the
historic preservation
ordinance passed in 2005 IS BELLEAIR
LAW! Belleair
officials would be
breaking the law
if they do not enforce
it or the Comprehensive
Plan! These two
laws are CRUCIAL in
saving the hotel as I
reported many times
before!
Keyonna Summers on
January 22, 2014 wrote
this in her article from
the Tampa Bay Times:
"What Will Happen
to the Belleview
Biltmore" "Katica
and Commissioner Kevin
Piccarreto voted against
the rezoning delay but
were outnumbered.
Vice Mayor Stephen
Fowler made the motion
to delay, saying
commissioners are sworn
to uphold the historic
preservation ordinance,
which he said doesn't
allow the Biltmore to be
demolished to build
something new.
"Our ordinance and law
is very clear that we
have to preserve the
hotel. We really don't
have an option," Fowler
said Wednesday.
Commissioners Tom Shelly
and Mike Wilkinson
supported the motion,
citing concerns about
height, unit size and
density in the proposed
ordinance."
Brian Goff wrote this
January 22, 2014, in his
article from the
Belleair Bee "Belleair
delays Belleview
Biltmore zoning"
and subtitle: "Belleair
commissioners get earful
at crowded meeting"
"Fowler, who had said he
wasn’t comfortable with
the new zoning proposal,
indicated he wasn’t
going to vote for it.
“Belleair is not
broken,” he said. “We
don’t need new laws to
fix what we have. I
think the town should
pursue an injunction to
prevent anyone who wants
to buy the property to
build townhouses on it
from doing so.”
Then he proposed the
motion delaying any
decision on the new
zoning for six months.
Commissioner Michael
Wilkinson seconded the
motion and they were
joined by Commissioner
Tom Shelly in voting for
the delay. Katica and
Commissioner Kevin
Piccarreto voted against
the delay.
"Following the meeting
Cheezem, when asked what
impact the delay would
have on his plans to buy
the hotel, said simply:
“We’ll have to digest it
and go from there.”
HISTORIC VINOY AND DON
CESAR HOTELS: From
1975 to 1990, 15 LONG
years, the big
Mediterranean Revival
historic
Vinoy Hotel
in St. Petersburg stood
vacant and vandalized, a
symbol of the
deterioration of
downtown St. Petersburg.
I have found other
reports saying that it
was vacant for 18 years!
The Don
Cesar Hotel
on St. Petersburg Beach
was covered with
graffitti and vacant for
a number of years before
someone purchased and
restored it. The
Biltmore has only been
vacant since 2009 and
has been unkept because
the current KAWA owners
have tried "demolition
by neglect" and Belleair
officials, led by Mayor
Katica, has NOT and I
repeat NOT enforced
their 2005 preservation
ordinance before KAWA
found a legal maneuver
to wipe out fines on the
hotel for letting it
deteriorate.
Remember though again
and again, that the
Belleview Biltmore Hotel
CAN still be restored
and renovated just like
the Vinoy and Don Cesar
hotels have been!
WEB SITE FOR
REVITALIZATION OF VACANT
PROPERTIES: Above
are before and after
photos of a vacant,
deteriorated home with
its delapidated roof and
how beautiful it looks
renovated! I so
wish the news media
would show what is
possible from a vacant
abandoned property,
before and after photos,
to one restored to the
general public!!http://www.usmayors.org/brownfields/library/Revitalization_of_Vacant_Properties.pdf
There is a wealth of
information on this web
site that may be quite
useful for Belleair
officials and for that
matter Pinellas County
Commissioners.
The Belleview Biltmore's
roof and other areas CAN
BE RESTORED AND
RENOVATED just like this
home!!!
ONE-MINUTE THANK YOUEMAIL TO
THREE COMMISSIONERS:
Feel free to
send a very warm "Thank
You" to Belleair
Commissioners Fowler,
Shelly and Wilkinson for
delaying the vote for
six months to change any
zoning and continue to
encourage them to SAVE
THE BILTMORE!
Perhaps put
THANK YOU AND SAVE THE
BILTMORE!
in the subject line.
They have been under
tremendous pressure from
many groups to make a
decision on the hotel's
future.
Mayor Gary Katica,
Commissioners Stephen
Fowler, Tom Shelly,
Kevin Piccarreto and
Michael Wilkinson and
Town Manager, Micah
Maxwell
To
Commissioners Steve Fowler, Tom Shelly
and Mike Wilkinson:
I
would like to express my gratitude to
the three of you for voting to delay any
zoning changes for six months time.
I am sure it has been an
extremely hectic time for you and making
decisions as to what is the best course
of action for the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel and Belleair. Hopefully you
will continue to enforce your 2005
historic preservation ordinance by
saving your White Queen of the Gulf who
is loved both inside and out of Belleair
by THOUSANDS of people.
If
Americans did not value this landscape
then millions would not travel to
historic sites like MYSTIC SEAPORT,
COLONIAL WILLIAMSBURG, JAMESTOWN, KEY
WEST, THE ALAMO, or MT. VERNON or the
historic hotels, THE VINOY, DON CESAR,
DEL CORONADO AND THE GRAND. Nor do we go
just to look. We go to learn.
We can only learn if we have the sites
and artifacts from which to learn.
And we will only, ever, have these sites
and artifacts if we agree, as a society,
to respect and preserve them.
Once again thank you, and I hope you
continue to Save the Biltmore!
Regards,
ONE-MINUTE EMAIL CAMPAIGN
TO MIKE CHEEZEM AND JMC COMMUNITIES:
I want everyone to CONTINUE TO BOMBARD
MC Communities and Mike Cheezem
with EMAILS
ACROSS THE COUNTRY telling him he is NOT
wanted in Belleair and take his ugly
condo development elsewhere! Below
is an ENTIRELY DIFFERENT email to him,
so even if you have emailed him, email
him THIS one!
We
must stop this man and this company from
destroying Belleair and Pinellas County
history and the Biltmore!
KAWA and Mike Cheezem are
giving FALSE information about the
condition of the hotel and whether it
can be restored or not! Please see quote
below in my
NEW ONE-MINUTE
EMAIL campaign. KAWA and Cheezem would
make millions with the Biltmore not
saved, why should they tell the truth!
There is still TIME TO RESTORE THE
BEAUTIFUL BELLEVIEW BILTMORE HOTEL!
We
need community support to drive Cheezem
out like you successfully did with
DeBartolo in 2005!
And now we also learn that JMC developer
Mike Cheezem is a member of the Belleair
Country Club, which will benefit with
the demolition of the beautiful
Belleview Biltmore Hotel by two more
acres in their parking lot! So Mr.
Cheezem must back off from the purchase
of the hotel!
RUN MIKE CHEEZEM OUT OF BELLEAIR AND
SAVE THE BILTMORE!
JMC Communities
2201 4th St N
Suite 200
Saint Petersburg, FL 33704
To
Mike Cheezem:
Belleair courageously and
strategically passed their historic
preservation ordinance in 2005. It was
designed to protect the historic and
iconic Belleview Biltmore so developers
like you will not destroy the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel as you wish to do.
Belleair needs to enforce its own
preservation law to protect itself and
its hotel from demolition. You are
spreading false information around that
the hotel can not be renovated.
Here is a quote from Rick Gonzalez,
president of Florida Trust, vice chair
of the Florida Historical Commission and
a practicing historic preservation
architect with his own firm, REG
Architects in West Palm Beach, Florida. "I know a thing
or two about preservation in Florida.
The Belleview Biltmore can be restored
especially under the supervision of a
preservation architect for the enjoyment
of all Floridians and visitors for
another 100 years. I hope the mayor and
commission show leadership in helping
this project move forward." As
a supporter of the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel, it is in the best interest of the
community for you to withdraw from
purchasing the hotel from KAWA.
The people who love the hotel need you
to back down from purchasing the
Biltmore. The 1897 Belleview Biltmore
Hotel cannot be rebuilt once the history
and aura are gone. We CAN and
should invest in historic preservation
to improve our quality of life and as a
basis for the area's economic
development. It is up to you to leave
a legacy of historic preservation for
Belleair and Pinellas County.
Regards,
A THANK YOU:
Again many thanks to Karmen Hayes of
Belleair who works tirelessly for
us, Save the Biltmore Preservationists,
especially the last few weeks doing many
TV interviews among other duties for us.
And her husband TC Hayes helping us.
And thank you to local TV news who
interviewed Karmen for Save the Biltmore
Preservationist coverage: NBC, Bay
New 9, CBS and Fox. And to Fox News
reporter Alcides Segui who showed our
full page color Tampa Bay
Times Save the Biltmore newspaper
advertisement
for the meeting during his TV interview
with Karmen! And of course MANY thanks
to you our dedicated supporters who
either attended Tuesday night's meeting
or wrote letters and emails to Belleair
town hall officials or printed and
distributed out flyers. A thank
you to Jim Betts and his ad hoc
committee of Belleair for working to
help Save the Biltmore with their own
flyers distributed to Belleair citizens
last Saturday. A thank you to
Jason Aquilar, Laurie Adams, Linda
Zamparelli, Elka Zwick; and a thank you
to Annette Vedsegaard-Ross of HulaHula
Productions who wrote a dynamic letter
to her mailing list to encourage them to
attend Tuesday nights meeting. She and
her family also attended the
meeting. Also a thank you to Bay
Proby, public relations in Miami but
worked with us to get coverage on the
meeting. And a big thank you to
Anne Peery, executive director of
Florida Trust, who traveled to Belleair
and spoke at the Belleair meeting on
Tuesday night. And last but not least,
thank you to our two directors, Doug
Mann, sec'y/treas. and vice president
Carol J. Kuzmiak for their hard work
behind the scenes who have helped us
make this all possible. I
know many more people helped with making
this meeting filled with people!
BILTMORE CONTRACT: As
long as there is a contract on the
Biltmore by a developer, I will be
unable to name any companies or names
(of which there are two) who wish to buy
the Biltmore and RESTORE it.
Florida law has a law about interference
with a contact so this is the reason
why.
BELLEAIR TOWN HALL - Meeting!
Tuesday, February 4, 2014
901 Ponce de Leon Blvd.
Belleair, Florida
5:30 p.m.
Tuesday, February 4, 2014
ANYONE in the Tampa
Bay area or the country/world may
come to the February 4th meeting in
Belleair at 5:30 p.m. and ask
Belleair officials to confirm during
the SECOND HEARING to DELAY any
decisions on zoning changes ask
them to continue to SAVE THE
BILTMORE! And of course ANYONE
inside or outside of Belleair may
send one of our ONE-MINUTE EMAILS or
write his/her own email to Belleair
officials or Mike Cheezem, CEO of
JMC Communities.
FINAL
THOUGHTS:
The wonderful
historic White Queen of the Gulf can
still be restored no matter what you
recently read, heard or saw!
The hotel and its supporters just
received a wonderful gift of hope
from three Belleair commissioners
that it can still be saved. Our
lives are built around hope. The
longevity of the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel relies on the hope that
enforcing Belleair laws will bring
its future a magnificent day of
restoration and renovation for us
and future generations. The
hotel was and can again be a great
source of community pride, tourism,
financial benefit and real estate
growth.
We hope you join
us and become a member this
month. We have five
levels, Copper, Bronze, Silver,
Gold and Platinum with a variety
of gifts included for each. Our
Online Gift Shop is fun to
explore for yourself or to
purchase a special gift for
someone else. We have much
more than what you see above
including Biltmore tote bags,
mouse pads, greeting cards,
calendars, license plates,
sterling chains, cufflinks, tie
tacks, money clips and a variety
of Biltmore artwork. To go
directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year
membership will be given to
anyone purchasing any of our
special Biltmore jewelry!
To help us
continue to save and preserve
the Belleview Biltmore Hotel for
another 100 years, you may make
a donation, any amount.
Donations are secure, and you
may donate by PayPal, credit or
debit card.
If you would
prefer to give a donation by
check, make it payable to
our nonprofit organization:
Save the Biltmore
Preservationists and send it
to:
Save the
Biltmore
Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19
North #107
Palm Harbor, FL
34684
Save the Biltmore Update, Tuesday, January
21, 2014 BELLEAIR HEARING
MEETING TONIGHT!!!
Save the Biltmore Update and Corrections
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
There is new AND very good information
so please read carefully regarding
speaking at the Belleair Town Hall
meeting tonight. You do NOT have
to call in to speak, but get there early
anyway!
Here are the instructions for who can
speak at the meeting:
People will be heard in the following
order:
1.
People of standing - (those who received
public notices; ie. those people whose
property is immediately affected by the
development) 2. Belleair residents
3. Time permitting, the General Public -
the general public will only be able to
make comments and NOT cross-examine. It
is best to come very early between 5:30
to 6 p.m. to be able to get a seat!
Three minutes is the longest you may
speak. You may read from notes of
course.
COMMISSIONER KEVIN
PICCARETTO AND THE BELLEAIR COUNTRY
CLUB:
Commissioner Piccaretto
unfortunately has not cared recently
whether the Biltmore is saved or not!
We just learned that Commissioner
Piccaretto is a member of the Belleair
Country Club! And remember that
the Belleair Country Club wants the
Biltmore demolished because it will be
able to purchase two more acres to
increase their parking lot and thus make
more money with memberships! So
Commissioner Piccaretto will be voting
tonight, and you need to ask him to vote NO
to the RM-10 zoning changes
because of this EXTREME CONFLICT
OF INTEREST!!!
BELLEAIR COUNTRY CLUB AND MIKE CHEEZEM:
We also have just heard some
more shocking
information
and perhaps not so shocking
information! As in my Sunday Biltmore
Update, I discussed that the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel was under a six month
contract to be sold to JMC Communities.
We just have heard through someone in
Belleair in fact that the CEO, Mike
Cheezem, of JMC Communities is a MEMBER
of the Belleair Country Club! The
Belleair Country Club benefits by the
demolition of the Biltmore hotel because
they will get two more acres to their
property thus enabling them to have more
parking spaces and tennis space and
recruit more members at a $5,000
initiation fee plus monthly fees.
THIS IS AN OUTRAGE!
People should start demanding that this
developer step down from his trying to
destroy our White Queen!
Will Mike Cheezem get a special parking
spot right in front of the Country Club
if the hotel is demolished!?
Perhaps!
Perhaps he will receive a special plaque
in the CC restaurant in his honor for
destroying the hotel and making the CC
richer? Perhaps!
Or
how a few free steak dinners? No
wait, I know, lifetime free happy hours!
I want everyone to start
bombarding JMC
Communities and Mike Cheezem with EMAILS
ACROSS THE COUNTRY telling
him he is NOT wanted in Belleair and
take his ugly condo development
elsewhere.
We
must stop this man and this company from
destroying Belleair and Pinellas County
history and the Biltmore!
Belleview Biltmore
Partners was actually at the
Biltmore Monday, January 20, examining
the hotel in fact even though there is a
contract by someone else! Richard
Heisenbottle, architect and lead partner
for BBP, said the hotel STILL can be
restored and renovated given the
opportunity to purchase it. It is
NOT anywhere near demolition at all he
told us Monday!
This
is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT FOR EVERYONE TO
KNOW THIS AND PLEASE IF YOU SPEAK AT THE
MEETING TONIGHT MENTION THAT THE HOTEL
STILL CAN STILL BE RESTORED!
We
know the some of the media and KAWA and
Mike Cheezem are giving FALSE
information about the condition of the
hotel and whether it can be restored or
not! KAWA and Cheezem would make
millions with the Biltmore not saved,
why should they tell the truth!
There is still TIME TO RESTORE THE
BEAUTIFUL BELLEVIEW BILTMORE HOTEL!
We
hope all the media investigates this
information further that Mike Cheezem is
a member of the Belleair Country Club
who wants the Biltmore demolished and
reports it! My concern frankly
with some of the media is that they may
benefit with the hotel demolished.
That is, if the hotel is not saved and
Cheezem should buy it and build his ugly
condos/townhomes, Cheezem could use the
media to spend thousands of dollars for
advertisements for his real estate
endeavors like what he wants to do in
Belleair!
So
let's see, Mike Cheezem and his JMC is
tied in with Belleair's Country Club,
donating to politicians like Pinellas
County Commissioner Karen Seel and John
Morroni who supposedly endorse saving
the hotel and potentially the media!!
Nothing new about money, media, politics
and country clubs is there!? So
you can understand why so many historic
buildings get demolished! We
need community support to drive Cheezem
out like you successfully did with
DeBartolo in 2005!
We all remember the American Revolution
where the community and farmers
successfully fought off the English
aristocracy. It's about time the
communities get together and do the same
with JMC!
RUN MIKE CHEEZEM OUT OF BELLEAIR AND
SAVE THE BILTMORE!
ONE-MINUTE EMAIL
CAMPAIGN:
Because of this new information as to
who the condo developer is, JMC
Communities, Mike Cheezem, CEO, and now
the fact that he is a member of the
Belleair Country Club, we MUST focus our
attention in getting these developers to
back away from the Biltmore and let
it stand for another 100 years. It
is MOST important now that you send a ONE-MINUTE
email to JMC Community,
either ours or your own. You may
call also of course phone or send a
letter to them via U.S. mail. This
letter is slightly different than the
one previously so feel free to send it
again!
JMC
Communities 2201 4th St N Suite
200 Saint Petersburg, FL 33704
To
Mike Cheezem:
You are spreading false information
around that the hotel can not be
renovated. As a member of the Belleair
Country Club, you would help them while
destroying an icon, which STILL can
be restored. The hotel still
can be saved no matter what you believe
or say. New is NOT always better.
You destroyed the lovely Clearwater
Beach Hotel whose citizens in the
surrounding neighbors and tourists loved
going there. And now you want to
destroy the Biltmore in Pinellas County
where thousands of people have dined,
married or stayed there who want it
preserved. As a supporter of the
Belleview Biltmore Hotel, it is in the
best interest of the community for you
to withdraw from purchasing the hotel
from KAWA. Your condos and
townhomes would deface Belleair's beauty
turning that area into "Belleair's
Concrete Condo Canyon" plus also
defacing Pinellas County's history. The
citizens of Belleair and Pinellas need
this historical landmark.
Belleair's Comprehensive Plan includes
saving the Belleview Biltmore Hotel, and
yet you dare attempt destroy one of
their beloved landmarks and history.
SHAMEFUL. The people who love the
hotel need you to back down from
purchasing the Biltmore.
Right now your only legacy you will
leave is destruction of a Pinellas
landmark hotel. Is this what you
wish for your legacy, destruction?
Listen to what the society around you
has been saying for the past nine years,
spare the Belleview Biltmore. If you
participate in its destruction, you will
participate in the willful destruction
of your own heritage as well as that of
the world around you.
Regards,
AN EXAMPLE OF MIKE
CHEEZEM AND JMC'S "DEMOLITION HANDYWORK"
We MUST stop him for doing the same to
the Biltmore! Condos can be built,
but a demolished Biltmore can NEVER be
rebuilt!
Once It Stood
JMC and Mike Cheezem
Took this hotel's power And its
landmark title
And smashed it to the ground.
Gone are its walls
Its grace, its charm, its people.
How can we save our landmarks In the
war between
Developers, politicians, lawyers
And people who care?
Let's continue to care everyone, attend
the Belleair hearing tonight and support
NO zoning changes at this time!
A THANK YOU:
A BIG thank you to Karmen Hayes of
Belleair for her recent interviews for
us with NBC and FOX TV news.
BELLEAIR TOWN HALL -
EXTREMELY IMPORTANT MEETING THIS
TUESDAY!
Be
There!
901 Ponce de Leon Blvd.
Belleair, Florida
6:30 p.m. Tuesday, January 21, 2014
ANYONE in the Tampa
Bay area or the country/world may
come to the January 21st meeting in
Belleair at 6:30 p.m. and ask
Belleair officials to vote
NO to the RM-10
zoning changes and ask them to
continue to SAVE THE BILTMORE!
And if you
received the Tampa Bay Times
newspaper from Sunday, simply tear
our full page Save the Biltmore
advertisement out and bring it to
the meeting and wave it!!! Or cut
off top half and glue to cardboard
and wave it. It makes a great
sign!
Or simply hand to
Belleair officials!
REMEMBER: Belleview Biltmore
Partners can STILL restore the
wonderful historic White Queen of
the Gulf no matter what you recently
read, heard or saw!
We hope you join
us and become a member this
month. We have five
levels, Copper, Bronze, Silver,
Gold and Platinum with a variety
of gifts included for each. Our
Online Gift Shop is fun to
explore for yourself or to
purchase a special gift for
someone else. We have much
more than what you see above
including Biltmore tote bags,
mouse pads, greeting cards,
calendars, license plates,
sterling chains, cufflinks, tie
tacks, money clips and a variety
of Biltmore artwork. To go
directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year
membership will be given to
anyone purchasing any of our
special Biltmore jewelry!
To help us
continue to save and preserve
the Belleview Biltmore Hotel for
another 100 years, you may make
a donation, any amount.
Donations are secure, and you
may donate by PayPal, credit or
debit card.
If you would
prefer to give a donation by
check, make it payable to
our nonprofit organization:
Save the Biltmore
Preservationists and send it
to:
Save the
Biltmore
Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19
North #107 Palm
Harbor, FL 34684
Save the Biltmore Update, Monday, January
20, 2014
Save the Biltmore Update Monday January
20, 2014
PRESS RELEASE
This PRESS RELEASE is from Bay Proby,
the public relations firm for Belleview
Biltmore Partners who wish to purchase
the Belleview Biltmore Hotel. The hotel
can STILL be renovated and restored no
matter what you read or hear as of
late!
Belleview
Biltmore Partners, LLC to Continue
Efforts to Purchase and
Restore Historic Belleview Biltmore
Hotel.
Belleview Biltmore
Partners is the Only Potential Buyer
with a Plan That Will Save the Entire
Hotel.
BELLEAIR, FL (Jan. 20) – Belleview
Biltmore Partners (BBP) today announced
that it will continue to actively seek
to purchase and restore the historic
Belleview Biltmore Hotel. "We have a
financing commitment and know exactly
what to do in order to secure the
resort’s future success," saidRichard
Heisenbottle, BBP partner. "The Belleair
town commission should reject the false
notion proffered by the local news media
that the hotel is too far gone to be
restored, and send a clear message that
it expects a preservation solution that
will restore the hotel to its former
glory."
Heisenbottle noted that
BBP partner Gary Rosenberg oversaw the
restoration of The Homestead, a landmark
resort in Hot Springs, Virginia. "The
total cost of restoration is very
similar to what we need to do for the
Belleview Biltmore," said Rosenberg. "In
both cases, a successful restoration
will bring important and sustainable
economic benefits to the local
community."
For more than a year, BBP has been
planning to purchase and restore the
"White Queen of the Gulf" and redevelop
the property in accordance with the
town's previously approved development
order. "More than a dozen financing
options were vetted and in early
October, 2013 and we settled upon a
financing commitment that made the
project economically viable," said
Rosenberg Since that time, BBP has been
in private discussions with hotel owner
Daniel Ades to purchase the
property. "Throughout that process, the
primary stumbling block has been Mr.
Ades' request for a 30-day closing
period,” said Rosenberg. "This was an
unrealistically short time frame for BBP
since we would be closing not only on
the land purchase, but on tax credit
equity, construction and long-term
financing as well. At this time, only
the tax credit investor equity needs to
be concluded.
Rosenberg added that one of the
critical requirements for BBP is
ownership of the Belleview Biltmore Golf
Course. "We were extremely disappointed
last month when our offer to purchase
the Belleview Biltmore Golf Course from
the town was rejected by the Town of
Bellaire Commission in favor of a
long-term lease with the course’s
current operator," he said.
"We also learned that Mr. Ades has
entered into a contract to purchase the
property with JMC Communities – a group
that plans to demolish the historic
hotel and construct a residential condo
development. Moreover it has been
reported that this contract contains a
six-month due diligence period during
which time the developer will decide
what it is he actually wants to build."
“For more than a century, the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel has represented the heart
and the soul of the Town of Belleair and
the hotel has defined the prestige and
quality of life in the community,” added
Heisenbottle. “Unfortunately, political
actions speak louder than words and
through the town’s actions and interest
in rezoning the property to multi-family
residential, it has sent the wrong
message to Mr. Ades and JMC Communities.
Perhaps unintentionally, the commission
has sent a message that it is acceptable
to demolish the hotel by condoning
demolition by neglect and by intimating
that the property can be rezoned for
high density residential development.”
Adds Rosenberg, BBP remains poised to
purchase and restore the hotel to its
former glory, should JMC Communities not
close on the property and provided it
can get the cooperation of both the
seller and the Town of Belleair.
BELLEAIR TOWN
HALL - EXTREMELY IMPORTANT MEETING THIS
TUESDAY!
Be
There!
901 Ponce de Leon Blvd.
Belleair, Florida
6:30 p.m. Tuesday, January 21, 2014
ANYEONE in the Tampa
Bay area or the country/world may come
to the January 21st meeting in Belleair
at 6:30 p.m. and ask Belleair officials
to vote
NO to the RM-10 zoning
changes and ask them to continue to SAVE
THE BILTMORE!
Here are the instructions for who can
speak at the meeting:
People will be heard in
the following order:
1. People of standing -
(those who received public notices; ie.
those people whose property is
immediately affected by the development)
2. Belleair residents 3. Time
permitting, the General Public - the
general public will only be able to make
comments and NOT cross-examine. It is
best to come very early between 5:30 to
6 p.m. to make sure you get a seat!
Three minutes is the
longest you may speak. You may
read from notes of course.
And if you received
the Tampa Bay Times newspaper from
Sunday, simply tear our full page Save
the Biltmore advertisement out and bring
it to the meeting and wave it!!! Or cut
off top half and glue to cardboard and
wave it. It makes a great sign!
Or simply hand to Belleair
officials!
REMEMBER: Belleview Biltmore
Partners can STILL restore the wonderful
historic White Queen of the Gulf no
matter what you recently read, heard or
saw! BE AT THIS MEETING ON TUESDAY!
We hope you join us
and become a member this month.
We have five levels, Copper, Bronze,
Silver, Gold and Platinum with a
variety of gifts included for each.
Our Online Gift Shop is fun to
explore for yourself or to purchase
a special gift for someone else.
We have much more than what you see
above including Biltmore tote bags,
mouse pads, greeting cards,
calendars, license plates, sterling
chains, cufflinks, tie tacks, money
clips and a variety of Biltmore
artwork. To go directly to the
shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year
membership will be given to anyone
purchasing any of our special
Biltmore jewelry!
To help us continue
to save and preserve the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel for another 100
years, you may make a donation, any
amount. Donations are secure,
and you may donate by PayPal, credit
or debit card.
If you would
prefer to give a donation by
check, make it payable to our
nonprofit organization: Save the
Biltmore Preservationists and
send it to:
Save the
Biltmore Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North
#107 Palm Harbor, FL
34684
PRESS RELEASE BY BAY
PROBY
Save the Biltmore Update
Sunday, January 19, 2014
Save the Biltmore Update
Sunday, January 19, 2014
Dear Biltmore Supporters, news media and
others,
The address of the Belleair town hall is
on the flyer link but to clarify and
make it easy to read here is the address
in this Save the Biltmore Update.
BELLEAIR TOWN HALL -
EXTREMELY IMPORTANT MEETING THIS WEEK!
901 Ponce de Leon Blvd.
Belleair, Florida 6:30 p.m.
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
Here are the instructions for who can
speak at the meeting:
People will be heard in the following
order:
1.
People of standing - (those who received
public notices; ie. those people whose
property is immediately affected by the
development) 2. Belleair residents
3. Time permitting, the General Public -
the general public will only be able to
make comments and not cross-examine
You can sign immediately before the
meeting but you will have to get there
early because as soon as the meeting
starts they will stop signing people in.
Anyone who wishes to speak can call the
Town Clerk - call 588-3769, ext. 312 -
ahead of time. Of course, anyone can
attend and hear the public hearing.
We recommend that you come by at least
5:30 to 6 p.m. to sign in if you do not
call ahead of time! There will be
many people attending this meeting so
come early if you are planning to
speak!! Three minutes is the
longest you may speak.
Spend 30 minutes
this Sunday and Monday posting some Save
the Biltmore flyers around where you
live or work, print and show your
friends and neighbors this Update, but
most importantly come to the January
21st meeting in Belleair at 6:30 p.m.
and ask Belleair officials to vote
NO to the RM-10 zoning
changes and ask them to continue to SAVE
THE BILTMORE!
OUR FULL PAGE COLOR
ADVERTISEMENT TO SAVE THE BILTMORE: Through the wonderful
and most generous support of a few
Biltmore supporters, they donated to our
nonprofit organization Save the Blitmore
Preservationists the funds to place a
FULL PAGEcolor
display advertisement,
11 inches by 21 inches, in the A section
of the Tampa Bay Times! Their
Sunday readership is over 900,000
people! This advertisement to Save the
Biltmore will help us, and the Bltmore
in so many many ways. We certainly
thank them for their most generous
donation and for their time in designing
the ad. Please do NOT
write me on this, either for
price of ad or their names.
Everything is ANONYMOUS
per their request which of
course we will honor. Spend your
time INSTEAD writing Belleair officials,
Pinellas County officials or JMC
Communities and Mike Cheezem as
mentioned below!
Battle House Mobile
Renaissance Resort and Spa in Mobile,
Alabama:
Doug
Mann, our Sec'y/Treas. gave me
information about this lovely
historic hotel WHICH WAS SAVED!
It was closed in 1974 and reopened after
a $132 million investment in 2007! As
you can see, it was closed a
very long time before someone
restored it! It has 238 rooms
including suites. So
congratulations to Mobile, Alabama, a
most lovely town, who did NOT demolish
their historic hotel! So
Belleair Mayor and Commissioners do the
same for your historic Biltmore!
HOTEL CONTRACT:
Unfortunately there is a
contract out by JMC Communities, Mike
Cheezem CEO, to purchase the
Biltmore. JMC wants to demolish the
wonderful White Queen of the Gulf and
build townhomes/condos! The
contract is set for six months at which
time they must buy the hotel or back
out. Obviously they can decide NOT
to purchase the hotel themselves OR our
BILTMORE SUPPORTERS can convince them
via emails and letters and town hall
meetings that these developers MUST back
out from the contract thus SAVING THE
BILTMORE! So it
is IMPERATIVE
all supporters who live in
this area to come to this Tuesday
meeting to show JMC and Mike
Cheezem you want the hotel saved by
turning out in mass which will motivate
him to BACK DOWN AND OUT
and let the contract expire!
Let him know that you will NOT tolerate
demolition of the Biltmore and that you
only want it saved. Back in 2005,
hundreds of supporters stormed the
Belleair town meeting hall and their
enthusiasm for saving the Biltmore
resulted in the developers (DeBartolo)
backing down and out!
We
MUST do this again with all of your
help!
By
the way, JMC Communities is the group
that DEMOLISHED the beautiful Clearwater
Beach Hotel that stood on our lovely
Pinellas County beach for 80 years!
So for everyone who loved that hotel as
much as I did, JMC and CEO Mike Cheezem
fail to see the value in historical or
old hotels like you and me which are
treasures to the community.
PINELLAS
COUNTY COMMISSIONER KAREN SEEL AND
MICHAEL CHEEZEM:
In February 23, 2000,
developer Mike Cheezem (CEO of JMC
Communities) donated a check for
$500 to Commissioner Karen Seel's
Office : County Commissioner
District 5!! After the outcry
about saving the Biltmore back in
2005, Commissioner Seel was
appointed as Task Force Chairwoman
of the Pinellas County History
Preservation Committee!! She
has encouraged municipalities to
adopt their own local historic
preservation programs. So
should not Commissioner Seel, who
supports historic preservation and
the other Pinellas County
commissioners, DEMAND
that JMC and Mike
Cheezem back away now from
destroying the Biltmore!!! And
Mike Cheezem donated $100 back in
2002 to Commissioner John
Morroni. Perhaps someone can
further investigate other donations
to these two Commissioners the past
few years. While of course
these donations are perfectly legal,
how much influence does these
donations make when it comes time to
Save the Biltmore or not!
I hope everyone sees
the significance of this
commissioner endorsing historic
preservation while one of her
donators wants to demolish the
Biltmore! Please email Commissioner
Seel that she and the other Pinellas
County Commissioners need to stand
up for historic preservation
by demanding that Mike Cheezem BACK
OFF from buying the Biltmore and
destroying it! The question
remains of course is whether
Cheezem's donation of $500 (or maybe
more later years) will result in her
turning her cheek the other way in
regards to the Biltmore? Here
are the seven Pinellas County
Commissioners: Commissioner
Karen Seel and the other
Commissioners, Janet Long, Norm
Roche, Charlie Justice, Susan
Latvala, John Morroni, Ken
Welch plus the last name is Robert
LaSala, County Administrator:
kseel@pinellascounty.org,
JanetCLong@pinellascounty.org,
nroche@pinellascounty.org,
cjustice@pinellascounty.org,
slatvala@pinellascounty.org,jmorroni@pinellascounty.org,kwelch@pinellascounty.org,
rlasala@pinellascounty.org
Also in 2005 Mike Cheezem of JMC
Communities was a steering committee
member of the Pinellas County
Redevelopment Board of which
Commissioner Karen Seel headed the
Economic Development and
Redevelopment Plan for the Economic
Development of Pinellas County!
We hope the news media interviews
Commissioner Seel in regards to the
above and what she is going to do to
help JMC Communities and Mike
Cheezem to back down from destroying
the Biltmore.
Are we all getting the picture here
of Mike Cheezem of JMC Communities
and Commissioner Seel, redevelopment
and the Biltmore and historic
preservation and the extreme
conflict going on!!? Developers and
politicians--politicians and
developers and campaign funding.
Get the picture?
Commissioner Seel may have just
learned of the contract on the
Biltmore with Mike Cheezem and his
JMC Communities as it was reported
just this weekend. But now
that she knows, it's time she and
the other Pinellas County
Commissioners who endorse the
Belleview Biltmore DEMAND that
Cheezem back down!
The information in italics is from the
Pinellas County government web site
about the benefits of historic
preservation:
Historic preservation has tangible and
intangible benefits to property owners
and the greater community. Preserving
historic building/sites gives a
community a sense of identity, maintains
a community’s heritage and improves the
quality of life. Preservation activities
also create jobs, promote tourism and in
most instances increase property values
The benefits of historic preservation
can be found at Economic Impacts of
Historic Preservation published in 2010
by State of Florida, Division of
Historical Resources.
In 2005 Pinellas County Commissioners
wrote me personally that they endorse
saving the Belleview Biltmore Hotel.
Okay then, Commissioners need to DEMAND
that JMC Communities and its CEO Mike
Cheezem back down from destroying
Pinellas County history!!
These are our SEVEN elected County
officials who say they endorse saving
the Belleview Biltmore Hotel. Wake
them up by emailing them at the above e
addresses and demand that they get JMC
Communities to back away from the
Biltmore!
No
matter what article you have read
recently, with the hotel being under
contract, the hotel STILL can be saved,
so be there this Tuesday! Motivate
this townhouse/condo developer to give
up!
FLORIDA TRUST:
The Florida Trust continues to support
all efforts to save the Belleview
Biltmore and restore it as a heritage
tourism site that would economically
benefit the citizens of Belleair.
The Florida Trust has included the
Belleview Biltmore in its Eleven Most
Endangered Historic Sites for several
years.
www.floridatrust.org for info and
membership. Anne Peery, Executive
Director.
BRAND NEW ONE-MINUTE
EMAIL CAMPAIGN:
Because of this new information as to
who the demolition developer is, JMC
Communities, Mike Cheezem, CEO, we must
focus our attention in getting these
developers to back away from the
Biltmore and let it stand for another
100 years. It is MOST important
now that you send a
DIFFERENT ONE MINUTE
email to JMC Community,
either ours or your own. You may
call also of course or send a letter to
them via U.S. mail.
JMC Communities
2201 4th St N Suite 200 Saint
Petersburg, FL 33704
To
Mike Cheezem:
As
a supporter of the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel, it is in the best interest of the
community for you to withdraw from
purchasing the hotel from KAWA.
Your condos and townhomes condominiums
would deface Belleair's beauty turning
that area into "Belleair's Concrete
Condo Canyon" plus also defacing
Pinellas County's history. You
destroyed the lovely Clearwater Beach
Hotel whose citizens in the surrounding
neighbors and tourists loved going
there. And now you want to destroy
the Biltmore in Pinellas County where
thousands of people have dined, married
or stayed there who want it preserved.
The hotel still can be restored no
matter what you believe or say. The
citizens of Belleair and Pinellas need
this historical landmark.
Belleair's Comprehensive Plan includes
saving the Belleview Biltmore Hotel, and
yet you dare attempt destroy one of
their beloved landmarks and history.
SHAMEFUL. The people who love the
hotel need you to back down from
purchasing the Biltmore.
Right now your only legacy you will
leave is destruction of a Pinellas
landmark hotel. Is this what you
wish for your legacy, destruction?
Listen to what the society around you
has been saying for the past nine years,
spare the Belleview Biltmore. If you
participate in its destruction, you will
participate in the willful destruction
of your own heritage as well as that of
the world around you.
Regards,
BELLEAIR OFFICIALS:
And of
course like I mentioned in my last Save
the Biltmore Update, the "Condo people"
and Country Club in Belleair never
complained once about the hotel, they
pounded it into Mayor Katica's head.! So
feel free to write Belleair officials
AGAIN AND AGAIN for them to take action
and vote NO this coming Tuesday to any
RM-10 zoning changes! You may use
the email below or write your own. And
be sure to come to the meeting on
January 21 at 6:30 p.m. Come EARLY
if you intend to speak! NUMBERS
COUNT!
Mayor Gary Katica, Commissioners Stephen
Fowler, Tom Shelly, Kevin Piccarreto and
Michael Wilkinson and Town Manager,
Micah Maxwell
Governments have given in to developers
way too much in the past due to immense
pressure from towns people like many of
those in Belleair who are often unaware
of all the destructive ramnifications of
over development and losing a historic
structure like the Biltmore. An excess
of townhomes and or condos in place of
the Belleview Biltmore will cause a
surplus of these types of residences in
Belleair and result in lower property
values. Belleair will become a
wall of residences with no character or
flavor any more. Now is the time for all
five of you to vote NO on January 21 on
the RM-10 zoning changes and finally be
in charge of your town and the hotel. By
voting NO you will send a clear message
to the hotel owners or potential buyers
that you will NOT allow demolition of
the hotel and that they in turn will
more likely sell to a developer of which
there are two groups who presently have
offered bids to buy the Belleview
Biltmore. Start standing up to
impatient naysayers.
There is no reason to rush this zoning
change at this point in time when there
are two bids on the table right in front
of KAWA. The only reason of course
is that you have caved in to saving the
hotel due to pressure from certain
uninformed and short-sighted townspeople
and groups who are NOT knowledgeable
enough of what over development and
urban sprawl will bring. I urge
you to again be PATIENT and hold off on
making any zoning changes at this time
and let the process of an interested
buyer save the hotel. Stand up at last
to these impatient groups and enforce
your own historic preservation ordinance
and Comprehensive Plan! By voting
"NO" and holding off on these zoning
changes, KAWA will have to sell to one
of these two bidders when the other
contract on the hotel expires because
you will not allow them to ruin your
reputation and to not save the hotel.
The Belleview Biltmore is a living
legend and icon that brings happiness
and memories to thousands who enjoy the
ambiance of another era. Another
gated community will extinguish this
invaluable asset for the city, country,
state and nation. Future
generations will look back at your
decision and either laud you for your
vision or they will chastise you for
your lack of courage and your short
sightednedness. Destruction of the
Biltmore would erode the history and
roots of the concept of your community.
Repairs and upkeep on the Belleview
Biltmore have been strategically
delayed. This failure to maintain
presumably was to support "demolition by
neglect," discourage restoration and
increase the cost of historic
preservation. Lack of concern for
historic landmarks goes to the heart of
the community’s identity and should be
closely scrutinized before slash and
burn techniques are used to maximize
profits. The immediate profit for
one will diminish surrounding property
valuations, increase density and remove
the cachet of an area.
What would happen if the Biltmore in
Coral Gables was threatened with
destruction? Or the Grand Hotel in
Makinaw Island, Michigan?
The residents in those places would
NEVER let that happen however. Yet
certain uninformed, impatient groups in
Belleair are demanding demolition!
This is outrageous! Only you have
the leadership to save the hotel.
The Belleview Biltmore MUST be preserved
and restored to its original glory for
everyone including future generations to
appreciate. Thousands and
thousands of people over the years have
slept there, vacationed there, married
there, danced there and dined there in
historic glory, all because Belleair
officials allowed this magnificent White
Queen to continue to reign. This
historic structure is one of a kind in
the entire world. She is an ageless
beauty and a priceless treasure and her
charm cannot be experienced through
photographs alone. We need to be able to
walk down her two miles of halls to
really experience the wonder of this
glorious Grand old Dame. It is just as
historically significant as structures
such as Old Faithful Inn, Plant Hall,
Ringling House, etc. Once
restored, the Biltmore will be a
world-class resort and continue to keep
Belleair on the map and glorify its
visionary leaders.
Resist any ill-informed or shortsighted
community pressure and vote "NO" on the
RM-10 zoning and Save the Biltmore!
We hope you join us and
become a member this month. We
have five levels, Copper, Bronze,
Silver, Gold and Platinum with a variety
of gifts included for each. Our Online
Gift Shop is fun to explore for yourself
or to purchase a special gift for
someone else. We have much more
than what you see above including
Biltmore tote bags, mouse pads, greeting
cards, calendars, license plates,
sterling chains, cufflinks, tie tacks,
money clips and a variety of Biltmore
artwork. To go directly to the
shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year
membership will be given to anyone
purchasing any of our special Biltmore
jewelry!
To help us continue to
save and preserve the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel for another 100 years, you may
make a donation, any amount.
Donations are secure, and you may donate
by PayPal, credit or debit card.
If you would prefer
to give a donation by check, make it
payable to our nonprofit
organization: Save the Biltmore
Preservationists and send it to:
Save the Biltmore
Preservationists 30725 U.S.
Highway 19 North #107
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
Biltmore Update Tuesday,
January 14, 2014
Dear Biltmore Supporters, news media and
others,
This Biltmore Update is a
reminder to again ask you to print out
the Save the Biltmore flyer and hang
EVERY WHERE in your community or work
place. Then of course if you live
in the area to PLEASE
attend the January 21
meeting in Belleair at 6:30 p.m.
to encourage the mayor and commissioners
to vote NO on any RM-10 zoning changes.
Please speak out at the meeting to voice
your opinion, you can simply say
"Save the
Biltmore and vote "NO" to the RM-10
zoning changes
during that time or speak up
to three minutes on the subject.
Bring "vote no" signs if you wish and
wave them! Just be there to show
your support and love for the Biltmore!
It is extremely important to attend this
meeting IN MASS! Bring your friends and
neighbors! NUMBERS COUNT!
BELLEAIR CONDO CANYON:
Hotel owners (KAWA Capital) are looking
to develop about 164 units, including
132 condo units and 32 townhomes. in
place of the hotel. If the RM-10
is approved, say good-bye to the
Biltmore and say hello to overgrowth
sprouting up like concrete weeds in
Belleair. And all the homeowners
around the Biltmore area can look at
more condos and the people buying the
new condos can look at the massive seven
condos surrounding and suffocating them.
Ah what a picture eh? Who would
want to buy into that ugly condo canyon
anyway! Instead of the
Belleview Biltmore Homeowners'
Association, if the hotel were
demolished, they could call themselves
Belleair's Condo
Canyon Association!
Belleair will become a laughing stock of
over development. And so much for
the Comprehensive Plan in which Belleair
resident Laurie Adams wrote me:
"One goal of the Town's Comprehensive
Plan is to "ensure that the park-like,
residential/family character of the Town
of Belleair is maintained and protected
while supporting the continued economic
viability of local resorts and the preservation of the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel".
So not only is Belleair failing to
enforce their own preservation
ordinance, they are failing to uphold
their town's Comprehensive
Plan!
They would be
breaking laws
if they vote to demolish the
Biltmore if a demolition permit would be
approved! They would have to
completely UNDUE their own preservation
ordinance AND their Comprehensive Plan
to demolish the hotel!
SAVE THE TIDES PEOPLE
VICTORY!
An extremely important
decision has been made as reported by
the Seminole Beacon (TBNweekly.com).
The Tides Golf Course in South
Pinellas was under threat of being
developed and guess who was their
attorney but Ed Armstrong, also the
attorney for Biltmore Hotel owners KAWA!
The people living around the Tides got
together and worked very hard to save
their beautiful golf course from
development. Hear that all
4,000 Belleair citizens! The good news
is that because of their COMPREHENSIVE PLAN
(!), the developers have
backed off and the Tides Golf Course is
saved all because of the POWER of
Pinellas County's Comprehensive Plan
which basically states "the proposed
development was inconsistent with the Pinellas County Comprehensive
Plan,
particularly with the plan’s
policies regarding open space." From
the Seminole Beacon also: "The
economic, environmental, and community
(social and quality of life)
consequences of conversion of open space
to developed uses are at the center."
“Once that space is gone, it’s gone –
and it’s not coming back,” said William
Kimpton, the Dunedin-based attorney who
represents Save the Tides, a group of
citizens who were opposed to the
proposed development. But at the
end of the day, [the County staff]
stayed true to following the comprehensive plan
and protecting green space.
Kimpton said he’s proposing that the
County create a special district for the
Tides’ land. He submitted a letter
outlining his proposal and plans to meet
with representatives from the County
soon. His hopes are that the local
community will be able to purchase the
property from the bank, with the help of
the County government, to preserve the
green space."
So Belleair
officials this comment to you:
Pinellas County will enforce their own
Comprehensive Plan
but you will not!!??
Let's get serious about laws here!
They need to be enforced in Belleair
also, not just in Pinellas County!
And Pinellas County, can you not
convince Belleair officials to uphold
their own Comprehensive
Plan!
Where is your power anyway!
MAJOR FORCES IN PLAY:
Mayor Katica and his four
commissioners are receiving an extreme
amount of pressure from certain groups
right in Belleair who want the hotel
demolished! One of the main
reasons is that many of the residents in
the seven condos and nearby homes
(Belleview Biltmore Homes Association)
no longer want to look at the damaged
Biltmore roof. Oh woe is me!
And why would the Belleair Country Club,
which is right by the Biltmore, want the
hotel anyway, they were against Legg
Mason's plan to restore it. They
have their own private restaurant and
club anyway. They unfortunately do
not "need" the Biltmore! And changing
the zoning will let the Country Club
buy two more acres of
parking space,
improve their tennis courts
and enable them to recruit more
members. The Belleair Country Club is
one of Belleair's largest taxpayers,
so says Mayor Katica, so
connect the dots people! Their
membership is very small, only 400
members of which around 100 live in
Belleair and yet they exert such
powerful influence in Belleair. So
we now know two powerful groups who are
influencing the demolition of the
Biltmore! By the way, the Belleair
Country Club charges $5,000 initiation
plus $415 a month for a full family golf
membership. Must the rich always win or
is there still some integrity left to
save the hotel by the OTHER residents in
Belleair and the nearby community?
So
let's summarize, right now we can see
that the Belleair Country Club, and the
Belleview Biltmore Homeowners
Association (which includes the "condo
people") are basically in charge of
Belleair and the fate of the Belleview
Biltmore! Will these groups run
Belleair from now on too? Sure seems
that way doesn't it. That's why it
is time for all Biltmore supporters,
both in and outside of Belleair to come
out and demand that Belleair officials
vote NO on the RM-10 zoning changes!
ZONING EXPLAINED:
The R-10 zoning designation overlaps the
existing square footage requirements
incorporated in the R-15 designation.
That means that the developer can build
homes exactly the size of those already
existing in the RPD... they just
couldn't build as many of them per acre
as if they were zoned R-15. That means
there is a strong possibility that the
RPD homes would be devalued by the
surplus of new construction. I don't
think the current RPD owners understand
this. Someone reading this tell them
that!!! The details of the zoning
classification are complex and hard for
them to follow. Also, the developer can
get around a lot of the limits in the
size/height building classification by
having more open space, putting parking
underground, etc. The people in the RPD
probably don't understand that, either.
Someone tell them that too!
Putting the RM-10 zoning designation
into place right now sends the message
that the demolition of the hotel is
inevitable and that message will be
heard loud and strong by the hotel
owners who are salivating over the
Belleview Biltmore property.
If Belleair officials incorporate the
foundation for new development on the
hotel site by adding the potential for
R-10 development, the current owners
will not feel pressured to consider
lower bids by groups hoping to purchase
restore the hotel. Instead, they will
continue to try to maximize their profit
on the sale of the land to a developer
who can wait-out the time necessary to
go through the steps necessary to
demolish the hotel and maximize their
profit on the land/new development. We
need to deprive the owners of hope that
they will see several million more in
profit by going through the process of
demolition and development on the
Belleview Biltmore property. Postponing
the R-10 rezoning classification would
go a long way in accomplishing this goal
and giving the owners more motivation to
sell the hotel to preservationists.
The restoration of the Belleview
Biltmore is central to Belleair, not
only as a hotel, but as the center of
activities everyone in town can enjoy...
not just those who live in the RPD or
homes around the hotel. If we don't save
and restore the hotel, we deprive Town
residents (except those who can afford
to belong to the Belleair Country Club)
with local restaurants, meeting places,
hotel rooms for out-of-town guests, a
spa, and most importantly, a magnificent
historic attraction that generates great
income for the town. Thousands of people
across the country have stayed at and
loved the Biltmore, their voices need to
be heard also.
I hope the rest of the
Belleair's 4,000 residents STORM
that January 21 meeting and
demand that their voices be heard too to SAVE THE
BILTMORE!
BELLEAR MAYOR GARY
KATICA:
Many of you have written me
that Mayor Katica is a lost cause in
regards to saving the hotel. I feel that
Mayor Katica has LOST HIS WAY of what is
really important in Belleair. Along with
Commissioner Kevin Piccaretto who is
rushing and pushing to pass
this ridiculous RM-10 zoning, so he
obviously does NOT care about the hotel
and does NOT care about putting pressure
on KAWA either. So he has lost his
way also. Commissioner Tom Shelly
is actually the official who created the
idea of RM-10 because he did not want to
"get stuck with RM-15." But we
know Shelly loves the hotel and wishes
it to be saved but I feel he does not
realize the implications of changing the
zoning. You can not just "suggest" to
KAWA to save the hotel, one must vote NO
on any zoning changes to makre sure they
do NOT sell to a developer who will
destroy the Biltmore! I feel all three
officials need to see the importance of
putting more pressure on KAWA to ONLY
sell to preservation-type developers.
Belleair officials should be standing
firm and have NO zoning changes,
especially not now when there are two
bids on the table to buy the Biltmore.
KAWA should be "forced" to sell the
hotel at a fair price to one of these
bidders by having officials
REFUSE to change the zoning!
ALL commissioners and
mayor need to enforce their 2005
preservation ordinance and their
Comprehensive Plan!
Mayor Katica is under a
tremendous amount of pressure from
certain Belleair groups, so much so that
now tragically he is bending and caving
under the weight. It is up to you our
precious Biltmore supporters to set him
and the other commissioners
straight. Tell him and the
commissioners that it is more important
to have the Biltmore in their town
versus having more towers of concrete
condos and townhomes. The Biltmore
once restored would generate a huge
amount of tax dollars for Belleair and
also help the outside community
financially as well. Mayor Katica used
to be in favor of saving the Biltmore
but you must convince him and the entire
commission that NO zoning changes need
to be made right now. They need to
give investors more time for them to
come up with the money to restore the
hotel. Only by the saying NO
to zoning changes can we put
pressure on the KAWA to sell to one of
two hotel bidders. IT IS AS SIMPLE AS
THAT.
You can see why Mayor
Katica does NOT care if he "rewards KAWA
for bad behavior" now with millions of
dollars to KAWA for the demolishment of
the hotel. Instead with the
demolition of the Biltmore, he would be
rewarding the Belleair Country Club, the
"condo people" which include
the Belleview Biltmore Homeowners
Association to get them off his back!
So if the Biltmore goes down, we all
know whom to ultimately blame.
The
buck stops with Mayor Katica.
Please Mr. Mayor find your way back to
saving Belleair's Belleview Biltmore
hotel. That is the legacy you
should leave for your family and all
citizens, not demolition!
HOTEL CLEANUP:
Why didn't the condo people and the
Country Club and any other naysayers
along with Belleair government money
made from the sale of the golf course
all chip in and pursue a lawsuit AGAINST
KAWA to enforce the historic
preservation ordinance and make them
repair the roof and other damage!
Where was their community spirit anyway
to save THEIR hotel? All these
naysayers ever do is complain, lack
civic pride and have failed to convince
Belleair officials to pursue a lawsuit
against KAWA. Surely with
the high membership prices the Country
Club charges, who by the way wrote a
letter to Mayor Katica complaining about
the weeds and roof etc., could do
something about cleaning up the
hotel themselves since the Biltmore is
right next to the club!
TOWN OF BELLEAIR:
Why are not ALL Belleair residents
(approximately 4,000) consulted on the
future of the hotel anyway? Per above,
we know the reasons why! Right
now only the Belleview
Biltmore Homeowners Association (RPD for
short) were consulted on the RM-10!! Do
you all see how this is so very wrong!
Losing the Biltmore would
affect ALL 4,000 residents in this town
not just the "condo people"
and people around the hotel or the
Country Club. Yet only the RPD was
consulted recently! The Country
Club has always been against the hotel
renovations planned by one investor.
Belleair officials did much to help the
"golf course people" a few years ago.
Those who own property surrounding the
Belleview Biltmore and everyone who
lives in Belleair deserve the same
consideration of quality of life and
property values. The Belleview Biltmore
used to provide ALL
Belleair residents with
restaurants, a spa, ballrooms/meeting
rooms, historic tours, and hotel rooms
for their out-of-town guests while
generating good income for the Town. ANY
Belleair resident could freely go into
the Biltmore. Only Belleair
Country Club members can dine at their
restaurant! If restored, the
hotel could do so again for ALL
residents both in and out of Belleair.
If the Commission stands firm and lets
the current owner know that their plans
to destroy the hotel and develop the
property will never bear fruit, then
KAWA would be more willing to negotiate
a fair purchase price with those who
want to restore the hotel rather than
seeking top-dollar for the property like
they now are at $8 million. With
the damage, they need to drop the price
of the hotel to $6 milion, and Belleair
officials can help do this by standing
firm to them. And to repeat, two
architects have told me that the
Biltmore can STILL be restored!
IMPORTANT:
By the way, if the zoning is
approved, KAWA is ready to sell to a
townhome/condo developer, who will put
in a permit to demolish the hotel, so
listen up people,
THIS IS IT,
TO COME TO THE JANUARY 21
meeting and get Belleair officials to
vote NO! Urgency!
The Belleair Bee has an online article
today that this developer (NOT
preservationist) would sign a contract
on January 24! So you can see why
it is EXTREMELY important you come to
the January 21 meeting!
And anyone can send emails too!
With this news, it is mandatory that you
come to this meeting if you care for the
Biltmore at all.
A THANK YOU:
I want to take this time to give a
BIG thank you to many
Belleair residents for all their help
and support as of late and in the past.
They dearly want to save their beloved
Belleview Biltmore and are working very
hard to save it. Also a BIG thank
you to any of you who sent your
ONE-MINUTE EMAIL or wrote personalized
emails to Belleair officials and all the
other supporters who have voiced their
opinions and ideas to me. Please
send this email to everyone you know
so they can write the mayor
and commissioners to SAVE THE BILTMORE
and vote NO on RM-10 zoning changes!
EMAIL ADDRESSES OF
BELLEAIR OFFICIALS:
Mayor Gary Katica,
Commissioners Stephen Fowler, Tom
Shelly, Kevin Piccarreto and Michael
Wilkinson and Town Manager, Micah
Maxwell
I encourage everyone to
send an email to Belleair officials even
if you have already done so. YOU DON'T THINK
THE "CONDO PEOPLE" OR THE COUNTRY CLUB
OR HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION ONLY
COMPLAINED ONCE TO MAYOR KATICA DO
YOU!?
They have been complaining
for years! We have to show
officials that we all care and love the
Biltmore, and there is no need
whatsoever for officials to redo the
zoning at this point in time. They
are supposed to be fighting to save the
Biltmore and wait for one of these two
bidders to complete the sale. They
should NOT even be discussing any
thoughts of demolition or changing the
zoning with KAWA at this point in time!
They are supposed to be standing firm
with KAWA and impatient residents and up
holding their own laws which supports
the saving of the hotel.
According to articles in the newspaper,
Belleair Bee and Tampa Bay
Times, Belleair officials were
discussing with KAWA about the
demolition of the hotel, and what KAWA
would build in its place!
SHOCKING! This discussion should never
have occurred in the first place.
Officials should be telling KAWA that
they will not change any zoning and that
KAWA needs to sell to one of the bidders
at a reduced price considering all the
damage KAWA has done to the hotel.
When sending an email to Belleair
officials, please be civil and give
logical reasons why they should ignore
the "condo people" and other naysayers
and why the zoning must be denied and
why it is important to save the
Biltmore. If there are any
financial gurus on my mailing list, be
sure to write officials as to why it is
more profitable to keep the Biltmore as
a hotel vs building townhomes and
condos. Please send me a copy of your
emails so I understand all the financial
ramifications myself. However,
once restored the hotel will generate a
small fortune in tax dollars for
Belleair. No other use will
generate as much much for Belleair as a
restored Biltmore. They must wait
for a buyer of the hotel!
Let's face it, in Belleair, money talks.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
The current hotel owners have done
everything in their power to destroy the
historic icon that is responsible for
the town of Belleair's existence. We
should do nothing to help these people
profit from their despicable behavior.
Instead, we should send them a strong
message that we will do what it takes to
protect Belleair's heritage and the
property values of Belleair citizens,
while waiting for them to sell the hotel
at a fair price to those who would
restore the hotel to its full glory.
Spend 30 minutes this
week posting some Save the Biltmore
flyers around where you live or work,
print and show your neighbors this
Update, come to the January 21st meeting
in Belleair at 6:30 p.m. and ask
Belleair officials to vote
NO to the RM-10 zoning
changes and to continue to SAVE THE
BILTMORE!
Now write and send an
email to the mayor and commissioners or
just forward this ENTIRE EMAIL to them!
30 seconds, that is all that is
required! Repeat:
just forward this ENTIRE EMAIL to them!
We hope you join us and
become a member this month. We
have five levels, Copper, Bronze,
Silver, Gold and Platinum with a variety
of gifts included for each. Our Online
Gift Shop is fun to explore for yourself
or to purchase a special gift for
someone else. We have much more
than what you see above including
Biltmore tote bags, mouse pads, greeting
cards, calendars, license plates,
sterling chains, cufflinks, tie tacks,
money clips and a variety of Biltmore
artwork. To go directly to the
shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year
membership will be given to anyone
purchasing any of our special Biltmore
jewelry!
To help us continue to
save and preserve the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel for another 100 years, you may
make a donation, any amount.
Donations are secure, and you may donate
by PayPal, credit or debit card.
If you would prefer
to give a donation by check, make it
payable to our nonprofit
organization: Save the Biltmore
Preservationists and send it to:
Save the Biltmore
Preservationists 30725 U.S.
Highway 19 North #107
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
NATIONAL
TRUST:
They can help us save the Biltmore,
show them we need their help by
joining this valuable national
organization for only $20 a year.
http://www.preservationnation.org/
Save the Biltmore Update/Newsletter and
FLYER--Saturday, January 4, 2014
Save the Biltmore Update/Newsletter and
Flyer--- Saturday, January 4, 2014
Hello Biltmore Supporters, News
Media and Others,
THE VERY GOOD NEWS:
No matter what you heard, read or saw in
December 2013, the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel still can be renovated and
restored! So we can now put an end
to whatever the hotel owners claim or
say about the condition of this
historic hotel. Here is a
wonderful quote from Rick Gonzalez,
president of Florida Trust, vice chair
of the Florida Historical Commission and
a practicing historic preservation
architect with his own firm, REG
Architects in West Palm Beach, Florida.
"I know a thing or two about
preservation in Florida. The
Belleview Biltmore can be restored
especially under the supervision of a
preservation architect for the enjoyment
of all Floridians and visitors for
another 100 years. I hope the mayor and
commission show leadership in helping
this project move forward."
THE BAD NEWS:
The Belleair Planning and Zoning Board
unfortunately voted 4-2 in December,
2013 in favor of making zoning changes
to allow for multi-family or condo
development in place of the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel!! These four
members of the P and Z Board just
rewarded the current owners of the
Biltmore, KAWA Capital, for bad
behavior: NEGLIGENCE!!! In
legal terms it is called "demolition by
neglect." What were they thinking!
They basically told KAWA that's it's
okay to destroy Belleair's heritage and
history, and that it's okay to make
fools of them and the mayor and his
commissioners. These four people have
potentially given KAWA millions and
millions of dollars on a silver
platter. Have these four people no
pride in their hotel, their history and
to stop KAWA NOW when they could have?
It was like leading lambs to a
slaughter. How humilating. The hotel
owners must be overjoyed with this vote
and dancing in the streets of Miami that
they are winning! This traitorous vote
legally leads the way to the demolition
of the Belleview Biltmore Hotel unless
stopped January 21, 2014 by Belleair
commissioners!
The current owners of the Biltmore have
made a complete mockery of Belleair and
its officials by failure to provide
tarps to cover the Bltmore roof and
other repairs thus attempting
"demolition by neglect" by breaking the
historic preservation ordinance law
passed in 2005 by Belleair. The
hotel owners also did a legal maneuver
that wiped out the fines that accrued
(over $200,000 worth) for failure to
safeguard the hotel! And now four
members of the P and Z Board reward KAWA
for making fools of the town! How
absolutely ludicrous! It is time
for Belleair Mayor Katica and his
commissioners to get justice against the
owners by voting NO to zoning changes
January 21 and to SAVE THE BILTMORE.
They MUST stop rewarding KAWA for their
bad behavior: NEGLIGENCE!
Belleair commissioners must take back
their pride and integrity by keeping
their precious history intact and their
Belleview Biltmore Hotel.
If
Belleair officials do not finally get
firm then and WIN THIS WAR, they would
basically be tossing millions and
millions of dollars at KAWA as a reward
for their disgusting behavior and making
fools of these officials for their
inability to stop these developers when
they could have. How in the world
would they ever hold up their heads
again with these developers destroying
their history ON PURPOSE!
Belleair officials have the authority to
vote NO to these recommendations on
January 21, 2014 and NOT approve any
zoning changes thus saving the
Biltmore!! Show your support
and attend this IMPORTANT MEETING to
Save the Biltmore. This is
of utmost urgency, the Biltmore's future
is truly at stake now. These
zoning changes MUST be denied!!
For now there is no
reason whatsoever for KAWA to sell the
Biltmore to any investor unfortunately
because of these four members of the P
and Z Board who indirectly approved
demolition of the hotel. KAWA is of
course hoping Mayor Katica and his four
commissioners follow the four negative P
and Z board members like sheep. That is
why you must help us save the Biltmore
with flyers around town with your emails
or attend the January 21 meeting to
convince Belleair Mayor Katica and his
commissioners to finally stand up to
these developers at last and SAVE THE
BILTMORE!
Have you noticed Washington D.C. is
repairing the Capital Building with a
$60 million renovation? Do you see
them demolishing the Capital and
building a new one? Of course
not!
Show this flyer to ten people or hang
this flyer up around your community in
condominiums, retail stores, antique
stores, malls, your office, libraries,
events, gas stations, restaurants etc.
Bring family and friends! We
urgently need your help to show your
support to Save the Biltmore!
BE THERE! Numbers count!
Urge Belleair officials to vote "NO" to
zoning changes!
We
ALL must join together to Save the
Biltmore!
BELLEAIR COMMISSION
MEETING
Tuesday, January 21,
2014
Time: 6:30 P.M.
901 Ponce de Leon Blvd.
Belleair, Florida
ONE-MINUTE EMAIL CAMPAIGN:
Everyone, please
send this ONE-MINUTE EMAIL
below to Belleair officials and
encourage them to vote NO to zoning
changes and to continue to save the
Biltmore as a hotel. Or feel free
to write your own thoughts or you may
copy this email below and send it to
them. It will only take one minute
or less! WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT!
Simply copy and paste the e-addresses
below to your email program and then
either write your own email or copy and
paste the enclosed email and SEND
IMMEDIATELY!
Mayor Gary Katica, Commissioners Stephen
Fowler, Tom Shelly, Kevin Piccarreto and
Michael Wilkinson and Town Manager,
Micah Maxwell
Honorable Mayor Katica and Belleair
Commissioners:
Citizens both locally and around the
world have placed their trust in you to
follow through with and enforce your own
Comprehensive Plan and 2005 historic
preservation ordinance that was designed
to save The White Queen of the Gulf now
and forever. The goal of the
preservation ordinance was to protect
this iconic structure against
NEGLIGENCE: "demolition by
neglect." The current owners have
totally ignored your laws and purposely
failed to provide tarps to protect the
Biltmore roof in storms and were able to
wipe out fines accrued by them through
legal maneuvers. As a result, they
have taken advantage of you and your
citizens. They have insulted your
laws and integrity. They are
destroying your history and heritage.
They have made a mockery of you and your
citizens who have supported the hotel.
You now have the opportunity to finally
STAND UP to these developers who sought
to destroy your history and hotel ON
PURPOSE! I urge you to save
your beautiful historic Victorian
Belleview Biltmore Hotel for my
generation and future generations to
enjoy. I urge you to vote "NO" on
any zoning changes January 21, 2013 that
would allow for multi-family or
condo/townhouse development in place of
the Biltmore. Take back what
is rightfully yours. Then and ONLY
then will you have control of your own
town and the Biltmore. Show them
that YOU are in charge.
It
is time for justice against KAWA and to
Save the Biltmore!!
Sincerely,
--------------------
FINAL THOUGHTS
No one ever said saving a historic
Victorian hotel would be easy! Yes
it has been many years since 2004 when I
first launched the web site
http://www.savethebiltmore.com
to try to save the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel. The important fact
is that it is STILL standing!
Historic buildings often face years and
sometimes decades of abuse from their
greedy owners to pursue "demolition by
neglect" in order to destroy history and
heritage and fatten their own wallets.
KAWA even had the chance to cover the
Biltmore roof with tarps when they
recently made millions of dollars
selling the Pelican Golf Course to
Belleair and the Cabana Club to other
investors. But KAWA completely failed to
do this again, with attempts of
NEGLIGENCE: "demolition by
neglect."
If
KAWA wins, they will be laughing all the
way to the bank as to how they
outwitted, outplayed and outsmarted
Biltmore supporters and the Belleair
Mayor and commissioners. I hope
Belleair commissioners and especially
Mayor Katica are OUTRAGED as to how they
have been mistreated, used and taken
advantage of. Belleair officials,
however, now have the chance to finally
stand up for themselves legally and
prove they can Save the Biltmore and its
future. Belleair officials need to
say NO to zoning changes thus allowing
an investment group to more easily
purchase the hotel because then KAWA
CANNOT build multi-family homes on the
sacred ground that the hotel was built
on in 1896. It is time for JUSTICE
against KAWA and SAVE THE BILTMORE on
January 21, 2014!!
Let's have a 5-0 vote to prove who is
finally in charge of Belleair and the
Bitmore!
We hope you join us and
become a member this month. We have
five levels, Copper, Bronze, Silver, Gold
and Platinum with a variety of gifts
included for each. Our Online Gift Shop is
fun to explore for yourself or to purchase a
special gift for someone else. We have
much more than what you see above including
Biltmore tote bags, mouse pads, greeting
cards, calendars, license plates, sterling
chains, cufflinks, tie tacks, money clips
and a variety of Biltmore artwork. To
go directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year membership
will be given to anyone purchasing any of
our special Biltmore jewelry!
To help us continue to save
and preserve the Belleview Biltmore Hotel
for another 100 years, you may make a
donation, any amount. Donations are
secure, and you may donate by PayPal, credit
or debit card.
If you would prefer to
give a donation by check, make it
payable to our nonprofit organization:
Save the Biltmore Preservationists and
send it to:
Save the Biltmore
Preservationists 30725 U.S.
Highway 19 North #107 Palm
Harbor, FL 34684
Save the Biltmore Update/Newsletter and
PRESS RELEASE--- Saturday, December 14, 2013
Save the Biltmore Update/Newsletter and
PRESS RELEASE--- Saturday, December 14, 2013
Hello Biltmore
Supporters, News Media and Others,
Below is a press
release by Bay Proby, Miami, Florida, who
represents Belleview Biltmore Partners, the
company who is trying to purchase the
Belleview Biltmore Hotel.
BELLEVIEW BILTMORE
PARTNERS SUBMITS OFFER
TO PURCHASE THE BELLEVIEW BILTMORE GOLF CLUB
Negotiations Continue for Purchase and
Renovation of Historic Hotel Property
MIAMI, FL. - Dec. 13, 2013 -- Belleview
Biltmore Partners, LLC (BBP) has
responded to the Town of Belleair's
invitation to negotiate the purchase and
lease of the Belleview Biltmore Golf Club.
Designed by world-famous golf
architect Donald Ross, the Belleview
Biltmore Golf Club course has been an
international favorite since 1925.
In addition, Richard J. Heisenbottle, FAIA,
BBP's managing partner, today
expressed optimism that he will reach a
successful conclusion to
negotiations with the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel & Resort owners for the
purchase of the hotel property and that
given the opportunity, BBP will
reach successful negotiations with the Town
of Belleair for the purchase of
the golf course as well. "We do not
subscribe to the theory that the
landmark Belleview Biltmore Hotel & Resort
is beyond repair and can no
longer be restored," said
Heisenbottle. "That theory is sheer folly
for
those who know little about historic
preservation. My firm has restored
numerous historic structures that were in
far worse physical condition than
the Belleview Biltmore."
BBP Partner Charles Kropke said, "Let us
not forget that the rich history
of the Belleview Biltmore Hotel and the
Town of Belleair are forever
entwined. The Town of Belleair exists, in
part, because Henry Plant chose
to build this historic hotel on this
bluff. The hotel's impact on the
community over the years has been nothing
short of remarkable. The hotel was
and can again be a
great source of community pride, financial
benefit and real estate growth."
BBP Partner Gary Rosenberg added, "The
Belleview Biltmore brand and style
represent an amazing
untapped marketing opportunity for the
residents of the
Town of Belleair."
Rosenberg's past golf and resort industry
experience includes
senior executive
responsibilities and oversight of some of
America's finest resorts and
golf club
facilities. Those facilities including
Pinehurst Resort and Club,
Firestone Country
Club, The Homestead Resort and Club,
Barton Creek Resort and Club,
Sawgrass Resort and
Club and the Boca Raton Hotel and Club.
"Without a doubt, we believe that our offer
represents by far the best value
for the Town of Belleair, not only because
the purchase price offered
returns the town's initial investment in
full, but more importantly because
the success of the hotel, the golf course
and the town are inextricably
linked," added Heisenbottle. "A restored
hotel with its own Donald Ross
golf course generates multiple positive
benefits not only for the Town of
Belleair, but for all of Pinellas County.
With it will come a new sense of
community pride along with national
prestige and publicity."
We urge supporters
to again spread the word to anyone they know
that the Belleview Biltmore needs investors
to help purchase the hotel. Have them
contact us at
http://www.savethebiltmore.com.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
We urge the current
owners of the hotel to have Christmas spirit
this season and finally
DO THE RIGHT THING!
We hope they join in
with Belleview Biltmore Partners to find
solutions to enable them to purchase the
hotel. What better gift can the owners
give than the gift of saving history!
What better legacy can the owners leave
their families than doing the right thing!
What better way to honor their own heritage
and upbringing than by acting in good
spirit! Restoration of the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel is unquestionably the highest
and best use of the property. It will
create new jobs, provide tax revenue, new
business opportunities, increase property
values while enriching the lives of Belleair
residents and surrounding communities
plus save a vital piece of Belleair and
Florida history. It would be a
win-win solution for all and the best
Christmas ever!
We hope you join us and become a
member this month. We have five levels,
Copper, Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum with a
variety of gifts included for each. Our Online
Gift Shop is fun to explore for yourself or to
purchase a special gift for someone else.
We have much more than what you see above
including Biltmore tote bags, mouse pads,
greeting cards, calendars, license plates,
sterling chains, cufflinks, tie tacks, money
clips and a variety of Biltmore artwork.
To go directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year membership will
be given to anyone purchasing any of our special
Biltmore jewelry!
To help us continue to save and
preserve the Belleview Biltmore Hotel for
another 100 years, you may make a donation, any
amount. Donations are secure, and you may
donate by PayPal, credit or debit card.
If you would prefer to give a
donation by check, make it payable to our
nonprofit organization: Save the Biltmore
Preservationists and send it to:
Save the Biltmore
Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North #107
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
Save the Biltmore Update/Newsletter
and PRESS RELEASE--- Sunday,
December 15, 2013
Hello Biltmore Supporters,
News Media and Others,
Below is a press release by
Bay Proby, Miami, Florida, who
represents Belleview Biltmore
Partners, the company who is trying
to purchase the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel.
BELLEVIEW BILTMORE PARTNERS
SUBMITS OFFER
TO PURCHASE THE BELLEVIEW BILTMORE
GOLF CLUB
Negotiations Continue for Purchase
and Renovation of Historic Hotel
Property
MIAMI, FL. - Dec. 13, 2013 --
Belleview Biltmore Partners, LLC
(BBP) has
responded to the Town of Belleair's
invitation to negotiate the purchase
and
lease of the Belleview Biltmore
Golf Club. Designed by world-famous
golf
architect Donald Ross, the
Belleview Biltmore Golf Club course
has been an
international favorite since 1925.
In addition, Richard J.
Heisenbottle, FAIA, BBP's managing
partner, today
expressed optimism that he will
reach a successful conclusion to
negotiations with the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel & Resort owners for
the
purchase of the hotel property and
that given the opportunity, BBP will
reach successful negotiations with
the Town of Belleair for the
purchase of
the golf course as well. "We do
not subscribe to the theory that the
landmark Belleview Biltmore Hotel &
Resort is beyond repair and can no
longer be restored," said
Heisenbottle. "That theory is sheer
folly for
those who know little about
historic preservation. My firm has
restored
numerous historic structures that
were in far worse physical condition
than
the Belleview Biltmore."
BBP Partner Charles Kropke
said, "Let us not forget that the
rich history
of the Belleview Biltmore Hotel and
the Town of Belleair are forever
entwined. The Town of Belleair
exists, in part, because Henry Plant
chose
to build this historic hotel on
this bluff. The hotel's impact on
the
community over the years has been
nothing short of remarkable. The
hotel was
and can again be a great
source of community pride, financial
benefit and real estate growth."
BBP Partner Gary Rosenberg added,
"The Belleview Biltmore brand and
style
represent an amazing
untapped marketing opportunity for
the residents of the
Town of Belleair."
Rosenberg's past golf and resort
industry experience includes
senior executive
responsibilities and oversight of
some of America's finest resorts and
golf club
facilities. Those facilities
including Pinehurst Resort and Club,
Firestone Country Club,
The Homestead Resort and Club,
Barton Creek Resort and Club,
Sawgrass Resort and Club
and the Boca Raton Hotel and Club.
"Without a doubt, we believe that
our offer represents by far the best
value
for the Town of Belleair, not only
because the purchase price offered
returns the town's initial
investment in full, but more
importantly because
the success of the hotel, the golf
course and the town are inextricably
linked," added Heisenbottle. "A
restored hotel with its own Donald
Ross
golf course generates multiple
positive benefits not only for the
Town of
Belleair, but for all of Pinellas
County. With it will come a new
sense of
community pride along with national
prestige and publicity."
We urge supporters to again
spread the word to anyone they know
that the Belleview Biltmore needs
investors to help purchase the
hotel. Have them contact us at
http://www.savethebiltmore.com.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
We urge the current owners
of the hotel to have Christmas
spirit this season and finally
DO THE RIGHT THING!
We hope they join in with
Belleview Biltmore Partners to find
solutions to enable them to purchase
the hotel. What better gift can
the owners give than the gift of
saving history! What better
legacy can the owners leave
their families than doing the right
thing! What better way to
honor their own heritage and
upbringing than by acting in good
spirit! Restoration of the
Belleview Biltmore Hotel is
unquestionably the highest and best
use of the property. It will
create new jobs, provide tax
revenue, new business opportunities,
increase property values while
enriching the lives of Belleair
residents and surrounding
communities plus save a vital piece
of Belleair and Florida history.
It would be a win-win solution for
all and the best Christmas ever!
We hope you join us and become a member
this month. We have five levels,
Copper, Bronze, Silver, Gold and
Platinum with a variety of gifts
included for each. Our Online Gift Shop
is fun to explore for yourself or to
purchase a special gift for someone
else. We have much more than what
you see above including Biltmore tote
bags, mouse pads, greeting cards,
calendars, license plates, sterling
chains, cufflinks, tie tacks, money
clips and a variety of Biltmore artwork.
To go directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year
membership will be given to anyone
purchasing any of our special Biltmore
jewelry!
To help us continue to save and preserve
the Belleview Biltmore Hotel for another
100 years, you may make a donation, any
amount. Donations are secure, and
you may donate by PayPal, credit or
debit card.
If you would prefer to give a
donation by check, make it payable
to our nonprofit organization: Save
the Biltmore Preservationists and
send it to:
Save the Biltmore
Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North
#107
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
Save the
Biltmore
Update/Newsletter
---
Thursday, August
22, 2013
Hello
Biltmore
Supporters,
News
Media
and
Others,
The
current
hotel
owners,
the Ades
Brothers
of KAWA
Capital
again
are
trying
to
demolish
the
historic
Belleview
Biltmore
Hotel.
They
presented
a plan
to
Belleair
officials
on
August
6, 2013
to
demolish
the
hotel
and
erect 32
townhomes
and 136
condominiums.
The town
of
Belleair
passed a
historic
preservation
ordinance
in 2005
with
massive
community
support
for the
saving
of this
Victorian
icon.
The town
also has
a
Comprehensive
Plan
which
supports
saving
of the
hotel.
For KAWA
to
demolish
the
Biltmore,
town
officials
would
have to
be
receptive
to
changing
the
preservation
ordinance!
What was
the
point of
THEIR
passing
the law
only to
rescind
it!
Town
Manager
Micah
Maxwell
and City
Attorney
David
Ottinger,
who said
the
property's
current
land use
and
zoning
designations
and
height
restrictions
as well
as
Belleair's
Comprehensive
Plan
prohibit
the
Belleview
Biltmore
Hotel
owners
or
developers
from
proposing
any plan
other
than
hotels
or
single-family
homes.
Development
of
multi-family
units
would
require
a zoning
change
to the
site.
Commissoner
Steven
Fowler
cast the
lone
vote out
of
Belleair
town
officials
to NOT
look
into
zoning
changes.
So we
thank
him for
his
continued
and
never-ending
support
for the
hotel!
As we
have
done in
the
past, we
continue
to
support
Belleview
Biltmore
Partners
in their
efforts
to buy
and
restore
the
Biltmore.
We
encourage
the
public
to
attend
Belleair
town
meetings
as the
topic of
the
future
of the
Belleview
Biltmore
will be
coming
up in
the
coming
weeks
and
months.
We ask
for your
continued
support.
There is
a
Historic
Preservation
Board
meeting
this
coming
August
27, 2013
4:00
PM-5:00
PM at
the Town
Hall
Auditorium,
Belleair
Florida,
901
Ponce de
Leon
Blvd.
Belleair,
FL
33756.
Feel
free to
attend
this
meeting
and
voice
your
concern
and
support
for the
saving
of the
Biltmore!
http://www.townofbelleair.com/
for
other
contact
information.
For
future
meeting
dates go
to their
web site
and
click
under
"Agendas
and
Minutes."
FINAL
THOUGHTS
We urge
everyone
to talk
to as
many
people
as you
can,
email
this
Update
to
everyone
you know
to AGAIN
bring
awareness
that the
beautiful
Belleview
Biltmore
Hotel is
again
under
threat
of
demolition. Restoration
of the
Belleview
Biltmore
Hotel is
unquestionably
the
highest
and best
use of
the
property.
It will
create
new
jobs,
provide
tax
revenue,
new
business
opportunities,
increase
property
values
while
enriching
the
lives of
Belleair
residents
and
surrounding
communities.
We hope you
join us and
become a
member this
month.
We have five
levels,
Copper,
Bronze,
Silver, Gold
and Platinum
with a
variety of
gifts
included for
each. Our
Online Gift
Shop is fun
to explore
for yourself
or to
purchase a
special gift
for someone
else.
We have much
more than
what you see
above
including
Biltmore
tote bags,
mouse pads,
greeting
cards,
calendars,
license
plates,
sterling
chains,
cufflinks,
tie tacks,
money clips
and a
variety of
Biltmore
artwork.
To go
directly to
the shop
click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an
honorary one
year
membership
will be
given to
anyone
purchasing
any of our
special
Biltmore
jewelry!
To help us
continue to
save and
preserve the
Belleview
Biltmore
Hotel for
another 100
years, you
may make a
donation,
any amount.
Donations
are secure,
and you may
donate by
PayPal,
credit or
debit card.
If you
would
prefer
to give
a
donation
by
check,
make it
payable
to our
nonprofit
organization:
Save the
Biltmore
Preservationists
and send
it to:
Save
the
Biltmore
Preservationists
30725
U.S.
Highway 19
North
#107
Palm
Harbor,
FL
34684
Save the Biltmore
Update/Newsletter
--- Saturday,
October 13, 2012
Hello Biltmore
Supporters, News
Media and Others,
Miami Architect
Richard Heisenbottle
and his group,
(Belleview Biltmore
Partners) were
unable to come up
with the money to
close and
purchase the
Belleview Biltmore
Hotel last week.
The current owner of
the hotel, KAWA
Capital has
unfortunately filed
a DEMOLITION PERMIT
for the hotel with
Belleair as a
result.
However the good
news is that
Belleview Biltmore
Partners are STILL
proceeding to find
investors to
purchase the hotel
by end of this
year.
Per the October 9,
2012 Wall Street
Journal article this
week by Kris Hudson,
"Architect Richard
Heisenbottle and his
two partners, have
hired Miami
investment bank CGI
Merchant Group LLC
to raise capital for
buying the hotel and
restoring it to is
former glory.
"The group so far has
assembled nearly $25
million through a
federal investment tax
program for historic
buildings, and Mr.
Heisenbottle anticipates
landing a $75.5 million
construction loan. He
still is canvassing
potential investors for
as much as $16 million
in equity contributions,
he said."
If anyone reading this
article is interested in
becoming an investor
with Belleview Biltmore
Partners so that the
Biltmore may be saved,
PLEASE
CONTACT ME IMMEDIATELY!
Diane Hein, President of
Save the Biltmore
Preservationists.
Please email this
Update to as many
people and news
media across the
country you know to
spread the word that
the Biltmore is
AGAIN in
jeopardy of
demolition and
Belleview Biltmore
Partners needs their
help to purchase the
hotel by the end of
THIS year, 2012!
There are three
excellent newspaper
articles that go
into extreme detail
about what is
happening about the
hotel and also the
owner's attempt to
avoid fines that
have collected since
they purchased the
hotel, to read them
simply click on our
media link:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreNewspapersAndPublications.htm
They are from the
Belleair Bee by
Brian Goff, Tampa
Bay Times by Terri
Bryce Reeves and the
Wall Street Journal
by Kris Hudson.
FINAL THOUGHTS
We urge everyone to
talk to as many
people as you can,
email this Update to
everyone you know to
AGAIN bring
awareness that
the beautiful
Belleview Biltmore
Hotel is again under
threat of demolition
and Belleview
Partners needs more
investors to
purchase the hotel.
URGENCY IS
TOP PRIORITY!
Sincerely,
Diane
Hein
President,
Save the
Biltmore
Preservationists
We hope you join us and
become a member this
month. We have
five levels, Copper,
Bronze, Silver, Gold and
Platinum with a variety
of gifts included for
each. Our Online Gift
Shop is fun to explore
for yourself or to
purchase a special gift
for someone else.
We have much more than
what you see above
including Biltmore tote
bags, mouse pads,
greeting cards,
calendars, license
plates, sterling chains,
cufflinks, tie tacks,
money clips and a
variety of Biltmore
artwork. To go
directly to the shop
click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary
one year membership will
be given to anyone
purchasing any of our
special Biltmore
jewelry!
To help us continue to
save and preserve the
Belleview Biltmore Hotel
for another 100 years,
you may make a donation,
any amount.
Donations are secure,
and you may donate by
PayPal, credit or debit
card.
If you would prefer
to give a donation
by check, make it
payable to our
nonprofit
organization: Save
the Biltmore
Preservationists and
send it to:
Save the
Biltmore
Preservationists
30725 U.S.
Highway 19 North
#107
Palm Harbor, FL
34684
Save the Biltmore Update/Newsletter
-- Sunday, September 9, 2012
Hello Biltmore Supporters, News
Media and Others,
We're
happy to
announce
that the
vote for
the tax
abatement
to help
Belleview
Biltmore
Partners
was
positive
again
with a
3/2 YES
vote!
This was
the
second
and
final
reading
for
approval
to an
ordinance
in
Belleair
that
would
allow a
tax
abatement
for
historical
buildings
(like
the
Biltmore). Belleair
already
had the
abatement
for
historic
residential
properties.
The vote was again the same, Mayor Katica NO, Commissioner Kevin Piccarreto NO, Vice Mayor Steve Fowler YES, Commissioners Tom Shelly YES and Michael Wilkinson YES.
Belleview Biltmore Partners can apply for the tax exemption on up to 100 percent of the value of the improvements for up to 10 years AFTER their renovations are completed. A negotiation process would determine the dollar amount of the exemption and the number of years.
We want to thank Belleair elected officials for working so diligently on this tax abatement issue for so many weeks and also to thank all of our Biltmore supporters who either wrote letters to them or attended the last two meetings in support of the tax abatement.
The hotel purchase by Belleview Biltmore Partners is this October 1, 2012 when the six-month contract that was signed March 30, 2012 ends.
PHOTOS
Below is a wonderful photo of the historic Belleview Biltmore Hotel 1976 golf package pamphlet sent to us by supporter Virginia Vass whose father Edmund O'Connor, was golf pro at the Belleview Biltmore. His photo below is from the late 1920's, 1930's.
We hope you join us and become a member
this month. We have five levels,
Copper, Bronze, Silver, Gold and
Platinum with a variety of gifts
included for each. Our Online Gift Shop
is fun to explore for yourself or to
purchase a special gift for someone
else. We have much more than what
you see above including Biltmore tote
bags, mouse pads, greeting cards,
calendars, license plates, sterling
chains, cufflinks, tie tacks, money
clips and a variety of Biltmore artwork.
To go directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year
membership will be given to anyone
purchasing any of our special Biltmore
jewelry!
To help us continue to save and preserve
the Belleview Biltmore Hotel for another
100 years, you may make a donation, any
amount. Donations are secure, and
you may donate by PayPal, credit or
debit card.
If you would prefer to give a
donation by check, make it payable
to our nonprofit organization: Save
the Biltmore Preservationists and
send it to:
Save the Biltmore
Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North
#107
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
Save the Biltmore
Update/Newsletter
--Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Hello Biltmore Supporters,
News Media and Others,
WONDERFUL NEWS!
A quick update, I know many
of you are waiting for
results! At last
night's Belleair commission
meeting, there was a three
out of five "YES!" vote on
the first reading of the
ordinance to change it
include historic commercial
properties (such as the
Biltmore) to have a tax
advantage with what is
called a tax abatement. I
want to thank everyone who
took the time to come out
and speak or show your
support at last night's
meeting!
This is how the vote went:
Mayor Gary Katica
NO
Commissioner Kevin
Piccarreto NO
Commissioner and Vice
Mayor Steve Fowler
YES!
Commissioner Tom Shelly
YES!
Commissioner Mike Wilkinson
YES!
So a special THANK YOU to
Commissioners Fowler, Shelly
and Wilkinson for their
support of the tax abatement
issue on the first reading!
The SECOND reading of the
tax abatement Ordinance No.
480 will be on
Tuesday, September 4, 2012.
Meeting starts at 5:30 pm
at the Belleair town hall at
901 Ponce de Leon Blvd.
There are still people
in people who shockingly
want the hotel NOT
saved! One person
even mailed out a flyer
trying to discourage
people from saving the
Biltmore! You and our
nonprofit must press on
to show our support for
the hotel for
these misplaced
naysayers!!
These negative people
have continued to grow
stronger in Belleair, so
we MUST speak up and out
over them as I have said
many times now!
We STILL need people to
attend the upcoming meeting
in Belleair in September to
make sure there are three
YES! votes for the second
reading!
Belleair town hall: 901
Ponce de Leon Blvd.
Belleair, Florida.
The town commissioners in
Belleair have the authority
to accept or deny the tax
abatement for the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel. Urge them to
vote "YES!" on the tax
abatement for the second
reading! The tax
abatement will allow
Belleview Biltmore Partners
to receive tax relief for
ten years after the
renovations are completed.
This will save them
thousands of dollars that
can be used to make the
hotel
financially successful.
Should Belleair officials
vote YES! in September for a
final vote, the ordinance
would become effective 30
days after the final reading
and adoption.
Belleview Biltmore Partners
six month contract ends the
last day of September to
purchase the Biltmore so it
is imperative they receive
this tax abatement!
Again many many
thanks to all of you for
your continued support!
SAVE THE BILTMORE
MEMBERSHIPS
Become a member of
nonprofit organization
today! We have
five levels of
membership, Copper, $50,
Bronze $100, Silver $250
Gold $500 and Platinum
$1,000. For
example, the $50 Copper
Membership includes
this:
Copper Membership
a.
Biltmore T-shirt, choice
of one, either the
watercolor design by
Janice James OR a
T-shirt with photo of
the hotel
b.
Biltmore calendar
c.
Biltmore bookmark
d.
Certificate, blue or
sepia with your name or
company name
e.
Fold-over holder for
certificate
All of us at Save the
Biltmore
Preservationists work to
save the Biltmore
strictly as volunteers
taking NO salaries.
The money from our
memberships have
helped to pay for
advertisements, web site
support, promotional
materials, running our
online gift shop etc. to
keep the message of the
Biltmore loud and
strong:
We hope you join us and become a
member this month. We have
five levels, Copper, Bronze,
Silver, Gold and Platinum with a
variety of gifts included for
each. Our Online Gift Shop is
fun to explore for yourself or
to purchase a special gift for
someone else. We have much
more than what you see above
including Biltmore tote bags,
mouse pads, greeting cards,
calendars, license plates,
sterling chains, cufflinks, tie
tacks, money clips and a variety
of Biltmore artwork. To go
directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year
membership will be given to
anyone purchasing any of our
special Biltmore jewelry!
To help us continue to save and
preserve the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel for another 100 years, you
may make a donation, any amount.
Donations are secure, and you
may donate by PayPal, credit or
debit card.
If you would prefer to give a
donation by check, make it
payable to our nonprofit
organization: Save the Biltmore
Preservationists and send it to:
Save the Biltmore
Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North
#107
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
Save the Biltmore
Update/Newsletter -- Sunday,
August 19, 2012
Hello Biltmore Supporters, News
Media and Others,
IMPORTANT MEETING THIS TUESDAY,
AUGUST 21, 6:30 P.M.
Please come to the Belleair town
hall meeting at 901 Ponce de
Leon Blvd,
Belleair, Florida to encourage
Belleair officials to say "YES!"
to the
tax abatement so the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel and golf course
will be saved. More below
on this.
HISTORIC BOARD OF BELLEAIR
This week I heard about the
disastrous decision of the
Historic Board on the tax
abatement issue. At first I was
so overwhelmed and very saddened
that a historic board was trying
to destroy a historic hotel,
their hotel! Then I recalled
that back in 2004, they again
failed to help the
Biltmore. They had the
opportunity back then to work on
developing a preservation
ordinance for Belleair that
would save the Biltmore. Did
they do that back then? NO.
Nothing from them. These past
seven years of a long nightmare
for both Belleair, the community
and us could have all been
avoided had they done their
jobs!
Thank goodness for Sam Casella
who found Nancy Stroud. What is
the Historic Board's purpose
then if it is not to help
Belleview Biltmore Partners who
will not only save the Biltmore
but will also save the golf
course from development now that
the moratorium has
expired. KAWA will not only
destroy the Biltmore but will
destroy the golf course
and Belleair will have condos or
townhomes on each piece of
property. Whether these will be
filled or sold below market
value, one does not know. Do
Belleair commissioners and
Mayor realize this? Apparently
both the Finance Boards and the
Historic Boards failed to
realize the horrible outcome if
this tax abatement is not given
the green light.
FURTHER
REASONS TO PASS
THE HISTORIC TAX
EXEMPTION
Both State of
Florida and
Pinellas County
law regarding
tax exemption
for historic
structures are
very specific as
to application
and use. There
is an
entire committee
that will
oversee the
review process.
This same law
exists
throughout
Florida. In
fact, it already
exists for
residential
structures in
the Town of
Belleair.
Why should the
law not apply to
commercial
properties? It
does everywhere
else.
This tax
exemption
program is
supposed to be
an incentive for
historic
property owners
to encourage
them to invest
in and restore
their property.
Where is the
incentive if you
make a property
owner go through
what Belleview
Biltmore
Partners is
going through
now? There
is none. The
only incentive
is to demolish
the historic
hotel and sell
the property for
condo
development!!
Where is the
waste of time
for the city to
pass the
exemption???
This is supposed
to be an
incentive, to
encourage the
property owner
to do the right
thing, restore a
priceless piece
of Florida
history even if
that restoration
costs more than
that of new
construction.
Many in town are
missing the most
important matter
at hand.
Without the
incentive -
Belleview
Biltmore
Partners may be
unable to secure
financing for
the project and
have to withdraw
its purchase
offer, leaving
the fate of BOTH
AND I REPEAT
BOTH the
Biltmore Hotel
and Biltmore
Golf Course in
jeopardy. Rest
assured that the
next developer
to come along
will NOT be
restoring the
hotel and
enhancing the
golf course. He
will be
developing 500
condo units on
both properties.
RICHARD
HEISENBOTTLE OF
BELLEVIEW
BILTMORE
PARTNERS
Here is more
information
about why Mr.
Heisenbottle,
architect, has
been and will be
the BEST choice
along with his
two Belleview
Biltmore
Partners, Hector
Torres and
Charles
Kropke for
buying and
renovating the
hotel. From his
web site:
Mr.
Heisenbottle has
more than 30
years of
experience in
all aspects of
architecture and
interior design.
His background
encompasses
governmental,
education,
healthcare,
commercial and
historic
preservation
projects both in
Miami and New
York. In
1987, he formed
his own firm and
has been
responsible for
numerous
large-scale
developments
throughout the
tri-county area
and the
southeastern
United States.
He is currently
a registered
architect in 5
states and was
accorded the
Silver Medal
from the AIA in
2003. He was
elected to the
AIA College of
Fellows in
February 2005.
Today, Mr.
Heisenbottle’s
firm is well
known in South
Florida for the
historic
preservation of
some of the
area’s oldest
and most
prestigious
buildings
including the
Gusman Center
for the
Performing Arts,
The Colony
Theater, the
Freedom Tower
and the Miami
Edison Middle
School. He
serves as Vice
President of the
Dade Heritage
Trust and has
been a member of
the City of
Miami’s
Preservation
Board for over
10 years. As an
alumnus of the
University of
Miami, he is
continuously
active in the
School of
Architecture and
serves as a
guest lecturer
in historic
preservation.
Mr.
Heisenbottle’s
projects have
been widely
publicized in
Architectural
Record, the
League of
Historic
American
Theaters,
Florida
Caribbean
Architect, and
Preservation
Today. He has
received
numerous awards
for Excellence
in Architecture
from the Florida
Association of
the American
Institute of
Architects and
the Miami
Chapter of the
American
Institute of
Architects, and
is the recipient
of an
Outstanding
Preservation
Project Award
from the Florida
Trust.
THE
YOUNGER GENERATION AND THE BELLEVIEW BILTMORE
We need the
younger generation to continue to support the Biltmore. Many children have
visited the hotel and if your child, teenager or grandchild has, please have
them come to the meeting on Tuesday at 6:30 to speak how they want the Biltmore
saved for their generation. Over the years I have received wonderful
letters from adult supporters who spent vacations at the Biltmore as a child,
and they still remember fondly the grand lady! There are already some
children planning on speaking Tuesday but we need many more! Please help
us, they can speak for less than a minute or the full three minutes. We
encourage
teachers to have
their students ask their parents to come to the meeting so they can speak. My
late husband Ed Jameson and former vice president always felt that we need the
younger generation involved in the hotel, so now is their chance!
.
EDITORIALS
SUPPORTING THE
BELLEVIEW BILTMORE
Below are some
excellent editorials
both by the Tampa
Bay Times (our major
Pinellas County
daily newspaper) and
Biltmore supporters
that I feel are
important to read:
Tampa Bay Times
Editorial, April
2012
Even in its sad
state of disrepair,
Belleair's shuttered
Belleview Biltmore
Hotel remains one of
the grande dames of
Florida
architecture. While
the
hotel has faced
demolition several
times in recent
years, Coral Gables
architect Richard
Heisenbottle has
emerged as the
property's best hope
of
avoiding the
wrecking ball and
being restored.
Heisenbottle blends
a
reputation as an
innovative architect
with a passion for
the historical
significance of the
Biltmore, and this
may be the last
viable shot at
saving it.
Built by railroad
tycoon Henry B.
Plant in 1897 and
spread over 4 ½
stories and 820,000
square feet, the
Biltmore is the
largest wood frame
structure in Florida
and recalls an era
of old-money
elegance. The
hotel's
guest list includes
presidents such as
Barack Obama, George
H.W. Bush,
Jimmy Carter and
Gerald Ford, and
other figures such
as Babe Ruth, Joe
DiMaggio and Bob
Dylan. The Biltmore
is on the National
Register of
Historic Places, but
restoring the "White
Queen of the Gulf"
has proven to
be a year's long
struggle.
With a crumbling
roof and other
problems, the
Biltmore was closed
in 2009
and marked for
demolition. Now
Heisenbottle and
other investors have
come
forward to sign a
purchase agreement
with the hotel's
latest owner, BB3
Holdings LLC.
Heisenbottle has six
months to secure
financing and design
the building's
restorations. Good
intentions could
still collide with
balance sheet
realities; the
project could cost
more than $145
million.
Local
preservationists
have fought the good
fight. Heisenbottle
and his
team may be the last
best hope.
Belleair Bee
July 31, 2012
Letter to the Editor
In the committee’s
opinion, the full
restoration of the
hotel, as
proposed by the
Biltmore partners,
and its projected
future expansion,
represent, in the
long run, the best
opportunity to
maximize revenues to
the town through
water and electrical
fees and, once the
abatement expires,
huge increases in ad
valorem property
taxes, far more than
any other
suggested use. In
addition, Pinellas
County would begin
to benefit
immediately from
sales and bed taxes
generated by the
economic engine of
an
elegant, dynamic
restored Belleview
Biltmore.
And, of course, what
many have always
considered to be the
soul of the town
would be brought
back to life,
providing fine
dining, remarkable
venues for
meetings and social
events, and an
historic destination
site for
conventions,
seminars and
conferences,
stunning
architecture and fun
for
the family.
Some who oppose the
Hotel – even though
they have not
offered an
alternative – want
you to question the
economic viability
of the project.
Suffice it to say,
the partners and
their lenders are
willing to assume
that risk as
evidenced by their
investment of both
time and money, and
that
the most highly
respected consulting
firm in the domestic
hotel business
has thoroughly
studied the project
and concluded it can
be successful.
We urge you to keep
these things in mind
as the issues of tax
abatement and
restoration of the
hotel come before
the Town Commission
in the coming
weeks.
Jim Betts, Belleair,
Florida
Belleair Bee
August 7, 2012
Letter to the Editor
The people who want
the resort envision
the renewal not only
of the
structures, but the
renewal of local
economic activity
not seen in our
lifetime in this
town. In addition,
it will restore the
unique and
distinctive
character to our
town of Belleair. It
is safe to say, that
if
this idea succeeds,
we will have in our
midst a commercial
enterprise that
will rival any
similar enterprise
in the country, or
in the world for
that
matter. Truly, this
is the town’s chance
of the town’s
lifetime.
In recalling the
comments made that
night by the folks
who don’t want the
resort, their
strategy seems to
be, how can we delay
moving forward with
this project. The
last time this
strategy was used
was when the
previous
project people were
taken to court with
a frivolous lawsuit
resulting in
the buyers dropping
the project.
The loss of revenue
to the town as a
result of the
five-year inactivity
should be
recalled. Their
anti-resort proposal
is nothing more than
a vague idea,
which will require
the town to change
codes and demolish
the structures
without any hope of
even approaching the
revenue that will be
generated by
a successful
enterprise like the
resort. Of course,
they may then step
in and
save the day by
buying the
undeveloped land at
fire sale prices.
What a
thoughtful thing to
do for the good of
the town! Yes,
people like that
live among us.
Ken Keating,
Belleair, FL
PROSPERITY
and PRESTIGE for
BELLEAIR
Belleair Bee
August 15, 2012
Letter to the Editor
The Mayor and
Commissioners of
Belleair should be
thrilled that
finally
someone, with the
expertise, is
willing to undertake
the restoration of
the
hotel. Instead
of constantly
repeating BIG
NUMBERS to the
residents of
Belleair, why not
talk in terms that
everyone can relate
to. IF the hotel
is restored and IF a
100% tax abatement
is granted, it would
mean $200 per
household in more
taxes per year.
I think if people
realized what the
huge
numbers that keep
jumping out at them
really amount to,
most would be
willing to give that
additional money
over a 10 year
period.
Naturally, it may
not even be a 100%
tax abatement that
is granted
(this would be
decided at the time)
and therefore it may
be even less than
$200. The $200
figure was given by
the Commission,
based on the current
millage. Also,
the Mayor (who seems
like he is looking
for a good excuse to
vote NO), has become
all nervous about
the golf course
being mentioned for
development (none of
us want that)
however the
developers have said
that if the
commission grants
the tax relief
(which does not get
done unless the
hotel gets restored)
then they will
commit to not
developing the golf
course. It
surely would be a
crime to miss this
opportunity to bring
prosperity and
prestige to our town
of Belleair. I
hope the Mayor and
Commissioners can
see their way clear
to follow the wishes
of the people and
vote YES on August
21st.
Karmen & TC Hayes,
Belleair
And a witty one from
way back in 2004!
Unfortunately the
former mayor of
Belleair, George
Mariani Jr,
mentioned below, is
one of the most
negative
forces in Belleair,
leading the way with
his brother to
destroy the hotel.
By the way these
negative two men
were allowed by some
twisted Belleair
official logic to
speak longer than
the three minutes
allowed by other
citizens at the
Belleair town
meeting on August 7
!!!!.
These two men are
NOT a formal group,
they are simply
average Belleair
citizens and yet
they
were allowed to
speak on and on and
on and on with
unlimited minutes!!
Where was the
fairness?
Is favoritism an
issue because Mayor
Katica who
in recent years does
NOT support saving
the hotel and lives
next door to
the former mayor!?
Tampa Bay
Times (then the St.
Petersburg Times,
December, 2004
Letter to the Editor
Condos, townhouses
no match for site's
beautiful
architecture
Thank goodness for
the development
firms (my comment:
KAWA Capital is
current owner, and
if Belleview
Biltmore Partners
does not buy the
Biltmore, KAWA is
planning to destroy
the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel and
sell off the golf
course) I was
concerned about the
shortage of upscale
condominiums and
townhouses in
Pinellas County!
Why should we try to
preserve a
historical and
beautiful piece of
architecture when we
instead can have
condos that only the
wealthy can afford?
Shame on you,
Belleair Mayor
George Mariani Jr.,
for making a
statement referring
to the Belleview as
an "economic
burden." I doubt
seriously that the
area surrounding the
hotel and the
country club is in
economic despair, in
need of increasing
the property values.
I am sure that the
Belleview Biltmore
will be destroyed
(note: editorial
written back in
2004) and new
development will
replace the
historical monument.
This not only means
that many devoted
hotel employees will
lose their jobs, but
the citizens of
Pinellas County will
be losing one of the
few remaining pieces
of history that we
have.
By the way, I would
be willing to place
a Vegas bet that one
of the first people
to buy one of the
luxury condos will
be none other than
Mayor Mariani.
-- Caroline Hart,
Clearwater
Here are some good
quotes from a Tampa
Bay radio station:
"The Belleview
Biltmore could still
fall victim to the
wrecking ball. Tom
Shelley, a Belleair
city commissioner,
said plans to
demolish the hotel
are
still on the back
burner. “It is
somewhat contentious
and they’re (KAWA
Capital) moving
forward with their
demolition permit as
plan B. If the hotel
re-development
doesn’t happen, they
plan to come to us
with a demolition
request.”
But as long as that
request can be
staved off by the
Belleview Biltmore
partners, Shelley
said he looks
forward to the
finished product.
“They envision it as
a $146 million
remodel with LEED
certified – at
least gold – with
very effective
energy efficient
appliances,
insulation
throughout.”
Shelley and his wife
were married at the
Biltmore, so he has
a vested
interest in seeing
it restored. And he
admitted he’d like
many more
couples to be able
to have their
weddings in it.
Charles Kropke, one
of the three
Belleview Biltmore
Partner investors,
works for a company
in Coral Gables that
saved another
Biltmore Hotel. Now
he said that
location welcomes
Presidents, Senators
and other
dignitaries
on a regular basis.
“People couldn’t
figure out how it
would ever make any
money. It
wasn’t located on
the beaches. It was
an old hotel. It had
a lot of
challenges. It had
had multiple owners.
Promise after
promise, commission
after commission,
group after group
and still the
wrecking ball
threatened
it. A group of local
investors got
together. They did a
renovation. They
failed. Another
renovation was up.
People were tired.
They were saying,
‘I think it’s time’.
And a second
renovation happened
and that
renovation held.”
FINAL
THOUGHTS
Tuesday is an
extremely important
day for the
Belleview Biltmore
Hotel! BE
THERE at the
Belleair town hall
at 901 Ponce de Leon
Blvd. at 6:30 p.m.
We need people of
all ages to speak at
this meeting,
children, young
adults, middle aged
and seniors to
convince Belleair
officials that
saving the Biltmore
hotel and the golf
course by giving
this tax abatement
will ultimately
give Belleair and
Pinellas County
prestige and
prosperity.
Time is of the
essence, we are down
to the wire!
With Richard
Heisenbottle's
wealth of successful
historic
preservation
projects, BBP is the
best buyer and
renovation
specialist the
Biltmore can have.
Help them, help the
Biltmore,
help Pinellas
County, help
Belleair and
help save history!
Sincerely,
Diane Hein
President, Save the
Biltmore
Preservationists
We hope you join us and become a
member this month. We have
five levels, Copper, Bronze, Silver,
Gold and Platinum with a variety of
gifts included for each. Our Online
Gift Shop is fun to explore for
yourself or to purchase a special
gift for someone else. We have
much more than what you see above
including Biltmore tote bags, mouse
pads, greeting cards, calendars,
license plates, sterling chains,
cufflinks, tie tacks, money clips
and a variety of Biltmore artwork.
To go directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year
membership will be given to anyone
purchasing any of our special
Biltmore jewelry!
To help us continue to save and
preserve the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel for another 100 years, you may
make a donation, any amount.
Donations are secure, and you may
donate by PayPal, credit or debit
card.
If you would prefer to give a
donation by check, make it payable
to our nonprofit organization: Save
the Biltmore Preservationists and
send it to:
Save the Biltmore Preservationists
30725 U.S. Highway 19 North
#107
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
Save the Biltmore Update/Newsletter -- Friday, August 17, 2012
Hello Biltmore Supporters, News Media and Others,
CIVIC PRIDE MEANS SAVING THE BELLEVIEW BILTMORE!
A big thank you to everyone who attended one or more
of the Belleair meetings in August, either the
Finance Board meeting or the Commission workshop
meeting last week. Also a big thank you
to those of you who sent emails to Belleair town
officials to show your support for the tax abatement
issue that will help Belleview Biltmore Partners
after the restoration is complete.
First the shocking news: Both the
Finance Board and of all boards, the Historic
Preservation Board voted 4-1 to NOT approve the
abatement on Monday and this past Wednesday.
Their reasons being they wanted more financial
information from Belleview Biltmore Partners.
RIDICULOUS! Investors want to keep their names
and financial information private until after the
sale, what in the world are these boards thinking!
THEY ARE WRONG WRONG WRONG! These boards
are obviously short sighted and fail to have any
CIVIC PRIDE in their town, their history or the
hotel. They have a wonderful chance to save
all of it, and they blew it. So it's up to the
Mayor and Commissioners to be smarter, wiser,
maintain the integrity and CIVIC PRIDE of Belleair
now and forever.
Investors need PROOF from town officials that they
are willing to help with the saving of the hotel
with the tax abatement. Why would they invest
anything or reveal confidential financial
information until they feel the town wants to save
their own hotel! Yet these two boards
and some of the other town officials want all this
PRIVATE financial information beforehand. This
makes no sense, we all know how private people are
about money, how many of you go around telling
everyone your salary?
What in the world will happen to Belleair if the
Biltmore is not saved? I keep hearing that
Belleair will just fade away into oblivion and get
absorbed into Clearwater. Does Belleair really
want this to happen? Of course not, so
it's time a "YES!" vote is passed by the
commissioners to save this priceless historic icon,
their icon!
The commissioners discussed the issue to a packed
town hall last Tuesday, and this coming Tuesday,
August 21, there will be a first reading of an
ordinance that is being written. I hope of
course this will eventually lead to a "YES" vote for
the passage of the tax abatement. By the end
of the evening last week, the commissioners agreed
to have the issue discussed again at the next
meeting on Aug. 21 in the form of an ordinance.
Thank goodness! Some evidence of their CIVIC
PRIDE! Possibly, the request for the tax exemption
could be defeated if the ordinance is not passed.
Commissioner Steven Fowler noted that time was
running out after there was there was discussion
that perhaps the item just come back for discussion
without a vote. Then there would not be a vote until
the next commission meeting in September, and by
September 30, BBP is to officially purchase the
Biltmore.
It is imperative that the Mayor and Belleair
commissioners see the importance of this abatement
and the importance of saving their own hotel, both
for financial reasons and for historic reasons.
Eventually they will receive more money from taxes
to pay for Belleair's infrastructure, more jobs and
more prestige for them and their town in saving a
historic hotel. CIVIC PRIDE!
Because of this VERY TIGHT SCHEDULE we encourage
everyone who lives locally to attend this EXTREMELY
important commission meeting and speak up to pass
this ordinance. For those of you who are may
not know what to say, simply go to the meeting and
say you love the hotel and wish for the tax
abatement to be passed so the Biltmore may be saved.
SHORT AND SWEET!
For those of you who wish to speak the full three
allowed minutes, feel free to give more reasons why
you feel the hotel should be saved and for anyone
with a financial background, give reasons why it
makes financial sense for Belleair to save its
hotel. DOLLARS AND CENTS NOW MEANS MORE
DOLLARS AND CENTS FOR BELLEAIR LATER!
BELLEAIR TOWN HALL ADDRESS
Town Hall: 901 Ponce de Leon Blvd., Belleair, FL
33756 TIME: 6:30 P.M. All
commission meetings will begin at 6:30 p.m. from now
on.
TAX ABATEMENTS IN OTHER TOWNS/CITIES
I did some research on other towns/cities who passed
tax abatements, and found these examples.
These towns/cities realized the importance of giving
tax abatements, so please urge Belleair officials to
do the same this coming Tuesday at 6:30 p.m.
If you note, the FIRST example sent to me by
Biltmore supporter and Belleair resident Laurie
Adams, is right here in Clearwater, VERY smart
CLEARWATER officials! Are they smarter than
the two Belleair boards who are destroying their
historic icon and town?
"There is a wonderful article in Clearwater section
of Tampa Bay Times LOCAL ECONOMY RIDES HIGH ON
'Dolphin Tale'. Mr. Kosove, of Alcon
Entertainment, a very successful movie maker,
came to FL and made the movie - the main reason he
was able to complete that very successful movie . .
. TAX CREDITS! Quote "the $42 million
movie would never have been made without $5 million
in tax breaks from Florida"
The average age of a dolphin is 20 to 25 years.
Winter the famous dolphin in the movie is now six
years of age. If saved this year, the iconic White
Queen of the Gulf, the Belleview Biltmore, can live
another 100 years.
Is Winter more important than the Belleview
Biltmore? You decide.
Here are some of the results of my internet research
this week:
http://www.ktre.com/story/16773600/lufkin-city-council-approves-renovation-of-angelina-hotel
Lufkin City Council approves renovation of Angelina
Hotel 2012
LUFKIN, TX (KTRE) - Lufkin City Council is giving
the go-ahead for the renovation of the historic
Angelina Hotel in downtown. Landmark Development
applied to the city's tax abatement program for the
project. The city is approving a 100-thousand dollar
grant to go along with the 500-thousand dollars the
development company will spend on façade work.
Lufkin city leaders say it's a great way to continue
the rejuvenation of downtown Lufkin.
http://www.local12.com/news/local/story/Cincinnati-Enquirer-Building-May-Have-New-Use/nssUw0xui0m2Tz5sT01xoA.cspx
Many people know it as the old Cincinnati Enquirer
building on Vine Street. The vacant historic
building in the heart of the central business
district might soon have a new use. The plan is for
a boutique hotel. Local 12's Paula Toti says a
recently approved tax abatement may pave the way for
the project. A name hasn't been
announced for the hotel, but it would be leed
certified, energy efficient, with a 7-million dollar
tax abatement over 12 years. The city's finance
committee has given it the green light.
http://www.nbcwashington.com/the-scene/real-estate/Tax-Abatement-for-Luxury-Hotel-112601944.html
When the District of Columbia is facing a budget
deficit of $400 million or more, should it sign off
on a $46 million tax abatement for a luxury hotel in
the hip Adams Morgan neighborhood? The debate has
raged on the Columbia Heights listserv for several
weeks. The D.C. Council approved the abatement
just before the end of its 2010 session. Ward 1’s
Jim Graham, the force behind it, said the abatement
“is good news for our neighborhood and the city. It
will bring substantial new daytime commerce to Adams
Morgan. It will provide $7 million in new tax
revenue. It will provide hundreds of construction
and hotel jobs to Ward 1 and city residents.” The
agreement also preserves the historic First Church
of Christ Scientist.
http://adamsmorganhistorichotel.com/index.php/faqs#qa17
re Adams Morgan Historic Hotel
In December 2010, the D.C. Council incorporated
legislation into its 2011 budget that provides the
hotel owner with property tax abatement to enable
the hotel to be built and the Church building to be
revitalized. The D.C. Council only voted to
pass the property tax abatement following a vote of
the Adams Morgan Advisory Neighborhood Commission
(ANC 1C), which supported the property tax abatement
in a public vote during a special meeting in
December 2010. PKF estimated in 2010 that the
Adams Morgan Historic Hotel will directly generate
an estimated $5.1 million of occupancy, income and
sales taxes to D.C. from the first year of its
opening. The Adams Morgan Historic Hotel will
exceed the LEED Silver Certification criteria and
will be Washington’s first truly green hotel.
http://www.nedco.org/node/553
The City of Nacogdoches (Texas) offers tax
abatements to historic structures located in
Downtown Nacogdoches. The City of
Nacogdoches may grant tax abatement on the increment
in value added to a particular property by a
specific development proposal that meets the
economic goals and objectives of the city. The tax
abatement applies to both exterior and interior work
on a building located within the Downtown Historic
Overlay District.
http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2009/11/tudor_arms.html
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Work is under way to transform a
landmark building at the edge of University Circle
into a 154-room 1931 hotel, with a vintage swimming
pool, a wood-paneled lobby and a floor of restored
ballrooms and event spaces. Overcoming a lending
crunch, the Maron family aims to return the former
Tudor Arms Hotel to its forgotten glory -- as a
Doubletree hotel that could open in spring 2011. The
developers, best known for remaking East Fourth
Street, bought the building in 2007 from Case
Western Reserve University and are tackling a $22
million project there. The city approved a 10-year,
60-percent property tax abatement for the project.
http://articles.kwch.com/keyword/tax-incentives/recent/2
Historic Wichita Broadview Hotel grand opening after
renovations October 19, 2011
The Drury Plaza Hotel Broadview in Downtown Wichita
reopened Wednesday afternoon after $25 million in
renovations. The landmark hotel has been through a
number of additions since the first owners broke
ground in September 1921. Celebrities like Charles
Lindbergh and Amelia Earhart were said to have
stayed at the hotel. IRB authority, the City
will grant a 100% 5+5-year property tax abatement
for the hotel to the maximum extent allowed by law.
And one of the most interesting:
https://secure.forumcomm.com/?publisher_ID=22&article_id=94327&CFID=55225058&CFTOKEN=48446061
June 6: Kandiyohi County approves tax abatement for
Lakeland Hotel project in downtown Willmar, Minn.
Published 06/06/2012, West Central Tribune
WILLMAR — The Kandiyohi County Board of
Commissioners unanimously approved a 15-year tax
abatement Tuesday that could help make the
redevelopment of Willmar’s downtown historic
Lakeland Hotel financially feasible. The county
action follows a 4-3 vote Monday night by the
Willmar City Council — at the end of a nearly
two-hour debate — to approve the same 15-year
abatement request. The Lakeland Hotel, which has
been determined eligible for listing in the National
Register, was nominated to the 10 Most Endangered
Historic Places list this year along with the nearby
Habicht’s Department Store and a former drug store
next to the Barn Theater. Each building contributes
to the historic fabric of downtown Willmar, but the
Lakeland Hotel is the only local remaining example
of a “railroad hotel,” a significant building type
in this former railroad hub in central Minnesota."
(Remember readers that Henry B. Plant, railroad
magnet built the Belleview Biltmore with a train
station right at the hotel, thus helping to
establish Pinellas County and of course Belleair,
Florida!)
The Belleview Biltmore train coming into the hotel.
Vintage photo. This train brought tourists
from the northern States to Florida and helped
establish Pinellas County and Belleair, Florida,
where the Biltmore resides.
Another earlier Biltmore train leaving the hotel.
Note that guests were dropped off right at the front
door entrance of the hotel! Take a long
look at the early Belleview Biltmore, its beautiful
architect, HISTORY MUST BE SAVED!
FORMER HISTORIC CENTRAL HOTEL, GALION, OHIO
For those of you doubters who cannot visualize the
Biltmore being renovated into a majestic hotel,
think again! See a 150 year old historic hotel
in Galion, Ohio which had deteriorated beyond belief
with a huge hole in its roof to now being restored
so residents can live there! While it was not
saved as a hotel, the point is that its strong 150
year old "bones" were saved and made into senior
citizen apartments with the historic look preserved.
Just take a look at the photos to see what a massive
beautiful restoration that was done! Hats off
to Galion, Ohio! Tremendous CIVIC PRIDE saved
this historic building!
NOTE THE VERY LAST LINE IN THIS PARAGRAPH!
Quote from Galionguy.com: "Did you ever think
this day would come? Linda and Pauline never gave
up. Here they share the honor of "cutting the
ribbon." They represent so many that did a lot of
work to get this day to happen. The local people
tried to stress this in the remarks preceeding the
the above ceremonal opening of the Central Hotel
Apartments. One of Linda's comments was "The Square
just wouldn't have been square without the hotel."
And Belleair just wouldn't be the same Belleair
without the Biltmore!
Quote from Galionguy.com: An early
morning picture taken late this summer and
THANKFULLY the South West corner of the Square still
looks like it has for the last 100 years. Had Jack
Shrode not come in and immediatly started shoring up
floors and walls this corner of the Square would now
be a parking lot. It wouldn't have made it past that
first winter's spring thaw. But, we still have it
and it remains one of our key community icons.. the
Square, the Hotel building, the Galion Theatre and
the Big Four Train Station."
Note the CIVIC PRIDE in Galion, Ohio! Where in
the world is the CIVIC PRIDE in Belleair if the
Biltmore is not saved!
ONE-MINUTE EMAIL CAMPAIGN:
If you have not already done so, please take just
ONE MINUTE and send an email to Belleair officials
to show your support and that you want the hotel to
be saved and the tax abatement be approved.
Even if you have already sent an email send the one
below! Time is running out. Remember that Belleview
Biltmore Partners can renovate the hotel, but they
need your support NOW! If the abatement
is not approved, the Biltmore may not be saved!
YOU MUST UNDERSTAND THIS! You can use the form
letter below, write your own or send the form email
below plus a paragraph or so of your own additional
thoughts. Does not matter, what matters is
YOUR ONE MINUTE SUPPORT!
By passing the tax abatement, you will help save
your White Queen of the Gulf for your town and also
for everyone who loves this hotel and wants it to be
restored. Many other towns and cities have
passed such tax abatements previously to save
historic buildings/hotels, and by voting "YES!" on
this issue, you also can keep Belleair's prestige
intact, provide jobs for hundreds of people, and
provide extra tax revenue in the long run to provide
the infrastructure funds for your town. There
is no guarantee that townhomes will sell at a
certain price in Belleair to provide the funds you
need. By becoming a world class resort, the
Belleview Biltmore will give you a strong tax base
in the long run to provide the financial structure
you need for your town. Keep your CIVIC PRIDE
intact in Belleair! Save your hotel. A
YES VOTE FOR AD VALOREM TAX EXEMPTION STATUS FOR THE
BELLEVIEW BILTMORE IS A YES VOTE FOR THE
PRESERVATION OF OUR HISTORY!
Sincerely,
WHAT IS AT STAKE?
At the end of March, 2012 Belleview Biltmore
Partners stalled the inevitable pursuance of the
demolition permit by KAWA indicating BBP's intent
through the purchase of a six-month exclusive option
to purchase the property for restoration. This
is the LAST CHANCE to preserve the only real value
the town has to offer. Without it the entire
town's structure may be jeopardized. It's the
peoples' choice. Belleair citizens need to
realize their town is at stake here!
When Belleview Biltmore Partners saves the hotel,
they will also save the golf course from
development! And for those of you who
remember, back in 2005, hundreds of people stormed
the Belleair town hall to protest the development of
the Biltmore golf course on Indian Rocks Road when
DeBartolo wanted to redevelop it. Listen up
people, this is going to happen unless YOU come out
and convince the commissioners that they need to
save the hotel, thus saving the golf course and thus
saving the town of Belleair. If we lose
Belleair, the Biltmore and its golf course, this
will negatively affect the entire residential
community including surrounding communities.
FINAL THOUGHTS
The end of the six month contract signed by BBP to
purchase the Belleview Biltmore Hotel is coming to a
close in just one month's time! The end of
September. It is IMPERATIVE they receive the
tax abatement that will allow them tax reductions
for ten years after the renovations are complete.
If they fail to obtain this tax abatement, there is
no guarantee they will find other investors in such
a short time, the purchase will not go through, and
the Biltmore will be in serious, serious, serious
jeopardy once again. We have a once in a lifetime
opportunity to save the hotel RIGHT NOW, THIS YEAR!
If not, then the current owners, KAWA Capital, will
again try to demolish the hotel with a demolition
permit and would sell off the golf course to
developers for residential development. And no
matter what you have heard or read, Belleview
Biltmore Partners want to not only save the hotel
but also save the Biltmore golf course. So
this is a call of UTMOST URGENCY AGAIN! Tell all
your friends and neighbors to either write emails to
the commissioners or attend the meeting. CIVIC
PRIDE PEOPLE, CIVIC PRIDE! Be there this
coming Tuesday, August 21 at 6:30 p.m. at the
Belleair town hall to continue to show your
enthusiasm, passion and support for this wonderful
hotel you and I love so much!
We hope you join us and become a member this month. We have
five levels, Copper, Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum with a
variety of gifts included for each. Our Online Gift Shop is fun to
explore for yourself or to purchase a special gift for someone else.
We have much more than what you see above including Biltmore tote
bags, mouse pads, greeting cards, calendars, license plates,
sterling chains, cufflinks, tie tacks, money clips and a variety of
Biltmore artwork. To go directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year membership will be given to anyone
purchasing any of our special Biltmore jewelry!
To help us continue to save and preserve the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel for another 100 years, you may make a donation, any amount.
Donations are secure, and you may donate by PayPal, credit or debit
card.
If you would prefer to give a donation by check, make it payable to
our nonprofit organization: Save the Biltmore Preservationists and
send it to:
Save the Biltmore Preservationists
30617 U.S. 19 North #420
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
Save the Biltmore Update/Newsletter -- Monday July 30, 2012
Hello Biltmore Supporters, News Media and Others,
This month of August is an EXTREMELY IMPORTANT month for
the Belleview Biltmore Hotel!
I urge all of you to either attend one or both of
the meetings in Belleair in August or send an email to
the Mayor and commissioners in regards to the final
steps towards the saving of the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel.
Belleair officials including the Finance Board are going
to be making a decision on the tax abatement issue,
which would allow Belleview Biltmore Partners (BBP) tax
relief for ten years after their renovations on the
hotel are completed.
Currently, homeowners in Belleair are the only ones
allowed tax relief for up to ten years, but only if they
spend money to restore or preserve a historic home.
This tax relief only happens after the preservation
project is completed, and it also only affects the
increased value of the property. BBP wishes the
same historic tax abatement on the Belleview Biltmore as
homeowners once BBP finishes their renovations of of the
Biltmore and its surrounding cottages.
Because the tax abatement will cost some money to
Belleair's revenue, the issue is going to be first
discussed by the Finance Board Monday, August 6 at 4
p.m. I strongly urge YOU to attend this first
important meeting in Belleair to show your support to
this Board that it is important that the Biltmore be
saved! Convince this Finance Board that the
Biltmore MUST BE SAVED! The historic preservation
ordinance was passed in 2005 to SAVE THE BILTMORE, and
you and I must press on to keep the ordinance intact and
preserve this beautiful historic hotel. There is
NO other Belleview Biltmore Hotel! The Finance
Board will then give their opinion to the commissioners
in regards to the tax abatement, so it is so important
that you come to this first meeting! Belleair
commissioners and mayor will be meeting the next evening
at 5:30 on August 7 to discuss the tax abatement keeping
in mind the recommendations of the Finance Board so
PLEASE come to this second meeting also!
There are some people in Belleair who unfortunately
are pushing to destroy the vision of BBP and the
Biltmore by objecting to this tax abatement so it is
IMPERATIVE THAT YOU COME TO ONE OR ALL OF THESE
MEETINGS! You must be heard OVER them!
The Belleair Town Hall is located at, 901 Ponce de Leon,
Belleair, FL, 33756 and/or send letters of support to
that address or email them, addresses below.
FINANCE BOARD MEETING: Monday, August 6, 2012, 4:00 p.m.
TOWN COMMISSION MEETING: Tuesday, August 7, 2012, 5:30
p.m.
TAMPA'S FLORIDAN HOTEL
Tampa's historic 1927 Floridan Hotel has been in the
local news lately. It had its grand opening this
weekend to a select few and already is sold out for the
Republican National Convention in August. It was
on the brink of destruction and abandoned for nearly two
decades, crumbling at the seams so to speak with parts
of the roof caving in, chickens flying in and nesting
there. Below are some links that show the terrible
condition it was in and how the vision of one man,
Antonios Markopoulos, believed it could be saved and
restored to its original glory.
We know that Belleview Biltmore Partners, Richard
Heisenbottle, Hector Torres and Charles Kropke have that
same vision for the historic Belleview Biltmore which is
in similar condition as the Floridan was and yet CAN BE
RESTORED no matter what you see on TV or read in the
newspapers! I am including a number of links just
to show you how this hotel was successfully restored
just like the Biltmore will be when BBP finishes their
renovations.
Olympia Development decided to save the historic Safety
Harbor Spa due to the public outcry about the Biltmore
back in 2005, and now the historic Floridan Hotel in
Tampa is saved. We must push forward to save
Biltmore history for all generations.
Certainly Belleair must NOT be outdone by Safety Harbor
or Tampa!
I am counting on you as staunch Biltmore supporters to
keep pressing on this August for a final push to help
BBP and the Biltmore. So many of you have written over
the years how you had weddings there, went to parties,
vacations, conventions, and you look forward to the
hotel being restored in a historic setting and beautiful
Belleair. The six-month contract to buy the
Biltmore must be signed by the end of September, so we
NEED YOUR HELP NOW!
SAVE THE BILTMORE FLYER--URGENT!
There is a flyer for you to print and post in areas
where people are local enough to attend these important
meetings. Libraries, the Biltmore condos, gas
stations, coffee shops, offices, retail stores, car
windows, home windows, the mall, etc, any public place
would be great places to post a flyer. It will
help bring awareness to the hotel as well as help people
attend these important meetings. Bring it to the
meetings and show it or hand it to the Finance Board or
the commissioners!
ONE-MINUTE EMAIL CAMPAIGN
We encourage everyone both RESIDING IN OR LIVING OUTSIDE
OF BELLEAIR to write or email the Finance Board and
Belleair officials and urge them to continue to vote
"YES!" on the tax abatement!
So no matter where you live here in the USA or other
countries, write your own email or feel free to use the
sample copy below, three short paragraphs.
Just ONE MINUTE of your time could go a long way in
helping to save the White Queen of the Gulf.
Belleair officials: Mayor Gary Katica,
Commissioners Stephen Fowler, Tom Shelly, Kevin
Piccarreto and Michael Wilkinson and Town Manager, Micah
Maxwell
(The Finance Board members can be reached at that last
email address to Donna Carlen.)
Dear Belleair Officials:
Restoration of the Belleview Biltmore Hotel is
unquestionably the highest and best use of the property.
It will create new jobs, provide tax revenue, new
business opportunities, increase property values while
enriching the lives of Belleair residents and
surrounding communities. Please vote "YES!" on the
tax abatement so Belleview Biltmore Partners can obtain
valuable tax relief for ten years after the renovations
are completed.
The historic preservation ordinance in 2005 was passed
to SAVE THE BILTMORE. One of the goals of the
Comprehensive Plan of the town of Belleair is "the
preservation of the Belleview Biltmore Resort
Hotel." The Florida Trust preservation
organization,
www.floridatrust.org, recommends that the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel be preserved. The National Trust
organization,
www.nationaltrust.org, recommends that the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel be preserved. Now is the time to keep
pushing forward to save this historic icon.
We are all counting on you to complete the task that was
started in 2005 so the historic Belleview Biltmore can
have that second chance at greatness.
Sincerely,
FACEBOOK: Join us, Save the
Biltmore Preservationists on Facebook at:
FINAL THOUGHTS
One last chance everyone! Now is the
time to show your dedicated support! Come to
the meetings in August, convince the Finance Board
to save the Biltmore, convince the commissioners to
vote "YES!" on the tax abatement and send emails
NOW! Wear your Save the Biltmore T-shirt,
bring signs or print the flyer to hold at the
meetings and have a loud and strong message:
"SAVE THE BILTMORE!" Call on your neighbors
and friends to come with you. The White Queen of the
Gulf needs you more than ever!
We hope you join us and become a member this month. We have
five levels, Copper, Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum with a
variety of gifts included for each. Our Online Gift Shop is fun to
explore for yourself or to purchase a special gift for someone else.
We have much more than what you see above including Biltmore tote
bags, mouse pads, greeting cards, calendars, license plates,
sterling chains, cufflinks, tie tacks, money clips and a variety of
Biltmore artwork. To go directly to the shop click:
http://savethebiltmore.com/BelleviewBiltmoreStore.htm
Remember: an honorary one year membership will be given to anyone
purchasing any of our special Biltmore jewelry!
To help us continue to save and preserve the Belleview Biltmore
Hotel for another 100 years, you may make a donation, any amount.
Donations are secure, and you may donate by PayPal, credit or debit
card.
If you would prefer to give a donation by check, make it payable
to our nonprofit organization: Save the Biltmore
Preservationists and send it to:
Diane S. Hein, President
c/o Save the Biltmore Preservationists
30725 U.S. 19 North #107
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
Now send an email to Belleair officials to vote "YES!" on the tax abatement!
Save the
Biltmore
Update/Newsletter
--
Saturday
July 14,
2012
Hello
Biltmore
Supporters,
News
Media
and
Others,
FLORIDA
TRUST
FOR
HISTORIC
PRESERVATION
Earlier this year we submitted the paperwork to Florida Trust for Historic Preservation for the Belleview Biltmore Hotel to be nominated for Florida's Eleven Most Endangered Historic Sites. I am pleased to announce that in May, as part of Florida Trust's Annual Statewide Preservation Conference, they announced that the Belleview Biltmore was chosen to be on this list. From Florida Trust's web site: "Most Endangered Historic Sites program is designed to increase the public’s awareness of the urgent need to save Florida’s neglected or threatened historic resources. We do that to empower local preservationists and preservation groups in their efforts to preserve Florida’s rich history." To view the listing on Florida Trust click: http://www.floridatrust.org/endangered-sites/belleview-biltmore-resort-and-spa Thank you Florida Trust!
RENOVATION PLANS
Click below to view beautiful and exciting Richard Heisenbottle's architectural renovation plans for the Belleview Biltmore. He is part of the three-person team, Belleview Biltmore Partners, (BBP) who have signed the contract in April 2012 to purchase the hotel by the end of September 2012.
Rendition
of
the
future
Belleview
Biltmore
Hotel
reflecting
pool
and
East
Wing
PAST NEWS
Since my last update, Belleair Commissioners voted yes to extend the development order for BBP to proceed with their renovation plans. There was a huge crowd of about 120 who attended, and we wish to thank everyone for coming to this most important meeting to show your support for the hotel and also for Richard Heisenbottle, Hector Torres and Charles Kropke of Belleview Biltmore Partners. It was a very exciting night of support!
In April 2012, a Belleair consultant determined that the current Biltmore owners (KAWA Capital) were allowing the Belleview Biltmore to NOT be properly maintained and were allowing the hotel to be undergoing "demolition by neglect." The owners were already being fined $250 a day for failing to fix the hotel's dilapidated roof. Back in April they owed more than $226,000. Coral Gables architect Richard Heisenbottle of BBP who hopes to buy and restore the hotel as noted above, said his team from South Florida was not discouraged.
He
said,
"We
knew
going
into
this
there
was
a
tremendous
amount
of
restoration
work
that
had
to
be
done."
Since
then
BBP
group
have
dropped
two
parts
of
their
renovation
plans
for
the
Biltmore
that
were
in
discussion
for
months.
They
withdrew
their
request
for
the
town
of
Belleair
to
establish
a
Community
Redevelopment
Area
on
the
20-acre
property.
Also,
the
BBP
for
now
eliminated
a
new
"east
wing"
they
had
said
they
would
build
next
to
the
old
hotel.
The
number
of
hotel
rooms
would
then
be
reduced
from
460
to
312
on
the
redeveloped
property.
On
Thursday,
Heisenbottle
said
BBP
will
apply
for
an
existing
Pinellas
County
program
that
provides
tax
exemptions
for
10
years
to
those
who
restore
historic
properties
in
communities
that
have
qualifying
ordinances.
Belleair
will
have
to
amend
its
ordinance
to
allow
historic
commercial
properties
to
have
this
tax
exemption.
If
you
wish
to
read
all
the
details
on
what
a
CRA
is
and
a
TIF
(Tax
Increment
Financing),
and
the
past
discussions
that
are
no
longer
applicable,
please
read
the
recent
following
articles:
"Like" us on Facebook! Remember that the BEST
way to receive ALL my Biltmore Updates is
through our mailing list! NOT Facebook who
arbritrarily decides on who shall receive them,
often based on how many "friends" you have!!!
