by Beth Kassab | May 11, 2024 | City Commission, Election, News, Uncategorized
Minors told police campaign treasurer offered them $50 for 50 of opponent's signs
The campaign treasurer for Craig Russell denied he had any involvement in the incident in an interview with detectives detailed in newly released records
May 11, 2024
By Beth Kassab
Newly released police records provide more details of the allegations that teenagers were offered money to steal campaign signs, leading to three misdemeanor charges against Christopher Hoats, campaign treasurer for Commissioner Craig Russell.
Four minors interviewed separately by Winter Park Police provided consistent accounts of what happened, police said. Two of the boys identified Hoats from a photo line-up and said he was the person who approached them on March 21 as they were skateboarding outside Floyd’s Barbershop in Maitland. The boys said Hoats offered to pay them $50 to steal 50 of Jason Johnson’s campaign signs, according to the document.
The incident occurred as Johnson and Russell were two days into a heated runoff contest for Seat 2 on the City Commission.
Three misdemeanor charges against Hoats — two counts of contributing to the dependency or delinquency of a minor and one count of petit theft — were made public for the first time last week after Hoats was issued a summons to appear in the case.
Hoats did not respond to messages seeking comment from the Voice. Russell, who did not respond to messages seeking comment, released a statement to the Orlando Sentinel last week that said he is “deeply concerned” about the allegations and noted that his campaign has not been accused of any wrongdoing.
One of the boys, who was interviewed by police at his school on March 29, told the detectives that the man said he “was going to pay me to steal signs in Winter Park,” according to a capias request, which details probable cause in the case for the State Attorney.
“The man told us to steal these signs that had Jason Johnson on the signs,” the boy said. ” It was for a city election if I’m not mistaken. He told us the other candidate was stealing his signs so he ran out from the barbershop and asked if we were willing to steal signs for some cash.”
Two boys identified Hoats from a photo lineup, according to the document.
They also told police the man gave them his Instagram account and showed the account to police.
On April 2, police also obtained video footage from the barbershop and observed Hoats at the business on March 21 and also verified with employees that he had a haircut scheduled for that day.
The report goes on to say that detectives went to Winter Park High School, where Hoats helps coach football, in an attempt to talk with Hoats, but learned he is not a teacher and was not at the school.
Police then arranged to meet Hoats at the police department on the afternoon of April 2.
According to the report, Hoats told police he coaches high school football and did not recall any juveniles who were skateboarding. Later he said he recalled speaking with kids outside the barbershop and “immediately stated that he spoke to the juveniles about a local city election.”
He asked the kids who they were voting for and who their parents are voting for, the report stated.
“He stated they were younger; and that it was a ‘harmless conversation,” according to the report, and asked police if the kids were “stealing campaign yard signs.” Police noted that they had not mentioned “campaign signs” to Hoats, only “signs.”
Police asked Hoats why he would want to follow someone he did not know on Instagram after he noted one of the boys sent him his Instagram profile.
“Yeah to tell them who to vote for, who not to vote for, this is who we’re going up against, this is our competition,” Hoats responded, according to the report.
Hoats told police he did not encourage the kids to steal signs and was not a “kingpin” and “that no one asked him to have the signs stolen, he only informed the juveniles not to vote for Jason Johnson and to vote for Craig Russell.”
“Here’s the good guys, here’s the bad guys,” Hoats said, according to the report, and denied offering the kids $1 for every sign they stole.
The report goes on to describe how police arrived at Winter Park High School on April 8, eight days before the runoff election, in an attempt to talk with the candidate, Russell. The school resource officer took police to the gym and football coach’s office, but they learned Russell was not there.
Police later arranged to speak with Russell at his house and he told them that he contacted Hoats to tell him police had been at the school looking to speak with him.
Russell told police that “when he began the campaign he had little knowledge about the political makeup of the city and how involved people were, or the extent people would go to to make things up,” according to the report.
Russell also told police that he gave his campaign volunteers rules and told them not to touch the signs of his opponent.
“Mr. Russell further stated he did not have time to conspire to get kids to take signs,” the report stated.
Russell told police that Hoats served as his campaign treasurer but had asked Hoats to step away during the runoff portion of the campaign because Hoats had become too busy.
“Craig Russell repeatedly stated there was no way Christopher Hoats would have sent the juveniles to take the signs, and believed his opponent’s supporters were involved with this incident,” the report stated. “… He found it suspicious this occured after he won the general election.”
Russell won the April 16 election by 34 votes and was sworn in on April 24.
Winter Park Police concluded there was enough evidence to turn the case over to the state attorney, though the date that occured is unclear from the records.
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by Beth Kassab | May 10, 2024 | City Commission, Election, News
Russell responds to allegations against treasurer
The new city commissioner told a newspaper he is ‘committed to upholding ethical and legal obligations’
May 10, 2024
By Beth Kassab
Craig Russell said Friday that he is “deeply concerned” about allegations against his campaign treasurer, Christopher Hoats, who he called a “good friend and fellow educator.”
Three misdemeanor charges against Hoats became public this week when he was issued a summons to appear on two counts of contributing to the dependency or delinquency of a minor and one count of petit theft related to soliciting minors to “steal campaign signs in exchange for money,” according to court documents reported first by the Voice on Thursday.
In emailed comments to the Orlando Sentinel, Russell said Hoats “served for a period of time as our campaign treasurer,” though there does not appear to be a public filing with Winter Park’s clerk to show he was ever removed from that role.
Craig Russell
“We do want to make it very clear that we have always been committed to upholding ethical and legal obligations in all our actions. Neither we nor the campaign have been accused of any contrary conduct, nor are we aware of any such conduct,” he said in the statement to the newspaper he signed along with his wife Kate Demory, who served as deputy treasurer.
Russell, who was sworn in last month after winning the April 16 runoff by 34 votes, did not respond to multiple messages from the Voice and canceled a scheduled interview with this reporter on Friday regarding an unrelated topic.
The court documents and a heavily redacted police report provide few details about the evidence or circumstances in the case, which stems from an incident on March 21, two days after the first election in Winter Park and as the runoff between Russell and Jason Johnson was underway.
Hoats, 33, who has worked as a non-faculty coach at Winter Park High School, where Russell is also a teacher and a coach, did not respond to a phone call and email requesting comment. His arraignment is scheduled for June 7.
A Winter Park Police report from the date of the incident describes how a witness called police after she saw a group of kids taking Johnson’s campaign signs from yards as she was driving in Winter Park.
Nancy Elizabeth Cocchiarella, who is named in the court documents, was a volunteer for Johnson’s campaign who called police after she noticed signs, including her own, removed.
She stated she “saw the signs under the arms of [redacted],” and “she let her window down and told [redacted] and [redacted] to just put the signs back, and the juveniles kept riding on their skateboards.”
The report stated that the signs promoted Johnson’s campaign.
Officers eventually caught up with two of the juveniles, who called two other juveniles and asked them to come back to the area of Magnolia Avenue and Sunnyside Drive, according to the report.
At that point the narrative becomes heavily redacted except to describe that all four juveniles were, at one point, at a barbershop in Maitland.
None of the publicly available documents explain how or if the young people know Hoats or any details related to the offer to steal signs described in the court documents.
Hoats signed all of Russell’s campaign finance reports filed with the city clerk through March 15. The final two reports were signed by Demory, Russell’s wife who served as his deputy treasurer.
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by Beth Kassab | May 9, 2024 | City Commission, News
Craig Russell's campaign treasurer charged with asking minors to steal political signs
The incident occurred just days into the runoff between Russell and Jason Johnson, according to court records and a heavily redacted police report
May 9, 2024
By Beth Kassab
Christopher Hoats, who served as campaign treasurer for new Commissioner Craig Russell, is facing three misdemeanor charges related to soliciting minors to “steal campaign signs in exchange for money,” according to court documents.
Records say Hoats is charged with two counts of contributing to the dependency or delinquency of a minor and one count of petit theft related to the alleged theft of Jason Johnson’s campaign signs that occured on March 21, two days after the first election in Winter Park and as the runoff between Russell and Johnson was underway.
The court documents and a heavily redacted police report provide few details about the evidence or circumstances in the case.
Hoats, 33, who has worked as a non-faculty coach at Winter Park High School, where Russell is also a teacher and a coach, did not immediately respond to a phone call and email requesting comment. He was issued a summons to appear in the case this week.
Russell, who won the April 16 runoff by 34 votes and took office last month, also did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Ryan Williams, chief assistant state attorney, said he could not provide any details about the charges because the case is still open and active.
Johnson said he was disheartened to learn about the case and would like more questions to be answered.
“I was very disappointed to learn about this when it happened and while there remain lots of unanswered questions about the extent of who was involved, who knew what and when and whether my opponent’s campaign funds were used, I made the conscious decision not to turn this alleged incident into a campaign issue before the runoff election date,” Johnson said on Thursday.
A Winter Park Police report from the date of the incident describes how a witness called police after she saw a group of kids taking Johnson’s campaign signs from yards as she was driving in Winter Park.
Nancy Elizabeth Cocchiarella, who is named in the court documents, was a volunteer for Johnson’s campaign who called police after she noticed signs, including her own, removed.
She stated she “saw the signs under the arms of [redacted],” and “she let her window down and told [redacted] and [redacted] to just put the signs back, and the juveniles kept riding on their skateboards.”
The report stated that the signs promoted Johnson’s campaign.
Officers eventually caught up with two of the juveniles, who called two other juveniles and asked them to come back to the area of Magnolia Avenue and Sunnyside Drive, according to the report.
At that point the narrative becomes heavily redacted except to describe that all four juveniles were, at one point, at a barbershop in Maitland.
None of the publicly available documents explain how or if the young people know Hoats or any details related to the offer to steal signs described in the court documents.
Hoats signed all of Russell’s campaign finance reports filed with the city clerk through March 15. The final two reports were signed by Kathleen Demory, Russell’s wife who served as his deputy treasurer.
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by Beth Kassab | May 4, 2024 | City Commission, Library, News
Will city expand parking at Library & Events Center?
Discussion expected at Wednesday’s meeting as city also considers lease to allow the Alfond Inn to use the old library as a valet lot
May 4, 2024
By Beth Kassab
Finding a parking spot at the Winter Park Library & Events Center is a growing challenge and commissioners this week will consider options to add new spaces while maintaining amenities at MLK Park, which serves as the backdrop to the buildings.
Staff is recommending a plan known as “Option B,” which would add 49 new parking spaces, but require the demolition of a 60-year-old rental space called Lake Hall Island near the corner of Harper Street and New England Avenue on the south side of the park.
It’s possible the facility could be preserved, but that would mean the park would lose its croquet court, which has a small, but loyal following, according to a report by city staff. Moving the croquet court elsewhere would be costly, according to the memorandum.
The cost of the staff recommendation to demolish Lake Hall Island and add additional parking spaces is estimated at about $618,000.
At least three other options exist ranging from just 14 new spaces at about $209,000 to building a new parking garage to add more than 200 new spaces at a cost of $8 million.
Meanwhile, the city is looking to formalize an arrangement that would allow the adjacent Alfond Inn to use the parking lot at the old and now vacant library building as valet spaces.
Commissioners will consider leasing the 69 spaces to Rollins College, which operates the Alfond, for $45 each per month. The total rent would be about $3,000 each month.
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by Beth Kassab | May 4, 2024 | City Commission, News, Uncategorized
Other Florida cities issues dozens of citations for gas leaf blowers
While Winter Park will put its ordinance banning the devices to a voter referendum, some cities are enforcing rules against the noisemakers
May 4, 2024
By Beth Kassab
Bill Quinsey hears more about leaf blowers than just about anyone else in Florida, where the deafening gas-powered devices turned into a political rallying cry during the latest session of the state Legislature.
Quinsey, the code compliance manager in Naples, oversees a team that has issued 74 citations and 230 written warnings to people using the banned devices in the southwest coastal town of about 20,000 people.
“Leaf blowers are probably our No. 1 complaint [from residents] now that it’s on the books,” Quinsey said. “Some landscapers adopted it pretty quickly and others were struggling and had to get multiple citations.”
The noise, he said, is at the root of the complaints and also what drove the city to pass an ordinance that took effect in 2021 against the gas-powered machines as well as electric versions that exceed 65 decibels.
The city suspended the ordinance for about eight months during cleanup efforts after Hurricane Ian, he said, but began enforcement again about a year ago.
Education, including signs and emails directly to landscape companies, are a big part of the effort.
“We’re up to 300 unique landscapers we’ve contacted,” he said. “As soon as we get everybody on board, we get new people” who move businesses in to Naples.
Naples, in conservative Collier County where Republicans outnumber Democrats by more than two to one, is just one of the Florida cities already enforcing such an ordinance while a state senator turned Winter Park’s version of a ban into the latest poster child against “government overreach.”
The Winter Park City Commission voted last month to let voters decide next year whether its ban — originally passed in 2022 but not yet enforced — will stay on the books.
Naples isn’t alone.
The town of Palm Beach, known as home to the estate of former President Donald Trump, also prohibits gas leaf blowers, along with South Miami, Key Biscayne, Pinecrest and Miami Beach among others.
Since Feb. 1, 2022, Miami Beach, for example, has conducted 675 service calls related to leaf blowers, including complaints and proactive inspections. During that time, the city issued 21 written warnings and 56 violations.
“We’ve seen many benefits since transitioning away from gas-powered leaf blowers, including less noise and no longer needing to utilize gas and oil,” said Melissa Berthier, spokeswoman for the city of about 80,000.
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by Beth Kassab | Apr 27, 2024 | City Commission, News, Uncategorized
Craig Russell sworn in and voters will decide next year on gas leaf blower ban
The newest commissioner took his seat just as one of the city’s most controversial issues came up for a vote
April 25, 2024
By Beth Kassab
Voters will decide next year whether Winter Park will keep its ban on gas-powered leaf blowers after two tense and divided votes Wednesday that included new Commissioner Craig Russell for the first time.
The debate highlighted the power of the mayor’s role on the board — steering the debate and casting the final vote — with new Mayor Sheila DeCiccio twice breaking a 2-2 tie.
She ultimately sided with allowing voters to have a say about the ban on the March 2025 ballot, when the seats belonging to commissioners Todd Weaver and Kris Cruzada will also be up for election.
Russell and Cruzada cast votes in favor of the referendum while Weaver and Sullivan voted against it.
“At the end of the day, there was such division,” DeCiccio said after the meeting. “After listening to residents on both sides, the voters have to make this decision. Nobody wanted the referendum … the landscapers didn’t want it, but this way — one way or the other — it’s decided.”
From left to right: Marty Sullivan, Craig Russell, Sheila DeCiccio, Kris Cruzada and Todd Weaver.
Just before the vote, Russell attempted to table the matter and order city staff to draw up a new ordinance that would repeal the ban on gas-powered leaf blowers that the City Commission passed unanimously in 2022.
“I’m not going to tell a police officer what kind of gun to buy or a firefighter what kind of hose to buy,” Russell said, noting that he saw it as “obvious” that residents do not want the ban.
Frank Hamner, the attorney for the Holler family, which were among Russell’s biggest campaign donors, watched the meeting closely from the audience and stood up twice to speak in support of motions Russell attempted to make.
“How many man hours have you wasted on this thing?” Hamner, who until last week wasn’t a regular attendee at commission meetings, asked the board about the leaf blower discussion. “If you can’t, as a government, accept oversight or criticism you’re in the wrong business.”
Russell’s motion lost in a 3-2 vote with only Cruzada supporting his effort.
Weaver, who earlier in the meeting was elected as the new vice mayor and was on the commission when the ban was first passed in 2022, explained that the rule came about because of noise, health and safety concerns.
Leaf blowers, like many gas-powered machines, emit known carcinogens. They are also the loudest lawn equipment used on a daily basis.
“They aren’t ‘suspected’ to be cancer-causing, they are cancer-causing,” Weaver said, showing slides from several national studies.
The city’s ban was set to take effect in June, 30 months after it was originally passed, to give landscape companies and residents time to transition to electric models.
But in January the landscape companies organized and complained that they hadn’t had enough time and that the transition was too expensive and detrimental to their small businesses.
“I understand these electric leaf blowers are going to have to be purchased,” Weaver said. “But I don’t think it’s at all fair for the rest of us to subsidize extremely expensive health care when there’s something we can do about it.”
Sen. Jason Brodeur, who represents Winter Park, but calls Seminole County home, seized on the issue as an example of local government overreach even though a number of Florida cities already have similar bans.
Brodeur took up the landscape companies’ cause and threatened to pass a state law to prohibit such a ban if Winter Park did not place the issue on next year’s ballot for voters to decide, according to City Manager Randy Knight, who negotiated the arrangement with him.
Despite that agreement Brodeur inserted language into the state budget, which still hasn’t been signed by the governor, that prohibits cities from enacting or amending gas-powered leaf blower ordinances until next year after the results of a $100,000 study he ordered.
Weaver said he objected to state dollars going toward a study that he considered redundant after a number of other studies have already been done on the topic.
Cruzada defended the new study saying new data is needed. He also noted that the commission’s ordinance came about near the height of the pandemic when more people were working from home and complaining of the constant noise from leaf blowers and suggested those complaints have mostly passed.
Voters will now get to settle the debate on the March 11, 2025 ballot.
Moments after the leaf blower discussion, Russell asserted his new influence once again during the hearing of an ordinance to clean up language regarding how mixed-uses are defined within the Orange Avenue Overlay.
He pointed out where the word “commercial” was stricken and said, “I just think it’s a mistake,” because the word commercial was repeated again later.
Hamner took the microphone for a second time to support Russell’s comment.
“I fear if you take ‘commercial’ out where it’s stricken, it’s going to lack clarity going forward,” he said.
The planning director and DeCiccio explained that the change was to add more specific language about how “commercial” is defined so that developers understand what “mixed-use” means.
Craig Russell shares a moment with his family just after taking the oath of office.
When the McCraney building was up for debate a few months ago it was the first new development to be approved under the new Orange Avenue Overlay rules and there was discussion about whether two different types of offices could constitute “mixed-use,” such as a bank without tellers and a real estate office.
Russell then moved to amend the language with a suggestion from the planning director to add even more specificity, which was approved by the rest of the commission.
Earlier in the meeting he officially took the oath of office with his family by his side after winning the run-off against Jason Johnson by 34 votes.
“I’m just so proud to get to meet and work with so many talented people,” he said at the end of the meeting, noting that he would like to create a youth advisory board or find other ways to incorporate new voices into city government. ” On the record, I have to thank my family — the army I have, my kids and my wife — I wouldn’t be here without them.”
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