PITTSBURGH, August 13, 2009 - - State Senator Jim Ferlo (D-Lawrenceville) began reaching out to local officials in May with concerns for balancing public safety needs and the protection of 1st Amendment rights during the September G-20 Summit.
This week the Senator was denied a Special Events Permit for an application that would encompass the City-Side Festival Grounds Park area. The permit request was denied because the city police and the Secret Service want to the use the Park and the Fort Pitt Museum as a staging area for their operations, including helicopter landings.
“Protecting civil liberties and maintaining public safety are one in the same – we cannot have one without the other,” Ferlo said.
He continued, “All public space in the United States is guaranteed use for 1st Amendment activities under the Constitution. There may be a need to restrict some public space around the convention center to create a security zone. But by law if public space is restricted for security purposes, adequate and safe alternative space for 1st Amendment expression must be provided.”
Ferlo contends that the Point State Park Festival venue is the only public space that fits those adequate and safe standards given the expected volume of visitors.
“Point State Park is a precious public amenity. Millions of public dollars went into Park renovations, to showcase the land and provide public recreation space to residents and visitors. My application proposed a cultural and educational event, which is in line with the intended uses of the park. Creating a military encampment there is not. How can we show off the city without making best use of the Park?”
As a Board member of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, which manages Fort Pitt Museum, the Senator opposes using that site for proposed security activities. On similar grounds, he contests the proposed security restrictions on the Park.
“As a public official I need to intervene when social circumstances arise that pose a threat to Constitutional rights and public safety.”
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