"RIPPLE" SCULPTURE PHOTO VIA OASIS ENGINEERING LLC
The Winter Park City Commission, in a narrow 3–2 vote, recently enacted a new ordinance that restricts protests and public gatherings near the city’s Library, Events Center, and Martin Luther King Jr. Park. The measure went into effect immediately following its final approval in late July 2025.
Supporters of the ordinance, including Mayor Sheila DeCiccio and Commissioners Craig Russell and Kris Cruzada, argued that the restrictions aim to protect patrons from disruptions during private or city-hosted events. DeCiccio emphasized the need for families and children to enjoy events undisturbed, while Russell framed it as a safety measure, not a [purposeful] assault on free speech.
Opponents, Commissioners Warren Lindsey and Marty Sullivan, argued the policy casts too wide a net. Sullivan criticized definitions of “unlawful gatherings” as vague, noting they encompass groups of two or more people presenting a “cause or grievance,” even without disruption. Lindsey accused the city of addressing a problem that largely doesn’t exist, pointing out that only one protest-related disturbance had occurred at the venues this year.
Leaders and legal experts underscore that municipal regulations can legitimately enforce “time, place, and manner” restrictions, provided they’re content-neutral and allow for alternative public expression. The ordinance sets a progression of behavior as a basis for enforcement, starting with a verbal warning, then trespass notice, and, after repeated violations, fines of up to $200 (or $500, per some versions) for continued noncompliance.
Public feedback ranged from concern to confusion. One longtime resident called the ordinance “reactive” and “fear-driven,” arguing the library and events center aren’t ideal locations for protests. Others expressed calls for clearer guidelines and accommodation for peaceful assembly.
Oddly, the irony of applying an ordinance like this in a park named after Dr. King seems lost on the City of Winter Park. In Why We Can’t Wait and his “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. argued that the right to assemble and demonstrate peacefully was essential for citizens to bring injustices to public view. He was deeply critical of laws or ordinances that, under the guise of “public order,” effectively stifled dissent or delayed action on pressing moral issues. In Birmingham, for instance, he deliberately violated a court injunction against parading without a permit because he saw it as an unjust use of local law to silence protest. At the same time, he was clear that demonstrations had to be nonviolent and disciplined to retain their moral force.
But hey, they put in that weird statue of him, so no worries.
