CANNADA-WYNN ROLE IN CLOSING MORRIS COURT PARK

INTRODUCTION

This is the sixth article on the closure of Morris Court Park.  It is based almost entirely on emails released to CJ's Street Report under W001859-051217 which requested "documentation generated by or received by the Office of the Mayor (and subordinates) regarding Morris Court Park between January 1, 2016 and May 12, 2017."

This evidence is incontrovertible.  District 7 City Council member Jewel CANNADA-WYNN was a key player performing three substantive roles: (1) she was the go-between the Office of the Mayor and the Area Housing Commission, (2) she helped concoct the cover story that criminal activity was the reason for the closure and proposed transfer, and, (3) she was to mislead the community by putting them under the impression that nothing was amiss--particularly before the November 2016 election.

This article is written in two forms--short and long.  The short version is a succinct summary of all the events related to the closure and proposed transfer of Morris Court Park from the City of Pensacola to the Area Housing Commission, emphasizing Cannada-Wynn's role.  The long version goes into more detail and explanation.  Links to the evidence can be found in the long version.

SHORT VERSION

Criminal activity in and around Morris Court Park was the concocted cover story used to justify closing Morris Court Park and eventually transferring control from the City of Pensacola to the Area Housing Commission [AHC].

Criminal activity, both drug- and gang-related, originated with the head of the Area Housing Commission, Dr. SINGH.  Dr. Singh held a meeting in late June 2016 with Mr. Brian COOPER, director of Parks and Recreation, and Assistant Police Chief Timothy LYTER to discuss the criminal situation at Morris Court Park.  The outcome of this discussion is not known.

Eight months later, in early March 2017, Cannada-Wynn sent a request for Pensacola Police crime data for Morris Court Park to Mr. Eric OLSON, City Administrator.  Cannada-Wynn's request for crime data came after the Area Housing Commission's board of directors had already voted in February 2017 to request the city transfer the park to its control.  On March 9th, that request was fulfilled within 100 minutes when the PPD emailed Olson 29 pages of crime data.  The PPD provided no analysis, no conclusions, and no recommendations.

In November 2016, Cannada-Wynn told the Westside Redevelopment Board that she was working with the community to "institute a plan to deal with some of the concerns."  This was a misleading statement, at best.  The only concerns about criminal activity had come from the Area Housing Commission and the only plan Cannada-Wynn was working on was the plan to close the park under false pretenses and transfer the park from the City of Pensacola's control to the Area Housing Commission.

At every step in the process to close Morris Court Park and transfer the park from the City of Pensacola to the Area Housing Commission, District 7 City Council member Jewel Cannada-Wynn was deeply involved.  She held meetings with the Area Housing Commission to convey information and/or requests from the mayor's office.  She was instrumental in requesting five years of crime data related to Morris Court Park, a request that most likely originated with Dr. Singh as a cover story for the park's closure.  She coordinated and conferred with the Area Housing Commission and the Office of the Mayor.  She was briefed by the mayor's office.  There is essentially no part of the process that Cannada-Wynn was not involved.  Moreover, she mislead her constitutents about the process and the intended outcome.

LONG VERSION

The Criminal Activity Cover Story

On June 21, 2016, Dr. Abe SINGH, Director of the Area Housing Commission, sent an email to Mr. Brian COOPER, Director of Parks and Recreation, raising concerns about people "experimenting with drugs, breaking into neighboring buildings, stealing cars and gang fighting. These individuals are using the park as their 'hangout' arena."  In the email he was requesting a meeting with then Chief of Police David ALEXANDER and Assistant Police Chief Timothy LYTER.

On July 1, 2016, in response to a request from Cannada-Wynn to close Morris Court Park for the upcoming holiday weekend duty to Facebook indications of future criminal activity, Mr. Eric OLSON, City Administrator, reported that in late June Singh, APC Lyter, and Cooper had met and discussed the criminal situation around Morris Court Park.

Olson's email told Cannada-Wynn that "Morris Court Park is being closed and will remain closed until the Parks & Recreation Department can complete its planned maintenance (that may take several weeks).  All the gates have been chained and locked and signs were going up this afternoon."  We know of no maintenance that was done at Morris Court Park.

In short, the criminal activity around Morris Court Park was the cover story, the fig leaf, the plausible excuse, for closing the park and transferring the property to the Area Housing Commission--a cover story that apparently originated with the Area Housing Commission.

This interpretation of a cover story becomes abundantly clear when it is demonstrated that 8 months would go by before the Office of the Mayor and Cannada-Wynn actually requested crime data for the area.  Moreover, Cannada-Wynn would request the crime data after the Area Housing Commission's board of directors had already approved requesting the property's transfer.

On March 5, 2017, Cannada-Wynn informed Olson that she had requested Pensacola Police crime data for Morris Court Park.  Specifically, Cannada-Wynn requested the "number of complaints for the last five years for Morris Court Park.
Please include the types of calls, deaths, arrests, citations, assaults, batteries/trespassing/gang activity etc.  I need the information for an action item for April."

On March 9, 2017, within a period of 100 minutes, from 1426H when Olson sent Cannada-Wynn's request to Chief Alexander to 1606H when Ashley JONES from the PPD emailed Olson 29 pages of data for crimes reported at 1200 N W Street, 1301 N M Street, and 1401 W Lloyd Street, Cannada-Wynn's request for crime data was satisfied.

According to the released crime data, there was no analysis of the crime data and there were no recommendations from the Pensacola Police Department.  CJ's Street Report will be doing a separate analysis of the crime data.

Cannada-Wynn's role in misleading the community and giving them a false impression can be seen in the minutes of the November 15, 2016, board meeting of the Westside Redevelopment Board.  According to the minutes of the meeting, "Ms. Cannada-Wynn indicated there was a concern with activities at the Morris Court Park, and it has been difficult for the neighborhood.  She has been working with the neighborhood to institute a plan to deal with some of the concerns."

The only demonstrable "concern with actitivities" came from the Area Housing Commission who wanted the park transferred back to its ownership under the ruse of drug and gang activity at the park, and there is no record she had been working with the "neighborhood...to deal with some of the concerns."

In fact, it is only November 30, 2016, that Cannada-Wynn announced a community meeting scheduled for December 7, 2016, a meeting that appears on the Office of the Mayor's weekly update as an important action item.  In other words, Cannada-Wynn's role is to put the community's concerns asleep with a soothing bedtime story.

The Choreography of the Transfer

We have already established that Dr. Singh, head of the Area Housing Commission, Brian Cooper, director of Parks and Recreation, and Assistant Police Chief Lyter met in late June 2016 to discuss the crime situation at Morris Court Park.  On July 1, 2016, as a result of that meeting and Cannada-Wynn's request to close the park temporarily, Morris Court Park was closed for "planned maintenance."

On August 4, 2016, Cannada-Wynn emailed Olson informing him that she had "had a meeting with Area Housing in ref. to Morris Court.  I would like to meet with you to discuss the meeting."

On September 16, 2016, Dr. Singh sent a letter to Mr. Keith Wilkins, Assistant City Administrator, suggesting that Morris Court Park be returned to the Area Housing Commission.

The documentary evidence is dispositive that Cannada-Wynn's meeting with Dr. Singh was instrumental to the process of transferring control of Morris Court Park to the Area Housing Commission.  Dr. Singh only mentions his prior meeting with Cannada-Wynn, which we now know happened between July 1, 2016, and August 4, 2016.  Cannada-Wynn still has not  disclosed when this meeting took place.

According to a February 28, 2017, weekly update on the status of the Morris Court Park transfer, in addition to a revised legal opinion on Morris Court Park, apparently in reaction to an inquiry from Mr. Don KRAHER on the legal status of the park, it is noted that Cannada-Wynn has been tasked to "confer with AHC" [Area Housing Commission].

It is after the tasking to confer with the Area Housing Commission that Cannada-Wynn submits her request for five years of criminal data.  One can surmise this request originated with Dr. Singh who had originally raised this issue in June 2016.

On March 28, 2017, the legal transfer of Morris Court Park is put on the agenda of the City Council.  The originator is the Office of the Mayor.

Proof that the criminal data had absolutely no bearing on the closing and transfer of Morris Court Park to the Area Housing Commission comes from a March 21, 2017, email from Dr. Singh to Mr. WILKINS, Assistant City Administrator.  Singh informed Wilkins, "Keith, I presented this transaction to our board last month and they agreed to take back the land in discussion, thanks."

In short, the Area Housing Commission's board approved the transfer in February 2017--before Cannada-Wynn requested the crime data.  Some time in late February 2017 Cannada-Wynn had been tasked to "confer with AHC."  It is reasonable to assume that Cannada-Wynn requested the five years of crime data at the behest of Dr. Singh.  It is also reasonable to assume that the crime data is a fig leaf, a cover story.

Between April and May 2017, the Office of the Mayor was waiting for the Area Housing Commission's board to make a decision or provide guidance.  It is not clear.

We do know that an action item from the mayor office's in early April was to "coord w/JCW."  In mid-April, the mayor's office was awaiting some action by the Area Housing Commission's board for a possible transfer of the property at a May City Council meeting.  They mayor's office was waiting for the AHC board to meet on April 27th to effect the transfer at a June City Council meeting.  And we know from the last email we received in the Public Records Request, that the AHC board did meet on April 27th, the mayor's office was contacting the AHC staff, and that Cannada-Wynn was to be briefed on the developments.

CONCLUSION

In summary, at every step in the process to close Morris Court Park and transfer the park from the City of Pensacola to the Area Housing Commission, District 7 City Council member Jewel Cannada-Wynn was deeply involved.  She held meetings with the Area Housing Commission to convey information and/or requests from the mayor's office.  She was instrumental in requesting five years of crime data related to Morris Court Park, a request that most likely originated with Dr. Singh as a cover story for the park's closure.  She coordinated and conferred with the Area Housing Commission and the Office of the Mayor.  She was briefed by the mayor's office.  There is essentially no part of the process that Cannada-Wynn was not involved.  Moreover, she mislead her constitutents about the process and the intended outcome.