Corpus Christi Caller Times Caller.com - Flagpole flap leads police to senior center

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Friday, November 3, 2000

Flagpole flap leads police to senior center
City official tries to stop dedication of donated flagpole because the city wasn't invited
By Mary Moreno
Caller-Times
A veterans organization's donation of a flagpole and flag to a senior citizen center was almost blocked Thursday because the veterans didn't invite city officials until the day before the dedication ceremony.
   What was planned by the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 3837 as a simple dedication ceremony in front of the Northwest Senior Center turned into a contentious affair, with Director of Park and Recreation Tony Cisneros calling the police and trying to stop it.
   "It turned into a political nightmare because one of our members is Bob Jones," said Doug Blumberg, commander of VFW Post 3837 in Calallen. "All we wanted to do was raise a flag."
   Jones is running for county commissioner precinct 1.
   Cisneros said Jones' presence was not the problem; he just wanted the ceremony postponed to give city officials proper notification. Because the flag was erected on city property, city policy dictates the city has to sponsor the event, he said.
   "This is a good example of 'we're having a party at your home and I want you to vacuum the floors, but you're not invited,'" Cisneros said. "We notified the representatives that we were not having that ceremony until we had the time to properly plan for it."
   The senior center had asked the city for a flagpole, but they were told the city didn't have $700 for a flagpole. The center turned to the VFW Post 3837. Its members agreed to buy it.
   Still, the veterans should have invited city officials, such as Mayor Loyd Neal and the council members, and given them a chance to participate in the dedication ceremony, Cisneros said.
   "We want to have a proper ceremony," he said.
   The ceremony the VFW had planned included speeches by representatives of the city, the center and Post 3837 and music by the Tuloso-Midway High School ROTC. In the end, all they did was raise a flag, no speeches and no music. Blumberg and Jones took exception to Cisneros calling the police. Cisneros explained the police presence, a captain and a senior patrol officer, as a community officer stopping by while patrolling. Capt. John Houston confirmed that Cisneros requested police officers at the senior center.
   Houston said that after dispatching the shift captain, he reviewed city policy regarding campaigning on senior centers because he was made to believe by Cisneros that Jones might be in violation of that ordinance. However, Houston said he didn't find any violations.
   "We basically did nothing," he said. "(Jones) wasn't breaking city policy."



Staff writer Mary Moreno can be reached at 886-3774 or by e-mail at morenom@caller.com

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