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Hold election, Little League says

The Belmont Heights league's infighting prompts the mandate from higher officials.

By SHERRI DAY
Published January 25, 2005

TAMPA - National and regional Little League officials are mandating that the Belmont Heights Little League, which has been mired in controversy since last spring, hold an annual election.

But just when the election will take place remains a mystery.

At a meeting with Belmont Heights board members and supporters Monday night, Little League officials said the local league's members could decide to vote on a new board before baseball season begins next month. They might also choose to keep their current board until the fall.

"All we would like to see is the leadership of the board decided by whomever the community elects," said David James, director of the National Little League's Urban Initiative Program. "We don't care who your league president is. ... All we're saying is, have an election."

National officials called the meeting at the Ragan Park Community Center in response to complaints from some community members who disagree with the way the current board, and its president, Annette Jenkins, run the program.

Jenkins became president of the Belmont Heights Little League in 2002, at a time when the league was besieged with financial troubles, crime and declining enrollment. Although she is largely credited with helping to engineer the park's rebirth, Jenkins ran afoul of some community members who disapproved of her leadership style.

In April, Jenkins' detractors called for an election to remove her. But Jenkins presented them with by-laws stating that she and her board had a multiyear tenure. National officials have stepped in to make sure that Belmont Heights honors its constitution, which calls for an annual election.

At Monday night's meeting, Jenkins said calls for her removal were politically motivated.

"It's a political game that I'm not afraid of," she said before a crowd of about 30 of her supporters. "But when you oust Ann Jenkins, who's going to take her place? Who's going to get out there and do what I do?"

Little League officials initially began examining Belmont Heights operating procedures because they received more than 100 telephone calls complaining about the league. In addition to the election issue, officials discovered that Belmont Heights had failed to properly submit federal tax forms, an annual financial statement and an accounting of its geographical boundaries. Those issues prompted League officials to suspend Belmont Heights' charter for 2005.

Another meeting, open to the public, is scheduled for today at 7 p.m. at Jackson Heights Park Youth Education Training Facility, 3310 E Lake Ave. At that gathering, community members will have an opportunity to voice their concerns about the league.

--Sherri Day can be reached at 813 226-3405 or sday@sptimes.com

[Last modified January 25, 2005, 01:20:09]