Man wins battle for community room display! Dormont PA.

Dormont PA. Man wins battle for community room display By Susan K. Schmeichel

Just in time for next week's celebration of the Constitution, a Dormont man has won a federal court ruling allowing him to display materials related to the document free of charge in the borough's community room.

U.S. District Court Judge Robert J. Cindrich granted a temporary restraining order on Wednesday that allows Michael Juzwick to use the room at the municipal center without paying the $25 per hour that Dormont requested.

Juzwick has said he can't afford to pay the fees, and they violate his First and 14th Amendment rights to free speech and freedom of religion.

This year's Constitution Week event is scheduled to run Monday through Sept. 21 at the municipal center on Hillsdale Avenue. Similar events asking visitors to sign copies of the Constitution are held nationwide.

Juzwick couldn't be reached for comment, but his attorney, Matthew Staver of Liberty Counsel, a civil liberties organization based in Orlando, Fla., said his client will display items relating to the Constitution and a copy of Cindrich's order.

Juzwick still has pending litigation against the borough over his use of the room last year.

Originally, the borough waived the room rental fee because Juzwick described his event as a civic project sponsored by a nonprofit group. Dormont officials said when Juswick applied to use the room, he submitted materials he planned to display - a copy of the Constitution, a press release about the event and a voter registration form.

After borough officials saw the display and found pamphlets on prayer in school, placards about the Christian faiths of early Americans and Juzwick's books on the Christian world view and constitutional government, he was sent a bill for $2,100.9

Juzwick has said that Christian beliefs heavily influenced the writing of the Constitution.

Dormont now has a policy stating that all residents must pay $25 per hour to use the community room, and nonresidents must pay $35. Three organizations - Keystone Oaks School District, Keystone Area Soccer Association and the Dormont Athletic Booster Association - are exempt.

In light of Cindrich's order Wednesday, Staver said, he'll seek a permanent injunction waiving the fees for Juzwick's event.

Staver said Cindrich's ruling means the borough "can't waive the fee for select groups and make other groups pay."

The court ruling reads in part that "Dormont's policy inevitably favors respected, well-connected groups."

But Michael Katz, attorney for the borough, said the organizations that have the noted exemptions have a historical relationship to the borough and provide an economic benefit.

Katz refused comment on the ruling Thursday, saying only that he is reviewing Cindrich's order with borough officials.

Time to put the Rubber to the road!

Go visit and have a chance to Sign Your Name. Large enough for the King to read. "If a nation or individual values anything more than freedom, it will lose it's freedom; and the irony is that if it is comfort or money it values more, it will lose that too."

W. Somerset Maugham

Man, was I glad when I heard about this decision. I actually live across the street from the Dormont borough building, yet I never have much idea of what goes on there.

The place is a buffer community between the affluent suburbs and the old, dirty, tired city of Pittsburgh. Dormont is showing signs of urban decay; from what I understand, this has only been happening for the last twenty years or so. There's an aging segment of the population that will never go anywhere except in event of death. Any younger families in the borough are (like me) relatively young professionals in cheap starter homes. The rest is what some people would call "white trash".

My first year in Dormont, I had problems with a neighbor who didn't like the way my wife's plants were growing, even though they were several feet away from her property. Her boyfriend (who shares an apartment with her) is a volunteer fireman, so apparently she utilized the local good old boy network to have the building inspector threaten to fine me if I didn't start pulling the "weeds" within five days.

Then there's the local newsletter, in which the council President usually makes some kind of statement to the effect that our first responsibility is to our community. That might be nice if you're living alone and have no outside responsibilities, but some of us have families. I love the way that guy talks about passing ordinances everytime one of his supporters gets offended about something.

Then there's the outrageous building permit fee. I won't ramble about this place anymore, but as soon as I can afford it, I'm looking for a new place to live!

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