Local
Rehoboth officials accused of ‘hassling’ businesses
Code enforcement officer creates stir over visit to Aqua Grill
Rehoboth Beach (Blade file photo)
A code enforcement officer in Rehoboth Beach, Del., became the target of a radio talk show host last weekend after the officer told the gay bar and restaurant Aqua Grill that it violated a local ordinance for flying a flag two inches too low over the sidewalk next to its entrance.
The civilian enforcement officer informed Aqua’s manager of the code violation on May 13 after determining that a flag with the inscription “Open – Welcome to Beautiful Baltimore Avenue” dipped below an 80-inch minimum height restriction for flags extending into public spaces, according to Aqua Grill co-owner Joe Maggio.
“He said we were being cited and we would receive a letter in the mail,” said Maggio, who told the Blade he couldn’t confirm over the weekend whether the bar would be fined for the height violation.
“He could have come in and said, ‘hey, it needs to be raised two inches.’ And we would have been happy to pull out a drill and move it,” said Maggio.
The popular bar and restaurant decided instead to have someone shear off the bottom of the flag with a pair of scissors to comply with the height restriction, Maggio said.
A city official said on Monday said Aqua Grill wasn’t fined and that the enforcement officer only issued a warning, saying the city would give the establishment time to correct the infraction.
But news of the enforcement action created a stir when an Aqua Grill customer present during the visit by the enforcement officer posted an account of the incident on Facebook.
Sussex County radio host Dan Gaffney joined gay supportive Delaware State Rep. Pete Schwartzkopf (D-Rehoboth Beach) and other Aqua Grill customers in criticizing the city for appearing to be hurting local businesses through unnecessary regulations.
“This is stupid beyond belief,” Schwartzkopf wrote on Facebook. “In this economy, they are hassling businesses? I thought it might’ve been the American flag but we are talking about an ‘Open’ sign!”
Rehoboth Beach City Manager Gregory Ferrese said on Monday that the code enforcement officer has found violations of the height restriction for flags in 29 businesses so far this year. He said no specific type of business was being singled out in the enforcement action and that all businesses contacted so far have been given warning notices rather than a fine.
Ferrese and the city’s public works director, Mel Craig, who is gay, told the Blade that enforcement of the height regulation for flags hanging over public spaces like sidewalks was prompted by complaints from the public.
“I’ve gotten hit in the face by flags on a windy day when I walk down the sidewalk,” Craig said.
“If a kid gets hit in the eye with a flag, that’s a big deal,” said Ferrese.
According to Ferrese, city regulatory officials determined that the city is required to enforce the flag height restriction in order to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, or ADA, a federal law. The law, among other things, requires cities and towns to make sure the “path of travel” along public spaces such as sidewalks doesn’t include a potential obstruction for people with disabilities, including blind people.
An ADA official with the U.S. Justice Department in Washington, which enforces the statute, said the law and the regulations implementing it make no specific mention of flags, only that local jurisdictions should ensure that sidewalks and other public spaces don’t create a hazard for disabled people.
Jacques LeClair, owner of Rehoboth’s Proud Book Store, said he was among the first businesses approached by code enforcement officer Bobby Edmonds about flying his own flag below the height restriction.
“He was very polite. I got a letter from his office saying I was in violation,” LeClair said. “They gave me a period of time to correct it. I corrected it.”
LeClair added, “It’s not that they are picking on any one person or business. They are picking on everyone.”
Chris Beagle, a Rehoboth real estate agent and Aqua Grill customer, said the flag enforcement visit at Aqua raised concern within the local LGBT community because of its timing. He noted that it came on the first day Aqua opened for business for the 2011 beach season.
Beagle noted it also came eight months after Aqua’s other owner, Bill Shields, was mistakenly arrested and finger printed for allegedly violating another ordinance that prohibits restaurants and bars from allowing customers to stay on outdoor patios after 11 p.m.
Police raided 12 establishments for the patio violation during a crackdown last year that took place mostly over Labor Day weekend. Authorities now admit that Aqua was among just two or three of the establishments that were incorrectly targeted for the crackdown.
Shields said a Rehoboth Beach police officer who arrested him refused to listen to his attempt to explain that Aqua and other establishments that were in business before the patio ordinance was enacted are exempt from the ordinance through a grandfather clause.
Rehoboth’s police chief later acknowledged that the officer made a mistake by arresting Shields, saying the officer wasn’t aware that Aqua was exempt from the ordinance. Police later dropped the charge, but Shields said authorities have yet to follow through with a promise to expunge his arrest record.
With that as a backdrop, Beagle said the code enforcement visit to Aqua over the flag issue last weekend was “really bad timing” and a development that could give the impression to the LGBT community that a gay business is being targeted.
“It was very disheartening to see this happen on opening night,” said Beagle, who was present at the bar and saw Edmonds arrive wearing a jacket with the inscription “Code Enforcement.”
Maggio said he and other business owners and longtime residents of Rehoboth, both gay and straight, are “fed up” with what they view as an anti-business attitude in a city whose economy is dependent on small businesses.
He said he and others dissatisfied over the city’s regulatory policies are supporting gay businessman Thomas McGlone, an investment adviser, who is running against longtime Rehoboth Mayor Samuel Cooper in the city’s Aug. 13 mayoral election.
Cooper disputes claims that he is anti-business. He has said he supports local laws and regulations that prevent bars and other entertainment establishments from spoiling Rehoboth’s status and tradition as a family-oriented vacation destination.
Two of the city’s six elected commissioners, Dennis Barbour, who is gay, and Pat Coluzzi, who is lesbian, say they favor a balance between regulations needed to prevent disruptive businesses and assurances that businesses aren’t hurt by overregulation.
The two have spoken out against the patio crackdown last year and called for regulatory changes.
Virginia
Woman arrested for anti-gay assault at Alexandria supermarket
Victim recorded video of Christmas Day attack
Alexandria police announced on Jan. 12 that a Maryland woman has been arrested for allegedly assaulting a man while shouting anti-gay slurs at him at a Giant supermarket in Alexandria on Christmas Day.
The arrest came after a video of the assault that the victim captured with his phone and on which the woman can be heard shouting anti-gay slurs went viral on social media.
Police identified the woman as Shibritney Colbert, 34, of Landover, Md. Alexandria Police Chief Tarrick McGuire stated at a news conference that police responded to a 911 call placed by the victim and attempted to apprehend the woman, but she drove off in her car before police could apprehend her.
He said following an investigation, Colbert was apprehended and arrested in Prince Goerge’s County, Md., on Jan. 8. He said arrangements were being made for her to be brought to Alexandria where she was expected to face charges of assault and battery, destruction of property, felony eluding, and driving an unregistered vehicle.
The video of the incident shows Colbert pushing a shopping cart she was using in an aisle at the Giant store, located at 3131 Duke St., into the victim and another woman who was trying to help the victim. She can be seen throwing groceries at the victim while shouting anti-gay names. “Boy, get out of here with your gay ass,” was among the words she yelled at him that could be heard on the video.
The victim, who police identified only as a 24-year-old man, could be heard on the video saying he does not know the woman and urging her to “please back up.”
“Based on the victim’s statement, comments exchanged prior to the assault, and the totality of the circumstances, investigators believe the victim was targeted because of his sexual orientation,” police said in a statement.
Tarrick said Colbert’s arrest came at a time when Alexandria police were completing a strengthened hate crime policy calling for detectives to investigate crimes based on hate and for the department to prepare reports on hate crimes twice a year.
“Hate crimes are not just crimes against individuals, they are offenses that threaten the entire community and undermine the fundamental principles of dignity, equality, and safety,” Tarrick said.
Alexandria police didn’t immediately respond to a request from the Washington Blade for a copy of the official police report on the incident.
A link to the video posted on the social media site Reddit in which an unidentified man provides some details of the attack, can be accessed here:
Virginia
Mark Levine running in ‘firehouse’ Democratic primary to succeed Adam Ebbin
Outgoing gay Va. state senator has endorsed Elizabeth Bennett-Parker
Gay former Virginia House of Delegates member Mark Levine (D-Alexandria) is one of four candidates running in a hastily called “firehouse” Democratic primary to be held Tuesday, Jan. 13, to select a Democratic nominee to replace gay state Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria)
Ebbin, whose 39th Senate District includes Alexandria and parts of Arlington and Fairfax Counties, announced on Jan. 7 that he was resigning effective Feb. 18, to take a job in the administration of Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger.
The Jan. 13 primary called by Democratic Party leaders in Alexandria and Arlington will take place less than a week after Ebbin announced his planned resignation.
According to the Community News of Alexandria publication, a public debate between the four candidates was scheduled to take place one day earlier on Monday, Jan. 12, from 7-9 p.m. at the Charles Houston Recreation Center in Alexandria.
The winner of the so-called firehouse primary will compete in a Feb. 10 special election in which registered voters in the 39th District of all political parties and independents will select Ebbin’s replacement in the state Senate.
The other candidates competing in the primary on Tuesday, in addition to Levine, include state Del. Elizabeth Bennett-Parker, former Alexandria Vice Mayor Amy Jackson, and World Wildlife Fund executive Charles Sumpter.
Another Alexandria news publication, ALXnow, reports that Ebbin, Spanberger, and at least four other prominent Democrats in the Virginia General Assembly have endorsed Bennett-Parker, leading political observers to view her as the leading contender in the race.
“I have worked alongside Elizabeth and have seen her fight for the values of our community,” Ebbin said in a statement, ALXnow reports.
Arlington gay Democratic activist TJ Flavall said Parker-Bennett has attended LGBTQ community events and is known as an LGBTQ ally.
Ebbin’s endorsement of Bennett-Parker over fellow gay politician Levine in the Jan. 13 firehouse primary follows what observers have said is a longstanding rivalry between the two over disagreements around legislative issues.
In 2021, Ebbin endorsed Parker-Bennett when she challenged Levine in the Democratic primary for his House of Delegates seat in the then 45th House District in Alexandria.
Parker-Bennett defeated Levine in that race at a time when Levine, in an unusual move, also ran for the position of lieutenant governor. He also lost that race.
ALXnow reports that in his Facebook announcement of his candidacy for Ebbin’s state Senate seat Levine discounted the relevance of the large number of prominent endorsements that Parker-Bennet has received. In campaigns that last for just a few days rather than weeks or months, “it’s about turnout,” ALX now quoted him as saying.
Levine, an attorney, has a longstanding record as an LGBTQ rights advocate. He worked as a legislative counsel to gay former U.S. Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) before becoming a radio talk show host and TV political commentator in Virginia prior to his election to the Virginia House of Delegates.
The firehouse primary on Jan. 13, which is open only to voters with identification showing they live in the 39th District, will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. in these locations:
Alexandria: Charles E. Beatley, Jr. Public Library, 5005 Duke St.; and the Charles Houston Recreation Center, 901 Wythe St.
Arlington: Aurora Hills Library, 735 18th St. S.
Annandale: New John Calvin Presbyterian Church, 6531 Columbia Pike
Virginia
Gay Va. State Sen. Ebbin resigns for role in Spanberger administration
Veteran lawmaker will step down in February
Alexandria Democrat Adam Ebbin, who has served as an openly gay member of the Virginia Legislature since 2004, announced on Jan. 7 that he is resigning from his seat in the State Senate to take a job in the administration of Gov.-Elect Abigail Spanberger.
Since 2012, Ebbin has been a member of the Virginia Senate for the 39th District representing parts of Alexandria, Arlington, and Fairfax counties. He served in the Virginia House of Delegates representing Alexandria from 2004 to 2012, becoming the state’s first out gay lawmaker.
His announcement says he submitted his resignation from his Senate position effective Feb. 18 to join the Spanberger administration as a senior adviser at the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority.
“I’m grateful to have the benefit of Senator Ebbin’s policy expertise continuing to serve the people of Virginia, and I look forward to working with him to prioritize public safety and public health,” Spanberger said in Ebbin’s announcement statement.
She was referring to the lead role Ebbin has played in the Virginia Legislature’s approval in 2020 of legislation decriminalizing marijuana and the subsequent approval in 2021of a bill legalizing recreational use and possession of marijuana for adults 21 years of age and older. But the Virginia Legislature has yet to pass legislation facilitating the retail sale of marijuana for recreational use and limits sales to purchases at licensed medical marijuana dispensaries.
“I share Governor-elect Spanberger’s goal that adults 21 and over who choose to use cannabis, and those who use it for medical treatment, have access to a well-tested, accurately labeled product, free from contamination,” Ebbin said in his statement. “2026 is the year we will move cannabis sales off the street corner and behind the age-verified counter,” he said.
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