Thursday, June 20, 2002

Friendship Court

A diverse group gathers at a Pass-a-Grille park, bound by the love of basketball.

By Tim Sturrock
Points South Staff Writer

PASS-A-GRILLE-There are no fights. No shoddy equipment. Rarely are there crowds. No arguments. That's why they came. In ones, twos and a three, they came to play basketball in Pass-a-Grille on Tuesday evening starting about 6 p.m.

"Sometimes you want to play without a ruckus, somewhere more peaceful," said Leo Lopez, 18, a resident of St. Petersburg.

He and his friend John Lutz, 18, come to Pass-a-Grille a couple of times a month. They said the court at Frank T. Hurley Park is the best court in the area. It's fenced in, has no cracks and is usually uncrowded. Its hoops are in great condition. And it has a view of the Gulf of Mexico.

Lutz said his neighborhood near Jordan Park isn't safe–there are drugs, gangs and fights. At Frank T. Hurley Park, there are no signs of any of these things.

"We're not looking for trouble," Lutz said. In neighborhoods like Childs Park and Bartlett Park, he and Lopez said someone has to bring at least five or six friends to play there and be safe. You shouldn't go alone, they said.

"We're not afraid to fight, but sometimes we just want to play basketball," Lopez said. When they came to Pass-a-Grille on Tuesday with their friend Chris Robinson, they were just three; others came alone.

They often play at Belle Vista, which they said is a good court but sometimes difficult to get a game. Lopez said he's never seen a fight there, but plenty of serious arguments.

That's what Marcus Terrell, 22, of St. Petersburg said he wants to avoid. When there's a fight, or serious argument, he said, it stops the whole game.

Terrell has played a few times at Hurley Park in the last few years, but only in the last three months has he come this often, three nights a week. Most of the men playing Tuesday evening were from St. Petersburg.

Terrell only lives a walk away from a court at Walter Fuller, but it's near a creek, and the ball falls into the water occasionally. So he and his brother drive 10 minutes to Pass-a-Grille and pay the 50-cent toll.

Terrell said he's never seen a fight at the court in Pass-a-Grille. There is some talk, people make fun of each other, he said, but it's only competitive and good-natured.

By about 6:30 p.m. there were eight men. Terrell said that's usual; on Sundays its more crowded, sometimes 30 to 40 people.

They began by playing 21.

They shouted "nice shot," or "damn" when the net swished. Terrell made a hooting after a nice shot was made. He made fun of the strange breathing noise that his brother, Darren, made when he shot in the middle of the game.

Others were more quiet. Marcus said the ground ought to light up blue after Darren shoots, a reference to a video game.

The banter was mostly positive and full of laughter. They apologized for hard bumps.

At the close of 21, Marcus bounced the ball off the ground; Darren caught it and dunked. "We've been doing this for years," he said. By 7 p.m. they picked captains, teams and started playing; there were 10 men.

No one yelled foul, there were no arguments. Most frustration was focused on themselves for missing a shot. When one of the players outran two others and avoided another opponent already at the hoop, several agreed, "That was awesome."

Michelle Cross lives across the street from the court and loves the energy she sees yards away. "I've never seen anything but good-natured playing."

She also likes to see the diversity-blacks, Hispanics and whites all having fun. "Some of these guys play here for years and make lasting friendships." Sometimes they play longer than they're supposed to, past the 10 o'clock curfew. But she's never been kept up.

Heidi Perna isn't of the same mind. She said that the men are usually well behaved but a couple of times a week she hears foul language, boom boxes and basketballs slamming against the court well past midnight.

But, she said, some things come with living across the street from a park.

The police rarely get complaints, St. Pete Beach Police Chief Ray Kaminskas said. "If it were a problem we'd receive complaints from the area's commissioner, and we haven't heard boo from her." Nor has he received any letters about it. "It is not a major concern."

Terrell said he's never experienced any negative reaction from the surrounding community. Elderly, couples and other residents walked by Tuesday evening. Some looked over, some did not. No one looked concerned.

At 7:30 p.m., drenched in sweat and water from a beach shower, Terrell, his brother, Lopez, Lutz and the rest of the players made their way to their cars. Lutz and Lopez agreed to meet with the Terrell brothers on Friday at the park. Marcus Terrell said Tuesday was the first time the two groups had played together.

One person was left on the court-Justin Smith, 14, the only player who lives in Pass-a-Grille. As he shot hoops by himself, he said he didn't know why only a few residents play ball there and that more and more people have been going there lately. Within a half-hour he is joined by another group; they play past sunset.