The Mary Dean Park hoop is back up, and noisy basketball games resume. But what’s next?
By Johannes Werner and Gretchen Cochran
Original Air Date: October 31, 2025
Host: So the City of Sarasota put back up one hoop at Mary Dean Park, and now a police report found the neighbor upset about noisy kids does not pose a threat. But many in the majority black Central-Cocoanut neighborhood—which is gentrifying quickly—are still upset about how one person could disrupt a generations-long basketball tradition in Newtown.
Johannes Werner: The city last week triggered a police investigation after it was made aware of text messages threatening teenage basketball players.
After the city’s hoop takedown, neighbor Torry Johnson organized a defiant “Chunk Sunday” basketball party. He wants to make it a permanent Sunday event. Photo courtesy Torry Johnson
One text from Autumn Beckett to a third person said “It’s ruining our mental health and I don’t want it to get violent.” In another text, she wrote “I’m getting a gun and a gun license, and if anyone comes on our property to ‘fetch a basketball,’ then they can expect me to protect myself against trespassing.”
The scenario seemed eerily similar to a deadly incident in Ocala, Florida, which was recently turned into a Netflix documentary called “Perfect Neighbor.” And her words were sufficient for the local NAACP chapter president to express concern about children’s safety.
In response to Beckett’s texts, the city also took down the kid-size hoop and set up a mobile camera system in the park.
Photo courtesy Torry Johnson
The neighbor’s texts and the city’s hoop takedown triggered social media outrage, and a video by local pastor Kelvin Lumpkin demanding the city put back up the hoop went viral.
Autumn Beckett has owned her 1920s home right next to the park for 11 years, and she told police she was worn down by noise and lack of sleep when she wrote the texts.
The Sarasota Police Department investigation determined her texts did not amount to a threat, and that—since she does not own a gun, nor plans to get one—she is no danger to the community. Beckett fully cooperated with police, and she invited them to search her home for any guns. The police investigators also followed up on a rumor in the community that Beckett had used the “n” word—which she adamantly denies. They could not confirm it.
Mary Dean Park. Photo by Johannes Werner
Tracy Peters lives two doors down from Mary Dean Park, next to Beckett’s home. Beckett was actually the realtor who helped her buy the house. Peters echoes Beckett’s noise issues, and she adds that some park patrons are partying.
Tracy Peters: I don’t have a problem with them partying there, but when they turn on that loud music with the bass, we can hear it all the way in our bedroom. It’s terrible. I don’t know how they’re putting up with it. It’s happened over the years several times. They just pick that place to make demonstrations. I don’t know if Autumn said what she said, but I don’t believe she would ever hurt a child. She’s just been driven to the edge with all the noise and had problems with children cussing and screaming.
JW: Asked what she would like the city to do, Peters says the city should shut down Mary Dean Park.
TP: I think it would be nice if the city just basically moved the park.
JW: But she concedes that would pit her and the city against most people in the Central Cocoanut neighborhood.
Kelvin Lumpkin is a pastor at Light of the World Church. He grew up in the neighborhood, played basketball in the park, and he is adamant the city keep that tradition alive. An aunt of his lived near the park.
Kelvin Lumpkin
Kelvin Lumpkin: I was always in that area, and my friends and I would play basketball over there up until high school, so I would always be in that area. Growing up, I had a cousin who was my age—just months apart. We were kind-of cousin-brothers. I would always be in that area. I have a long history of being in that neighborhood. But my concern wasn’t about just my history there—just a matter of what was right. A park that’s been there for so many years, basketball hoops can be taken down because of the complaints of one person. One person’s complaint can—you can take down the hoop so kids can’t play in the park that was there before she moved there? I just don’t think that’s fair. I think, if you move next to a park, then you’re going to have noise there, right? So the fact that the city would acquiesce to one person like that—that was part of my frustration as well—part of the community frustration.
JW: Lumpkin describes the racial demographics of Central Cocoanut.
KL: The makeup of the neighborhood is a lot different. It was more of an African-American neighborhood. I guess it still probably predominantly is. But clearly the makeup of the neighborhood is changing. As I understand it, before me, that was a predominantly white neighborhood, then it became a black neighborhood, and now it’s shifting again. So the neighborhood is changing that way.
JW: Lumpkin says that, first of all—while Beckett may be a nice cat lady, as someone described her to him—her threat was alarming and had to be taken seriously. He also said he did not believe she is a racist. As to the city’s takedown of the hoop, he said that was unacceptable.
The city only restored one kid-size hoop on the long side of the court. When the park reopened after renovations in 2019—which Beckett had pushed for—the basketball hoop came with two adult-size hoops. But, apparently prompted by the neighbor’s complaints, the city moved those new hoops to nearby Pioneer Park.
In an email to WSLR News, a city spokesperson called that decision a “win-win situation”.
Photo courtesy of Torry Johnson
“Unfortunately, adults dominated the courts because of the two 10-foot hoops, and kids were having challenges playing on the eight-foot hoop, due to the close proximity of the two 10-foot hoops. Parks and Recreation decided to relocate the 10-foot hoops to replace the aging and rusted hoops at Pioneer Park. The eight-foot hoop was kept at Mary Dean Park for the kids, and they were able to play basketball because the adults moved to Pioneer Park to play basketball.”
Lumpkin does not think this is a convincing argument.
KL: Parks are for everybody. We never had those problems in those days. It was just who got to court first. Then, when I was in high school and middle school, we played with the adults. We played with the bigger guys. We actually wanted to. We wanted to get better. I don’t know if that was really an issue or not. I find that hard to believe. We might have been making a mountain out of a molehill.
JW: Lumpkin would like to resolve the situation by building bridges between Beckett and the community.
KL: I really hope that there’s some bridge that can be built with this neighbor and the community. I really do. I try to keep my anger and frustration righteous. I’m not trying to incite anything, but it’s just a matter of right.
JW: This is Johannes Werner for WSLR News. Gretchen Cochran contributed to this report. Thank you.
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