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Let's do the right thing before other shoe drops
Upholding a
decades-long tradition in the Florida Keys, Monroe County Mayor Murray
Nelson is prepared today to joust with the windmills of state.
The state of
Florida, that is.
His Quixotic
mission, it would seem, is to protect small parcels of tropical hardwood
hammock and pinelands from conservation. A curious mission, for sure.
The mayor is
in a standoff with state Department of Community Affairs Secretary
Colleen Castille over a proposed moratorium on development of tropical
hardwood hammocks and pinelands. The yearlong moratorium theoretically
would give the county time to develop a plan to purchase the
environmentally sensitive native habitat.
The county
commission initially refused to approve any moratorium, saying that it
made the county vulnerable to property rights lawsuits. (The county's
land-use attorney disagreed with that assessment.)
But then the
state pointed out that Monroe County was not making a good-faith effort
to fulfill the requirements of its own land-use plan, and the county
faced another 20-percent reduction in the amount of development it is
allowed each year. (Twice before, in 1996 and 1999, 20-percent
reductions were implemented when the county was in similarly
recalcitrant moods.)
So,
reluctantly, commissioners drafted an ordinance implementing the
moratorium.
At issue
today, as that moratorium comes up for a vote before the county
commission, is whether the protected lands are those designated by state
conservation maps or county conservation maps.
So, who cares
which maps are used? Why would it matter?
From the
outset, the county wanted to limit the moratorium to parcels of land
that are 4 acres or more in size. The DCA and local environmentalists
sought to protect smaller parcels, 1 acre or larger.
So the county,
in a purported compromise, agreed to include parcels 2 acres or larger
in the moratorium. And even though Castille specifically referred to use
of the state maps at the meeting where all this was hammered out, the
mayor and Growth Management Director Tim McGarry later decreed that the
county would use its own Conservation and Natural Areas maps -- maps
that exclude most parcels smaller than 4 acres.
Of course,
there are a few smaller parcels that connect the larger parcels, so,
technically speaking, the mayor can say, "Hey, our maps include 2-acre
plots!"
The ruse was
not lost on Castille, who sent a letter to the mayor outlining the
state's expectations. But Mayor Nelson says he's sticking by his guns.
(Or is that a jousting lance?)
In a way,
Nelson's Quixotic efforts are steeped in tradition.
Nearly three
decades ago, the Florida Keys were designated as an Area of Critical
State Concern. It was not an arbitrary move; local government was not
doing a good job of managing development.
The critical
concern designation gave the state oversight of the county's growth-managment
and land-use efforts. So while local politicians might be easily
influenced by developers, the folks in Tallahassee proved to be far
sterner custodians.
One county
commission after another has balked at that state oversight while
dragging its feet on pollution, conservation and growth-management
measures.
For instance,
the county approved an ordinance calling for the removal of illegal
cesspits only after the state threatened to withhold about $10 million
in sales tax revenue.
Keys taxpayers
have paid consultants to draft at least four Keyswide wastewater master
plans in recent decades, and the only completed county sewer project,
finished last year, is enveloped in controversy.
The litany
goes on.
Isn't it about
time to break with this tradition and do the right thing before the
state resorts to punitive action? Even if it comes with the risk of
damaging our county's "we-don't-need-no-stinkin'-rules" reputation in
Tallahassee?
We believe it
would be in the county's best interest to do so. How about you, Mr.
Mayor?
County review hinges on today's vote
BY TRAVIS JAMES TRITTEN
keysnews.com
The county
commission is expected to hold its ground today and oppose a state
request that it widen a proposed ban on development in the Keys'
threatened native forests.
A one-year
building moratorium was part of a landmark Jan. 6 deal between the
county and the state Department of Community Affairs, but the DCA
wrapped up negotiations believing the agreement would include all
tropical hardwood hammocks and pine lands.
The county
says it agreed during the meeting to protect only lands that fall within
its designated Conservation and Natural Areas -- a move opposed by DCA
and environmentalists who claim it could leave out important 2- and
3-acre patches of Florida Keys habitat.
The moratorium
is aimed at protecting threatened forests until the county creates
permanent land development regulations required by the state, and at
convincing Gov. Jeb Bush and the Florida Cabinet that the county is
taking steps toward land conservation.
The county's
environmental record over the past year will be reviewed for a second
time Tuesday by the governor and Cabinet, who last month deferred a
decision on whether the county made progress on key goals of
conservation, wastewater upgrades and affordable housing. At that
review, DCA Secretary Colleen Castille recommended that the county be
flunked for opposing a similar moratorium over the summer. She
negotiated in January with an eye toward bringing the county up to
passing marks before Tuesday's review.
A good review
could mean residents would be allowed to build about 100 more homes each
year in the islands. A bad review will mean a 20 percent reduction in
the number of homes allowed by the state.
Castille said
Tuesday that she will continue working with the county to strike a deal,
a softer stance than she took in a letter to county staff last week
asking for changes.
"The county
has done a good job in identifying [small but still important lands] and
bringing some common sense interpretations to the data maps," Castille
said in a statement released Tuesday.
The county's
proposed moratorium would cover land designated as Conservation and
Natural Areas, a category the county established last summer during
attempts to create a system of conservation. The project divided Keys
land into three tiers based on quality of natural habitat, and
Conservation and Natural Areas are lands that were in the highest tier.
Castille said
last week in a letter to County Mayor Murray Nelson that she "understood
that the proposed moratorium would apply countywide to all areas
containing 2 or more acres of native upland vegetated habitat," not just
lands designated as Conservation and Natural Areas.
Growth
Management Director Tim McGarry disagreed in a letter to commissioners.
"The Growth Management division does not believe that [DCA Secretary
Colleen Castille] is correct in her interpretation of the events, as
[commissioners] never discussed any options that involved a moratorium
outside of the Conservation and Natural Areas," he wrote.
Nelson has
stood firm on that point and led the new charge toward county
conservation -- often as a tough negotiator with the state. He won the
Jan. 6 deal that could mean long-awaited state concessions to Monroe
County, a unique Area of Critical State Concern that is under strict
environmental regulation.
He was not
available for comment on the county plan Tuesday.
McGarry, whose
department will draft the ban, said there is no reason to be concerned
that the county will leave out habitat.
"There is very
little [of the small patches] that has any value because a lot of it has
been broken up," McGarry said. "We are hoping cooler heads will
prevail."
Growth
Management has identified 33 patches of 2- and 3-acre upland forests,
McGarry said.
Commissioner
George Neugent was the only commissioner to vote against the Jan. 6
moratorium agreement, and said he still believes the county could do
more to protect forests.
"If it's not a
big deal then why don't we be less adversarial and declare a moratorium
on that small amount of land that they are asking for?" Neugent said.
Commissioner
Dixie Spehar said she was confident that the county will create a
moratorium that will be approved by the state.
"I feel we
will have the answers [Castille] needs to have a comfort level," Spehar
said.
The county's
vote today likely will be reflected Tuesday in Castille's recommendation
-- and the governor and Cabinet's decision about county progress.
Also today,
commissioners are scheduled to:
* Fund a
portion of the construction of an Island Dolphin Care classroom building
with Tourist Development Council revenues. The classroom would include
seven hands-on interactive teaching displays.
* Fund a
fishing pier at Founders Park in Islamorada with TDC revenue. The pier
will offer dockage for small boats and a place where fishermen can wet a
line. The pier is part of a $2 million marina renovation the Village of
Islands is starting.
ttritten@keysnews.com |
