| Wisteria Island development rears its head again...
Last time a proposal for a major development on Wisteria
("Christmas Tree") Island came up, Key Westers said "NO WAY!!!".
Well, it's baaaaaaaaaaaack... but this time the owner/developer is
trying a different approach -- instead of asking Key West to annex it
(it's not in the city, and therefore falls under Monroe County
development rules), they want the county to make up new rules for them
so they can build 75 housing units (plus a bunch of commercial
development)... instead of the two residences current
county rules would allow on an offshore island. The proposal is
outlined below in the May 14 Key West Citizen editorial.
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A friendlier proposal for Wisteria Island?
Envisioning a private island in the Florida Keys conjures up
images of swaying palm trees, lush tropical plants, soaring
seabirds and pristine water teeming with marine life.
Not so when one sees Wisteria Island, the 22-acre island
adjacent to Key West Harbor. A video recently produced and
presented by a representative of the Bernstein family, Wisteria
Island's owners, depicts an environmental nightmare. The island,
in addition to becoming a home to squatters, has literally
become a dumping ground. The nearshore waters and beaches are
strewn with derelict vessels, and offshore, live-aboard boaters
have for years sunk crude mooring devices that can damage the
bay bottom below.
One wonders why an owner of an island in the Keys would allow it
to fall into such a deteriorating state. However, in fairness,
the island's owners have posted "no trespassing" signs.
Unfortunately, to some, those are simply welcoming signs.
In 2007, the Bernstein family partnered with the Walsh family
(owners of nearby Sunset Key), and asked the city of Key West to
annex Wisteria Island. Annexation would have allowed for more
development than allowed by Monroe County, within whose
boundaries the island is located. This proposal was withdrawn as
strong public outcry against the development grew. Ultimately,
this public disapproval led to a voter-approved change to the
Key West city charter requiring a voter referendum for any
purchase or annexation of land.
Now the Bernstein family, partnering anew with the Walsh family,
is asking Monroe County and the state to allow them to develop
the island as a resort.
The request is complicated. The plan includes creating two
mooring fields on the harbor and Gulf sides of the island. The
Bernsteins propose swapping their 125 acres of environmentally
sensitive submerged land to the state for rights to place 116
moorings over state submerged land. The plan also includes
asking Monroe County to allow 35 single-family homes, five
worker residences, 35 vacation rentals and 39,500 square feet of
shops, restaurants, fuel docks and other commercial activities
on the island.
That is a far cry from what is allowed under the county's
offshore island zoning, which allows two homes on the island --
one per 10 acres. A new land use designation would be required
to allow for such extensive development.
Development requirements for electricity, water and sewer
connections, trash removal, as well as potential police and fire
service, also would impact the city of Key West. And the plan
would push the free anchorage used by live-aboard boaters
farther northwest of Key West.
We encourage state, county and city officials to carefully
evaluate the positive and negative impacts of this potential
development. Public input is paramount throughout this process,
and all interested parties should express their opinions
regarding this development.
As with any development in its infancy, many questions are
unanswered and many questions are yet to be asked.
On one hand, a cleaner and safer harbor, a professionally
managed mooring field, and a moderately developed island could
have a positive environmental and economic impact.
On the other hand, the owners could have cleaned up their
private island and worked with federal, state and local
enforcement to eliminate the hazardous debris and vessels
without a development plan.
This leaves us wondering if the island and the surrounding
waters were allowed to deteriorate in order to create a selling
platform for Sunset Key, Part Deux.
-- The Citizen
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