Governor's intervention helps preserve the Keys
Monroe County's modus
operandi is not lost on Gov. Jeb Bush. He's wise to the tricks of the
County Commission's ruling junta, and he made it abundantly clear
Tuesday that he and the Florida Cabinet will be watching closely for the
kind of shell games the county has been playing with conservation maps.
It was the County
Commission's third unsuccessful attempt to convince the governor and
Cabinet that the county has made substantial progress toward
conservation, environmental and land-use goals outlined for 2005 in it's
10-year work plan. (The fact that it started out as a five-year work
plan is a pretty good indication of the county's pace, and a good clue
as to why the Florida Keys have long required state oversight in growth
management matters.)
The governor and
Cabinet deferred their decision on the county's compliance until March
21 — the date by which the county says it can wrap up loose ends on the
conservation maps at the core of its tiered land-use system, and to
enact related land development regulations.
Gov. Bush has grown
accustomed to dealing with Commissioner Murray Nelson, who repeatedly
has agreed to the Cabinet's requirements, only to return to the Monroe
County Commission chambers to creatively reinterpret the rules.
For instance, after
gaining state approval of a three-tier system for determining what land
should be protected from development, the County Commission — led by
Nelson — removed the middle tier. In doing so, it combined into one
category both infill areas targeted for development and properties that
serve as buffers to environmentally significant land.
Not acceptable, said
Tallahassee when word filtered back.
Rather than restore
the second tier, the county in its typical passive-aggressive manner
created a subcategory to protect the buffer lands. But it accomplished
the same goal, so Tallahassee gave it an affirmative nod. But the state
said the county could not consider a hardwood hammock as two separate
parcels — too small for protection — just because a road runs across the
property. Only U.S. 1 could be considered a dividing boundary.
The changes were made,
briefly. Then the commission — with Nelson again leading the charge —
changed the maps to again reflect roads as dividers.
On Tuesday, the
Cabinet once again said the county's changes are not acceptable. And
because there are numerous versions of tier maps floating around under
political walnut shells, Gov. Bush cited specific maps approved on
specific dates. And he repeatedly asked Nelson if he understood —
clearly understood — that there was to be "no tinkering, no changing the
maps ..." and that "there's no wiggle room on that."
We hope the
commissioner — and the County Commission — got the message.
We applaud the
governor and Cabinet for not
taking Nelson's word that the county would do what it has promised. The
county's track record just doesn't inspire that kind of trust. By
deferring their ruling, thus putting on hold the county's annual
allotment of building permits, the governor and Cabinet ensure that the
commission will deliver on its promises. It also discourages the County
Commission from sabotaging a Big Coppitt Key wastewater project and
reviving a turf war between some commissioners and the Florida Keys
Aqueduct Authority. (A peace accord in that turf war also was mandated
by the governor and Cabinet.)
Monroe County
residents are fortunate that Gov. Bush and the Cabinet have taken such
an interest in the affairs of the Florida Keys. In most circumstances,
our relatively small county of about 80,000 residents is barely a blip
on Tallahassee's radar. In this case, the governor's intervention has
limited the highly corrosive effects of
Monroe
County
politics and helped preserve the Keys quality of life.
— The Citizen |
