HOPE
AND HISTORY
There
is this myth that once upon a time everyone was polite and that all
the commissioners and developers loved the environment and protected
our quality of life. I was there. I can tell you that that is
hogwash.
During
most of the 20 years I was a county commissioner, the battles were
vicious and the majority of commissioners were pro development.
So
why is Martin County different?
We
are different because of all those folks who have continued to insist
that we keep Martin a good place to live.
Planners
and consultants and commissioners didn’t give us a great
comprehensive plan. The hopeful and stubborn people of Martin County
did. They insisted on a Growth Management Plan which is
strict
enough and specific enough that even bad guys could not easily give
away the county’s future.
We
made developers and commissioners follow the rules to keep Martin
County special. We can do it again.
82%
of residents say they want to slow growth.
Next
week the commissioners will review the results of a consultants study
that suggests we do things differently and allow more growth and
higher density. It's time for residents to rise up again and
just
say "NO."
The
consultant, Glatting Jackson, spent our money and the
commissioners’
trust. They promised to deliver a community consensus. They promised
to prove there was a better way of doing things. They failed.
$528,000
later the consultant rejected the vision the public most often
advocated. Folks told them over and over that they wanted a green low
density Martin County.
They told them they wanted:
- No
increase in density in rural areas.
- Protection
for existing neighborhoods.
The
Study recommends the opposite of what residents said they wanted:
- The Study
calls for Higher Density in Urban and Rural Areas.
- The Study
claims clustering in the rural areas may be better for the environment.
But
they have not provided a single example of ANY community that
achieved free
acquisition
of a significant part of their greenway through clustering.
The
consultant told us to trust
developers and depend on their initiative
to achieve high quality development!
The
consultant is recommending flexibility so that clustering can be
allowed anywhere - including the Pal Mar swamp and muck lands near
Lake Okeechobee. They are recommending land use changes that will
increase the price of land we need to acquire to restore the river.
They are recommending considering a new city in the 5 acre lot area
west of Palm City.
Worst
of all, they are recommending higher urban densities on all the
vacant land inside the urban boundary.
The
promises of what we would get if we gave them $500,000 of our tax
money have simply not been kept.
Don’t
go home and cry because the Glatting Jackson report is a disaster. We
have a consensus and we have a county full of people who care.
That
consensus is to reject the Glatting Jackson report. Go back to
planning consistent with our comprehensive plan. Make the rules clear
and follow the rules. Most important, listen to what Martin County
residents want.
At
1:30 pm on February 20, the County Commission will accept or reject
the $528,000 Land Patterns Study.
Join
other concerned residents to ask them to reject the Study. Or call
(288-5420) or write [email commissioners@martin.fl.us or fax
288-5432] if you can’t attend the meeting.
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