This Monday: Benderson Development will explain why it wants to change the Comp Plan

Last year, Lourdes Ramirez spent a lot of money to take Sarasota County to court, to prevent our elected officials from approving mega-hotels on Siesta Key. 

She was successful -- the courts found that the county was about to violate its own Comprehensive Plan -- the pact between the County, the Developers, and the People that is supposed to set the rules for development. This blocked Commissioners Cutsinger, Rainford, Moran and Neunder from approving these plans. (Commissioner Mark Smith was the sole "no" vote.)

Benderson Development Inc. immediately applied to the County to change the Comp Plan. Benderson wishes to redefine hotels from commercial to residential. This would allow new hotels not just on Siesta Key, but anywhere in the county. Benderson is supremely confident because the County's Comp Plan is based upon this model:

This Monday, Jan. 8 at 6 pm, Benderson will hold a Zoom "neighborhood workshop" to present its ideas. As this proposal would affect everyone in the county, it seems fair that everyone in the county should attend. Click here to register. 

For Ramirez's latest information on the mega-hotels and upcoming meetings, click here.

160 Homes Proposed next to Celery Fields Wetlands

A developer's proposal to build 160 single family homes on Raymond Road opposite the Celery Fields will be presented on Tuesday, May 23, beginning at 6 pm. The workshop will be online only. Concerned residents must use this Zoom link to attend:

Zoom link:  https://kimley-horn.zoom.us/s/98962380195

The land immediately south of Palmer Boulevard and across from the nesting area of the Celery Fields wetland has been mostly empty except for a few cows for many years. The property appraiser lists it here. 

The paperwork submitted by the planning firm calls for 160 homes to be built by D.R. Horton on the 49-acre site, but also suggests the number could be higher. 

Kimley Horn will present the Workshop, which will have no in-person gathering.

Although the Celery Fields is a publicly owned asset, the Planning Department only advertised the Workshop to homes within about 750 feet of the property.

About Neighborhood Workshops:

Neighborhood Workshops are a preliminary step in the planning process -- it gives the developer an opportunity to present a proposed project to the public, and receive public comment. 

With the arrival of Covid-19 in 2020, many public meetings moved online, including these workshops. This has led to a degradation of the value of this step in the process, for a few reasons:

1. Online, the presenters have made very brief presentations, leaving out important context. A complex plan for a Benderson project was presented in less than 10 minutes.

2. The public has no chance to view the maps and other data first hand. 

3. Some residents are not familiar with Zoom, or Microsoft Teams. In a recent meeting that utilized Teams, all that could be seen were small, blurry images, while the sound cut in and out. About half the meeting was inaudible. 

4. The online meeting is under the control of the planning firm hired by the developer. Some agents allow time for questions and follow-ups, but others end the meeting before attendees have all their questions answered. More on this here.

5. Advocates for fair land use planning have been asking the County Commission to return to live Workshops, but this one is still online only. The Zoom link should be live at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, May 23.

             Zoom link:  https://kimley-horn.zoom.us/s/98962380195 

THE VIEW FROM TREASURE COAST

Sarasota County has been holding Zoom workshops - but does not retain the recorded Zoom files. Why Not?

Governments should make Zoom public comments permanent

Necessity, they say, is the mother of invention.

And few realized when this pandemic began that it would usher in an entirely new way for citizens to interact with their local governments.That is, if government officials permit it.

On the Treasure Coast, Martin County commissioners raised eyebrows in recent weeks when they announced commission meetings would be moved from a comparably large auditorium back to commission chambers in the County Administration Building. Quarters there are more cramped, which likely will deter some citizens from attending as COVID-19 rages.

Until recently those same citizens could have “participated” from the comfort of their own homes, via Zoom. Commission meetings were “broadcast” via the video conferencing service, and citizens were allowed to make public comments.

But with Gov. Ron DeSantis pushing local governments to get back to normal, commissioners decided to end Zoom commenting as well.

With the number of COVID-19 cases continuing to spike in Martin County and throughout Florida, this is the wrong move at the wrong time.

But in fact, it’s the wrong move, period.

Local governments around the state should not be looking to deep-six Zoom or any other videoconferencing program they’ve used during the pandemic. They ought to be looking for ways to permanently integrate the services into the governing process.

Local governments around the state should not be looking to deep-six Zoom or any other videoconferencing program they’ve used during the pandemic. They ought to be looking for ways to permanently integrate the services into the governing process. Zoom video conferences and Zoom commenting should be standard additions to the way local governments do business.

There nothing in Florida law that would require this, though a broad interpretation of the relevant statute might conclude the prohibition against public officials operating “in such a manner as to unreasonably restrict public access” dictates the Zoom lines should remain open, especially during the pandemic.

Nonetheless, we’d ask why any public officials would favor a narrower interpretation of the law when doing so makes local government less accessible to the average citizen.

Consider the homebound senior unable to attend county commission meetings in person – or others who for whatever reason may be unable to break away from home or the office to come in and have their say.

Sure, they can send a letter or an email; they can watch the proceedings online or on local cable public access. But this amounts to passive participation in government, whereas Zoom and services like it provide real-time opportunities to stand up and be heard.

Before the pandemic the potential of this technology for local government was not widely recognized. Now it’s impossible to ignore. Indeed the pandemic has provided us a glimpse into the future of how local citizens connect with their government. It has fostered closer connections, made it easier for citizens to say their piece, to follow along and perhaps raise objections in real time.

The cost of all this is a relative pittance.

Indeed, in so many ways, there’s no going back.

TCPalm/Treasure Coast Newspapers Editorial Board