The County could pay close to $200,000 to the Treasure Coast Planning Council for a charette to determine several uses for the existing fairgrounds. That is an enormous amount of tax dollars to spend. In an attempt to save the taxpayers that money, the following is a suggestion.

Martin County Fair Association

First, the decision regarding whether to keep or sell the property must be made. If it is decided to sell, there needs to be an appraisal. One of the elements in an appraisal is to determine the highest and best use of the property.

In the last meeting, Commissioner Ciampi was of the opinion the property should be sold. I agree that a qualified appraisal should be done. Once that is performed if the rest of the Commission agrees, an RFQ to find a buyer can be written. The Treasure Coast Planning Council’s proposal does not include a qualified appraisal.

The best use for the property is not residential. There is a railroad spur on the property. It is across the street from the airport. There is a flea market that is behind the property that fronts Federal Highway. It is in the middle of an industrial area that the County has developed using the available land at the airport.

Commissioner Smith’s dream of a transportation hub far from downtown is just that…a dream. About a year ago, Virgin Trains told me that they are not interested in having their Treasure Coast Station at that location. If they build a station, it will be within walking distance of downtown. To be considered is that passenger trains have stopped running due to COVID down south. Every day that goes by places passenger rail on the Treasure Coast further from being realized.

The County has already determined what the use of that corridor is. It has worked very diligently to bring lite and not-so-lite industrial businesses to that area. There is now water and sewer to service that need at the parcel. The good paying jobs that we continuously hear we need have been created at the airport.  Martin County has done a great job. So why would you look to stop expansion of that from occurring in this industrial corridor.

If the property is sold, it is possible that the manufacturing base would expand. A sale would put the parcel on the tax roll. In a sale, the County could zone the parcel anyway the new owner wants. Because there are no residential neighbors (voters) there should be little push back.

If the County wants to keep the property, it could “sell or lease it” to the Airport Enterprise Fund which is under the County’s auspices. Better than that the County could form an Industrial Authority which would place the property on the tax roll. It would be run as an enterprise fund without County subsidy once the startup cost was met.  It could even issue private activity bonds fully backed by the businesses to help build plants and equipment. The businesses would be responsible for paying the bond, and if the business defaults, its equipment would be seized and auctioned. Those bonds are issued tax free.

I would even give the newly formed Authority the role of the current Business Development Board. If you did not have to spend a half million dollars a year funding the BDB, you would have an initial funding source for the Authority. Put someone like Assistant County Administrator George Stokus in charge, and it would take off.

Whether the property is sold or kept, the highest and best use for the property has been established. I do not want to hear that Commissioners are in favor of good paying jobs and then watch them come up with some grandiose civic plan that will only increase our County infrastructure and expense.

We do not need a shelter that may be used once or twice a year during a hurricane. That is why we have schools built to hurricane standards. We do not need another recreation center especially one built so far from residents. Look at all the unused school gyms. Far cheaper would be coming to terms with the School Board to use their facilities when schools are not in session.

Since there are no residential neighbors who need to have their voices heard, what is the purpose of having a charrette? The County has already done the hard work to create the right environment for that corridor. Doing the usual Martin County song and dance is an excuse to do the worse thing possible.

How about the Commission and staff think about the taxpayer for once? Keep the $200,000 and spend less than 10% of that amount on a qualified appraisal. Then decide whether our County would be better served by a sale or, as I suggest, an Industrial Authority that could expedite providing well-paying jobs and new tax paying businesses.