Category Archives: TAXATION

The Decision Is Still Ours

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Florida will continue to experience huge population growth from now until 2060.

 

A new study by Woods & Poole Economics, a firm specializing in long-term economic and demographic trends, shows that the Villages will be the number one metro area for growth in the U.S. between now and 2060. Orlando, Cape Coral, and Naples-Marco Island are all high on the list to experience exponential growth by 2060.

 

The Port St. Lucie metro area will grow from 511,300 people today to 920,600 by 2060. The Port St Lucie MSA (Metropolitan Statistical Area) has that city as its hub. The city’s population is now 212,901 residents, and it is currently the 7th largest city, by population, in Florida.

Florida scrub habitat in early springtime at Lake Kissimmee State Park in Lake Wales.

Fort Pierce is part of the Port St. Lucie MSA and so is all of Martin County. Where do you think the additional 400,000 plus residents are going to live by 2060? It is highly likely that a big subsection of these new residents will call our county home, and to believe otherwise is denying the data.

 

What the study also showed was the growing urbanization of most of America in the past 20 years, and it is projected to continue. Government policies that do not take this into consideration will fail. Saying no to projects because of some belief that you control the use of land owned by other people will fail.

 

If Florida were an independent country, it’s economy would rank 15th in the world. By 2030, we could be ranked 10th according to a study conducted by the Florida Chamber. There is no study that doesn’t expect Florida to be an economic powerhouse now and well into the future. People are moving here not to just retire anymore but to make their fortunes and find jobs.

 

Tallahassee wants and needs tax revenue now and in the future. They need to keep the train moving to accomplish it. One place they will be looking to make sure ample housing and economic opportunities exist will be in Martin County. The days of saying no are over. There is no longer the luxury of many residents being armchair nay sayers.

 

Costco and the Kanner PUD are a good project that should go forward. It has less density than what Stuart’s comp plan allows. The state DEO pointed that out when it went for review. The developer, now owner, of the site has an excellent chance of prevailing with the Governor’s Council, but if not, it will be a slam dunk in the owner’s favor in court.

 

The state must find adequate housing for millions of people. I don’t mean affordable or attainable or work force…I mean homes to house the folks who are flocking here from all over the U.S. Businesses of all types will open to serve the population. Our growing population will fill those jobs and open those businesses. Tallahassee is not going to have a few naïve people stop it. The economic and demographic juggernaut that is and will be Florida will continue.

 

Either we are going to have rational housing policies in Stuart and Martin County by good planning or the state will do it. If the state does the planning for us, I can assure you that Martin County will be looking more like other parts of the Port St. Lucie MSA and even Broward. The decision for another year or two is still ours…after that look for the final decisions to be more and more made in Tallahassee if our county has not realigned its thinking.

FRIENDS & NEIGHBORS SPECIAL ELECTION EDITION

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Several surprises in Martin County elections yesterday will change how some municipalities and the school board will be governed. There were many more close races than in the past. If anyone doubts the strength of Governor DeSantis and the GOP in this county, they should not. And there are no longer any nonpartisan races here.

 

Congressman Brian Mast easily beat his three challengers in the Republican primary. Jeff Buongiorno, Melissa Martz, and Ljubo Skrbic combined had 22.5% of the 23,375 votes cast in the county. Mast should beat Democrat Corinna Balderramos Robinson in the general by similar margins.

Val Demings trounced her opponents for U.S. Senate in the Democratic primary without breaking a sweat. She will go on to challenge Marco Rubio in November. Rubio a fixture in Florida politics for over 20 years will have a tough race on his hands. However, this is a red state and only getting redder. Governor DeSantis at the top of the ticket should insure Rubio’s re-election.

 

Former governor and now Congressman Charlie Crist came out on top over Nikki Fried in their Democratic primary matchup. He will go on to face Ron DeSantis in the general. At this juncture, Crist is on his own Quixotic journey. It may be time for amiable Charlie to practice law and lobbying.

 

In District 2, Stacey Hetherington beat her dark horse opponent T.J. McGowan handily. Hetherington has been a solid dedicated commissioner throughout her first term. She has grown in the job. McGowan came from nowhere and did not seem to have any accomplishments to point to in his bid for election. The final vote was Hetherington 22,931 to McGowan’s 12,491.

 

Sarah Heard beat Doug Mustapick by less than 5% of the 35,422 votes cast. Mustapick ran an almost flawless campaign. But going up against an iconic legend can be hard. While his mechanics were good, his message was unclear. He seemed to be anti-growth and an environmentalist. If so, how would he be different than Heard?  In this race one need to look where the money came from. The influence of the “Good Old Boys” almost won…message be damned.

 

Jennifer Russell, a newcomer to Martin County and to politics, beat Liz Bernstein with 56.2% of the vote. This was the most political of the non-partisan races. Russell had the endorsement of DeSantis and the PAC money to back her up. Bernstein ran a flawed campaign that did not take adequate advantage of her solid credentials. She was too close to Victoria Defenthaler and the teachers. Russell, even though her children do not attend regular public schools, is a mother and believer in parent involvement at the district level. Just what the voters of Martin County want.

 

In the other school board race, Amy Pritchett defeated incumbent Anthony Anderson by less than 1% of the vote. Anderson, a past teacher in Martin County and brother of the late David Anderson who was a fixture on the school board for over thirty years, was in his first term. Pritchett who is active in the “Moms for Liberty” movement has been involved with the school district for several years. Anderson had the experience but was too closely aligned with the educational establishment for this election’s voters. The nature of the school board will be very different in the future.

 

The continued ½ mill referendum designated mainly to fund a stipend for teachers passed by a two to one margin. I would have thought with the anti-educational fervor, this would have gone down to defeat. I am sure the teachers are very happy with the result.

 

The voters in the City of Stuart rejected incumbent Merritt Matheson for newcomer Chris Collins. Collins is firmly anti- growth. The vote in that race was 51.31% to 48.69%. Incumbent Eula Clarke beat back challenger William Laughlin with 1930 votes to his1687 votes. The open seat was that of Mike Meier who chose not to run. Campbell Rich won over Mark Brechbill by almost 10%.

 

Both Rich and Collins were beneficiaries of a voter backlash to perceived over development. New projects in Stuart will be coming to an end. Developers are already saying the gates are closed. The developers are not wrong.

 

Indiantown elected two newcomers to the council and returned Susan Gibbs Thomas. Both Jackie Clarke and Anthony Dowling were handily defeated in their races for reelection. Carmine Dipaolo won over Dowling by almost 20% of the vote. I would call that a solid drubbing. Clarke was defeated by Angelina Perez by almost 6% of the vote.

 

The electorate was tired of an ever-growing village government. The rub will come if the developers knocking on the door are allowed in. No matter who sits in these seats, the village will have a vastly expanded population moving in. The one person who may have been the biggest loser is Manager Howard Brown. The new majority will not be as accommodating as the last one.

 

This is our special election edition. More on the changes that this election will bring in our newsletter of September 4th.

All Schools Should Be Locally Controlled

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At times, the rhetoric on both sides of the education debate can be disingenuous.

 

Florida has embarked on a path that, if taken to its logical conclusion, will result in a school voucher system which is something I believe in. Competition is good in providing the best product for the least amount of money.

 

Unfortunately, the school unions and administrators have not embraced the concept. They believe that only professionals should guide the education of our children. That has given us in Florida and nationally some of the most uneducated students in the world for the most dollars spent.

 

If the state were to truly devolve education from districts to individual schools, teachers and principals would have greater freedom to institute and try different programs. Parents would choose their children’s schools based on what they felt was important. This would require that the state stop mandating as much of what they do today.

 

Tallahassee would set the millage for local real estate taxes as they do now including the local amount. It would be collected by the counties and then remitted to the state. The state would distribute the tax money in the form of a voucher for each child.

 

Their entire role in education would be to set minimum standards for teachers and schools and then stay out of the way. Would this mean the end of local public schools? I don’t believe so. What it would mean is an end to the billions of dollars that districts siphon from schools for the bureaucracy’s support.

 

Transportation and other district-wide operations such as buses would be turned over to voluntary consortiums funded by the schools if they participated. I would also remove the mandatory security that is now required and leave it up to the school to decide the level needed if any.

 

One of the few mandatory rules I would have the state enforce would be every school must have a governing board that is composed of parents of the students attending. They would be the ones that choose the principal and oversee the curriculum. This would mean real choice and not what passes for it in many instances today.

 

Tallahassee would have to be disciplined enough to not intrude in education except for enforcing those minimum standards and making sure that the money was not being syphoned off by the boards and principals. Are schools and teachers any different than other professions that they should be more closely monitored? I don’t believe they are.

 

Teachers will be able to be paid commensurate with their skills just like professionals are in other sectors of the economy with schools now being more market driven. Instead of inflexible rules, teachers would bargain not only for pay and benefits but for the ability to determine the best way of instructing their students.

 

There are far too many outdated concepts that have not allowed our students to prosper. Stop playing politics with our kids.

 

We don’t need curriculum mandates from the capitol. We don’t need state bureaucrats telling individual schools what not to include as part of their material or what books to have in their libraries. Let the parents and teachers in every individual school decide. We keep hearing about freedom, but what we really have are too many politicians and bureaucrats making decision for parents and children.

AFFORDABLE, ATTAINABLE, WORKFORCE HOUSING

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The most significant item of the day wasn’t even on the agenda.

 

During commissioner comments, Ed Ciampi brought up how much the county needs affordable or attainable or workforce housing. That was precipitated by the comments made by advocates for such housing during public comment which Ciampi probably knew were going to be made. Ciampi wanted to keep the ball rolling from the joint meeting last month.

 

As usual with such a spur of the moment discussion, there were many ideas floated. Doug Smith would like to see focus groups headed by the Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council. Ciampi wants to use staff and existing groups and others to move it along.

 

Heard made it quite clear that taxpayers don’t want to grant any subsidies for such housing nor have it in their backyards. Then she began saying density is not the solution. Too much traffic on the roads and zoning incompatibility were also bywords.

 

Hetherington wants the private sector involved and, perhaps, the school board. She has constituent families that have had their rents raised. But she believes too much housing is already being built. And non-profits should collaborate.

 

Jenkins does want an item to come back. He is working with Banner Lake on a community land trust to foster home ownership. Ciampi made a motion to bring back an agenda item that Jenkins seconded. It passed 5-0

 

At the present, the members of all these committees who are pushing for an answer to the affordable, attainable, and workforce housing shortage have no real experience with operating, building, or maintaining such housing. I have worked with and managed this type of housing using the Section 8 program and other such federal and state programs, and it is daunting. One thing those programs did do was allow the private sector to make money. Alas most of those programs are now history.

 

On a national level, that is one of the reasons that fewer and fewer units are available at affordable rents. This isn’t the only reason. But This problem will never ever be solved without an infusion of massive federal money. Even states can’t do it, and it is certainly prohibitive for local government to do so.

 

Sybil was a book in the early 1970s that dealt with a woman that had 29 multiple personalities. Martin County may have that many or more when it comes to its affordable, attainable or workforce housing goals. It can be seen by the commissioners’ comments.

 

It is not that they are not serious about the task, but it is beyond county or municipal government capabilities. To encourage private sector response, you will need to encourage building of more housing not less. Real estate is where supply and demand make the market. As a glut happens then prices fall, and this is very true of the rental market. Right now, we have nowhere near the number of units needed.

 

The county can eliminate impact and other fees for those who will commit to a specific number of apartments with rental rates based on an AMI derived formula. They could give a density bonus in their CRAs if the extra apartments had cheaper rents using an AMI derived formula. The more apartments that came under the formula, the more they would be allowed to build up to 30 units per acre.

 

Every single-family home, regardless of where it is located even within HOAs, could have an accessible dwelling unit that, if rented, would not be subject to increased real estate taxes. The community land trust idea is a good one, but like Habitat for Humanity, it can only build so many homes.

 

In fact, all these suggestions would eventually lead to more housing options. However, these are stop gap measures without a commitment by the feds to release billions in housing dollars. And that is not likely.

 

Heard and Smith and, now to a lesser extent, Hetherington are not interested in more housing being built. The City of Stuart did approve more housing for the last few years but has now gone back into its shell and is not likely to come back out for a decade or more. Politicians cannot blame greedy developers and property owners when the reason existing prices are so high is a lack of product.

 

Government adds about 25% to the cost to build and that doesn’t consider the increased building prices due to more stringent construction codes. The private sector’s motive is profit. Local government can incentivize to some extent, but it cannot do so unless it gets behind a continuous effort to produce these units. They cannot retreat every time people complain about a new project being built.

 

So, form any committee you want. I would be glad to lend my expertise. Commissioners, just realize you can’t complain about the lack of housing and then do everything in your power to prevent new housing. And if you think by allowing more single-family homes to be developed you are going to solve the existing problem, you are not. That is what will contribute to sprawl.

clipart review

The Four Hundred of Martin County

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TC Palm had a column recently that stated the BOCC had received emails from celebrities writing about Atlantic Ridge/Discovery. Those emails were in favor of the project. No surprise there since they would be the ones buying multi-million-dollar homes in the proposed development.

 

The entire controversy was never about that project but rather introducing an entire new land use category. Martin County residents care about these things. And most of what I heard was not that people were against the land use as much as they didn’t understand it.

 

It appears that the county commissioners and the administration thought that a public meeting or two would suffice. That couldn’t be further from the truth. Kiplinger took years of explaining to groups of residents what was special about his project. Why that project deserved its own classification. I guess, in this instance, no one wanted to do the work necessary.

 

Another “community group” wrote a series of emails outlining why the “rural lifestyle” should be adopted. Some of the reasoning made sense and was spot on. What didn’t was writing how those who are not in favor are just wrong. That is just the opposite of the Kiplinger approach.

 

I was at the annual Martin County/Stuart Chamber of Commerce Leadership Dinner this past week. I am a graduate of the program and I volunteer to help put it on throughout the year. Many of the graduates and students are government employees. Most others are those that are very involved in Martin County non-profits and the life of the county. The attendees were a connected group.

 

                Mrs. Astor & The Four Hundred (Pinterest)

In 1892 The New York Times published a list purported to be based on Mrs. Caroline Astor’s “The Four Hundred.” She was the doyenne of High Society. Anyone who was anyone in New York Society was listed. Martin County also has a group of people who similarly are very influential. It has been my experience that there are locally influential people in every place I have ever lived.

 

Sometimes just normal work-a-day individuals become involved in what their government is proposing. This is what happened with the rural lifestyle amendment. A few of the “no growthers,” who believe in freezing development entirely, instigated, and made people aware of the amendment and described it negatively. Though the majority of those that came out were just looking for information.

 

Unfortunately, the longer that the rural lifestyle classification remains clouded in suspicion, the greater the likelihood that the support of some individuals will be lost who would have seen the benefit. And yes, there will be some that no matter how much outreach is done will take the facts and bend them to their own pre-conceptions. That should not stop this issue being thoroughly and publicly vetted.

 

Like Kiplinger, Atlantic Ridge/Discovery wanted to introduce a new land use. Unlike Kiplinger they didn’t want to spend years getting Martin County residents to buy-in. The entire concept was staff and consultant driven. When and if that project comes back for approval, if it is done as an exception then it would pass 4-1or perhaps 5-0.

 

Should the rural lifestyle amendment be ditched? No, it has some great benefits. What needs to happen is the county needs to hire an organization like the Planning Council to take further public comment and to run community meetings. This is not complicated, but it takes time. But, without investing the time, this will be one more debacle for the Martin County Four Hundred.

The Mouse, The Governor, And His Legislative Dwarves

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The governor decided that it was going to show Disney who was in charge!

 

By an act of the legislature and signature of Governor DeSantis, the Reedy Creek Improvement District will cease to exist as of July of next year. Disney has been very measured in its response. If it gets into the courts, Disney’s position is going to be that because the district has debt, it cannot be dissolved until the debt is paid off under Florida statute.

 

There have been statements made by some Florida officials that Disney is not paying its fair share of taxes. Last year, Disney paid $780 million in state and local taxes according to Reuters. Included in that figure are property taxes paid to Orange and Osceola Counties. It also pays for the Orange County Sheriff to provide law enforcement. Reedy Creek provides water, sewer, fire and emergency services which are all functions that local government would have to pick up.

 

The Disney Company is much more than amusement parks. They own ABC, ESPN, Fox Networks Group, Hollywood Records, National Geographic, A&E Networks, Touchstone Pictures, Blue Sky Studios, Pixar, Marvel Studios, 20th Century Studios, Lucas Films, Hulu, and dozens of other companies including a cruise ship line. Does this sound like a company that is trembling over Ron DeSantis and his legislative dwarfs?

 

When Disney came to Florida, the state was known for oranges and vacations on Miami Beach. In 1965, the population of Florida was less than 6 million and the Orlando metro area’s population was 250,000. A good deal of modern Florida is based on the “Mouse” for good or bad.

 

The reason to establish the district was never to allow Disney to not pay its fair share of taxes. It was to allow it to skip the bureaucracy of dealing with local building permit departments and politics. The company still must comply with the Florida building codes, safety codes, and all other state statutes. It can just knock off the interminable bureaucratic and political delays when building a theme park or hotel.

 

If I had been an adult and living here, I would probably have been against granting the special district. I believe that government should tend to its sector and business its sector. But Disney created their theme parks (and really their theme parks with the hotels are small cities) under the auspices of the Reedy Creek District. It seems the company did nothing more than express an opinion about a law and a politician. It seems to me that is clearly allowed in the American constitution.

 

Perhaps some would like to lock up Democrats for not going along with the governor. Our history has always prided itself in having a loyal opposition thankfully. We shouldn’t penalize free speech because we disagree with the message. The governor should not have businesses or individuals serve as his enemies to rile up his base. This is the stuff of Putin not America.

 

We are becoming very illiberal in our politics (and, no, it has nothing to do with being either right or left). We are not heading to a good place. Once we lose our democracy, it may never come back.

They Should Have Seen This Coming

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The April 19th BOCC meeting regarding the Rural Lifestyle amendment to the comp plan was one where the outcome was no surprise…at least to a few astute observers.

 

What made Becker Farms believe they could get this passed in fearful Martin County? Where was the constituency for this change which might have been a good idea with a ridiculous name? More importantly, where was the outreach?

 

Photo From Conservation Fund

We heard from Becker that they held meetings onsite…a couple of hundred in fact. But were they with regular Martin County citizens? No, they were with the usual suspects including me. They won me over for their specific project, but we never spoke about applying a new land use category countywide.

 

That was one of the problems. Was Becker Farms speaking for the Discovery Project or for a countywide land classification being created and applied? This confused people more than it should have. What a waste of time and resources this foolishness became.

 

Of the more than 50 people who spoke at the commission meeting, by an almost 3-1 majority, it was in opposition to the amendment. A distinct minority were in favor of the project even if they opposed the countywide land designation. This was a colossal failure on the part of Becker but much more so on the part of the county’s growth management department.

 

Perhaps the department was right that doing projects by exception is not the best planning tool. That does not mean you can ram a poorly named new land use classification down the public’s throat. What the county, Becker, and Becker’s consultants did not consider was that this was not about land planning but a vision of what the western county is going to look like.

 

Their vision was about maps and not open land which is what Martin County wants to see. They spoke about color squares representing tens or hundreds of acres, not the pictures of homes that could go there if it were mishandled. Preachers paint pictures using cadence and words…staff drone on to make sure even those interested lose the ability to care.

 

The commission voted to table the matter and allow Becker to come back without paying additional fees. I hope Becker comes back with the land use amendment of rural lifestyle changed to the name of rural resort but to be applied only to their project. Having the 800 acres in conservation is a good step. Allowing public access to the Atlantic Ridge Preserve Park is a great public benefit and all the rest outlined in the original proposal for the 313 homes to be built there is a home run.

 

Once Discovery is approved, there should then be charettes and meetings, etc. to discuss what to do with our western lands. They should be conducted throughout the county by using an organization such as the Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council and not the Guardians. If the public’s questions could be answered and consensus achieved, perhaps this Becker land use could be applied to several more properties.

 

Smith mentioned buying more land to connect and create an environmental flow way which is a great idea. Funding needs to be secured for that, but Ciampi also had another great idea to dedicate a percentage of the increased real estate taxes from Discovery and apply it to buying environmentally sensitive lands. If pledged, it could result in obtaining a loan or bonds.

 

Government has a proclivity for screwing things up. They certainly did so in this case. Yet there is still time to right the ship. Just don’t believe that elites or the moneyed are always going to do it for you.

 

 

Stuart Taxpayers Continue to Subsidize A Private Entity

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I study the county’s budgets along with the school board and the different municipalities as well. This article will look at Stuart and its relationship with the non-profit, Stuart Main Street.

 

According to its website, “Stuart Main Street uses the Main Street Four Point Approach to create and promote a positive downtown experience for residents, businesses, and visitors.” It would seem to us to be a good goal to achieve. That goal is in line with what a chamber of commerce should do. Should Stuart be subsidizing with taxpayer dollars a private organization to fulfill that goal?

 

Its website outlines past glory stretching back to 1986 when the city’s downtown was a ghost town. Some of their more recent achievements listed are the 2009 involvement in upgrades along Colorado Avenue and participating in the discussion regarding whether city hall should move from its current location in 2014. The latest press release included on the site is a year old with the notice that they hired a new executive director.

 

For many years, the organization was under the auspices of the city and the executive director was a city employee. The administrative part was also performed by the city. To be recognized as a “Main Street” by the Main Street umbrella organization there must be an independent board and the local program must have a full-time director.

 

When the city-paid executive director left her city position, a new deal was struck with the organization to allow them to lease Flagler Center which would soon be empty on very favorable terms. They then could have events and sublease space for an income stream.

Flagler Place

Until Flagler Center could get on its feet and provide rental income, the city would subsidize the organization with a grant of $70,000 for the first year and decreasing over the next two years until it was to be extinguished at that point. The agreement is now entering its third year, and the organization is still receiving the full $70,000.

 

In the interim, the contract with the Sunday Greenmarket operator was terminated by the city and an agreement was struck with Main Street to manage that at less than what the last operator paid.

 

The question to be asked is whether the taxpayers are receiving a benefit of this largess to a private entity? It seems that the main occupation of this organization in the last several years is putting on events in conjunction with the Downtown Business Association. Their signature event is the weekly Rock’n Riverwalk Sunday afternoon music series held on Stuart’s stage.

 

They also have several craft fairs per year and events like Hob Goblins on Main Street and a Christmas event of some sort. The events, except Rock’n, are run by a marketing company and not Stuart Main Street who simply acts as a middleman.

 

Just like a person, an organization has a life span. Thirty-five years ago, Stuart’s downtown was a literal ghost town. The businesses had been hollowed out by changing shopping patterns. The growth of the county’s population needed more than just one block of stores where people could shop. That was accomplished. However, that left downtown Stuart with many empty store fronts.

 

The Main Street Organization was instrumental in bringing back a new downtown consisting of restaurants and one-of-a-kind stores. This is in sharp contrast to what had been there before consisting of more mundane businesses such as a drug store and department store. Downtown today is a destination spot for tourist to enjoy an old-time vibe and for locals to have places to eat.

 

Today’s vibrancy requires different approaches than what worked in the past. Success should be celebrated. That does not mean that the city should continue feeding an entity that at this point should be standing on its own. It is no longer the sole voice but one of many interest groups.

 

Stuart’s CRA is undergrounding utility lines on Seminole Street. While Stuart Main Street was a proponent of outdoor dining, it was only one of many voices calling for it. The success of the initiative is mainly the result of the efforts of the restaurants themselves not one outside organization.

 

In my opinion, it is time for the city to stop subsidizing this organization with money and favored lease deals. If the city wants to continue with any program that is currently under the auspices of Stuart Main Street, it can do so without paying a middleman but just hiring the event company itself. Originally Stuart was the producer of the Sunday concert series.

 

The CRA budget has grown considerably over the past several years. Some of the programs that it funds are stuck in an earlier time. Those funds should be used on brick-and-mortar projects such as it did with buying and then bringing the infrastructure in for Azul, the successful multi-family property on city-owned land.

 

Unfortunately, just like the county, Stuart too often plays politics using tax dollars for their favored organizations. Stuart does so…only on a much smaller scale. The Stuart City Commission needs to debate the question in the open and come up with a way to have Main Street become a truly independent organization.

 

If a Stuart taxpayer heard that the Stuart Chamber of Commerce was receiving a subsidy from the city for promoting the businesses of chamber members, the taxpayers would be outraged. Is there a difference here?

 

The Martin County Absurd Difference

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It seems to me that sometimes Martin County cannot recognize absurd situations. The moving of the fair to its new home in Indiantown is one of those absurdities.

 

For years, we have heard how the Martin County Fair Association cannot raise the required funds to make the move. It isn’t for lack of trying but, according to Fair Manager Jay Spicer, they are competing with puppies and babies for funders. Mr. Spicer might be totally inept as a fund raiser, or perhaps it is the mission he is purporting that is absurd.

I know I would rather give my money to help kids and animals than build some giant “Agri-Plex” with an archery center, motorcross track, farmer’s market, and an assortment of other wow projects. Our local government is not immune to this disease of absurdity and often helps it along.

 

The BOCC cannot just build a community pool…instead it needs the razzle dazzle of a waterpark. It cannot operate a golf course but instead needs to create one that will bring golf to the next level with a Top Golf experience, night golf (for those that are not golfers) and the ability to simulate playing at Pebble Beach.

 

The new Sand Beach Cafe at Stuart Beach operated by the county cannot find a manager because of the pay scale. The Jensen Beach mooring field is off to a slow start based on the demand for ball rentals. I am surprised the county hasn’t decided to build a convention center yet.

 

Given all of this, why hasn’t the county stepped in and taken over the fair after years of non-accomplishment? Perhaps staff knows that if they propose just a simple fairground without all the bells and whistles, the commissioners will not be able to help themselves but to embrace the current absurd plan costing taxpayers millions of dollars.

 

That really is the crux of the matter…what should government do and what should the private sector (including non-profits) be involved in? It should be obvious for anyone that thinks about it for a moment. In absurd Martin County, there is no policy or philosophy which separates the two.

 

The reason that the private sector does not embrace the water park is because it is destined to be a money loser. The same goes for Top Golf and all the rest of the Martin County BOCC schemes to appropriate tax dollars for projects that should not be built in our small market.

 

Then, you have a non-profit, the Fair Association, that cannot raise money even for constructing a simple structure to house a two-week fair because there aren’t enough people that care whether there is a fair or not. They surely do not want to give money to a board that appears to be overreaching outside of their mission.

 

That is another one of Martin County’s absurd rationales. There are no boundaries between what the government, nonprofits, and private business should do. So, taxpayer dollars will continue to be spent on non-governmental functions from running restaurants to waterparks.

 

The Indiantown Chamber of Commerce successfully puts on the Indiantown Rodeo each year. It has a definitive mission and the chamber sticks to that mission. It isn’t a place to take horseback riding lessons throughout the year. Perhaps the Fair Association and the county government should take that  lesson. They probably will not.

 

And I wouldn’t be surprised if we don’t hear again that the move has been postponed to at least 2023 because of funding issues at the time of the 2022.

 

 

 

 

Each Should Stop Grasping

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For years, I have championed home rule for local government.

 

It is important that as many decisions as possible be made as close to those that will be affected by their consequences. That is an essential reason to have municipalities. For example, zoning decisions regarding where businesses can be located should be determined within the locality. Municipal and county public works departments should oversee when streets are paved and how many parks are needed.

 

Is there an example of when local control contributes to a worse outcome than a better one? When does passing ordinances against something make government look silly and petty or, in our “don’t tread on me” society, seem hypocritical?

 

Anytime government restricts an activity it needs to do so with most of its citizens wanting the restriction. Passing a law to make a political point without regard to the practicality of either enforcement or consequences is the height of legislative irresponsibility. Yet doing exactly that is something that occurs quite regularly.

 

What brought this thought of local overreach to mind occurred at the last Stuart commission meeting. There was a second reading of a proposed ordinance on raising the age of purchasing vaping products to 21. This would match a county ordinance which did that earlier. The current state law is 18 for vaping and 21 for other tobacco products.

 

Let us forget the fairness of forbidding legal adults of 18-21 the ability to make their own choices regarding alcohol and nicotine. Do not mention that at 18 you can enlist in the military, vote, buy a house, or marry. Stuart has or have had police officers who are 20 years of age. They can carry a gun and have the ability and supposed judgement to make arrests yet are too immature to have a beer or a smoke. Put all that aside.

 

The City of Stuart and Martin County have made the determination that vaping will now be forbidden to that class of citizens. Is it overreach and an example of the nanny state and bad legislation? It is to me.

 

The second thing that occurred was a discussion of the enforcement of the use of single use plastics in city-owned property which is punishable by civil fines being imposed. If a meal is served in a Styrofoam clamshell at the greenmarket, the ordinance has been violated. Most of the discussion was how it was going to be enforced.

 

The city was prohibited by the state from banning plastic and Styrofoam by preemption. The only place such a ban can apply is on city property. The only product that could be banned for the entire city were plastic straws…and they did.

 

That was another topic of discussion at the commission meeting now that the grace period for fines is over. Martin County does not have a similar ordinance so you can use a plastic bag in their parks or at the beach. Stuart stands as an enclave in a sea of petroleum product detritus.

 

Should the use of single stream plastic and other such items be banned? I say yes if done by the state or better yet the feds. Several states have already done so. Florida has specifically preempted local governments from addressing the issue. But to think that a tiny municipality or county should do so while their bordering neighbors do not is unrealistic and will not accomplish very much. It will put an undue burden on our local businesses.

 

I predict that in this legislative session, the state will raise the age of purchasing vaping products to 21 and then preempt any local regulation much as they did with tobacco. I predict that the state will pass a bill preempting a locality from banning plastic straws. And finally, I predict that at some point in the next year, an enforcement action against some nonprofit for the use of plastics at an event in a Stuart park will result in the commission chamber being inundated by a mob of angry citizens. Then do not be surprised to see a repeal of that ordinance.

 

The problem with too many local elected officials is they forget why they exist. It is primarily to provide services that the private sector cannot or will not provide. Police, fire, water, parks, and roads are the important things. Whether a community should have high rise buildings, or 20-acre zoning should be local decisions.

 

When local government tries to monitor behaviors, it will be courting controversy. Just look at the problems Martin County has had with masks. Do I think that the state should stay out of things like zoning and what can go into front yards? I absolutely do.

 

Every level of government should stay in its own lane. Local governments that do overreach are just inviting preemption from the state. Each time the state uses preemption, it becomes easier for them to use it again.

 

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