Are having parks important? Of course, they are!

The more people and denser the area you live in, the more important parks become. Green spaces in big cities are indispensable to the residents living there. Most people who think of New York City parks have scenes of Central Park in Manhattan or Prospect Park in Brooklyn in their minds.

The vast majority of people that live in New York don’t use those two parks. New Yorkers could go years between visits. Most residents, especially kids, use the playgrounds that dot every neighborhood in the city. A quick google search reveals that there are 1700 parks in New York City.

Stuart’s density is much lower than probably 95% of New York’s neighborhoods. Most residents have some sort of open space such as yards or private common space around their homes. Stuart has a panoply of different open areas, such as 52- acre Haney Preserve, Memorial Park, Kiwanis Park, and a number of vest pocket street-end parks.

The recent hubbub about Sailfish Ball-fields and the emotions surrounding it piqued my curiosity as to the amount of use these public areas have. I decided to look at the use that Stuart parks were getting and who was using them. I have been going at different times of the day and on different days of the week to see how many people are actually taking advantage of these fabulous open spaces.

Here is what this very unscientific study found:

Memorial Park, the crown jewel of our park system, had no one at all most of the times I visited. The exception is the tennis courts, which are used. Several times in the past few weeks I strolled the park area and was completely alone in my thoughts. What Memorial Park has become is a great event space for something like ArtsFest or a jumping off point for various races.

Flagler Park, which is next to City Hall, had strollers and occasionally some kids on the courts playing ball. Shepard’s Park was the recipient of a FIND grant a few years ago that allowed the City to invest in new playground equipment and a sun shade. During several visits, I never observed any kids playing on the equipment, and, in fact, the only users of the park at all were several homeless people around the picnic tables.

I have also visited Smith-Turner Park and Martin Luther King Park where, on one occasion at each, I saw a single person sitting on the park table. There was use of the Stuart Rec Center playground on 10^th Street but only as part of the programs that are offered there by the City. No children were there after hours. There was also use of the fields at Guy Davis, but again it was part of the city recreation program. Unless there was an organized game or practice, the ball-fields at Sailfish were empty.

The two parks that had activity were Kiwanis Park where I always saw children and their parents. The Dog Park on Central Parkway had a few dogs on two occasions and on the third visit there were at least 20 dogs and their owners. No one was ever at Haney Preserve or Mangrove Park, which was recently created on Palm City Road.

I didn’t survey the smaller parks such as Scott or the Hospital. Nor did I drive around looking at the street-end parks like the one next to my house. Unfortunately, the one next to my house is frequently used after dark and not used as intended.

I also did a highly unscientific survey of Stuart residents. Each believes that the parks are an asset and couldn’t imagine the City without the parks. When I asked when the last time that anyone went to a park, not one said that they could remember outside of a special event such as July 4^th or Sunday at the stage downtown.

Like so many things in government, we want what we want regardless of whether we can afford to have it. Florida, and especially local cities, are unique in how government pays for things. There is no income tax (thankfully), but that means people who have income are not proportionately charged for services such as parks. Our real estate tax system is only partially based on the value of a property. With all the exemptions, homestead and caps, it is a broken system that is fast turning into a local government crisis.

For the vast majority of Stuart and Florida residents, there is no relationship to what amenities cost and how government pays for them. This is unfortunate because if every person paid his/her fair share of taxes, then parks or police or whether even to have a water amusement park would totally be citizen driven. But it is not.

The next time you hear elected officials pandering to their constituents because they want something, we need to ask how it should be paid for. It is no different than when you decide how to pay for your groceries or electric bill. It is irresponsible of politicians to continue to spend without a dedicated source of payment, but it is also irresponsible of you, the voter, to allow it.

Good evening ladies and gentlemen. I would like to welcome everyone this evening to the Village of Indiantown’s first State of the Village address.

One short year ago in 2018 our very first Council election was held on March 13^th with Indiantown’s first Council Meeting at Indiantown Middle School on March 21^st.  That council meeting was the culmination of months of diligence and work of a transition team that’s purpose was to plan the first steps needed of getting the council up and running. To them and the  Village staff of Interim Attorney Paul Nicoletti, Interim Manager Teresa Lamar-Sarno, Clerk Sherry White, Administrative Assistant Kayla Toler, Building Tech Miriam Sanabria and Planning Consultant Bonnie Landry, who have served Indiantown in its first month’s, we say thank you for your work on behalf of our community.

In this year the Village Council has accomplished many firsts, one of which was to successfully complete the hiring process for Village Attorney in August with the selection of the Vose Law Firm and Wade Vose.  Wade has proven to be a talented expert that dispenses legal opinions in a very concise and thorough manner while having what is best for Indiantown at the heart of it all.  Most recently we completed the hiring process for an experienced full-time Village Manager with the hiring of Mr. Howard Brown.  When Mr. Brown started two short months ago he had to hit the ground running.  His experience and professional work history has prepared him to understand where we are in our growth process and to knowledgeably use his abilities to move the Village forward along the path set by the Village Council.  At the urging of Mr. Brown we have adopted a strategic approach to chart that path and measure our progress.  We now have a clear “North star” to drive the most important things that will strengthen and grow Indiantown, especially in the next three years. We named it “Contract with the Community” so it’s clear what we are working hard to accomplish.

In our meetings, workshops and listening sessions your Council has heard the community’s voice, residents and businesses alike, and unanimously adopted an overall vision of our strengths and positive assets.  They include-

-a sense of community with diverse community cohesion

-a commitment to learning and education

-infrastructure

-an ideal business location, transportation connected

-outdoor activity opportunities

And the list can go on and on.

Along with the vision, our adopted mission is: “enabling economic prosperity and new business while building community pride and cohesion through hands-on self-governance.”  As Indiantown celebrated that self governance in our first year of Home Rule in 2018, Home Rule was being recognized and celebrated State wide on its 50^th Anniversary. We are the poster child for Home Rule. We as a Council along with all of the Indiantown Community is now tasked to protect this hard-won privilege by being diligent in our advocacy against the continued efforts to a erode our Home Rule rights and privileges.

With Home Rule intact, we are clearly responsible for our village.  We are now beginning to gain traction and are doing and accomplishing not just planning.  These accomplishments include-

BUILDING DEPT. – we now have a building inspection program established and permits are being pulled here in Indiantown. There have been a number of permits issued by the Village.  We have a part-time permit technician on hand and a contract building inspection and plan check firm responsible for reviewing building plans and conducting life-safety inspections of new and existing development.  Ms. Miriam Sanabria is a key and central employee to delivering these services. Miriam is here to help residents with the process.  Inspections are being done quicker and response times are better for follow up.

CODE ENFORCEMENT– your Council adopted Codes and adjusted them after community listening sessions and opinion polling to reflect the resident’s opinions according to their input.  Code Enforcement has been on a part-time basis but after staff review Code Enforcement will be moving to a full time position.  On April 25, 2019 the Village Council will interview and select a Special Magistrate.  A Code Enforcement Special Magistrate acts as Judge for alleged code violators.  It is essential that we have this system in place to carry out an effective code compliance program.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT – we are actively promoting and encouraging economic development in several ways.  We have partnered with the Martin County Business Development Board to offer the Business Accelerator Program. Indiantown has been designated a Business Opportunity Zone.  The Village applied for and was awarded a Department of Economic Development Grant which will produce an Economic Strategic Plan by May. Work continues on the Comprehensive Plan and the Village will soon be soliciting proposals for a firm to draft Land Development Regulations.

ROADS – at this past February 14^th‘s Council meeting Bowman Consulting gave the Pavement Condition Evaluation and Maintenance Recommendation Presentation. The study recommended maintenance to prolong the life of streets throughout the Village, so that study was for maintenance and not repair of potholes specifically.  With our current pressing road issues Bowman Consulting was tasked to look at several problem areas in and around the Village.  We put together a bid and received several bidders and Mancil’s was the lowest best bid.  They will start repairing roads any day now.   To bring the immediate need together with long term maintenance, our plan of action, which is currently being carried out, is to hire a Village Engineer (contract or in-house expert) to manage temporary and permanent street repair and maintenance activities throughout the Village

Folks we are engaged in a marathon, not a sprint.   We have been tasked with creating a new municipality and it is a process.  This process is able to gain traction and get rolling now that funds are becoming available.  An amazing amount has been accomplished considering that the Village just received in January the first installment of our Ad Valorem tax income, which makes up the bulk of the Village Budget’s income. So let me thank everyone for your patience during this process and your continued understanding and willingness to work together as we move forward in this process.

So in closing, let us stop and consider the lowly duck.  If you have ever watched a duck on a pond they look so serene and calm sitting on the water.  They look so peaceful until you look beneath the surface and see their feet paddling and moving as fast as they can go working against the current just to keep in that spot. We are that duck on the water. It may look like to the casual observer that not much is going on but when you look beneath that surface appearance you realize and know the work that’s being done and the things that are being accomplished.  So please help us in the process by continuing to be engaged.  Continue to come to Council meetings.  Continue to become informed of what is happening and going on.  Continue to voice your opinions and suggestions to every one of your Council members.   Continue to call the Village office with questions and concerns. We need everyone going in the same direction, together, to move forward.

Ladies and gentlemen I believe because of the process, that the Village of Indiantown is healthy and has an amazing outlook.  We are on our way to a bright future because someday that lowly duck will turn into a swan that the whole world will sit up and take notice of.

Thank you.

“If you are ever in town, you should  come stay with us for a few days.”  How many people in Florida have either heard that statement or used it themselves.  At the end of the “few days”, your friends reciprocate by sending you a gift certificate to your favorite restaurant or in my most recent case, a gift from Omaha Steaks that will feed twenty.  I am sure the gift was at least $200.00.  Did I just rent my son’s bedroom to a friend for $200.00?  That wasn’t my intent.  Do I owe the 12 percent tourist tax on the value?  Did I just violate zoning and use my residential property for a commercial use?  What if I put an add on the internet that said you could stay in my son’s bedroom for $200.00?

A short term rental is a property that is rented more than three times per year for a term of less than thirty days.  Because of the proliferation of internet sites which connected the property owners with renters, this industry has exploded.  In 2011, the Florida  Legislature passed laws which prohibited local communities from regulating “short term rentals”.    In 2014, legislation was passed that allowed cities to partially regulate short term rentals but they could not prohibit the length of the stay or the number of times the owner could rent the property.  Those cities with an ordinance in place prior to 2011 were grandfathered and their regulations could be enforced. The City of Stuart does not have such ordinance.  Because this is a growing industry and there are very strong feelings by the operators as well as the neighbors impacted, there seems to be a never ending debate pertaining to the impacts and how to regulate them.  There are currently several bills in the legislature regarding short term rentals.  Some in favor of Air B&B and some in favor of the communities impacted by the industry.

Many communities have had terrible problems with these types of uses.   Imagine if you saved your whole life to purchase a retirement home on the beach and then, an entrepreneur built a five bedroom house next door that is rented to college students and other groups for one week at a time from December until May as well as randomly throughout the summer.  Every Saturday, those leaving put a giant pile of garbage bags on the curb filled with beer cans and trash left over from their vacation.  Later that day, a new group of 8-10 people arrive for the vacation they have been planning for a year. Within minutes of their arrival the stereo starts blasting, the party starts and it lasts for the entire week.  Of course the group arrived in 5 separate cars and they were towing a boat.  The cars are parked on the street and in the grass.  The music doesn’t stop and  most importantly, every day is the weekend because they are on vacation. Your need to sleep for work is an inconvenience and will likely be ignored.

That is a horror story.  There are also many rentals where a couple will travel to a community in one car, stay at a short term rental and be good neighbors.  They might shop at the local stores, dine in the restaurants and ultimately even purchase property in the same neighborhood.   Maybe, this example has less impact than a single family home because the vacationers dine out for their meals, have one car and don’t make demands on public services such as fire or police.   One of the draws of these types of rentals is that the landlord is not a corporate hotel and provides local insight into the community.  Sometimes the landlord and tenants become friends and stay in touch.  However, even if the renters are good and don’t bother anyone, is it fair?

Is it fair for your neighbor to use his or her house as a commercial business but also maintain their homestead exemptions including tax protections?  Is it fair for them to offer lower rates than the local hotels because they don’t collect or pay the 12 percent hotel tax, they don’t pay workers compensation and they don’t have to maintain commercial insurance? Some argue that this forces the hotels to “up their game” and offer more competitive pricing.  Others argue that the operators of the short term rentals are gaming the system and placing burdens on the community such as garbage, parking, noise and other impacts that don’t belong in a residential neighborhood for their sole benefit.

Maybe it is a little bit of everything.  However, it is impossible to know how a short term rental on Osceola Avenue is impacting the neighbors if it is being regulated in the State Capitol seven hours away.  So far, Stuart has been lucky and there has not been a significant problem with disturbances caused by these uses.  But what if that begins?  Normally the solution would be easy.  The City Commissioners would hear from the neighbors and provide safeguards to protect the property rights of the owner of the parcel as well as the neighbors.  Unfortunately, as the legislature continues to dilute home town rule powers of the local governments, the ability to solve these problems diminishes as well.  Currently, Miami, Orlando and the City of Stuart are treated the exact same by those in Tallahassee even though we all know there are vast differences in how each location perceives tourists, traffic and other impacts.

There is no clear solution to the short term rental industry but the easy answer is that we should stop catering to the lobbyist on behalf of the internet companies that are profiting from the industry and put the regulation back in the hands of the locals the understand the idiosyncrasies of each neighborhood.

TRAM

Part of the recommendations from the parking study that was completed was the introduction of a fixed route mini-transit system. While it was being done to some degree, the tram drivers would still take phone requests from users to pick them up at their homes within the downtown area and deliver them to their destinations and then return the riders home when they were ready.

If you live on California or Akron Streets, that is a great way to have free cab service, but it is not what those who advocated for our mini-transit system had in mind. When the City Manager stopped the on-call service, then “government by tee-shirt” sprang into action. At the meeting, a half-dozen people spoke about how great it was to be picked up and brought to Osceola for a meal.

I would love to be able to call the tram and be picked up and transported home also. Unfortunately, like 15,000 other Stuart residents, I don’t qualify for that service. If I don’t want to drive or walk the ¾ mile, then I need to call an Uber. Not very fair for me and my neighbors to subsidize the individual rides of the few.

A fixed transit system needs to be reliable and on time. That can’t happen if it is diverted from its route, which is a route that serves citizens and tourists who park in our parking lots and then are picked up in an expeditious way to have that meal or to return to their cars. That, in my mind, is a good use of tax dollars not being the chauffeurs for a few.

The City Commission voted to implement those recommendations contained in the first part of the study. It was a good call then, and it is a good call now. I am happy to see that they have stuck to that plan. The City should look to expand service and routes so that more and more residents can take advantage of our mini-transit system. People who want a cab should call a cab and leave government to provide a service that does not compete against private industry.

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