FRIENDS & NEIGHBORS MAY 1, 2022

Tom Campenni

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IN THIS EDITION OF THE NEWSLETTER

After the legislative season and one of at least two special sessions, we have seen more erosion of local control promulgated by the state government.

There is not much of a reason for this to occur since there is a correcting mechanism to any local ordinance. When a local board strays too far from what their constituents want, it is rather easy to correct it in the next election. It is much harder to do so with state government.

Two reasons are to blame for this consolidation of power…one is our fractured politics and the second is the ability of the state through an abuse by the legislature of the Florida Constitution to remove local control with impunity. As the American people have had increasingly more varied choice available in their lives from what to eat to what to watch on TV, our politics have become coarser and less broad. We would rather sacrifice individuality to party rhetoric.

This gives an inordinate amount of power to the pols in Tallahassee because limiting the ability of any community to make its own decisions has no repercussions on those pols. Those legislators in a distant capital usually start their legislative initiative by falsely saying this erosion of local power is being done to give the individual more control. How is it more control than that very individual speaking to the county commissioner who is his next-door neighbor.

Many of the bills most damaging to an individual’s ability to make decisions locally are introduced by people that the citizen never voted into office. Those pols are not freeing people from the tyranny of their communities but imposing from above. Their arrogance in doing so is incredible.

And besides taking away the ability of 67 counties and 400 plus cities in Florida to follow what local constituents want is key to keeping the campaign dollars in the bosom of Tallahassee. We let them get away with it because we are much more concerned with the party letter after the pols name than what they are doing in our name.

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In this week’s edition of the newsletter, we have the United Way explaining what the ALICE population is. Fletch from Boys & Girls tells us what it means to receive a jacket at AmeriCorps. VanRiper writes about speaking to teachers. Pine and Hafner weigh in with their thoughts and the Taxpayers speak about their annual dinner.

Along with that is a plug for Treasure Coast Classical Academy’s fundraiser, Mom’s For Liberty, and John Sedwitz gives his take on the Rural Lifestyle. We continue with our special report on Trailside and Pal-Mar and their problems with lawlessness and the county doing little to help.

We are still looking for an attorney and financial planner to write monthly columns for our readers. The financial planner should be someone that is independent and not working for a broker. An attorney that is doing financial planning would be ideal.

The more diversity we can have with our columnists the better. So come and give your fellow Martin County residents information that they can use.

Don’t forget to tell your friends to sign up for the newsletter. The larger our base, the more that elected leaders will listen. The same goes for expressing your opinions, send them here because we are the public square for Martin County.

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WHAT IS A NATIVE LANDSCAPE…AND WHAT IS PURE BS

Some people believe that when a parcel of land doesn’t have tall buildings on it or other dense uses, it should be pure and pristine and the way that God intended.

That is usually not true. And that is particularly untrue of the property known as the Kanner PUD. The Kanner PUD was an old farm where tons of debris were strewn and buried. Perhaps today farmers are good shepherds of their land, but that is a recent phenomenon. For years, farmers would throw their old machinery, garbage, and chemicals in unused sections of their property. They didn’t care that those chemicals would leach into the ground water and pollute. Perhaps, at an earlier time, they didn’t even know about such things.

More recently after farming on that parcel ceased, others who owned the property didn’t seem to care about rusting cars with crank cases full of oil, gas tanks with fuel, or other old machinery strewn about that had been improperly dumped there. Some with the loudest voices against building the Costco PUD are those whose relatives made a fortune by selling off the land but felt no compunction at not having cleaned it up to be good shepherds to our birds and animals.

This “range” is not full of antelope and deer that play. The Kanner PUD has been used as a dump and, as the pictures show, they even discarded things into the wetlands and supposed ponds. Most of those ponds were dug by the “farmer in the dell” not to attract native species but to drain the land and hold the water for irrigation. There are 130 slides showing the degradation to that property. It will all be cleaned up before the PUD is built but isn’t it a shame that it is not in the pristine state claimed.

Let’s not have a holier than thou attitude toward this mess which was created by the past owners and not the present ones. There is no good stewardship by anyone except the current owners. You look at the photos and you decide. Pristine Florida prairie or exotic toxic dump? Don’t be fooled by silly platitudes.

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We need to move on and have actual people living there and businesses operating. This is an urban area, and the land is owned by a responsible party that, rightfully, wants to make a profit. After all the additional money they will have to spend on this “Garden of Eden,” they are entitled to it.

Please carefully look at all 130 photos received through a public records request which are attached. It is important that we all understand what is at stake. Don’t be fooled by a group of people who want to prevent a cleanup because they want you to believe that there is only goodness and light on the property now.

You can find the photos here. It had to be in four files because of the amount of detail:

HERE

HERE

HERE                                                                                                                                       

HERE

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TREASURE COAST CLASSICAL

Treasure Coast Classical is having their big fundraiser on May 7^th.

I am a big supporter of the school and the type of education it endeavors to give their students. If you are a parent or grand parent and would like to see why I always am going on about the school. Give them a call to find out more information. If you can help with a donation, please do.

Dear TCCA Families and Supporters,

First, we would like to thank you for the support you have generously given to TCCA in past fundraising endeavors and for the faith you place in TCCA to train the minds and inspire the hearts of young people throughout the Treasure Coast. Your generosity with your time, talents, and resources has been an invaluable treasure to us over the past four years.

It is time, once again, to consider sponsoring the Spring Gala, An Evening on Treasure Island, or contributing by purchasing tickets and donating auction items. Your generous donation, whether large or small, will make an impact on the success of TCCA. Proceeds from the Spring Gala will go towards our much-needed expansion of a new adjacent building that will include high school classrooms, a gymnasium, and more.

Why does TCCA need to Fundraise? TCCA receives state funding per student but not the local funding that district-run schools receive. We must fund any capital expenses like buildings & curriculum, after-school programs, and co-curriculars, along with the competitive salaries it takes to attract the most excellent teachers and staff. Sponsorships and donations are tax-deductible for both individuals and businesses 

You can sign up to sponsor the gala, buy tickets, or donate auction items here. The deadline for sponsorships is Monday, April 25th. If you have any questions regarding An Evening on Treasure Island or other fundraising endeavors, please contact our project coordinator at dborzillo@treasurecoastclassical.org or call at 561-632-3904. We are looking forward to spending a fun evening celebrating all we have accomplished together and looking forward to a bright future for TCCA!

Sincerely,

Janine Swearingin, Principal

Joseph Featherstone, Chairman of the Board

4

The Mouse, The Governor, And His Legislative Dwarves

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, 20^th 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.

(From Martin County Moment)    

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OTHER OPINIONS

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NON-PROFIT PERSPECTIVE

By Carol Houwaart-Diez

United Way of Martin County President-CEO

The federal poverty line doesn’t begin to tell the story of poverty.

The federal poverty line (FPL) is used to determine eligibility for aid and social services and provides an important benchmark to know how many Americans are struggling financially each year, and over time.

But did you know that the FPL is based on a calculation that has not been updated since the 1960s? The figure is based on food costs — the government identifies how much it should cost to feed a family of four for one year and then multiplies that number by three. The disconnect is that in today’s economy, food expenses represent just one-tenth of the average household budget according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, not a third. Other costs — housing, health care, childcare, and transportation — typically consume larger portions of a family’s budget.

In 2012, United Way commissioned the ALICE report to get a more accurate picture of households that earn more than the FPL — currently $26,200 for a family of four or $12,760 for an individual – but less than what it costs to live and work in the modern economy.

ALICE stands for Asset Limited Income Constrained Employed and it calculates the actual costs of housing, food, childcare, healthcare, transportation, and other necessities of daily life in various regions of the United States. Then, the report calculates the number of households with incomes that fall below this ALICE threshold.

The results are staggering. The most recent ALICE report using data from 2018 shows that while 11% of Martin County households are living below the FPL, an additional 33% are living below the ALICE threshold – and this was before the pandemic.

United Way of Martin County and its research partner United for ALICE recently released a research brief focusing on children in financial hardship. The ALICE in Focus: Children brief features an interactive data dashboard that provides filters for regional and local geographies, age, race, disability status, living arrangements and household work status.

The study reveals the disproportionate rate of financial hardship among Martin County’s Black and Hispanic children – where 88% and 66% respectively — lived in households that couldn’t afford the basics in 2019. The study also reveals that 100% of children living in limited English-speaking households are living below the ALICE threshold. Because ALICE households often earn too much to qualify for public assistance, the report finds that more than 6,600

Carol Houwaart Diez’s opinions are her own and may not reflect Friends & Neighbors viewpoint

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VANRIPER’S VIEWS

By Darlene VanRiper

Is DeSantis the Teacher’s Pet?

I began wondering, with everything Governor DeSantis has done for Florida teachers, whether they would repay the favor by voting to re-elect him.  After all, it is no secret that teachers’ unions are primarily Democrat leaning.  At least the leadership is.   In Martin County there are approximately 1,300 teachers and around 60% of them belong to the Martin County Education Association.

Florida’s Governor has dedicated $2 billion in increased teacher compensation over the last three years.

I decided to speak with some teachers.  They told me they were pleased with the starting salary being raised.  It will now be $47.5k in Martin County.  And they were pleased that attention was being paid to education in Florida.  However, they wished the increase went further to reward more experienced teachers.

They felt the pay increase for starting teachers (up by nearly $6000) created a division amongst educators.  They were charitable in stating that perhaps it was an unintended consequence.  They didn’t claim that DeSantis was simply pandering to them but felt that his intensions were genuine.

I played devil’s advocate and reminded them that a lot of people became disillusioned with teachers when they didn’t want to return to the classroom during Covid.  They explained that during Covid teachers were suddenly having to teach two classes at once.  One for those students who were physically present and the other simultaneously via Zoom.  This was a difficult task.  Since they were deemed “essential” workers, teachers couldn’t opt out.

I commented that teachers get 3 months of paid holiday every summer.  I was told that the option of not working was nice to have, but that so many teachers had to take on other jobs during their “vacation” time to make ends meet.

Teachers receive $6,500 per year in health benefits including dental.  So, that’s $54k per year if added to the salary.  And then there are those 3 months off.  There are also significant stipends teachers can receive for performing extracurricular tasks such as coaching or mentoring a club.

Comparing the new teacher’s salary to the rest of the US, Florida’s teachers will still lag the national average of $65k.  Should we also consider cost of living?  Certainly, the cost of living in Florida has not yet reached that of say New York.  But we are gaining ground quickly.  What about the weather?  Working year-round in the Sunshine State must be preferred to dealing with the winter weather anywhere up North.

In conclusion, I found there is no conclusion.  DeSantis has come a long way toward improving the lot of teachers in Florida.  His actions include eliminating the controversial Florida Standards Assessments.  Ostensibly this will stop teachers from complaining that they are “teaching to the test”.   I was told teachers resent the Governor’s claim that they are teaching Critical Race Theory in some clandestine way.  They said that this is simply not happening.

I will say that there seem to be swings in education policy from administration to administration.  That must be difficult to deal with for both teacher and student.

Who knows what happens in the voting booth?  I know I might consider that DeSantis has shown by his actions that he holds teaching Florida’s children as a priority.  I might be tempted, were I a teaching professional, to believe he might continue to improve my lot so I could improve theirs.

Darlene VanRiper’s opinions are her own and may not reflect Friends & Neighbors viewpoint.

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PINE’S PONDERING

By Tom Pine

At the Martin County Commission Meeting of April 19, 2022 the main topic was the new controversial land use designation being pushed by staff.

Public comment lasted over two hours with many of the same questions still being asked by the general public with NO direct answers. Those that spoke in favor, mostly spoke of how much money they would be making when this new scheme is approved by the majority of our county commissioners.

Commissioner Heard as usual spoke on behalf of the taxpayers of Martin County who are opposed to this new scheme asking questions that once again were not answered, on the other hand Commissioner Jenkins spoke definitely in support of this new scheme to the point that he was quite distressed over people not supporting it.

These are the two commissioners that should be in charge of a public forum on this issue. (Sunshine would prohibit that from happening) It should be a panel discussion of several people on each side of the issue including senior staff to discuss the pro’s and con’s and get direct questions answered and not kicked down the road for another day.

This issue is more polarizing than the illegal expansion of runway 12/30 at the Stuart Airport, that was implemented  by senior staff at the time and strongly encouraged by several county commissioners.

So I still have the same question, why are we the taxpayers of Martin County paying senior staff to work against us. Just like the illegal expansion of runway 12/30 Senior Staff seems to be working for the big spenders on our county government and not the taxpayers.

So is it time for our county commissioners to start paying their own staff when they are pushing schemes that are not supported by the overwhelming majority of Martin County taxpayers, as it is now we the taxpayers are being played as fools by our county government?

Put this very controversial issue on the August Primary Ballot, LET WE THE TAX PAYERS OF MARTIN COUNTY DECIDE OUR PATH FORWARD, and not the special interest as usual.

Election time is right around the corner, the August primary is often the final say when it comes to local elections.

The Stuart/Martin County Chamber of Commerce is kicking off the re-election of Commissioner Hetherington campaign on May 9, 2022, at the Ocean Republic Brewing Company in Stuart.

Will Commissioner Hetherington be the next county commissioner to conjure up a sweetheart deal for the Chamber of Commerce to get free rent in yet another county building. I’ll be watching.

It seems like the Jensen Beach Chamber of Commerce hit a home run with the help of their favorite son, Commissioner Smith. They got the whole Community Center building to use as if it were their own. I guess that’s why Special Services [ County Department] spent hundreds of man hours over the last couple of years up grading our Community Center including but not limited to completely painting the outside of the building to satisfy the Chamber of Commerce. Would all of these upgrades been completed if the Chamber of Commerce had to pay for them and not, we the suckers we the taxpayers.

I support using county employees to do work like this in house but not when it is used to hide the expenses from the taxpayers

Truth To Power

Tom Pine’s opinions are his own and may not reflect Friends & Neighbors viewpoint.

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HAFNER’S CORNER

By David Hafner

In my English 101 class at Indian River State College (circa 2001) my professor taught me something that applies to more than a 500 word essay.

Professor Hofer taught me that if I am having troubles writing about a topic I should switch and write for the opposition. Try it with me. Think about something you can’t stand and say out loud ten things you don’t like about it. Now think about something you really like and name 10 things you like about it. I will bet the things you can’t stand being rolled right off your tongue while you had to think a bit to name the ten things you like. That is because it is easier to be against something than it is to support it.

Negativity is all around us and because it is easier, we get pulled in. We consume the negativity and seek more to satisfy our craving. The more we consume the more divided we become. We begin to lose civility and the ability to give value to opposing sides of a topic.

But quietly, beyond the negativity, positivity is working hard to outshine its counterpoint. Because positivity is harder it doesn’t get as much attention, and it takes real work to get the word out to the community. Groups like House of Hope, 4-H, and CROS Ministries are putting in the work to keep the good alive; and I do mean work.

“It takes 5 positives to cancel out 1 negative.” – John Gottman

This past weekend I joined with about 25 youth and adult volunteers from House of Hope and Martin County 4-H to glean potatoes at farmer John Long’s Agri-Gators Farm off 710 in Palm City. For a few hours we dug potatoes that were then donated, through House of Hope, to families in need throughout our community. A total of 6,000+ pounds of potatoes were collected. After we were done a few of the 4-H members asked me if they could do this again and asked how to volunteer to help distribute the potatoes.

There is power in positivity and satisfaction from hard work done well. If we change our appetites and seek out the good, we will find there are so many wonderful things happening in our community that transcends the division we are seeing. We will see each other’s differences and appreciate the various perspectives. We all have a story to tell, what’s yours?

David Hafner’s opinions are his own and may not reflect Friends & Neighbors viewpoint.

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FLETCH’S PERSPECTIVE

By Keith Fletcher CEO & President of

Boys & Girls Clubs of Martin County

To our seasonal residents readying to return north before the weather heats up, the notion of a jacketing ceremony this time of year anywhere in the south—save The Masters, maybe—might seem odd.

But at our AmeriCorps program’s recent Blue Jacket society, the only things warmed were the hearts of all in attendance.

That’s because this annual tradition—held by participating Boys & Girls Clubs AmeriCorps programs across the nation—incorporates a moving surprise element. And our most recent ceremony was the most touching I’ve ever had the privilege of participating in.

For a modest stipend, our AmeriCorps members devote long hours to, among other community service projects, helping children at Martin County elementary and middle schools improve their reading, math, and science. Upon initiation into the corps, they receive a Blue Jacket. At our April event, AmeriCorps members Pascual Francisco and Vashti Jones and program directors Kyle Arnold and Samantha Anderson spoke about how the chance to serve transforms lives, including their own.

Next, local leaders of distinction were awarded Blue Jackets. Then those recipients were asked to share—without the benefit of foreknowledge to prepare—more about someone who’s inspired them to achieve excellence.

Our recipients included Tony Anderson and Marsha Powers, both school board members, Dr. Alessandro Anzalone, president of Indian River State College’s Chastain Campus, Eula Clarke, Stuart commissioner, David Heaton, executive director of Children’s Services Council of Martin County, Bonney Johnston of the William & Helen Thomas Charitable Trust, and Dr. Tracey Miller, Martin County School District’s assistant superintendent of academics.

Although caught a bit off-guard, each one offered heartfelt recollections of the people who always remained in their corner, requesting—sometimes demanding—but always expecting the best of them. The stories reflected their diverse life experiences. Struggle. Want. Immigration. Language and cultural challenges. Setbacks. Detours. The opportunity to accept a helping hand. The responsibility to lend a helping hand.

No matter how different, every story uniquely celebrated the invaluable virtues of sacrifice, service, dedication, hard work and gratitude. These are the tenets of AmeriCorps—and the prestige the Blue Jacket conveys.

In paying homage—on the spot—to the parent, mentor, or educator who encouraged them, the recipients reminded our AmeriCorps members of the lifelong benefits of service. One day, very likely, a young life they’ve influenced for the better will stand in a place of honor and remember them.

A word to local employers in search of talent amid this challenging labor market: Some of your best future prospects are currently undergoing the job training—and character-building—experience of a lifetime.

You’ll spot them one day with the mention of AmeriCorps on their resumes. Or maybe around town in their Blue Jackets—when the temperature dips. These are the people you’ll want wearing your company’s uniform.

Keith Fletcher’s opinions are his own and may not reflect Friends & Neighbors viewpoint.

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MOMS FOR LIBERTY

By Julie Marshall

Moms For Liberty

Although Moms for Liberty – Martin County did not have a meeting in April, we were nonetheless active.

Our focus remains on curriculum and inappropriate books in the school libraries. There are many titles that simply do not belong in the classroom or the libraries housed in each school. We are also focused on the “MCSD LGBTQ Student Support Guide”, which we discovered was not properly aligned with the Governor’s HB 1557, Parental Rights in Education bill.

Below is the link to a list provided by the Florida Citizens Alliance that identifies books found throughout the State and breaks down in detail why the contents of the books are problematic. While Martin County isn’t named in this report, we have learned that there are several books that merit further review in the MCSD libraries. Several of our members are working with Administration in reviewing these books for inappropriate content.

2019-Porn-in-Schools-Report.pdf (floridacitizensalliance.org)

The Martin County School District was recently “called out” at a press conference by Governor DeSantis who stated that multiple Florida school districts had provided mental health services and inappropriate classroom materials to students without the consent of parents including, in the MCSD LGBTQ Student Support Guide, to not disclose a student’s sexual orientation or gender identity to their parents.

DeSantis’ comments were discussed recently at a School Board workshop. Superintendent Dr. John Millay noted that any support plan created since the passage of the Parents Bill of Rights in July 2021, has required parent notification. It was explained to the public that the previous plan was not known to the current Board and has since been changed to follow the new laws.  

School Board Chair Christia Li Roberts emphasized that the procedures and forms are created internally because of policy that the Board implements, which is why it was unaware of the support guide, she told TCPalm. “It was surprising to the board that a document like that existed,” she said.

School Board member Victoria Defenthaler called DeSantis’ public call-out of the support plan inappropriate, adding that concerns about legal compliance should have been addressed privately. “The reason it was said was just to drag us into politics,” she said during the workshop.

At our May 16 meeting, Dr. Millay will be the featured speaker. All community members are welcome and invited to attend – Revive Church, 8851 SW Old Kansas, Stuart, at 7 p.m.

Julie Marshall’s opinions are her own and may not reflect Friends & Neighbors viewpoint

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HOBE SOUND LOYAL

By John Sedwitz

Rural Lifestyle Amendment/ Becker Farms (Discovery Lands) Paradox

The recent BOCC meeting this past week to review the Rural Lifestyle Amendment (RLA) as well as the Becker Farms/Discovery Future Land Use Amendment (FLUM) and Planned Unit Development (PUD) & Site Plan reminded me of the timeless “chicken or the egg” paradox. This paradox was first proposed by philosophers in Ancient Greece to describe the problem of determining “cause-and-effect.”

Scientists have claimed to have “cracked” this paradoxical riddle. Their answer is that the chicken came first, in determining that the formation of eggshells relies on a protein found only in a chicken’s ovaries. Therefore, an egg can only exist if it has been created within the chicken. So how does this paradox apply to the Rural Lifestyle Amendment and the Becker Farms/Discovery FLUM and PUD?

If you attended or watched the BOCC meeting April 19^th, it was apparent that the Rural Lifestyle Amendment was the “Chicken”, and the Becker Farms/Discovery project was the “Egg”. For some reason, the strategy of inextricably marrying the Rural Lifestyle Amendment to the Becker Farms/Discovery project proposals resulted in an “egg” that has not yet been “hatched”. The BOCC decision to table the Rural Lifestyle Amendment in essence rendered the Becker Farms/Discovery FLUM and PUD/Site Plan proposals moot at this point. Now, Becker Farms/Discovery must reevaluate their strategy; revise the Rural Lifestyle Amendment to a site-specific amendment or amend their plan application submission which will require additional steps in the process to include public notice to surrounding property owners as an example.

The old saying, “you can’t count your chickens before their hatched” is appropriate for what transpired at the BOCC meeting. The residents of Martin County that attended the meeting and made public comments had a significant impact on the tabling of the Rural Lifestyle Amendment. Many voiced their confusion over the details of the amendment, environmental, and density concerns, many asked that there be and should have been more public workshops and outreach by the county directly to residents, that public outreach to associations and non-profit organizations is just the tip of the iceberg in reaching the constituents of Martin County.

The pressures of balancing the needs of residents to protect the

 “Martin County Difference” and at same time enabling site specific housing projects will be ever present. I believe that if the Becker Farms/ Discovery Lands project can address the concerns raised by the Guardians of Martin County regarding water quality monitoring of off-site discharge, protection of groundwater resources and other concerns as outlined in the Guardians’ position paper that the project would be supported by residents.

In order for the Rural Lifestyle Amendment to possibly move forward, it makes sense to regroup with stakeholders to further reduce the scope of acreage potentially available for Rural Lifestyle density designation, clearly define water quality protection measures, determine scope of county services to support future projects and more in-depth dialogue regarding open space (private vs. public).

No county officials, residents, and organizations want “egg on their faces”.  I believe the recommendation to establish a Martin County Environmental Initiative task force comprised of county staff and resident stakeholder representatives is a wise approach in establishing goals and strategies to protect the “Martin County Difference” and manageable growth and development in the county. We want to ensure that our quality of life can responsibly be passed on to future residents and generations.

John Sedwitz’s opinions are his own and may not reflect Friends & Neighbors viewpoint.

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The Martin County Taxpayers Association held our annual dinner.

The recipient of our “Friend of the Taxpayer Award” was Taryn Kryzda who is retiring as county administrator. Taryn has a been a friend of the association even when we have written critical pieces about the county. She has without question been someone who has quickly retrieved information and been of help any time we have asked.

Don Donaldson, the incoming administrator was our keynote speaker. He gave his assessment of where the county is headed next year and beyond. Don pledged to be as forthcoming as Taryn has been with us. We understand that staff is there to do what the commission wants. So, to blame them for policies that are enacted would be unfair. The commission are their bosses and we through the exercise of our votes are the commission’s.

To learn more about our 72-year-old organization that is dedicated to bringing light on what government is doing with your tax dollars, go to our website at: https://mctaxpayers.org/

Without your support this non-partisan good government organization ceases to exist. So please become a member so that we make our 73^rd year and beyond.

9

PLANNER’S PERSPECTIVE

By Marcela Camblor

The Battle Against Traffic Congestion. Are We Losing?

Rising traffic levels are not inevitable – and no, the only reason we are seeing more traffic is not because the City of Stuart has approved a couple of thousand apartment units – most yet to be built.

Our rising traffic is the consequence of decades of planning and development decisions made in silos, one parcel at a time, segregating uses and treating cars as a priority, where projects are forced to provide “wider travel lanes, more parking, bigger parking, more buffers…”. Fundamentally, increased traffic is the result of a disconnected, low density, segregated and sprawling pattern of development, disguised as environmentally thoughtful planning.

Advocating at public meetings to stop development, lower density or simply build commercial instead of residential, is every resident’s right. However, this will neither improve traffic nor render our communities more livable. Even if our local governments stopped development altogether, traffic would continue to increase due to the same isolated and auto oriented policies in communities that surround us.

While there are multiple agencies, plans and programs underway to improve sustainability, connectivity, balanced mobility, and improved pedestrian safety (Vision Zero Martin, Martin County’s Bicycle, Pedestrian and Trails Master Plan, Bike-Walk Colorado Plan, etc.), it appears that the effect of approving development, whether commercial, or high, medium or low density residential in areas that are single use and solely car-accessible, is far outpacing the well-intended efforts of any of these plans and organizations.

Simply stating in plans that we want to be sustainable and green and implementing the infrastructure and policies to truly achieve sustainability are very different things. True sustainability requires policies that are often resisted by vocal minorities or are simply hard to implement. As an example, most of our local governments’ transportation plans require designs that accommodate multiple means of transportation (as in walking, biking, and driving). But the detail with which these alternate modes of transportation are implemented are such, that no one in their right mind would use them.

Our roads must be so wide to keep moving cars, that there is little room left for anything else. Sidewalks lead nowhere, often lack shade and are placed within inches of fast-moving traffic. Bike lanes are designed at the minimum 4’ width, also next to fast moving traffic. A little “secret of the trade” is that (some) engineers call these bike lanes “recovery lanes”… as in “room to recover from swerving”, to avoid hitting something on the road or to prevent cars from hitting the curb while driving distracted. No wonder anyone with an inkling of life preservation will not use these bike lanes. 

Communities that are serious about providing true alternate means of mobility and that make conscious investment to foster healthier lifestyles, are incorporating not just visually separated, but physically separated bike lanes.  Research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, found that in cities where safe bike infrastructure was added, cycling increased up to 48 percent more than in cities without them.

Paris FR

Tampa

If we are ever to reach a future where cars and massively congested roads are not our inevitable destiny, we must define a clear, sustainable, and integrated vision as an alternative to the current piecemeal planning. We have to move away from our current model, where many decisions are made based on emotion, or “political climate”.

We need to understand that policy decisions one parcel at a time only results in inefficient distribution of land, wasted space between development that inhibits walkability and connectivity, and fragmented natural habitats that are neither sound preservation nor good planning.  We should re-evaluate our existing plans, policies and programs and replace wish lists with serious implementation.

Our local governments must stop blaming each other for bad, or too much, or too ugly development and work together. Development can happen without pollution and without destruction. And yes, without inevitable gridlock traffic.

Marcela Cambior’s opinions are her own and may not reflect Friends & Neighbors viewpoint.

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CONSTITUTIONAL CORNER AND OTHER GOVERNMENT NOTICES 

And from our Supervisor of Elections:

From The Clerk of The Court:

From the Property Appraiser

MARTIN COUNTY

STUART

Our first letter is from Nicki van Vonno:

Dear Tom:

Thank you for publishing Friends and Neighbors. I appreciate your factual coverage of the actions of our various local governments. I especially appreciate that you provide so much information for readers who want to learn about and understand how the local government agencies work in Florida and in Martin County. Encouraging readers to exercise their rights and duties is a great service.

Your coverage of the Martin County School District meeting of March 1, 2022, prompted me to write this letter. At the meeting, the School Board and the Martin Arts Foundation discussed the proposed lease of the historic Stuart High School.

“Should there be a place for Art in Martin County?” you ask. The arts are here, and you can find artists in home studios, in art galleries, and in warehouse and industrial spaces. The Arts in Martin County is economic development and small business entrepreneurship. Look at the recent Martin Artist Guild Tour brochure!

The restoration of the Stuart High School is a place for community.

I was on the Arts Council Board in 2007 – 2013. At the organization’s Strategic Retreat, the consensus was to work on funding a building. I could not see it. I did not want to raise money for a building. We had the Lyric, and the Elliott, as Tom noted in his reporting of the School Board meeting. When I was on the Arts Council Board, the Lyric, the Elliott, and the Florida Oceanographic Society had major funding campaigns underway.

Your column poses a false comparison a “vanity project” or affordable housing for teachers. After watching and studying and participating in conversations about affordable housing for over 35 years I suggest we leave behind the wishful thinking. At one point there were suggestions of doing both the Arts center and affordable housing but other actions and decisions about the adjacent school and city sites made those ideas unworkable.

Why does the arts council need to spend twelve million dollars on a building? It does not. But the community does. I am back on the Arts Council because now is the right time and the Stuart High School is the right place, and we have a resolute leader.

Nancy Turrell has led the Arts Council since April 1999. She is an advocate for growing current audiences and promoting programs that help the cultural community build for the future. She graduated from New York University with a B.A. in Marketing and from St. Mary’s University, Winona MN with a M.A. in Philanthropy & Development. It is Nancy’s calling. Nancy’s strength is to use her considerable education and networking to encourage and promote innovative programs for the arts. During her tenure, she established a women’s giving circle to provide grants to the arts sector, promoted eco-arts and arts in Public Places, and encouraged the creation of the Creek Arts District. To strengthen funding for the arts she helped establish the Martin Arts Foundation. This woman can run a major arts festival during a massive rainstorm interrupted by a gas leak and still finish the day with marching bands and stilt walkers and smiling faces.

The renovation of the historic Stuart High School is an amazing opportunity to pay homage to our history, and to honor the many community leaders who arose from its classrooms. Those classrooms will give birth to new artists, community leaders, and arts consumers. I see workspace for emerging artists, rehearsal halls for performers, studios for jewelry makers, glass blowers and dulcimer makers, classrooms for learning, and performing spaces. I see open places for resting, reading, and meeting folks.

If you can, please contribute to the renovation of the Stuart High School.

And the next from Pat Crow:

Tom, I love the content but the site is very hard to navigate. It would help if you made the article headlines in the email clickable links. I looked all over and cannot find the Hurley or Guardian pieces. The big leads in the email. 

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Karyn Wells writes on the school board:

I have also forwarded this letter to Governor DeSantis and I will be forwarding it to the school board although it’s very similar to what I wrote to them last week and have not received a reply on. This topic needs to be discussed.

I would like to comment on this story regarding that lgbtq school policies and the input from dr. Malay , who says basically all students need to be given the services that they need. I agree with that I have two children in the Martin County School District.  What I find amazing is that while he states everybody needs to be treated the middle of his article there is an lgbtq flag flying , could he be any more disingenuous with regard to where his priority is ?  The voters of Martin County made a huge mistake by giving away OUR right to elect the school superintendent and have stay in what and how our children are taught they are our children they do not belong to him or the teachers. Whether anyone likes it or not this is a conservative community,  so if in fact,  the school board had the best interest of the community and the values that are held by the majority,  why would they choose a superintendent who they describe in a WPTV article as a progressive , he himself describes  as a progressive? With that being said Martin County has now joined the ranks of Loudoun County and many many other counties  that have school boards that are promoting their own political agenda and beliefs with no regard to what the constituents want. Let me be very clear,  I have no problem with whatever sexual preference a person has,  what I do have a problem with is it being blown up and becoming more important than academics . It appears it’s not enough to be accepting,  it is now promoted. According to one of the first psychiatrist  who started helping people to transgender 30 years ago,  I cannot think of her name off the top of my head , she said that the dangerous increase of 4000 % since 2010 has caused her consider whether she will continue with this or not. As she feels just as I do that this is something being pushed on people,  like  15 year old girls that don’t like their bodies are being told on social media, and at school that’s because you’re in the wrong body .  I’d like you to tell me a 15 year old girl that is satisfied with her body or even a 50 year old woman who is satisfied with her body. Dr. Malay is not the right fit for this community just the fact that he promoted the idea of lgbtq month is absurd. Here’s my question so we have black history month and then we should have lgbtq month , what is it that we do to celebrate the majority of children who are not black or not lgbtq , we do nothing except marginalize them, while insisting that they worship at the altar of others . And frankly I am tired of my Irish Catholic straight children being marginalized because they are Irish Catholic straight children. Here’s another example , my daughter goes to South Fork High School I have asked the school board about this and to ni Surprise ,  have yet to get an answer , why were the Parent-Teacher conferences for South Fork High School held at Warfield Elementary School ? The answer I was given by a staff member who asked to remain anonymous , is that a lot of the Indiantown students parents couldn’t make it to South Fork , so again tax payers are forced to aqueous to another group. I thought that in America we treated everyone equally not because of their skin color their gender or their immigration status but since we have a new superintendent that seems to be all we do. I have had children in the school district for 11 years and up until the past two,  I’ve been pretty happy. The  ONE common denominator in all of this,  is the school board’s egregious choice of superintendent. About a month ago I attended the orientation for upcoming 9th graders at South Fork where my son will be attending they had several tables set up in the quad , IRSC, the vet program, ROTC, the football coach, the band, the small engine repair program, and of course  LGBTQ club. This is PROMOTING  not supporting !  And I don’t feel that there is any place 4 that in our schools I didn’t see a science club I didn’t see a math club . Kids will seek out the clubs they would like to join we don’t need to be promoting and recruiting which is exactly what they were doing . I doubt very seriously that anyone would have been allowed to set up a pro-life table and promote that political issue . My son who is at Hidden Oaks was sick one day and he went to the clinic you can’t make this up he left science class and went to the clinic where his nurse, who obviously has a background in science to become employed in the medical profession how to pin it states there’s 52 genders on her jacket as well as her pronoun pins. The question my son asked me is why do I have to take science when even the nurse at school doesn’t believe in science. What message are they sending ? So if I don’t believe in climate change I’m a science denier yet then I’m told I should believe there’s 52 genders which is not what science says.  We need all political ideology removed from school we need our youth to be educated academically anything beyond that is the parents job. And the special treatment The chosen groups needs to come to a screeching halt. Voters  need to repeal the total mistake of  giving over OUR rights to the school board ,  we need to take our power back. They have proven that they don’t care about parents wishes,  they only care about advancing  their political agendas and shoving them down our kids throats. I have asked in a public records request the percentage of lgbtq students enrolled in the Martin County School District because I’m interested to see what percentage of students the board and the superintendent continue to devote so much time on. This community need to get a handle on this ideology that has permeated our schools I cannot tell you how disgusting I think it is that they’re even needs to be a law to instruct teachers not to discuss sexual orientation Etc with children below 8 and 9 years old it’s mind-boggling and just shows the unhealthy ideology that is taken over Academia.

Karen Kerwin also on school related issues:

I like the FINAL THOUGHTS and most everything else. The public education administration headcount and salary overhead is out of control.  It would be helpful to compare headcount and overhead with similar populations. Thank you for your public service work! 

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And Lastly James Lynch of Ocean Breeze:

Happy Easter Tom, thanks for you updates and always being there

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THE MOUSE THAT ROARED

Fifty-five years ago, I was a junior in high school in another state and could not have cared less about the deals being cut between politicians and the “Mouse That Roared.”

Like many others of my generation, I grew up watching the “Mickey Mouse Club,” “Davey Crocket,” and other serializations of Walt Disney’s television programs. Walt would introduce the episode with an assist from Tinkerbell. Without question, we would also go to the movie theater to see “Snow White” and all the other beautifully produced animated films that Disney would re-release every decade or so.

Yet I was never a fan of Disney World. I first went when I was 25 years old before I had children when it was newly opened. In subsequent, visits my kids would tell you that I tolerated the place but would never pick it as my go-to destination. My attitude was that I could go to Europe for less money.

I also know that my libertarian nature would never have wanted a special governing district carved out for Disney. I am adamant that government should stay out of business and business out of government. Of the many things that should be added to our Constitution, one of them should be a prohibition on corporations and unions donating money for any political party, politician, or anything except a legitimate charity.

All that being said, I am appalled by Governor DeSantis and the legislature abrogating a deal because Disney exercised legal free speech. This is not the way government should operate. As a society, the people have given our governments enormous power in our name, but the government should not, in any way, penalize a person, company, or union for disagreeing with their actions.

Since about mid-pandemic, the governor has been on a kick to out-Trump former President Trump. His pronouncements are intended not so much to govern but to enhance his image with supporters. Many of his proposals have been blocked by the courts…so what is the point? Is it really all about owning the libs?

Mixed in with all the rhetoric are some sound policy proposals. There is some merit to the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. The same goes for making sure that parents’ voices are heard and even some components of his voting legislation.

DeSantis has shown he is much smarter than his political opponent, Trump. Crist and the rest can’t beat him no matter what they do in the upcoming gubernatorial race. I believe DeSantis will run for president in 2024 and has an excellent chance of being the nominee and the next president.

Yet what DeSantis wants the public to believe is that he is tough…a man. Is that really the way to show how tough you are? The Ukrainian leader, Volodymyr Zelensky, looks like someone who couldn’t punch his way out of a paper bag. Yet his physical and mental bravery is without question.

Zelensky doesn’t swagger. He just leads his nation against a bigger and stronger foe. Shouldn’t our leaders be more interested in projecting that type of fortitude and strength? Or has our political reality become fictional fantasy of the kind that actors portrayed on Disney shows I watched as a kid.

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GET THE WORD OUT  

Friends and Neighbors of Martin County is your eyes and ears so that you know what is going on in Martin County’s municipal and county governments. I attempt to be informative and timely so that you may understand how your tax money is being spent. Though I go to the meetings and report back, I am no substitute for your attending meetings. Your elected officials should know what is on your mind.