A few weeks ago, on August 20, 2020, the Sarasota County Planning Commission heard a proposed Comprehensive Plan Amendment from a rural Sarasota community, and unanimously recommended denial.
The Board -- made up entirely of appointees, mostly development industry insiders -- then went entirely beyond its specified responsibility to urge the County Commission to look into whether a community even had the right to seek a planning provision that would protect its 170-year way of life.
Below is an email from Becky Ayech to District 1 County Commissioner Mike Moran. It explains how her community's effort to protect the rural lifestyle of their 170-year-old community known as Old Miakka was entirely according to the County's own rules.
Ayech urges residents to write to the Commissioners in support of Old Miakka's right to seek a sound plan that would protect her community and prevent leapfrog development potentially all over the county.
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Good day Mike
I would like to address the issue of 20 signatures to REQUEST a Comprehensive Plan Amendment.
1. This is a County Regulation and the Miakka Community Club was TOLD they must take this route.
2. The 20 signatures was to REQUEST a Comprehensive Plan Amendment that would become a Public Comp Plan Amendment, just like any other County initiated Comprehensive Plan Amendment after the County Commission voted on this request.
3. The Comprehensive Plan Amendment proposed by Rod Krebs, because it was a language change, affected all the lands identified as Hamlets, including in South County. Mr. Krebs did not own or control all the lands that CPA-2018-C would have affected.
Another example is the Comprehensive Plan Amendment that changed the TDR program. This affected all lands that were/are subject to utilizing TDRs, including the subject lands of CPA-2019-C. I didn't hear any complaints from land owners whose property would be affected. Nor were they all listed on the CPA request. So in fairness, there are often impacts to landowners when a CPA is adopted whose names do not appear on any of the filed paperwork, i.e. people who own land.
4. Most importantly, this is a County Comprehensive Plan Amendment, not a private one. That is why the Miakka Community Club is only given 3 or 5 minutes, rather than the 15 afforded to privately initiated Amendments.
I know you are a fair person who follows County Rules and Regulations. Look at the facts presented by County Staff and members of the Public when you make your decision. I am attaching a synopsis of the County Staff Report, dated August 20, with page numbers, for your ease of reference.
The 20 signature debate has already happened and the BOCC considered all the arguments for and against and voted to process CPA-2019-C as a Publicly Initiated Amendment.
Merits not threats should guide your vote. I am sure the merits will prevail.
Becky Ayech
President
Miakka Community Club
See also: Irreplaceable impact of Old Miakka lifestyle by Carrie Seidman in the Herald Tribune.
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