Thursday, December 31, 2020

Recording of 2nd Kompothecras Workshop

Citizens for Sarasota put in a public records request to Sarasota County, seeking the Zoom file for the second neighborhood workshop about the hotel proposed at Stickney Point road on Siesta Key, held on Dec. 15, 2020. The first workshop was held Dec. 2, but had to be repeated because the developer failed to properly follow notification rules. 

The project proposed by Gary Kompothecras is  one of three new hotels proposed for Siesta Key, all seeking to change density and height limitations.

Graphics supplied by Lourdes Ramirez

The recording is an audio file. The permanent link to the audio is here - the link in the county response below will expire shortly.

Representing the developer were attorney Charles Bailey III and consultant Robert Medred. The workshop consisted largely of residents of Siesta Key asking specific, pertinent questions about features of the Kompothecras proposal.

As the note below indicates, the County is not routinely posting these recordings to its own site. This file had to be obtained by a records request.

Siesta Key hotel application submitted by Kompothecras to the County.

Below is the email from a County public records person:

Thank you for your interest in public records of Sarasota County Government.  Your request for “audio of the December 15th Siesta Key Hotel on Old Stickney Point neighborhood workshop” has been received and has been processed in accordance with Chapter 119 of the Florida State Statutes. Sarasota County has found records responsive to your request.

 

Due to the size of the file, a link has been created that will provide access to the audio file. This link is temporary and will be active for 7 calendar days, and afterwards, the file will no longer be accessible to you or us on the server. You are encouraged to download and save the file to your computer to ensure future access. Anyone with the link can download the audio file within the seven (7) days.

                             

https://secure.scgov.net/?ShareToken=8FFC52CF0D7C01F5BB60498DD6100D0A7044C2C2

[Editor's NOTE: Click here for the permanent link to the workshop's audio file. ]

 

Please note that when opening the mp4 file with an audio application, the sound doesn’t start until about 45-46 seconds into the recording.

 

We are working with staff and IT to see if we can post these recordings as they become available, to our County website, but at the moment, this is not available.

 

In the future, to better facilitate Public Records Requests that involve a large file size such as audio files, please submit your request to publicrecords@scgov.net or by using our GovQA portal at CLICK THIS LINK so that we can effectively facilitate your request with the department.

 

PLEASE NOTE: Florida Public Record’s Law does not require a governmental body to create new information or documents, to do legal research, or to answer questions.

 

Thank you.

Bethany Higgins

Public Records Specialist

Sarasota County Communications

1660 Ringling Blvd, Sarasota, FL 34236

Office: 941-861-5329

Cell: 727-266-0243

Email: publicrecords@scgov.net

Web: www.scgov.net


  

Sunday, November 29, 2020

The best response to the Bert Harris scare tactic

“They said they couldn’t build this without using taxpayer dollars and getting greater density,” she says. “So, if you admit that what is on the books, you’re not able to do, then what kind of ownership can you claim?”

Becky Ayech, quoted in Becky Ayech Fights for Old Miakka’s Rural Way of Life, by Elizabeth Djinis, Sarasota Magazine.








Tuesday, November 24, 2020

Rights of Nature Webinar

This webinar, presented in November 2020, is one of several on this movement to protect the rights of rivers and of citizens - the right, for example, to not be polluted. 

Corporations have rights - but why do they have the right to pollute, while citizens and Nature have no right to clean water?

Orange County is the largest US municipality to give legal rights to rivers via a Charter Amendment.

Chuck O'Neal of Orange County and Joe Bonasia speak with Thomas Linzey about the Rights of Nature movement in Florida. Direct link to the video.




The Center for Democratic and Environmental Rights has more videos about Rights of Nature in other parts of the globe.


Zoom Workshop on Siesta Key Hotel set for Dec. 2

Graphics supplied by Lourdes Ramirez


Update on this story from the Sarasota News Leader - the plan calls for a text amendment that would apply more generally to properties fitting certain criteria:
Kompothecras and his project team are seeking an amendment to county Future Land Use Policy 2.9.1. It would allow “lands located south of Stickney Point Road which are zoned CG [Commercial General] and CI [Commercial Intensive] (the ‘South Bridge Area’ under the Siesta Key Community Plan) … [to] be redeveloped to contain transient accommodations which exceed the density restrictions of the zoning regulations existing as of that date without violating this policy.”

“Potential erosion of our Iconic Siesta Key lifestyle continues” - Siesta Key Condominium Council. 

Regarding the hotel proposed for Siesta Key at Stickney Point Road, the newly formed Siesta Key Coalition is circulating its concerns. A Public Workshop will be held on December 2 - see info below:

1. The Siesta Key Hotel proposes to QUADRUPLE transient hotel unit density, 8 times single family zoning density, on 1.17 acres.

2. This Hotel and Parking Garage would be built off Stickney Point Road, the major Hurricane Evacuation Route for SK. An increase in traffic and density could endanger resident and visitor egress during a crisis.

3. The developer proposal states, “There are no grand trees, wetlands or other environmental features on the Hotel Parcel.” In fact, on both Old Stickney Point and Peacock Roads, the proposed hotel borders one end of Sabal Lake, which is brackish, tidal, and connected to the intracoastal, as confirmed by county engineers. Sabal Lake borders numerous properties on Peacock Road and Sabal Drive. Although originally part of the area’s stormwater management, it is a naturalized lake, full of mangroves, which by ordinance should have County protection, and numerous birds, fish and wildlife. One end of the lake is a bird rookery for various heron.

Sura Kochman, who led the fight against Benderson's oversized Siesta Promenade, wrote below.

From: Sura Kochman skbaystate@aol.com

Subject: New hotel, just over the south bridge

Dear All,

Since traffic and congestion was such a concern of ours regarding Siesta Promenade, I am sharing with you the following information regarding the new hotel proposed by 1-800- ask Gary (Gary Kompothecras). It is provided by a newly formed group, SK Coalition which intends to address major concerns regarding several new proposed high rise developments for Siesta Key.  

Sura

All - for those interested, Genesis Planning, the consultant for Dr. Gary K's proposed 120-room, 7-story hotel near Stickney Point/Old Stickney Point has been scheduled via a Zoom presentation on December 2nd.  See info below.  

SK Coalition will be joining and monitoring this presentation as well.  Those of you near the subject property, were you properly notified by mail?  In addition to publishing in a local paper in advance, the developer is required to notice by mail all neighboring property owners within a 750 ft radius ten days in advance of Dec 2nd.

Obviously, we all have concerns about this hotel's special exception request for 83 feet height above the base flood elevation (instead of the 35 ft current restriction) and requested text amendments to quadruple the density per acre of transient accommodations from what is in the current barrier island codes and policies.  Equally important, we wish to convey to Sarasota Planning staff and elected Commissioners that they first "step back" from considering these coming hotel applications on a one-off basis:

Our 1999 Siesta Key Community Plan, which was a foundational document, leading to the protections of the Siesta Key Overlay District, is more relevant and applicable today than it was then. The need to protect our barrier island from adverse consequences of "intensity and density" was thoughtfully considered and input from our community was respected. Please honor its vision and its inherent will of those that call SK their home.  If not willing to consider the wishes of the residents of SK, at least consider the implications to Sarasota County's valuable economic asset, this barrier island.  

  • Why no comprehensive study of the impact on traffic congestion and safety, both pedestrian and vehicular, on these large-scale, high-rise hotels (inclusive of the hotel in final consideration in the Promenade already across one of our two major island access points)? 
  • What precedents are being set by one-off granting of major exceptions for high-rise and intense hotels to go on the other 44 acres of commercial property on SK?  
  • What is the impact to our public and private beaches of bringing all these transient guests? How will will they access the beaches safely?  
  • We already have an unresolved, growing conflict between privately beach owners (90% of our SK beaches) at the public access points...what happens when hundreds of transient hotel guests exacerbate this dilemma and the private condo association owners all step in to restrict beachgoers from putting up their umbrellas and chairs?  
  • Will mainland County taxpayers find their access to crowded public beach become  further limited? This was the largest concern cited by residents of Sarasota County in the recently publicized quality of life survey reference in last week's Sarasota News Leader:...Access Points to Barrier Islands.

We are not anti-development.  We are pro-economic growth for SK and Sarasota County.  But not when it comes with more adverse consequences and dangerous precedents that will open the floodgates of taller and more intense development... death by a thousand cuts.  Our leadership needs to step back and see the big picture.

Here's the Zoom information for the Neighborhood Workshop:

Neighborhood Workshop Siesta Key Hotel and Parking Garage

Date:12/02/2020 6:00 PM - 7:00 PM  

Zoom link

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84742112223?pwd=bFNIQ1NpMXJhbm1NK3NUZ2s4S0NyZz09

Phone in 312-626-6799 Use meeting ID 879 7887 1482  Password 951062

Contact: Robert Medred, Genesis Planning, 941-255-2313

Siesta Key Hotel and Parking Garage_12.2.2020

Please spread this info, so people can attend via Zoom or phone. Mailing notices have not yet been received. The link at the very bottom is to plans filed with Sarasota County, including changes to the UDC and SKOD that would be precedent-setting and affect everyone throughout the County. Note Wednesday Dec. 2 date, scheduled with little notice, during a busy holiday season and rising pandemic.

Siesta Key Association site

Wednesday, November 18, 2020

An international Right has come to Florida

In 2008, Ecuador provided constitutional protection to its mountains, waters and land - it was the first country to do that.

That got tested in 2010: "The Vilcabamba river was being filled in by a road building project and the court ruled on behalf of the river’s right to flow freely."

The provincial government building the road had to change the route of the road.

The Rights of Nature: Patricia Siemen TedX Talk at Jacksonville


In 2010, Bolivia hosted the world’s people conference on the Rights of Mother Earth and climate change 2010 -- leading to a Universal Declaration on the rights of Mother Earth

The Declaration came to the UN and some of its language is beginning to show up in UN documents and resolutions.

New Zealand became the second country to provide legal rights to Nature -- the same rights of Legal Personhood now enjoyed only by corporations in the US.


Ichetucknee Springs


In Florida, Siemen told her Jacksonville audience, start with the St. Johns, the Ichetucknee and the Suwannee. Let’s give the Rights of Nature to our springs

"We can work to bring a Bill of Rights for water to the State of Florida," she added.

On Nov. 3, 2020, Orange County Florida became the first jurisdiction in the state to adopt a Bill of Rights for two rivers.

To learn more, connect with the Rights of Nature efforts in Florida:

Florida Rights of Nature Network


Below: Live Webinar on the Rights of Nature held Thursday, Nov. 19


             


Saturday, November 7, 2020

Development: Con and Pro after the Election

"In this election, knowingly or not, Manatee County voted for Build until it Hurts, Quality of Life be Damned. And it will likely take a long time and a lot of hard work if they are ever to undo the harm that will surely be done as a result." Dennis Maley - Bradenton Times.


Guest column and LTE in the Herald Tribune

In Florida and Sarasota County, the bulldozers keep on gaining ground

Roger Morton Guest columnist

Roger Morton

In response to an Oct. 14 letter to the editor defending developers ("Unfair to demonize developers"), consider this:

Once there was a lovely spot about  a mile north of Laurel Road on the Legacy Trail. There was a shelter and benches and a sign noting that behind the fence was a butterfly garden. The poster showed dozens of kinds of butterflies that might be found in that meadow.

Then one day the bulldozers came and the butterfly habitat was gone. The bulldozers worked for weeks, until most of the trees were piled high and burned. The bulldozers kept working for months, until the area was built up far above its previous level, roads and utilities were installed and a full-blown subdivision oozed across the land. An occasional gable roof instead of a hip roof, faux shutters and other trinkets, intended no doubt to soften the sad sameness of the houses, fail miserably.

The houses are placed cheek-by-jowl, with tiny yards. They could only be described as cookie-cutter, with roofs in a few shades of reddish mud and houses in equally bland shades, none too far from sick-baby poop.

The letter-writer touts ponds and bike paths. The ponds, of course, are actually retention ponds to keep the subdivisioners from waking up with knee-deep runoff and to give the developers the "water view" label for their sales propaganda. There is hardly any need to comment on how charming a bike path past all the architectural blandness must be.

The writer also touts the fact that one-third of the county is off-limits to development. The unanswered question is, what percentage is headed for development?

Which brings up the claim that "traffic nightmares" are "no more than any growing city." Anyone who has lived in a growing city knows this is nonsense. Most growing cities have better planning and do not give developers carte blanche to build before there is road infrastructure to support it. A related defense that developers pay their own way is equally nonsensical. A perfect case in point is the cluster-crunch at I-75 and University Parkway. Developers of the mall there, and of Lakewood Ranch, make multimillions off their projects, and complain when they are forced to kick in for some mitigation, and the taxpayers are left with the bill for seemingly endless freeway "improvements" and equally endless traffic jams.

The writer also lauds "new consumption" and the value of "developed land" over "pastureland." Obviously, the writer has not heard of global warming.

A final fallacy is that the area is blessed with "enlightened leadership."

The sad fact is that local leaders virtually never seem to find a development they can't buy into, and developers play them like a fiddle. Developers come in with over-large developments. Professional planners and neighbors object. Developers moan, trim their plans to what they likely expected from the start and the bulldozers roll. Having lived in 10 states and one territory, I can attest that there is far more enlightened leadership in many of them. They value the environment and quality of life far more than our leaders, who see only dollar signs.

Which brings me back to the bulldozers. Since the day a few years ago when the butterfly garden was crushed under the treads, the machines continue to clatter along both sides of the Legacy Trail. Roads go in and both cookie-cutter houses and McMansions crawl across the land. Most of the trees are gone, the natural wetlands are gone, the bobcats and otters no longer cross the trail.

And this is just a microcosm of what is going on all over Sarasota and Manatee counties, and Florida for that matter.

The situation is certainly comparable to global warming. Many scientists believe we are nearing a tipping point to save the planet. If the bulldozers continue to pillage at their present pace, we may well be nearing the tipping point of a livable, green region or one big subdivision.

As if to cement the argument against rampant growth is this more recent news: A massive new garbage dump is being planned here and more high rises are being proposed for Siesta Key. It can already take more than two hours to get off the key in a normal season. More high rises? 

Sarasota resident Roger Morton was a senior editor at five daily newspapers and held various editing positions at newspapers including The Tennessean in Nashville, Seattle Times, Salt Lake Tribune, Eugene Register-Guard, and the Missoulian.

© 2020 www.heraldtribune.com. All rights reserved.



================

Unfair to demonize developers

In a guest editorial Oct. 2, Kindra Muntz wrote, “Maybe developers in 1920 were a force for good in Sarasota County, but developers in 2020 are bulldozing the rest of it, creating cookie-cutter housing developments and traffic nightmares, and sticking us with the bill.” 

This is wrong on so many fronts, starting with “maybe.” Of course, developers have been a force for good.

Second, developers are not “bulldozing” the county. A third of the land is totally off-limits.

Third, cookie-cutter? Nope. Landscaping, ponds, parks, bike paths, in all price ranges.

Fourth, traffic nightmares? No more than any growing city.

Fifth, developers pay their way, with roads, sidewalks, water, sewer, electric and even donated land for new schools. At no cost to the taxpayers.

Thousands of families move here, pay taxes and stimulate the local economy with new consumption and job creation. The taxable value of developed land is hugely higher than pastureland, spreading the tax base for everyone.

Demonization of developers is specious. Good leaders balance property rights and a thriving economy with environmental protection. Fortunately, Sarasota has been blessed with just such enlightened leadership.

Chris Albright, Sarasota


Sunday, November 1, 2020

Election Day is here, and Mike Moran refuses to speak to voters

Mike Faisano is a former member of the state House and Florida Senate, a lifelong Republican. He's currently the Pasco County Tax Collector. And he finds plenty wrong with a program that preys on the poor while guaranteeing that the rich get their money with interest

Faisano spoke last week on Cathy Antunes' The Detail on WSLR about PACE, which stands for Property Assessed Clean Energy Program, and what he had to say was chilling. 

Commissioner Mike Moran
And Sarasota Commissioner Mike Moran (left) has yet to explain his connection to the PACE program.

PACE is a public/private agency that purports to help vulnerable homeowners in economically depressed areas. The problem is these people can be sold loans by contractors without proper monitoring.

These loans can be dangerous because PACE extends loans via sales pitches that claim that virtually anyone can be "Pre-Qualified in Minutes" -- claims that carry the credibility of government authorization, with no one monitoring those pitches or asking for income qualification information. 


The loans get placed on homeowners' tax bills. If the interest rate spikes, or they lose work due to circumstances like the CoronaVirus -- facing tax bills they cannot pay -- they can lose their homes.

The money being loaned belongs to wealthy investors. These lenders are guaranteed to be repaid by the state and local governments through the tax liens, said Faisano.

"I don't know of a time when tax collectors have been used as debt collectors," said Antunes.

"Never," said Faisano. 

PACE puts vulnerable property owners at risk, while giving 6 percent or higher return to wealthy people, guaranteed by the government. Faisano explains how the wealthy lenders are in it for the interest rates -- and if the homeowner is unable to come up with the tax money, someone else can pay the price of the tax certificate as the homeowner sees their home auctioned off.

The prediatory program has been in the news recently in part because, as reported by the Herald Tribune, Sarasota Commissioner Mike Moran has been serving as the executive director of a PACE funding agency operating in Flagler County and in the City of Kissimmee. 

Among the noteworthy questions raised:

  • According to his contract with PACE, the Sarasota public official has been paid $150,000 a year -- more than he earns as a Commissioner.
  • However, Moran did not disclose that he has this second job.
  • Further, Commissioner Moran has report his income from PACE.

Moran has essentially run a "dark" campaign, agreeing to only one forum with his opponent, Mark Pienkos. He has not faced questioning about this, and his mailers and advertisements tend to speak not of his record on the Board of Commissioners, but of his support for Trump and the NRA. 

Nonetheless, developers and PACs have poured tens of thousands of dollars into his reelection campaign.



You can hear Cathy Antunes' entire interview with Mike Faisano here.

Read more about the perils of PACE here.

Mr. Moran has sought to have a criminal investigation of three Democratic candidates in this election - yet refuses to address questions about his own questionable issues.

And have a good hard look at how things seem to work in Sarasota County: Mr. Moran, who voted for Jim Gabbert's debris demolition plant at the Celery Fields, along with the Siesta Promenade, and developments by Carlos Beruff, Pat Neal, and Randy Benderson, has hidden his income and the very fact of his work at PACE from voters, refused to take part in public debates or forums, yet is getting borne on a tidal wave of developer dollars to a second term on the Board.

Is Sarasota's political machine is so strong the people have yet to understand it?

Friday, October 23, 2020

Fish Farm Deadline for comments extended


The Army Corps of Engineers has extended the deadline for people who wish to comment on the proposed fish farm off of Sarasota's shores. Apparently their email was not working, and comments previously submitted were not received. 

Here is the address to the now working email: 

 OceanEra_VEAquaculture@usace.army.mil 

From the Corps:

The Corps is extending the comment period an additional 15-days to November 19, 2020 to ensure we receive all comments regarding this proposed project. If you previously sent comments to the OceanEra_VEAquaculture@usace.army.mil email address, please resend those comments as soon as possible. You will receive an email response confirming receipt of your comments. We apologize for this inconvenience.

Deadline Extension for comments:

Project Name: 15-Day Public Notice Comment Period Extension for Ocean Era, LLC Velella Epsilon Aquaculture Pilot Project

County: Sarasota County

Comment Due Date: November 19, 2020

File Name: SAJ-2017-03488 (SP-KRD)

Due to a technical issue, the Corps became aware that the comment email mailbox, OceanEra_VEAquaculture@usace.army.mil , was not receiving external emails. 




Thursday, October 22, 2020

Calling all fish harvesters, restaurants, tourism/entertainment industries, retailers and more!

If you are a business owner/operator in the Gulf of Mexico, we hope you will consider signing onto this letter from coastal businesses to public officials demanding that they prioritize Gulf businesses, support your recovery from coronavirus devastation, and call on the government to halt the development of new industrial aquaculture facilities in the Gulf of Mexico. You can sign on and read the full letter here. Deadline is Thursday, November 2. 

The looming threat of industrial ocean fish farming in the Gulf of Mexico is growing. EPA just issued the first permit needed to construct Velella Epsilon, a finfish aquaculture facility just 45 miles off the coast of Sarasota, FL. The US Army Corps of Engineers is about to close a commenting period on the second and final permit necessary to build the first of what will likely be many of these destructive operations throughout the Gulf of Mexico.

Industrial aquaculture facilities push external costs of operation onto the ocean ecosystem and coastal economies, from direct discharge of toxins to privatization of the ocean. 



For the Gulf of Mexico, this means extra nutrients to feed the red tide and increased competition for limited marine space (and much more). The industry has its sights set on the Gulf of Mexico as the first place it wants to operate in the U.S. – starting with the Velella Epsilon project off the coast of Sarasota, to be followed by a larger “Aquaculture Opportunity Area” to host up to 5 facilities in the region. This could devastate Gulf businesses that have already been struggling to recover from recent natural disasters and devastation from the impacts of COVID-19.

Join us in telling public officials to support local and coastal businesses in the Gulf, and stop pushing a harmful new industry in the region! Sign on and read the full letter here. Deadline is Monday, November 2.

Please feel free to spread the word and contact htempleton@foe.org with any questions.


<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> 

Hallie Templeton

Senior Oceans Campaigner

(434)326-4647

htempleton@foe.org

Friends of the Earth

    


Monday, October 19, 2020

Questions for Mike Moran

When it came to light earlier this month that three people running for office in Sarasota, all new to politics, had erred in accepting donations larger than what the county Charter allows, Commissioner Mike Moran didn't hesitate to condemn their acts:
“I find it outrageous that these candidates appear to be violating the very charter that they were running to protect,” Moran said in a statement. “It is clear they didn’t bother to read the rules of the charter, do not understand them, or have chosen to ignore them.” 

Mr. Moran now has some acts and omissions of his own to explain. 

A look into the Commissioner's public records reveals unpaid business taxes; unpaid intangible tax for three years; questionable and possibly illegal campaign contributions; undisclosed private debt, and the troubling appearance of multiple conflicts of interest within his campaign and Political Action Committee, or PAC, operators. 

Moran and Jack Brill demanded the Sheriff to investigate the Democratic candidates, who received contributions from their own party and its executive committee, all of which they reported to the Supervisor of Elections. Two candidates reported receiving $1,000 each; the third, reported $7,500, - for a total of $9,500 for all three candidates. (HT story 10.2.20)

Mr. Moran found the candidates' acceptance of money from their own party "outrageous." Those contributions however comply with State law, which allows up to $50,000 from parties to candidates. It turned out the party's donations violated a $200 limit peculiar to Sarasota County's home rule Charter.

The Democrats immediately acknowledged their errors and returned the contributions.

Questions about practices

Questions about certain of Mr. Moran's practices have now arisen.

According to the Herald Tribune of October 15, Mr. Moran last year made $100,000 from serving as executive director of a public/private agency that appears to use the credibility of public officials to market home improvement loans. 

Jim Ley
Before becoming PACE executive director -- apparently through recruitment efforts of former County Administrator Jim Ley -- Commissioner Moran voted to approve Sarasota County's working with PACE, the HT reported.

PACE falls under no regulatory authority; a Tampa Bay Times investigation showed that homeowners were not clearly warned of risking a "tax hit":

. . . many homeowners didn’t know their property tax bills could spike. Some PACE recipients in the Tampa Bay area risked losing their homes because they could not pay the hefty loans and thousands of dollars in interest. . . .One Brandon man’s annual tax bill jumped from $900 to $6,250.    TampaBay

Mr. Moran has reportedly helped shape the loan program which has ties to the powerful local builders' association lobbying group:

Manatee-Sarasota Building Industry Association serves as a mailbox for Florida PACE and holds a contractual agreement with the agency – an agreement that Moran helped shape. (HT)

The head of the Building Industry group, Jon Mast, serves on state boards and on the Sarasota Board of Zoning Appeals. The record of interrelationships of Mr. Moran's work on the PACE program raise conflict of interest questions. At least two Florida counties have broken relations with PACE, citing potential dangers and a lack of protection for consumers. 

The convoluted relationships extend further: Mr. Moran's accountant for PACE and another line of private business, Wendi Leach, also chairs the Florida Country PAC which has contributed more than $185,000 to his reelection campaign.

And the Herald Tribune reported that Commissioner Moran failed to pay business taxes due on his PACE directorship job.

Unpaid taxes, undisclosed debts

Soon after the HT story broke, new evidence emerged suggesting that Mr. Moran might face more to answer for:

According to public records cited by NoMoreMoran.com, Mr. Moran 

  • not only failed to pay business taxes, but also reported no intangible taxes on two side businesses which account for hundreds of thousands of dollars of income;
  • his campaign has received contributions from a 501(c)3 -- illegal in Florida;
  • the Chair of the Florida Country PAC, Wendi Leach, is the subject of a federal election complaint alleging an illegal contribution from a foreign corporation, and 
  • in public filings, Moran repeatedly failed to disclose private mortgage debt to a Sarasota businessman and political donor:



Arm's length Political Action Committee?

The connections and potential conflicts of interest thicken, as revealed by documented research into Mr. Moran's campaign financing.

PACs are supposed to have an "arms-length" relation to candidates*, yet as noted, Ms. Leach is Mr. Moran's employee in two private business ventures. Mr Moran's campaign treasurer, Eric Robinson, is also treasurer of the Florida Country PAC, which has taken in $185,000 from developers to reelect Mr. Moran. Robinson, who is involved in dozens of PACs that move anonymous money into various campaigns, recently was the subject of a Florida Election Commission complaint resolved in his favor..

For someone outraged by $9,500 of contributions to Democratic candidates, the record of Mr. Moran's actions while in public office raises troubling questions. Sarasota Republican Party Chair Jack Brill, who called for a criminal investigation into the Dems, has said nothing regarding the concerns surrounding Mr. Moran.


What does Mr. Moran have to say?

So far, Commissioner Moran has denied conflicts of interest regarding his role in PACE, but has said nothing publicly about the other issues.

The trail of public records leads to further questions involving large contributions from developers in other counties, and to how the redistricting effort of 2019, rushed through and challenged in court, cost taxpayers some $400,000 to protect Mr. Moran. His District 1 was gerrymandered to exclude voters from Newtown - the black, largely Democratic community. Newtown was removed, and two largely white conservative precincts were added to tip the balance in the Republican's favor.

Read more, with links to public records here: NoMoreMoran.

===

*Regarding the relationship of PACs to candidate campaigns:

Florida Statute 106.011 (12)(a) states: “Independent expenditure” means an expenditure by a person for the purpose of expressly advocating the election or defeat of a candidate or the approval or rejection of an issue, which expenditure is not controlled by, coordinated with, or made upon consultation with, any candidate, political committee, or agent of such candidate or committee. An expenditure for such purpose by a person having a contract with the candidate, political committee, or agent of such candidate or committee in a given election period is not an independent expenditure.

Thursday, October 15, 2020

Sarasota County move to change petition rules is met with outrage

Last evening the Charter Review Board, which has done nothing for a couple of years, voted to approve measures that will complicate the process citizens must undertake to get a Charter Amendment on the ballot.

This specific measure was developed in a CRB committee headed by developer James Gabbert.

It was proposed after the citizens placed an amendment for Single Member District Voting on the 2018 election ballot, and it passed in all five districts.


From a piece by Tim Fanning in the 10.15.20 Herald Tribune: 



SARASOTA COUNTY — Two
controversial measures expected to make it harder for citizens to change Sarasota County government rules by voting to amend the county charter sailed through a special review panel late Wednesday:

Among the proposed changes the charter amendments would require:
  • A petition cannot conflict with the Florida Constitution, general law or the county’s charter, though charter amendments already cannot conflict with the Florida Constitution.

  • A petition to be signed by at least 10% of the number of registered voters in each district in Sarasota County. 

  • A petition would need to be reviewed for legal sufficiency by the county upon the collection of validated signatures of 1% of the registered voters of the county. Signatures must be submitted before Jan. 1 of the year the election is held. If the legal review is invalid, it will be thrown out. 

  • A petition would need a fiscal impact statement prepared by the county. It would accompany any charter amendment proposed by the petition and would appear on the ballot. 


The proposed changes come just two years after the county placed some of the most restrictive measures to date for charter amendments on the November 2018 general election ballot.

Those measures, passed by voters, increased the number of required signatures for citizen petitions and imposed a narrow deadline for petition signatures to qualify for future initiatives.

The measures to double the number of citizen signatures to qualify for a ballot amendment came at the instigation of Commissioner Mike Moran, who initiated Board discussion at the July 10, 2018 meeting (start at the 2 hr 19 minute mark). The Board quickly adopted new language and got the measure on the Nov. 2018 election ballot.

Many who opposed the Board's doubling of required signatures said it will make new citizen amendments virtually impossible.


More:




The broadcast of the 10.14.20 meeting was NOT clearly advertised. No one was able to offer input from a remote location. Several citizens did attend in person and spoke. The meeting can be seen at the link below:




Monday, October 12, 2020

Eliminating density restrictions just one concern with 3 Siesta Key hotels

Three Hotels Proposed for Siesta Key

Location of 2 proposed hotels at intersection of Beach Rd and Calle Miramar

Two Proposed Hotels in Siesta Village – Image Courtesy Sarasota county  —  

Three hotels are being proposed for Siesta Key,  two in Siesta Key Village and one near the south bridge.   All building proposals plan for over 100 rooms of Transient (nightly) Accommodations, exceeding existing limitations.  Two of the hotels would exceed the 35-foot height restriction.

None of these hotels, as proposed, are legal under current zoning regulations.  All proposals also violate the two critical barrier island protections prohibiting an increase in density and intensity of property use.  These hotels can only be built if the County Commissioners grant special exceptions and amendments to current zoning and regulations.

The adjacent picture (image courtesy of Sarasota County) shows the location of the two proposed Village hotels, which are side by side.

Redevelopment of Siesta Key Resort

The first Village hotel is an expansion of Mike Holderness’ Siesta Key Resort on Ocean Blvd. from 55 rooms to 170 rooms.  The buildings would adhere to the 35-foot height regulation.

 View plans for this expansion on the Sarasota County web site.

New Hotel on Calle Miramar

Robert Anderson is proposing the second Village hotel with its entrance on Calle Miramar.  This hotel would sit on the vacant UPS store lot and an adjacent empty lot on Beach Road, and three lots behind them on Calle Miramar.  A 170-room, 100-foot building would replace existing single-story buildings.

View plans for the Beach Road hotel on the County web site.

Hotel near South Bridge

The third hotel, proposed by Gary Kompothecras, is located near Siesta Key’s South Bridge on Old Stickney Point and Peacock Roads.  This hotel would be a new 120-room, 100-ft building. A separate parking garage would provide some parking for the hotel.

View plans for the South Bridge hotel on the County web site.

How this will impact the Key?

These proposed hotels will add hundreds more cars driving daily on and off Siesta Key (in addition to extra traffic from the approved Promenade Hotel at US 41 and Stickney Point.)  Beach Access #5, in the Village, and beach access #12 near the Stickney Point Bridge will be overwhelmed with hundreds of extra visitors. Added transient accommodations will increase traffic, pedestrian, and beach congestion – how much can one little island absorb?

Another key component in the hotel proposals is a change to the County definition of Transient Accommodations.  Currently, for the barrier islands, including Siesta Key, Transient Accommodations are limited to 13 rooms/acre or 26 rooms/acre without a kitchen.  These hotel proposals include changes to zoning regulations that eliminate any restriction or allow much higher density.  More than 100 rooms per acre are proposed for each of the three hotels.   Proposals specifically state that certain property on Siesta Key may be developed “to contain transient accommodations which exceed the density restrictions of the zoning regulations.” This opens the flood gates for similar proposals on other Siesta Key commercial property.

Some Siesta Key Residents have asked what people can rely on when making a purchasing decision, if the Comprehensive Plan, Sarasota zoning code, and the SKOD regulations can be changed at a request for personal gain.  What protection can homeowners count on from the County?

Siesta Key Association continues to oppose special exceptions, variances, and amendments to the Sarasota County Comprehensive Plan, Unified Development Code (UDC), or Siesta Key Overlay District (SKOD) for current and future development projects that increase the density, or intensity of property use on Siesta Key.

Current Hotel Status

Pre-applications have been submitted to the County Planning Department and comments returned on two of the projects.  No formal applications have been submitted; no public hearings have been scheduled.   If you have thoughts about the hotel proposals, you can voice them to the County Commissioners at commissioners@scgov.net.

Read extensive articles on hotel proposals:

 Sarasota News Leader:   South Bridge HotelCalle Miramar and South Bridge Hotel ProposalsCalle Miramar Hotel

The recent filings of preliminary applications for two new 80-plus-feet-tall hotels on Siesta Key will encompass more than land development considerations, The Sarasota News Leader has learned.

Each proposal calls for major changes to the Sarasota County Unified Development Code (UDC), which contains all the land development and zoning regulations. Each application also proposes a modification of the county’s Future Land Use policy that applies to residential density on the barrier islands.  SNL 7.23.20

Siesta Sands:   Calle Miramar HotelSouth Bridge Hotel

Herald Tribune: Developers look skyward on Siesta

Check back on the SKA site for further information on these hotel projects.

 

Thursday, October 8, 2020

UPDATE: MORE time to take a stand against fish farming

The comment period has been extended to Nov. 4!!

The Virtual Hearing was successful in getting the Army Corps (USACE) to open a Comment Period on the construction permit for the Velella Epsilon Fish Farm off Sarasota’s coast.

Please send comments to the Army Corps expressing your objections to the permit and requesting a public hearing at the email below by Nov. 4. Comments “must state the specific reasons for requesting the public hearing”:

COMMENTS regarding the potential authorization of the work proposed should be submitted in writing to the attention of the District Engineer through the Tampa Permits Section, 10117 Princess Palm Avenue, Suite 120, Tampa, Florida 33610-8302 or preferably by electronic mail at: OceanEra_VEAquaculture@usace.army.mil within 30 days from the date of this notice (i.e. November 4, 2020).
 
The decision whether to issue or deny this permit application will be based on the information received from this public notice and the evaluation of the probable impact general navigation pursuant to Section 10 of the RHA.
 
QUESTIONS concerning this application should be directed to the project manager, Katy Damico, in writing at the Tampa Permits Section, 10117 Princess Palm Avenue, Suite 120, Tampa, Florida 33610-8302 or preferably by electronic mail at : OceanEra_VEAquaculture@usace.army.mil or, by telephone at (813) 769-7076 or (813) 467-6603.


      Submit your comments now thru November 4


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There's still time to speak out!

There are a few more days for the public to add thoughts and voices to the overwhelming opposition to offshore fish farming near Sarasota's beaches. (Sample testimony)


Submit your comments now - open through Oct. 14.

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LTE of 9.21.20 in the Herald Tribune


The federal government recently moved to speed the development of industrial fish farming in the Gulf of Mexico by designating an “aquaculture opportunity area.”

But what “opportunity” is it really creating?


Offshore aquaculture consists of floating pens filled with tens of thousands of fish – and waste, excess feed and various chemicals freely polluting the surrounding environment. 



When those facilities are damaged during extreme weather, they can rupture, allowing the fish to escape and disrupt our local ecosystems.





If this isn’t enough, the Army Corps of Engineers is poised to issue a permit for a new fish farming facility in federal waters off Sarasota called Velella Epsilon, without making the application public. This comes in spite of strong opposition from Sarasota, Holmes Beach and Sanibel.


The facility may increase red tide, and pollute beaches and waters that are the backbone of our local economy.


On Sept. 30, a coalition of residents, government officials, business owners and environmentalists will participate in a virtual people’s hearing to give the public a voice in the permitting process, and make our opposition loud and clear.


Register to speak here


Submit audio, video and written statements

 

Dr. Neal Schleifer, Sarasota