Today's BCC meeting - 11/14/06

[Smiling JOe]

Did I mention that Walton County BCC voted last night to approve that property taxes whose collectable tax total is less than $30, will not have to pay their taxes on that property? What I want to know is where I can get some of that land. :funn: They said the total amount only added up to around $10,000 and the cost of processing the mailout and receiving and posting addded up to more than what they would receive in taxes paid. Now another thing I want to know is how in the heck does it cost $30 to send out a notice of proposed taxes along with a notice of taxes due? I know those clerks in the Tax Office are not making $150 per hour.

 

[BMBWalker]

Numbers, numbers, numbers...

In all this talk about the proposed development on the Red Fish Village lot to provide a "pleasant gated experience" for the owners, renters, guest and invitees of the Red Fish Village complex, let's not lose site of the density impact the number of owners, renters, guest and invitees will create for a 75 to 90 foot wide lot and ajoining beach.

Redfish Village has 80 condos for sale. Assumption: all 80 are sold and used as described in all legal, sales, and advertising publications. In that case, the numbers during the peak use season go something like this:

With 100% occupancy each day during season:
Owner: 1 x 80 = 80 folks funneled to this lot daily;
Owner & spouse/partner: 2 x 80 = 160 folks funneled to this lot daily;
Renters: 1 or 2 = same as above, 80 or 160 funneled to this lot daily;
Renters: 3 x 80 = 240 folks funneled to this lot daily;
Renters: 4 x 80 = 320 folks funneled to this lot daily;
Renters: 5 x 80 = 400 folks funneled to this lot daily;
I'll stop at 5 even though we know there can and will be more!!

Now, we all know that we usually don't have 100% occupancy in a development. OK, then just apply your own percentage to the numbers and see what you get. This is not going to be a pretty sight at this small lot, nor is it going to be good for the beach to have this much concentration of usage at this one spot on the beach.

Bottom line...spread out the Red Fish Village owners, renters, guest and invitees over the six roads and four public access walkways already in place from C-30A to CR-83 and east to Redfish Lake. Two of these four walkways are currently in use, two must to be repaired by the county due to past hurricane damage.

This concentration of folks in the proposed Red Fish Village project will do nothing but damage the beach, the lot, the neighborhood, the roads and create safety issues for everyone concerned.

Where are my eco friends?

 

[pmd8]

It takes a (gated) village to______[fill in the blank]

 

[TreeFrog]

To clarify, it seems like whenever zoning variances or land use changes are requested and the public is against it, the variances are allowed. That's what I meant by "we're doomed".

Ditto.

It's not just Walton County, it's not just Florida, it's the American Way. The lust for profits for a handful of developers almost always trumps the public interest.

But it sure is worse in Florida. And it sure chafes in Walton County, where there's still a little bit of the natural beauty left to save.

 

[Bob]

"Redfish Village is so much nicer than unspoiled forest it replaced"

Please post your home address in Orlando and we will kindly send over the crew to replace your castle with an unspoiled forest.

I will gladly post my home address after you bulldoze the condos, replant the forest, and go find your conscience. I think you lost it somewhere near Marianna.

 

[Bob]

You have a lot of "private" in CAPS Vagrant. Is your issue really diminution of residential values or distaste for private access? I've seen developers construct long access points with no facilities (and the county provide public access with no facilities as well). Frankly, I'm glad VOR developers decided private bathrooms would be far better than having kids crap in the dunes (although I don't discount the value of this for dune restoration purposes). I have no idea whether the developers did anything wrong in obtaining approval, but the general consensus seems to be that these are likable guys. Hell, Roman Emperors use to build lavish bath houses as lasting testaments to their power and glory which archaeologist spent countless time and resources trying to uncover. Can't a bathroom be constructed in a manner that is non-offensive and aesthetically pleasing to neighboring landowners?

Tell all the little sociopaths-in-training to crap in the VOR pool. Full Time, why not have the house next to you demolished so that you can experience a fancy port-o-let next door. Good luck finding your conscience.

 

[BlueMtnBeachVagrant]

If the private access is not an allowable use of infill and the nearby property owners are opposed, I'm afraid we're doomed. The developer will prevail.

An attorney out of Tallahassee has been retained to represent the adjacent property owners. He happens to be the same attorney who represented Sun Seekers condominiums in their case against the county (located just 4 buildings west of the subject lot).

Walton County came into possesstion of the underlying fee of the Sun Seekers easement in exchange for debt forgiveness back in 1987 from the original developer. The problem for the county was that the easement was created and intended purely for the private use of the adjacent property owners (Sun Seekers and a quadplex). The county tried to make it public. In other words, the property was "burdened" as a private easment and could not be made public without infringing on the private property rights of the adjacent properties (right to quiet enjoyment of private property).

Initially, after using a "local" attorney and not prevailing, Sun Seekers hired this other attorney out of Tallahassee. Sun Seekers won the 2nd round. The county, at the insistence of BMBCA (who I thought was suppose to "defend" PRIVATE property rights) and others, pursued this all the way to the Florida Supreme Court where they refused to hear the case.

Sun Seekers prevailed (earlier this year).

The county, back in 1987, should not have ever accepted this "burdened" property in exchange for fees owed to it. The current county attorney, David Hallman, should have known this too. But he, along with BMBCA decided that the property was "valuable" and that it should be pursued all the way to the Supreme Court of Florida at the EXPENSE of all Walton County taxpayers and at the expense of Sun Seekers.

My educated estimate is that over $50,000 was thrown away by each party (total of $100,000) for this debacle. Yes that's over $50,000 of taxpayer money. They could have used the money instead to build some Roman Spa restrooms at the 83 access instead or repair the 2 public walkovers along Blue Mountain Road that are still not useable (I know that's TDC's area and budget BTW).;-)

Point is, it takes legal representation to get anything done here in Walton County...either for or against. The neighbors of the 260 Blue Mountain Road lot now have an excellent attorney with no "connections" to local politics. They also have the financial fortitude.

Sometimes I believe the legal system is the predominate economic engine in Florida with beach tourism coming in a close second.
:roll:

pmd8, I appreciate your concern and input.

 

[Smiling JOe]

BMBV, is this the same attorney who failed to show at last night's BCC meeting, sending the few concerned citizens home without an answer? Thanks to him, the item will be brought up at the next BCC meeting which is in Defuniak. I am sure that the turnout will be even less than last night.

 

[full time]

"Tell all the little sociopaths-in-training to crap in the VOR pool. Full Time, why not have the house next to you demolished so that you can experience a fancy port-o-let next door. Good luck finding your conscience."

Insults add nothing, though I am fascinated by your line of thought. Where your house sits in Orlando was at one time "undisturbed", and I'm sure someone liked it that way. Now, Orlando's different because of YOUR (and others) development. Our individual preferences and perceptions of good taste are not dispositive of the issues. I know many here (including myself) who have houses around or adjacent to neighborhood or public facilities and it does nothing to diminish value or detract from the appeal of the home or homesite. Thanks for sharing, Bob.

 

[BlueMtnBeachVagrant]

BMBV, is this the same attorney who failed to show at last night's BCC meeting, sending the few concerned citizens home without an answer? Thanks to him, the item will be brought up at the next BCC meeting which is in Defuniak. I am sure that the turnout will be even less than last night.

SJ, don't worry about the citizens that went home without an answer. The fact that it was postponed means the project is not approved at the moment.

I sense that you're in a pissy mood because the lawyer did not show up when you were seeking immediate gratification. I would have thought you, above all people, would understand that things of importance somtimes take slow and deliberate actions and reactions. It took approximately 5 years for the litigation between Sun Seekers and the County to finally come to an end.

For your information, the attorney was just recently retained. He wrote a letter to the county requesting that the discussion be postponed so that he could attend and properly prepare for the subject. That is one of the very reasons Cindy Meadows spoke up and pushed for the delay. Keep in mind that the Redfish Village agenda at the new lot had been going on for some time within the County before we on the west side of 83 were made aware. A "continuance" is a small and very wise gesture on the county's part considering the nature of the attorney's letter and of the situation.

If you think the "concerned citizens" were inconvenienced, as I know most of them personally, I can assure you they probably feel their efforts were worth the time.

Also you state "I am sure that the turnout will be even less than last night." You are starting to appear as negative as Shelly is about real estate.

Question: How many "concerned citizens" is one good lawyer worth?