If I were a Commissioner #1: Beach Parking

This morning the County Commission heard a presentation on the possibility of going to a system of paid parking at our beaches, something many neighboring counties (but not Manatee) apparently do. Some Commissioners are committed to free parking, while others want to explore the idea of having beach users help pay for beach management. 

From my perspective, they seemed to get bogged down in who would get free or reduced parking and who would pay full freight. This led to a discussion of how to determine who would get the preferred rate -- would they have to live here, or own property here or pay taxes here, or what? And how would they establish their status?  I pictured a rather bureaucratic system of checking everyone's credentials -- a process that seems awfully cumbersome and top down to me.

Here's what I would propose (if a majority wanted to try this at all): Create a tiered system of parking (starting experimentally at Siesta Beach) that would allow beach users, and not the county, to determine how much they wanted to pay. This wouldn't be an honor system with a cup, but (possibly) three zones of parking, each with different rates.

The spaces closest to the road would be free - always. A middle section would have modest parking fees and the spaces closest to the beach would be "premium" spots that might go for several bucks an hour. Beachgoers would sort themselves out according to their willingness to trade walking for paying. If people had a lot of gear or were willing to pay for convenience, they could go for the premium spaces. If people needed free parking they could go off-peak (avoid the busiest times) or wait until someone left in the no-pay section. And most people would be charged a modest amount.

At first this would be a big experiment and would probably take some fine tuning to adjust the relative size of each rate category, but once calibrated it could generate as much revenue as a one-rate-fits-all blanket fee or a two tiered (resident/non-resident) system that involved elaborate means of determining who qualified for the best rate. 

Is this a great idea? I'm not sure. It may have some hidden flaws. But it is a different idea, one that gives people choices rather than making the county choose amongst us and it is an idea none of the current commissioners brought up this morning. 

And that's one reason I think I would strengthen the County Commission team -- introducing new ideas. If my ideas have merit then others will pick up on them and move forward, if not the other four will have no trouble telling me thanks, but no thanks. 

POSTSCRIPT  MAY 29 2008

I haven't changed a word of the blog above from January. This week (in May) the Board of County Commissioners voted to not move forward with beach parking fees at this time. That's fine with me. My blog was attempting to suggest an alternative HOW to approach beach parking fees, not WHETHER to. I hope it was clear from the third paragraph "(if a majority wanted to try this at all)" that I was looking for some consensus position; and that was if two commissioners were insistent about maintaining free parking that there might be a way to do that and collect fees. 

Radical idea: try a two party system!

Here's a novel idea:

"You might prefer just to vote only for candidates who take a pledge to do the best they can to hold down costs, and then kick them out after four years if they fail to meet your standard.

I point out, with no ulterior motive, this is easier to do if you have a strong two-party system."

That's part of a Waldo Profitt column. Makes you wonder why Sarasota County hasn't tried that approach for 42 years. 

Ed Smith Stadium

I sent the following E-Mail to Sarasota County Commissioners on January 21, the day the Sarasota Herald Tribune ran an Editorial about Ed Smith Stadium.

Commissioners: 

I noticed the Sarasota Herald Tribune article encouraging everyone to take another shot at the Ed Smith Stadium deal couldn't bring itself to mention the county share (only that it would be $4 million less than the previous approach).  And I lament the fact that so many professional teams tend to comparison shop, looking for deals, rather than making a commitment to a community and sticking with it.

My philosophy is that one antidote to sprawl and the general homogenization of our community is that, whenever possible, we should try to save what is unique and special about Sarasota County. That guides my thinking on ESLOC and led to the idea of the Neighborhood Parks program. I understand that a County commitment to the latest Ed Smith Stadium proposals will mean other initiatives will not be funded, but I think this stripped down version is worth pursuing. I'm not sure Spring Training is as central to Sarasota's identity as the Ringling Winter Quarters were to Venice, but losing industries with such public connection and accessibility is, I believe, more damaging to our communities than losing comparable enterprises that are virtually invisible. 

Sincerely

Jono Miller

Innovative? What does that mean?

My campaign literature (still being developed) will claim I am innovative and creative. But what does that mean? Here's a specific example. On Tuesday night the City of Sarasota took testimony regarding the potential of "greening" downtown. Many citizen's spoke encouraging more plantings or objecting to existing or planned developments that seemed to make the downtown less green. 

I listened carefully and spoke about street trees on Main Street -- nothing very innovative there. But I did toss two new ideas in the hopper:

No net loss of cabbage palms. Since cabbage palms are so easy to transplant, why not formally or informally work with those developing downtown parcels to relocate whatever cabbage palms are in the footprint of their developments to public spaces? That w

ay there would be no net loss of our native palms -- we'd avoid shipping removed ones to the landfill and importing into others from rural ranches to populate downtown landscapes. 

Living Walls.  Living walls are a new trend in green construction. Websites are bristling with photos of living walls in Europe. Example One. Example Two. Example Three. Some of these are indoor, some outdoor, but most have more or less e

laborate systems to supply the plants with a substrate and water. 

But we already have living walls downtown -- look at the creeping fig (Ficus pumila) that covers the building on the southeast corner of Cocoanut and Palm. I think there is more creeping fig on Palm Avenue at Sarasota News and Books. This plant cover no doubt lowers temperatures, produces oxygen, etc.  It needs to be pruned away from windows and we need to understand the structural implications of allowing vines to cling to buildings, but here is a way to "green" an urban area without using up any pedestrian space. And vine covered walls have been shown to discourage graffiti.

The image above right is a scan of notecard produced by John Langmann, which can be purchased at Sarasota News and Books. Gorgeous no? It depicts the western wall of Sarasota News and Books, which is covered with creeping fig and features a large Bougainvillea. Imagine more of our city so covered.

By now some readers may be convinced I would make a good county groundskeeper, but are somewhat less sure about a county commissioner. Don't get lost in the chlorophyll. Look at the underlying inclinations to reduce costs and waste and take advantage of what we already have around here rather than falling for the latest thing. Ask SCOPE Board members if my penchant for unexpected solutions to a wide variety of challenges doesn't manifest itself in many contexts, not just civic landscaping. 

2nd Version of Video (no detouring to You Tube)

Join me Sunday for a potluck and march for Dr. King

I'm inviting all early supporters for a simple potluck late brunch/early lunch at Gillespie Park this Sunday, January 20th.

This is not a big-budget production, but a simple, spontaneous event. Since we can't reserve tables or space in advance, this event may provide opportunities for problem-solving. Gather at noon at the picnic tables south of the playground or wherever you see a large “Official Sarasota County Campaign Headquarters” banner. We'll eat around 12:30.  Please bring a brunch dish or beverage to share.

Gillespie Park is easy to find. Simply turn north off of Fruitville on Osprey (which is between 301 and 41). Soon you'll see the park on your right. MAP

This is a chance to socialize informally, enjoy a local urban park, consider Dr. King, and meet and chat with County Commission Candidate Jono Miller, who will speak briefly around 1:00 pm.

This downtown gathering will position everyone present who chooses to to head over to City Hall around 1:30 to prepare for the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. March. You can march as an individual or join other Sarasota Democrats who will be marching as group.

To march in the MLK Day Parade, please meet up by 2pm by the seashell sculpture at the corner of 1st Street and Lemon Ave. downtown (this spot is across from the bus terminal and also across from Whole Foods, just north of Mattison's Grill on Main Street). The march begins at 3pm and ends at MLK Park (at the corner of Cocoanut & MLK, close to Ringling School of Art & Design). This is a one and three quarter mile distance, and I'm told trolleys will be available to run folks back downtown. A vigil and unity circle concludes the event at 5pm in the park.  

If you can't make it Sunday, please check out the campaign website: www.jono08.com and take time to contemplate the many contributions of Dr. King.  You may also want to learn more about Florida's own martyred civil rights leader Harry T. Moore, and his wife Harriete. 

If you know in advance you'll make the scene, please RSVP to jonocampaign@gmail.com

And if you just decide to show up spontaneously, that will work too. 

And yes, you can feel free to forward this blog link to others. Let's have a great march on Sunday.

 

 

How does November 2008 sound?

I'm trying to get the date for this story that ran in the Sun Herald family of papers. When I get it perhaps I can create a link to the story by Steve Smith. The sentence that leads the quote is a response to my emphasis on the need for the county to do better on regional matters. I'm not arguing that we are doing such a bad job now, I just think we need to do more and that I will bring a lot of regional expertise to the Commission. 

It was the penultimate sentence that caught a supporter's eye and I didn't want to include it out of context.