Neighborhood Parkland Program: Saving Sarasota's Special Places

I believe one of the antidotes to the rapid change that leaves many of us disoriented and feeling as though we don't recognize our own communities is working deliberately to retain those distinctive special places we have in Sarasota County. For some, these places are links back to the county they grew up in. For newer residents they provide a connection to the past. And in some cases they simply affirm and support what makes Sarasota different from other places nearby.

I don't claim to be the father of the Neighborhood Parkland program, but I do feel comfortable claiming midwife status. I was involved in many of the early discussions regarding the need for and strategy to create such a program. So it was very gratifying yesterday when the County PARC (Parks Advisory and Recreation Council) voted to move forward with seven neighborhood parkland sites.[We considered 25.]

The county is still several steps away from acquiring or otherwise protecting these places -- work plans need to be drafted, approved by PARC, taken to the County Commission and then, if approved, followed by appraisals and negotiations (that may or may not be successful; this is a willing seller program). 

But I am excited about these seven and their potential to save special aspects of our County.

 Here's a capsule description of each:

Vann Farm: 10 acres. This is a ten acre site on South Macintosh that has long been a site for 4H livestock and horticulture projects. It is a unique facility that allows kids to connect with the County's rural heritage.

Oneil: 40 acres. This parcel is out at the east end of Fruitville Road. The owners cleared the understory but left most of the trees. It is contiguous with a much larger Environmentally Sensitive Lands site and PARC envisioned part of the site being joined with that larger parcel and being restored, while a smaller fraction, probably closer to the road would be more open and parklike. 

Osprey Rowing Club Site: .82 acre. Sarasota has established itself as a major force in competitive rowing. Our narrow bays minimize fetch, which means good rowing conditions. This site is south of the Spanish Point Marina and Restaurant. PARC members were exited about the potential for other uses (in addition to rowing) and a possible collaboration with other rowing programs.

Venice Campground. 24 acres. One of only two campgrounds on the Myakka, this site contains nearly a quarter mile of river front and an RV campground. It is adjacent to Snook Haven and close to several other public lands (Jelks Preserve and South Sleeping Turtles). This operation can provide a Myakka-based recreational experience to thousands in the course of a year. The alternative is probably to see it sold and redeveloped as private homesites. 

We also included the top three sites identified by the City of Sarasota. PARC is trying to follow the lead of the cities so we don't end up inadvertently missing a high priority of theirs while we pursue a lower priority.

Whitaker Bayou Greenway Park 4.1 Acres This site consists of eight parcels along Whitaker Bayou. Acquiring them would create a unique, more natural park, to complement Martin Luther King Jr. park to the south. the City has earmarked future dollars to develop the site. Unfortunately, there is some indication that the owner is not interested in selling at this time.  Staff will develop a work plan so the County can be ready if the situation changes.

Sarasota Jungle Gardens About 10 acres. One of Florida's oldest tourist attractions (opened in 1939) the Jungle Gardens is one of a few that have persisted post-Disney. Former Sarasota attractions that have closed include Circus Hall of Fame, Glass Blowers, Floridaland, Texas Jim's Reptile Farm, and Sunshine Springs and Gardens. This is a chance to save part of Florida's cultural history and state funding is being sought. 

Shady Hammock Park 16.8 acres North of Fruitville and east of Cardinal Mooney and south of Bobby Jones Golf Course. This a relatively large undeveloped site inside the City. 

All seven of these sites total about 106 acres, about 1/6 of a square mile or roughly 1/3500 of the county. Not much of the total, but some truly unique opportunities.

Thoughts on Memorial Day: A Father's Gift of Innocence and the Responsibility of Knowledge

My family tree is fairly skinny -- not a lot of cousins and uncles -- so when I was growing up the only relative that I knew about that had died in military service was Henry Tillinghast, a confederate soldier that died October 9th 1861 in the Battle of Santa Rosa Island. My great grandmother was born shortly afterward and named in his honor: Henry Corley. 

My father served in the Second World War, and was assigned to the 814th Military Police Company. He told me many stories from those years,  mostly spent in the Pacific Theatre (Australia and New Guinea) and they were engaging tales that fascinated me as a young boy. I was proud that one of his assignments had been to guard General MacArthur's family while they stayed in the Lennon's Hotel in Brisbane. And I enjoyed knowing that he and his compatriots would take advantage of the fact that MacArthur would leave his shoes in the hall to be polished. They would take their shoes off and slip into the General's so that they could later tell their buddies they "knew what it was like to be in MacArthur's shoes."

The point is that in all the stories there was no hint of the losses, cost, or fog of war. I don't know if any of the men he served with died, but if they had my father would not have shared that with me. In the post-war 50's and 60's he had given me a gift of innocence, to be able to grow up in a country that had won the war against the Axis without knowing the incredible cost. 

As I matured the cost, on both sides, gradually became clearer and the responsibility of knowledge arrived. And the older I get, the less Memorial Day is about car races and sales events and more about the sacrifice of others. 

Last year was a new pinnacle of awareness for me as I contemplated a photograph taken by John Moore of a woman named Mary McHugh at Arlington National Cemetery. It represents, as well as any single image can, both the sacrifice and loss. It shows Mary mourning on the grave of her fiance, Sgt. James. J. Regan, who was killed in Iraq in February of 2007. Click on these links for more on Army Ranger Regan and the photograph.

I hope all blog readers will incorporate remembrance and respect in their Memorial Day plans.

Former Governor Bob Graham Urges Better Support for Florida's State University System

Bob Graham was in town Friday, primarily to give the commencement address at New College. And although the local newspaper didn't report on it, he used the occasion to document and decry the decline in Florida's University system, which New College is part of. He painted a picture of slipping support and cited the fact the state university system has (overall) the worst student-faculty ratio in the nation. He pointed out that while New College had experienced minimal cuts so far, many receiving degrees that night would go on to attend graduate school in Florida and would therefore experience the cuts firsthand. He even outlined a campaign for graduates to reverse the trend. The suggestions included having alumns adopt legislators to personally introduce them to the College.

---Note--- 

The rest of this blog does not deal with Governor Graham's educational agenda,

but rather it is a reminiscence of my relationship with him over the years.

Governor Graham is a hero of mine because I've followed much of his career and noted how he appears gracious and evenhanded, even when disagreeing with someone. I first met Bob Graham in 1978 when he was running for Governor for the first time. At that point he had already been elected to the Florida House twice and the Florida Senate twice. And although I  subsequently met Governor Graham several times over the years, including visiting him at his house on Anna Maria during his run for the presidency (his only unsuccessful campaign), until this year I never have had more than a few words with him -- and those were frequently comparing notes regarding the journals we both usually have with us.

Sometime in the mid- eighties I presented him with a framed illustration of a Florida panther that I had done. It wasn't good art and it wasn't even killer illustration, but I was illustrating a series of calendars for First Florida Banks and somehow presenting the original art to the Governor was a photo-op. That was in Naples. 

Recently I met him at a book signing in Osprey, where he asked those gathered what could be done to help the State's citizens better understand what the state had at risk in terms of rising sea level. I responded with an idea he seemed to endorse. That was a project to mark selected low-lying urban areas of the state with a colored band indicating what a two meter rise in sea level would look like. The idea was that the band would provide citizens with valuable information about hurricane flood prone areas as well as reminding them about the possible effects on Florida of accelerated sea level rise. We actually tried this with blue masking tape at New College during the spring break. 

Yesterday I had the opportunity to drive Governor Graham from downtown to New College and from a College reception for fellowship winners back to his hotel. During the first run he had to catch up on voice mail and I showed him how 'visual voice mail' on the iPhone would enable him to listen to messages in the order he chose. He was interested (and made a corresponding note in his journal), but wasn't sure he was ready for the technology. We chatted about New College, the quality and contributions of the students and graduates, and I tipped him off not to expect caps and gowns. On the drive back downtown he inquired about my campaign and then suggested a strategy. 

I intend to try it. After all, he is probably the most popular and successful Florida leader of the last half century.

Oil concerns bubble up again

Just when the buzz about oil prices seemed to be settling a little, two days worth of headlines ($200 prediction and $135 reality)  have turned my attention back from who might end up challenging me in the District 1 County Commission race to what it will cost people to drive around Sarasota. 

Our county was laid out, zoned, and generally designed during an era when crude oil was less than $30 a barrel. How our somewhat sprawling county is going to operate when oil may soon cost five (or more) times that amount is a daunting challenge. New York Times writers (second article above) blame supply problems and increased demand in the developing world, but others identify speculation and outrageous profits as contributing factors. 

Key elements in any response will be those approaches that enable citizens to reduce driving, strategies such as transit and affordable housing close to employment (or transit). Reducing the need to drive by placing services closer to residences through mixed use zoning should also be part of the mix. Other strategies include lowering the cost per mile by increasing efficiencies through hybrid technology and producing lighter weight vehicles that remain safe.

The biggest complicating factor right now is the uncertainty regarding whether oil prices will continue to rise or if yet another speculative bubble is about to burst (see poll on right).  Economists, oil executives, citizens, and petroleum analysts such as Arjun N. Murti (profiled in the first article above and graphic based on his work at top of story) seem to to have wildly divergent predictions (see earlier blogs).  

County planners and decision makers now face a difficult choice -- listen to those who believe prices will drop back below $100 by the end of the year or begin serious planning to minimize the negative effects of rapidly increasing fuel costs that threaten to further consume Sarasotan's household budgets.

More later. 

Biggest Campaign Surprise So Far: Update

On May 13th my blog stated that the big surprise in the campaign so far was the surge in crude oil prices. Then the next day my presumptive incumbent opponent announced he was withdrawing from the race. That's moved into first place in the big surprise category. 

Of course, I'll be writing more about what this means for my campaign, but this is a busy time as we reconfigure the race not for an incumbent with a record, but for one, two, three, (or  four or five?) political opportunists who may apparently be experiencing a compelling, if not overwhelming, spontaneous urge to serve the county. 

I just think it is interesting that no one in Paul's party was driven enough to serve to step up and challenge Paul when Paul was a powerful presence;  but, now that the Republican coast is clear, their conviction has suddenly clarified, their resolve quickly solidified and their no doubt longstanding interest in serving as a County Commissioner will finally be revealed.                                                                                                                                                            ............

Okay, that was a little snippy. Probably one of those things one should sleep on before responding to. A more gracious way to come at this would be to say that had these new challengers announced earlier, it might have helped Paul reach his decision sooner and therefore given them, the newcomers,  a better start. That's better.

The main thing to focus on is the fact that during the few months we were opponents Paul and I went beyond civil and cordial to actually remaining friendly. I sat next to him at a South Venice Civic Association meeting and we both held to our commitments to be aboveboard with each other. 

As a commissioner his service to the community comes closer to 168 than 40 hours a week. And I'm sure the salary is long forgotten as a storm like Charley surges up the west coast. And despite our differences, Paul and I shared many traits -- we're both northeasterners with a strong sense of humor and different way of approaching challenges. We came to Sarasota and made a commitment to the community that transcended raising kids and working. I look forward to resuming our non-competitive relationship and, contrary to my initial venting above, I want to welcome others to the race. 

Part of of why I am running is to provide Sarasotans with choices and if no Republicans step forward, that goal will have been thwarted.  Welcome aboard.

MONDAY MAY 19th UPDATE

Sarasota Herald-Tribune Political Columnist Jeremy Wallace covered the Republican Party's search for candidates in the first district race current Commissioner Paul Mercier exited last week. The column (reproduced below) is more of a list of who isn't than who might. That's not too surprising. Aside from my third of a year headstart in terms of fundraising, voter contact, name recognition, website, blog, endorsements, TV and radio appearances, and grassroots organization, someone wanting to enter the race at this point faces two structural challenges:

1) Paul's timing prevents "carpetbaggers" from renting a place in the first district and then claiming they are residents. That restricts potential candidates to people who actually live in the district -- a good thing in my opinion. As for myself, I've lived in the first district twice, most recently for the past 17 years, which gives me valuable perspective on how the district is changing. (I've also lived in six different locations in the district, which also provide perspective.)

2) It is too late to get on the ballot by petition as I did (see my blog on the subject). That means candidates will have to stroke a check (for $4,665.53 as I recall) and that money must come from some mixture of the candidate's personal funds and money raised in increments of $200 or less. That's a significant threshold whether one is dipping into a personal account or putting a fund raising machine in gear.

I fully expect one or more Republican challengers to enter the race, but it may take a little while for prospective candidates to gauge how much of their time, money and personal life will be consumed the next 169 days. These are not quick and easy decisions, particularly when families are involved - it took me several months to work through all the life-changing implications.

Gas Prices: Hoping the Customer Isn't Always Right

The biggest surprise of the campaign so far? The one that might have the biggest effect on shaping the County's future? Is it a stealth candidate? The resurgence of the Democratic Party? The broad spectrum support for the Urban Service Boundary consensus?  No, it is the fact that oil now costs 25% more than it did when I started campaigning in mid-January. It's been increasing at a rate of roughly $6 a barrel a month. And $3 a gallon gasoline is starting to seem as nostalgic as rotary dial phones and pennies with little heads of wheat on the reverse.

Friday's (May 9th) USA TODAY featured two apparently contradictory articles, both of which predicted our petroleum future. On the front page of Section B (MONEY), fifty-five percent of 372 petroleum industry executives said "they think the price of a barrel of crude will drop below $100 by the end of the year." That encouraging thought was tempered by a special report on the front page of the paper that included these nuggets from a USA TODAY Gallup Poll (presumably of American gas buying customers): "54% say they expect gas prices to reach $6 a gallon in the next five years" and "eight in 10 say they doubt today's high prices are temporary."

Of course, both groups could be wrong, and theoretically both could be right if the price of crude drops while oil companies perversely manage to keep raising gas prices. Ordinarily one would expect oil prices to be somehow yoked to gas prices, both falling or rising together, however out of phase. The least likely scenario, it seems to me, is that crude oil will continue to increase in price while gas prices drop. 

But other than estimating the cost of driving around the county, why does a County Commission candidate care about prices structures the County Commission has no control over? Because gas prices affect driving habits and driving habits are at the center of both sprawl and traffic congestion, two of the public's biggest concerns. 

Imagine if gasoline were free. Then the only constraint to living in Arcadia and working in Venice would be how much or little one likes to drive. Since many cars are now more comfortable than many offices, a scenic drive through Myakka Park with iPod or bluetooth cell phone might not seem like such a hardship. 

Now imagine if it cost you a dollar a mile just to put gas in the car. [That could be $6 a gallon gas in a vehicle that gets 6 miles to the gallon.] The daily commute from Arcadia to Venice and back would cost $100, or $2,000 a month. In that scenario people would be doing nearly whatever they could to live near whatever destination mattered most to them, be it work, school, church, shopping, the beach, or restaurants. That effect might drain cars from the road, minimizing the need for new lanes of asphalt and maximizing the demand for public transit.

And that's precisely why this candidate is wondering whether USA TODAY poll respondents or oil execs have a better sense of what may happen. Higher gas prices should help limit sprawl, but dramatic and sudden increases will cause severe problems because our land use patterns (and wages/income) change MUCH more slowly. That will leave many residents stranded in their homes, unable to travel as they assumed they would. And up and down yo-yoing of oil prices deprives us of the predictability needed to plan and adjust.

I don't look forward to $6 a gallon gas in 2012 (the Gallup Poll scenario), but if higher prices are coming I believe Sarasota can and will adjust priorities to adapt, continuing to move towards sustainability. 

May 15th Postscript: The New York Times reports today that oil refiners are having "a traumatic period". The reason? " The price of their raw material, oil, is rising because of strong global demand. At the same time, consumption of gasoline in the United States is falling as a result of slower economic growth and consumer efforts to conserve." And despite the fact that we are experiencing high gasoline prices, the producers haven't been able to pass along all the costs. According to the article "Oil prices doubled in the past year, while wholesale gasoline prices rose a mere 39 percent." The article goes on to say that the big companies (like Exxon Mobil) that produce their own oil are making lots of money, but smaller refiners that have to buy oil are struggling. 

Routes to Ballot : blue cards and green dollars

There are two ways to get on the county commission ballot around here: write a check equaling six percent of the annual salary of the position you are seeking or collect the signatures of one percent of the electorate. Every candidate and every campaign has to weigh the pluses and minuses of each strategy. 

For the County Commission seat I'm seeking I need 2,505 valid signature petitions. And if I don't hit that number and I still want to run, I'll owe $4,665.54. That works out to each card being worth $1.86 a piece. Of course the petition cards have to be printed and the Supervisor of Elections charges a dime to verify each one, but that still works out to a value of $1.75 a piece. 

For me the choice was easy. While I could have spent the time it takes to gather petition cards raising money to pay the filing fee, collecting signatures is a great way to meet voters and build a team. I confess that I haven't met 2,505 voters yet; but I do have volunteers who believe in my candidacy helping and between my personal efforts and the efforts of those working on my behalf, we are very close to having the total number of valid cards. 

The photo shows me holding a box of 1,300 petition cards ($2,275 worth) that I submitted earlier this week. It's not often I hold something of that value in my hands. And yes, the cards do appear to glow slightly when large numbers of them approach critical mass. It's best not to keep them all in one place, not because they might 'go critical', but because having all the cards around is a little nerve-wracking. While a common thief wouldn't perceive their irreplaceable value, a fire or auto accident while transporting them could create a debilitating hole in any campaign. That's why it is good to get them in the hands of the election officials for counting. 

Once submitted, candidates await the results to determine how many are valid (what the rejection rate is). Cards are rejected for a wide variety of reasons -- some are obvious like living in another county or if the signature doesn't match the one on file, others less expected; for instance if the voter died between when they signed and when the card was checked. Candidates have to collect enough extra cards to cover the rejection rate. That's crucial because the filing fee is not pro-rated -- if you collect 90% of the cards, you don't pay 10% of the fee -- you pay 100%! 

I printed my petition forms on blue card stock. The idea was to make mine stand out and be easily separated from others. Some people use small cards that are easily mailed but require precise writing. The form is dictated by election law and the layout is not designed to facilitate easy completion. Many people miss fields that need to be filled in.

Why do some candidates choose to write a check? Sometimes it is because their district is so spread out that driving hither and thither to find voters is problematic. Other candidates apparently have more money at their disposal than time. But most of the local Democratic candidates and the more grassroots-oriented local Republicans (like Jon Thaxton and Shannon Staub) go the petition route.  

I'm glad I went the blue card route. While those who sign my cards have no obligation to vote for me (some people sign as a courtesy even though they will vote against me), it is good to know that at a minimum one percent of the electorate has had a direct connection to my campaign. And in some races around here, one percent turns out to be a lot.