In 2006, Peter Romano was stigmatized for being a Republican. I supported Peter Romano for Mayor -- the first Republican I've supported since I voted for Clifford Case for N.J. Senator. Peter was defeated by JOSEPH LEROY BOLES, JR. a registered Democrat, in a nonpartisan race.
JOSEPH LEROY BOLES, JR. supported Republican William Proctor for State Rep. in his election. He supports Proctor now.
It's time to defeat BOLES and elect a City Mayor and Commission as warm and compassionate and as progressive and idealistic as the people living in our City.
Friday, February 29, 2008
Clarification -- so is there a contract or not? George McClure refused to provide one when I asked him at SA Commission meeting last year!
Clarification (of apparently erroneous story in yesterday's Record)
Publication Date: 02/29/08
Wallace Devlin in an e-mail to The St. Augustine Record on Thursday said a partnership between his Jacksonville-based The Devlin Group Inc. and Dallas-based Gatehouse Capital Corp. has not been signed. A story about the partnership appeared in Thursday's Record. Gatehouse announced the agreement on its Web site (www.gatehousecapital.com) and Devlin had sent the Record a copy of a story from Hotel & Motel Management Week in Review on Wednesday. He did not immediately respond for confirmation of the information.
Click here to return to story:
http://staugustine.com/stories/022908/news_txt01_024.shtml
© The St. Augustine Record
Publication Date: 02/29/08
Wallace Devlin in an e-mail to The St. Augustine Record on Thursday said a partnership between his Jacksonville-based The Devlin Group Inc. and Dallas-based Gatehouse Capital Corp. has not been signed. A story about the partnership appeared in Thursday's Record. Gatehouse announced the agreement on its Web site (www.gatehousecapital.com) and Devlin had sent the Record a copy of a story from Hotel & Motel Management Week in Review on Wednesday. He did not immediately respond for confirmation of the information.
Click here to return to story:
http://staugustine.com/stories/022908/news_txt01_024.shtml
© The St. Augustine Record
Luxury hotel coming
Luxury hotel coming
By MARCIA LANE
marcia.lane@staugustine.com
Publication Date: 02/28/08
A luxury hotel on the San Sebastian River should be a reality by the fall of 2010, say project developers.
Jacksonville-based The Devlin Group Inc. and Dallas-based Gatehouse Capital Corp. have announced an agreement to co-develop The Westin St. Augustine Hotel & Residences.
The Devlin Group has been working on the project for several years and recently announced that Westin Hotel would anchor its San Sebastian Harbor Resort project. Gatewood is the upscale hotel company that Devlin has been negotiating with to bring the project to St. Augustine.
Westin Hotels & Resorts is owned by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. That's one of the leading hotel and leisure companies in the world.
Wallace Devlin, CEO of The Devlin Group, has described Westin as a "perfect fit" for his San Sebastian Harbor Resort project.
"This will be the first Starwood product in Northeast Florida," said Marty Collins, president and CEO of Gatehouse. "St. Augustine is a popular destination that draws more than six million visitors annually, providing a built-in market that we hope to elevate with this resort."
The project will include a 225-room luxury, full-service hotel on the 11-acre San Sebastian Harbor Development site off King Street.
Included in the hotel will be 20,000 square feet of meeting space as well as retail space, signature restaurant and bar, spa, fitness center, two heated swimming pools and a poolside caf.
A lounge and bar will be adjacent to the 65-slip marina with boardwalk promenade, Collins said.
Also included in the development will be at least 50 branded three-bedroom homes that will be known as The Residences at The Westin St. Augustine.
Gatehouse is a real estate investment and advisory services firm that specializes in brand hospitality-centered, mixed use developments.
Founded in 1995, they use partners to design, build and operate their properties that include W San Diego, W Silicon Valley, W Dallas - Victory Hotel and Residences, Hyatt Regency Mission Bay in San Diego, Westin Hotel and Residences and an aloft Hotel in Arlington, Texas and the Palomar Hotel and Residences in Milwaukee.
Click here to return to story:
http://staugustine.com/stories/022808/news_txt02_001.shtml
© The St. Augustine Record
By MARCIA LANE
marcia.lane@staugustine.com
Publication Date: 02/28/08
A luxury hotel on the San Sebastian River should be a reality by the fall of 2010, say project developers.
Jacksonville-based The Devlin Group Inc. and Dallas-based Gatehouse Capital Corp. have announced an agreement to co-develop The Westin St. Augustine Hotel & Residences.
The Devlin Group has been working on the project for several years and recently announced that Westin Hotel would anchor its San Sebastian Harbor Resort project. Gatewood is the upscale hotel company that Devlin has been negotiating with to bring the project to St. Augustine.
Westin Hotels & Resorts is owned by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. That's one of the leading hotel and leisure companies in the world.
Wallace Devlin, CEO of The Devlin Group, has described Westin as a "perfect fit" for his San Sebastian Harbor Resort project.
"This will be the first Starwood product in Northeast Florida," said Marty Collins, president and CEO of Gatehouse. "St. Augustine is a popular destination that draws more than six million visitors annually, providing a built-in market that we hope to elevate with this resort."
The project will include a 225-room luxury, full-service hotel on the 11-acre San Sebastian Harbor Development site off King Street.
Included in the hotel will be 20,000 square feet of meeting space as well as retail space, signature restaurant and bar, spa, fitness center, two heated swimming pools and a poolside caf.
A lounge and bar will be adjacent to the 65-slip marina with boardwalk promenade, Collins said.
Also included in the development will be at least 50 branded three-bedroom homes that will be known as The Residences at The Westin St. Augustine.
Gatehouse is a real estate investment and advisory services firm that specializes in brand hospitality-centered, mixed use developments.
Founded in 1995, they use partners to design, build and operate their properties that include W San Diego, W Silicon Valley, W Dallas - Victory Hotel and Residences, Hyatt Regency Mission Bay in San Diego, Westin Hotel and Residences and an aloft Hotel in Arlington, Texas and the Palomar Hotel and Residences in Milwaukee.
Click here to return to story:
http://staugustine.com/stories/022808/news_txt02_001.shtml
© The St. Augustine Record
Moorings plan raises questions
moorings plan raises questions
By KATI BEXLEY
kati.bexley@staugustine.com
Publication Date: 02/29/08
Residents and boaters aired concerns Thursday about the city's proposed Harbor Management Plan, with many questioning the need and cost of the planned 227 moorings.
"With a cost of $500,000 just to install the moorings, how do you anticipate paying for that year in, year out," asked Jay Bliss, a boater and member of the St. Augustine Port, Waterway and Beach District, who believes the city should have fewer moorings.
Jim Piggott, city director of general services, said the city would pay for the mooring fields through grants and revenue.
The Harbor Management Plan would put 227 moorings in St. Augustine Waterways. The mooring fields would be located north and south of the Bridge of Lions and in Salt Run.
The Thursday meeting was the city's fourth on the plan, this time with a panel of local experts to answer the public's questions.
Panelists included representatives from the Camachee Cove Yacht Club, who also managed mooring fields in New Hampshire, the St. Augustine Police Department and the city attorney.
Boater Maurice Levor also said the moorings are not needed. He said, if the city is trying to get rid of derelict boats that don't properly dispose of waste and lack registration, then staff should enforce regulations already in place.
"Why do we need to spend millions of dollars on mooring fields?" Levor asked. "It seems you guys are trying to make money and increase density."
Steve Fricke, with the St. Augustine Police Department, said addressing derelict boats is a tricky issue, but the city has one of the most successful programs in the state. In the last three years, the Police Department has removed 39 vessels, Fricke said.
If a boat is abandoned and has no registration but is still floating, he added, then it is technically still sea worthy, and therefore not derelict.
Some asked why officers couldn't tow boats for not being registered.
"We don't tow cars that don't have registration," he said. "That's a regulatory infraction."
Guy Van Doren, also a boater, wanted to know if all vessels will have to use the mooring fields or will they be allowed to anchor if they are only in the city for 72 hours.
Piggott said that Florida law states, if there are mooring fields in an area, boaters must use them.
The city owns the bottomlands of St. Augustine's waterways. Richard Ornstein asked if that allows the city to prohibit derelict boaters from anchoring, especially in Salt Run.
Salt Run residents have said they do not want a mooring field in their area.
City Attorney Ron Brown said federal laws governing waterways trump city regulations.
"Boaters have a right to navigation," Brown said. "We own the land, but not the water."
City staff will use the public's comment to sharpen the proposed Harbor plan. Piggott hopes to take the plan to the City Commission in roughly three months for approval.
Click here to return to story:
http://staugustine.com/stories/022908/news_txt01_020.shtml
© The St. Augustine Record
By KATI BEXLEY
kati.bexley@staugustine.com
Publication Date: 02/29/08
Residents and boaters aired concerns Thursday about the city's proposed Harbor Management Plan, with many questioning the need and cost of the planned 227 moorings.
"With a cost of $500,000 just to install the moorings, how do you anticipate paying for that year in, year out," asked Jay Bliss, a boater and member of the St. Augustine Port, Waterway and Beach District, who believes the city should have fewer moorings.
Jim Piggott, city director of general services, said the city would pay for the mooring fields through grants and revenue.
The Harbor Management Plan would put 227 moorings in St. Augustine Waterways. The mooring fields would be located north and south of the Bridge of Lions and in Salt Run.
The Thursday meeting was the city's fourth on the plan, this time with a panel of local experts to answer the public's questions.
Panelists included representatives from the Camachee Cove Yacht Club, who also managed mooring fields in New Hampshire, the St. Augustine Police Department and the city attorney.
Boater Maurice Levor also said the moorings are not needed. He said, if the city is trying to get rid of derelict boats that don't properly dispose of waste and lack registration, then staff should enforce regulations already in place.
"Why do we need to spend millions of dollars on mooring fields?" Levor asked. "It seems you guys are trying to make money and increase density."
Steve Fricke, with the St. Augustine Police Department, said addressing derelict boats is a tricky issue, but the city has one of the most successful programs in the state. In the last three years, the Police Department has removed 39 vessels, Fricke said.
If a boat is abandoned and has no registration but is still floating, he added, then it is technically still sea worthy, and therefore not derelict.
Some asked why officers couldn't tow boats for not being registered.
"We don't tow cars that don't have registration," he said. "That's a regulatory infraction."
Guy Van Doren, also a boater, wanted to know if all vessels will have to use the mooring fields or will they be allowed to anchor if they are only in the city for 72 hours.
Piggott said that Florida law states, if there are mooring fields in an area, boaters must use them.
The city owns the bottomlands of St. Augustine's waterways. Richard Ornstein asked if that allows the city to prohibit derelict boaters from anchoring, especially in Salt Run.
Salt Run residents have said they do not want a mooring field in their area.
City Attorney Ron Brown said federal laws governing waterways trump city regulations.
"Boaters have a right to navigation," Brown said. "We own the land, but not the water."
City staff will use the public's comment to sharpen the proposed Harbor plan. Piggott hopes to take the plan to the City Commission in roughly three months for approval.
Click here to return to story:
http://staugustine.com/stories/022908/news_txt01_020.shtml
© The St. Augustine Record
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
TWO YEARS AGO TODAY, CRIMINAL INVESTIGATORS ARRiVED AT A CRIME SCENE IN ST. AUGUSTINE
Two years ago today, on February 27, 2006:
1. Criminal investigators from the EPA Criminal Investigations Division (CID) and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection arrived at the site of the City of St. Augustine's Old City Reservoir and were lied to by city officials, represented by AKERMAN SENTERFITT partner WILLIAM L. PENCE. No one has been prosecuted (yet).
2. We began asking questions about our Nation's Oldest City;s illegal dumping.
Two years later, the City of St. Augustine is still stonewalling the two intervenors and seven petitioners in our challenge to the Consent Order that would allow solid waste to be brought back to the historically African-American community of Lincolnville. St. Augustine and FDEP officials actually wrote a Florida Administrative Law Judge that they should deny us our right to know to "preserve judicial resources." Their demand for secrecy is still pending.
Two years later, our sister City of Aviles, Spain (birthplace of our City's founder) boycotted the annual Pedro Menendez de Aviles Noche de Gala masked ball held on Saturday night. Yes, thanks to the Internet, "the whole world is watrching."
Two years later, the State indicates it has no plans for the 500th anniversary, as reported by ex-Mayor GEORGE GARDNER's recent newsletter.
Two years later, Governor Charles Crist has declined to come here for a bill-signing -- this is a sign of awareness of St. Augustine's corruption on the part of our reform Governor and his brilliant, hard-working Chief of Staff Patricia Gleason (long an advocate for Sunshine and Open Records with the State AG's office).
Two years later, the citizens of the City of St. Augustine in their righteous wrath -- and everyone in Northeast Florida -- is aware of the scandal thanks to Anne Schindler's cover story in the January 24, 2008 Folio Weekly.
Two years later, City Manager WILLIAM B. HARRISS is still on the job, awaiting a sinecure from Sheriff David Shoar.
Later this year, elections may produce a revolution -- four out of five City Commissioners may be replaced.
This is a beautiful city that deserves a government as warm, compassionate and idealistic as the people who live here. As Jimmy Carter said, "I see no reason why bigshot crooks should go free and the poor ones go to jail."
"It takes a village" to unify everyone into an effective reform movement.
A new broom sweeps clean.
"It takes a village" to root out environmental wrongdoing and cleanup our City.
Keep disclosing wrongdoing -- after dumping solid waste in our Old City Reservoir, our Nation's Oldest City has nowhere to go but up!
To the people of the city of St. Augustine, we salute you! Happy anniversary -- as a result of City officials' environmental crimes (and getting caught), our Nation's Oldest City will never be the same again!
Ed Slavin
www.cleanupcityofstaugustine.blogspot.com
Box 3084
St. Augustine, Florida 32085-3084
904-471-7023
904-471-9918 (fax)
1. Criminal investigators from the EPA Criminal Investigations Division (CID) and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection arrived at the site of the City of St. Augustine's Old City Reservoir and were lied to by city officials, represented by AKERMAN SENTERFITT partner WILLIAM L. PENCE. No one has been prosecuted (yet).
2. We began asking questions about our Nation's Oldest City;s illegal dumping.
Two years later, the City of St. Augustine is still stonewalling the two intervenors and seven petitioners in our challenge to the Consent Order that would allow solid waste to be brought back to the historically African-American community of Lincolnville. St. Augustine and FDEP officials actually wrote a Florida Administrative Law Judge that they should deny us our right to know to "preserve judicial resources." Their demand for secrecy is still pending.
Two years later, our sister City of Aviles, Spain (birthplace of our City's founder) boycotted the annual Pedro Menendez de Aviles Noche de Gala masked ball held on Saturday night. Yes, thanks to the Internet, "the whole world is watrching."
Two years later, the State indicates it has no plans for the 500th anniversary, as reported by ex-Mayor GEORGE GARDNER's recent newsletter.
Two years later, Governor Charles Crist has declined to come here for a bill-signing -- this is a sign of awareness of St. Augustine's corruption on the part of our reform Governor and his brilliant, hard-working Chief of Staff Patricia Gleason (long an advocate for Sunshine and Open Records with the State AG's office).
Two years later, the citizens of the City of St. Augustine in their righteous wrath -- and everyone in Northeast Florida -- is aware of the scandal thanks to Anne Schindler's cover story in the January 24, 2008 Folio Weekly.
Two years later, City Manager WILLIAM B. HARRISS is still on the job, awaiting a sinecure from Sheriff David Shoar.
Later this year, elections may produce a revolution -- four out of five City Commissioners may be replaced.
This is a beautiful city that deserves a government as warm, compassionate and idealistic as the people who live here. As Jimmy Carter said, "I see no reason why bigshot crooks should go free and the poor ones go to jail."
"It takes a village" to unify everyone into an effective reform movement.
A new broom sweeps clean.
"It takes a village" to root out environmental wrongdoing and cleanup our City.
Keep disclosing wrongdoing -- after dumping solid waste in our Old City Reservoir, our Nation's Oldest City has nowhere to go but up!
To the people of the city of St. Augustine, we salute you! Happy anniversary -- as a result of City officials' environmental crimes (and getting caught), our Nation's Oldest City will never be the same again!
Ed Slavin
www.cleanupcityofstaugustine.blogspot.com
Box 3084
St. Augustine, Florida 32085-3084
904-471-7023
904-471-9918 (fax)
The same state legislature slashed all employee rights to safe workplaces, but empowered double-dippers --
---- how indescribably "galling," to use the St. Petersburg Times' editorial's word (see below).
St. Pete Times: Put a stop to costly retirement abuses
Put a stop to costly retirement abuses
A Times Editorial
Published February 26, 2008
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In a time of economic strain, double dipping has become one of the fastest-growing parts of the Florida government budget, and lawmakers have only themselves to blame. The 8,000 employees who draw both a paycheck and a retirement check are just using the tricks that lawmakers gave them.
Those tricks need to be taken away.
As Times senior correspondent Lucy Morgan reported, the way some prominent politicians and public officials are pocketing money through these games is worse than double dipping. They get three scoops and never have to leave the ice cream parlor.
Collier County Judge Eugene Turner didn't even tell his colleagues he was taking a month off in order to qualify for "retirement" pay. The result is that he collects $7,700 a month in retirement and $145,080 in annual salary for precisely the same job he was performing all along.
Miami-Dade Community College president Eduardo J. Padron is an example of the triple dip. He entered the Deferred Retirement Option Program that awarded him $893,286 in lump sum benefits upon his retirement in 2006. But he didn't retire, and he now receives $14,631 a month in retirement pay and $328,860 in annual salary. And he kept the $893,286.
Pinellas Property Appraiser Jim Smith is in a class by himself when it comes to greed and gall. He entered the DROP program when voters overwhelmingly adopted term limits. After a judge threw out the limits, Smith reneged on his contract to retire. But he got the bonanza anyway: $423,157 in lump sum retirement benefits, $6,681 a month and $148,335 in salary. His real retirement will come none too soon.
This is, in a word, outrageous. And it is growing ever more costly. In the past five years, the number of double dippers has more than doubled. One reason is a loophole written into pension law in 2001through an amendment added to a bill in the final night of the session.
Sen. Mike Fasano, R-Port Richey, who was a House member at the time, told Morgan he didn't realize the amendment would let so many employees game the system. "This is absolutely not what the Legislature intended," he said. "It's so sad when you have elected officials who want to take advantage of this."
It may be sad, but not surprising. The Legislature has meddled with pension formulas for years, usually to please their police and firefighter constituencies with added benefits that are then paid by cities and counties. Sometimes, lawmakers are even more crass, as was the case in 2001, in trying to feather their own pension beds.
These eye-popping numbers are certain to catch the attention of taxpayers, and Gov. Charlie Crist deserves commendation for pressing a reluctant bureaucracy to release them. Lawmakers would do well to examine not only the 2001 amendment but the entire set of retirement and pension assumptions. The DROP program itself, even without its abuse, has led to a steady drain of talent in schools and law enforcement agencies.
The people who work for Florida government deserve fair pay and a dignified retirement, but not at the same time.
© 2007 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111
A Times Editorial
Published February 26, 2008
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In a time of economic strain, double dipping has become one of the fastest-growing parts of the Florida government budget, and lawmakers have only themselves to blame. The 8,000 employees who draw both a paycheck and a retirement check are just using the tricks that lawmakers gave them.
Those tricks need to be taken away.
As Times senior correspondent Lucy Morgan reported, the way some prominent politicians and public officials are pocketing money through these games is worse than double dipping. They get three scoops and never have to leave the ice cream parlor.
Collier County Judge Eugene Turner didn't even tell his colleagues he was taking a month off in order to qualify for "retirement" pay. The result is that he collects $7,700 a month in retirement and $145,080 in annual salary for precisely the same job he was performing all along.
Miami-Dade Community College president Eduardo J. Padron is an example of the triple dip. He entered the Deferred Retirement Option Program that awarded him $893,286 in lump sum benefits upon his retirement in 2006. But he didn't retire, and he now receives $14,631 a month in retirement pay and $328,860 in annual salary. And he kept the $893,286.
Pinellas Property Appraiser Jim Smith is in a class by himself when it comes to greed and gall. He entered the DROP program when voters overwhelmingly adopted term limits. After a judge threw out the limits, Smith reneged on his contract to retire. But he got the bonanza anyway: $423,157 in lump sum retirement benefits, $6,681 a month and $148,335 in salary. His real retirement will come none too soon.
This is, in a word, outrageous. And it is growing ever more costly. In the past five years, the number of double dippers has more than doubled. One reason is a loophole written into pension law in 2001through an amendment added to a bill in the final night of the session.
Sen. Mike Fasano, R-Port Richey, who was a House member at the time, told Morgan he didn't realize the amendment would let so many employees game the system. "This is absolutely not what the Legislature intended," he said. "It's so sad when you have elected officials who want to take advantage of this."
It may be sad, but not surprising. The Legislature has meddled with pension formulas for years, usually to please their police and firefighter constituencies with added benefits that are then paid by cities and counties. Sometimes, lawmakers are even more crass, as was the case in 2001, in trying to feather their own pension beds.
These eye-popping numbers are certain to catch the attention of taxpayers, and Gov. Charlie Crist deserves commendation for pressing a reluctant bureaucracy to release them. Lawmakers would do well to examine not only the 2001 amendment but the entire set of retirement and pension assumptions. The DROP program itself, even without its abuse, has led to a steady drain of talent in schools and law enforcement agencies.
The people who work for Florida government deserve fair pay and a dignified retirement, but not at the same time.
© 2007 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111
Double Dippers Include a Few in St. Johns County
Double Dippers Include a Few in St. Johns County
The double-dipping revealed by the St. Pete Times story (below) is continued on its blog, where at least two St. Johns County double-dippers are named. They are
School Board member WILLIAM MIGNON and Anastasia Mosquito Control District of St. Johns County Commissioner BARBARA BOSANKO. More names are expected to be revealed in future issues of the St. Petersburg Times.
Here’s what the Times’ blog has for the two elected officials from here:
Mignon, William P.
Agency Name: St Johns Co School Board
o Salary in 06-07: $19,837.68
o Monthly retirement payment: $4,437.52
o "Retired" in: 7/1/1998
o Total retirement benefit collected: $253,058.79
Bosanko, Barbara H.
Agency Name: Anastasia Mosquito Control Dist
o Salary in 06-07: $9,985.00
o Monthly retirement payment: $1,490.26
o "Retired" in: 9/1/2001
o Total retirement benefit collected: $91,470.22
http://www.tampabay.com/specials/2008/interactives/retirement-loophole/
The double-dipping revealed by the St. Pete Times story (below) is continued on its blog, where at least two St. Johns County double-dippers are named. They are
School Board member WILLIAM MIGNON and Anastasia Mosquito Control District of St. Johns County Commissioner BARBARA BOSANKO. More names are expected to be revealed in future issues of the St. Petersburg Times.
Here’s what the Times’ blog has for the two elected officials from here:
Mignon, William P.
Agency Name: St Johns Co School Board
o Salary in 06-07: $19,837.68
o Monthly retirement payment: $4,437.52
o "Retired" in: 7/1/1998
o Total retirement benefit collected: $253,058.79
Bosanko, Barbara H.
Agency Name: Anastasia Mosquito Control Dist
o Salary in 06-07: $9,985.00
o Monthly retirement payment: $1,490.26
o "Retired" in: 9/1/2001
o Total retirement benefit collected: $91,470.22
http://www.tampabay.com/specials/2008/interactives/retirement-loophole/
St. Petersburg Times: State retiree loophole costs Florida $300M a year
State retiree loophole costs Florida $300M a year
Rule lets employees "retire" with pensions and still get salaries.
By Lucy Morgan, Times Senior Correspondent
Published February 23, 2008
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TALLAHASSEE -- A growing number of elected officials are quietly taking advantage of a loophole carved into the state retirement law a few years ago that allows double dipping -- collecting a state pension while still getting a regular paycheck from taxpayers.
The cost of pensions for "retirees" who have returned to the payroll was around $300-million last year, according to the Florida Retirement System.
Records indicate that 211 elected officials in Florida -- including legislators, judges, sheriffs, circuit clerks, school board members and county commissioners -- have taken advantage of the benefit. Thirty-one signed up in the past six months.
Another 203 senior management employees and more than 7,763 regular state employees are collecting retirement benefits and full-time paychecks.
Collier County Judge Eugene C. Turner, first elected in 1983, won re-election in May 2006. He resigned effective Nov. 30 and returned to the bench Jan. 1, without any public announcement. He didn't even tell Collier Circuit Clerk Dwight Brock, who continued to assign him cases.
It was only last week, after a reporter's inquiries, that Brock discovered that Turner had retired for a month. "This was the best-kept secret in Collier County," Brock said.
Turner collects retirement benefits of $7,700 a month on top of his annual salary of $145,080.
Turner says he saved the state money by taking a month off, investing his own retirement money and accepting a retirement benefit that will not increase. He said he made sure other judges handled his cases the month he was gone.
Why didn't he inform the court clerk that he was going to be retired that month? Said Turner: "I didn't tell the school board or the tax collector either."
* * *
The loophole was created, as are so many in Tallahassee, on the last night of a legislative session, when few people notice what gets into bills flying through legislative hallways.
In 2001, lawmakers quietly amended a retirement bill, allowing elected officials to receive retirement benefits as well as regular pay while remaining in the same job. Sponsors said they were trying to help a few lawmakers who had been on school district payrolls before they won election to the Legislature.
Sen. Mike Fasano, R-Port Richey, at the time a House member handling the retirement bill, said he did not realize that a fellow member's last-minute amendment would help so many people collect so much money.
"This is absolutely not what the Legislature intended," he said this week. "It's so sad when you have elected officials who want to take advantage of this."
Fasano said the law should be changed so public officials get either a salary or a pension, but not both. "They are taking advantages of some glitches in the law, and they know they are."
Most state employees getting a salary and a pension are enrolled in the state's Deferred Retirement Option Program, called DROP. It was created in 1998 to encourage retirement of highly paid, senior employees to make room for advances among younger, lower-paid employees.
To enter, employees who reach retirement age or 30 years of employment agree to retire within five years. When they leave the program they usually collect hundreds of thousands of dollars in deferred compensation.
With a supervisor's permission, nonelected employees must remain off the payroll for 30 days before they return to work. They also forfeit retirement benefits for a year.
* * *
Among the double dippers, the top moneymaker is Miami Dade Community College president Eduardo J. Padron.
On May 31, 2006, he terminated his participation in DROP, collected $893,286 in lump sum benefits and began receiving $14,631 a month in retirement pay. He still collects his annual salary of $328,860.
A spokesman for Padron said the president was asked to return to the job when he told board members he was retiring. Said communications director Juan Mendieta, "The process is perfectly legal and acceptable."
Former House Clerk John Phelps retired in 2005, took a month off and returned briefly to his old job at the request of House Speaker Allan Bense. Now he gets $5,728 a month retirement and a $138,138 salary as curator of the Historic Capitol.
Longtime Pasco Circuit Clerk Jed Pittman gets $6,242 a month retirement on top of his $136,576 salary. "It was there, and I wasn't ready to totally retire," he said. "So I took advantage of it. It's been a godsend to me."
Pasco County Commissioner Ann Hildebrand collects a monthly retirement check of $2,778, plus an annual salary of $78,895. She collected $143,196 in deferred compensation when she "retired" in 2005.
Hildebrand said she has explored ways to return some of her salary but hasn't found a way to give it back without having to pay income tax on the money.
Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge Ray E. Ulmer Jr. said he signed up for the program on the advice of state court officials when he had 30 years in the state retirement system. He wasn't ready to retire but thought "it would be foolish from a business standpoint not to do it."
Ulmer gets $10,408 a month in retirement in addition to his annual salary of $143,684. He also got $127,335 in deferred compensation. "I hope they don't take it back," Ulmer joked. "I have developed a certain standard of living."
Pinellas Property Appraiser Jim Smith said he entered the DROP program when he thought he was about to be term-limited out of office and thought he had been lucky to get the additional money. Smith gets retirement pay of $6,681 a month and a salary of $148,335. He took home $423,157 in deferred compensation in 2006.
Some officials collecting two paychecks retired from one government job before being elected to another. Sen. Charlie Dean, R-Inverness, retired as Citrus County sheriff in 1996 and started drawing a $7,516-a-month pension before he was elected to the Legislature in 2002.
Five other senators and 10 House members all get state pensions based on longtime government employment plus annual salaries of $31,000 for work as part-time lawmakers.
Pinellas Sheriff Jim Coats says he had enrolled in a state retirement program before he ran for sheriff in 2003. Now, on top of his annual salary of $158,931, he collects $8,958 in retirement pay that is based on more than 30 years as a deputy. As he retired he collected $382,256 in deferred compensation.
Twenty-two sitting judges are double dipping, including Supreme Court Justice Harry Anstead. He collected $426,852 in deferred compensation, gets $7,596 a month retirement plus his $161,083 annual salary.
Anstead was chief judge when he collected retirement benefits in 2004. He decided to remain on the court after lawmakers tried to force him off the bench so Gov. Jeb Bush could appoint his replacement. Now he's scheduled to retire in January 2009.
The retirement payments are among the best-kept secrets in state government. When the St. Petersburg Times asked for a list of elected officials and senior management officers who are double dipping, the Department of Management Services said retiree lists are exempt from the public records law.
Gov. Charlie Crist ordered the list released. "These people aren't retired," said his public records "czarina," Pat Gleason. "They are formerly retired persons, and the statute was not designed to protect them, in my opinion."
Some information remains secret. When officials choose an investment plan instead of a pension and deferred compensation, the law exempts all information from the public record. That left the Times unable to identify the benefits received by about 45 of the state's double dippers.
Shown the newspaper's findings, Senate President Ken Pruitt was livid. He said those who have abused the retirement program may well have "killed the goose that laid the golden egg."
With budget shortfalls facing lawmakers, this is a perfect time to look at reforming the system, he said. "I wonder how many good professionals never got the opportunity for these positions because the people who had been there pushed them aside. This is totally unfair."
Lucy Morgan can be reached at lmorgan@sptimes.com or (850) 224-7263.
© 2007 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111
Rule lets employees "retire" with pensions and still get salaries.
By Lucy Morgan, Times Senior Correspondent
Published February 23, 2008
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TALLAHASSEE -- A growing number of elected officials are quietly taking advantage of a loophole carved into the state retirement law a few years ago that allows double dipping -- collecting a state pension while still getting a regular paycheck from taxpayers.
The cost of pensions for "retirees" who have returned to the payroll was around $300-million last year, according to the Florida Retirement System.
Records indicate that 211 elected officials in Florida -- including legislators, judges, sheriffs, circuit clerks, school board members and county commissioners -- have taken advantage of the benefit. Thirty-one signed up in the past six months.
Another 203 senior management employees and more than 7,763 regular state employees are collecting retirement benefits and full-time paychecks.
Collier County Judge Eugene C. Turner, first elected in 1983, won re-election in May 2006. He resigned effective Nov. 30 and returned to the bench Jan. 1, without any public announcement. He didn't even tell Collier Circuit Clerk Dwight Brock, who continued to assign him cases.
It was only last week, after a reporter's inquiries, that Brock discovered that Turner had retired for a month. "This was the best-kept secret in Collier County," Brock said.
Turner collects retirement benefits of $7,700 a month on top of his annual salary of $145,080.
Turner says he saved the state money by taking a month off, investing his own retirement money and accepting a retirement benefit that will not increase. He said he made sure other judges handled his cases the month he was gone.
Why didn't he inform the court clerk that he was going to be retired that month? Said Turner: "I didn't tell the school board or the tax collector either."
* * *
The loophole was created, as are so many in Tallahassee, on the last night of a legislative session, when few people notice what gets into bills flying through legislative hallways.
In 2001, lawmakers quietly amended a retirement bill, allowing elected officials to receive retirement benefits as well as regular pay while remaining in the same job. Sponsors said they were trying to help a few lawmakers who had been on school district payrolls before they won election to the Legislature.
Sen. Mike Fasano, R-Port Richey, at the time a House member handling the retirement bill, said he did not realize that a fellow member's last-minute amendment would help so many people collect so much money.
"This is absolutely not what the Legislature intended," he said this week. "It's so sad when you have elected officials who want to take advantage of this."
Fasano said the law should be changed so public officials get either a salary or a pension, but not both. "They are taking advantages of some glitches in the law, and they know they are."
Most state employees getting a salary and a pension are enrolled in the state's Deferred Retirement Option Program, called DROP. It was created in 1998 to encourage retirement of highly paid, senior employees to make room for advances among younger, lower-paid employees.
To enter, employees who reach retirement age or 30 years of employment agree to retire within five years. When they leave the program they usually collect hundreds of thousands of dollars in deferred compensation.
With a supervisor's permission, nonelected employees must remain off the payroll for 30 days before they return to work. They also forfeit retirement benefits for a year.
* * *
Among the double dippers, the top moneymaker is Miami Dade Community College president Eduardo J. Padron.
On May 31, 2006, he terminated his participation in DROP, collected $893,286 in lump sum benefits and began receiving $14,631 a month in retirement pay. He still collects his annual salary of $328,860.
A spokesman for Padron said the president was asked to return to the job when he told board members he was retiring. Said communications director Juan Mendieta, "The process is perfectly legal and acceptable."
Former House Clerk John Phelps retired in 2005, took a month off and returned briefly to his old job at the request of House Speaker Allan Bense. Now he gets $5,728 a month retirement and a $138,138 salary as curator of the Historic Capitol.
Longtime Pasco Circuit Clerk Jed Pittman gets $6,242 a month retirement on top of his $136,576 salary. "It was there, and I wasn't ready to totally retire," he said. "So I took advantage of it. It's been a godsend to me."
Pasco County Commissioner Ann Hildebrand collects a monthly retirement check of $2,778, plus an annual salary of $78,895. She collected $143,196 in deferred compensation when she "retired" in 2005.
Hildebrand said she has explored ways to return some of her salary but hasn't found a way to give it back without having to pay income tax on the money.
Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge Ray E. Ulmer Jr. said he signed up for the program on the advice of state court officials when he had 30 years in the state retirement system. He wasn't ready to retire but thought "it would be foolish from a business standpoint not to do it."
Ulmer gets $10,408 a month in retirement in addition to his annual salary of $143,684. He also got $127,335 in deferred compensation. "I hope they don't take it back," Ulmer joked. "I have developed a certain standard of living."
Pinellas Property Appraiser Jim Smith said he entered the DROP program when he thought he was about to be term-limited out of office and thought he had been lucky to get the additional money. Smith gets retirement pay of $6,681 a month and a salary of $148,335. He took home $423,157 in deferred compensation in 2006.
Some officials collecting two paychecks retired from one government job before being elected to another. Sen. Charlie Dean, R-Inverness, retired as Citrus County sheriff in 1996 and started drawing a $7,516-a-month pension before he was elected to the Legislature in 2002.
Five other senators and 10 House members all get state pensions based on longtime government employment plus annual salaries of $31,000 for work as part-time lawmakers.
Pinellas Sheriff Jim Coats says he had enrolled in a state retirement program before he ran for sheriff in 2003. Now, on top of his annual salary of $158,931, he collects $8,958 in retirement pay that is based on more than 30 years as a deputy. As he retired he collected $382,256 in deferred compensation.
Twenty-two sitting judges are double dipping, including Supreme Court Justice Harry Anstead. He collected $426,852 in deferred compensation, gets $7,596 a month retirement plus his $161,083 annual salary.
Anstead was chief judge when he collected retirement benefits in 2004. He decided to remain on the court after lawmakers tried to force him off the bench so Gov. Jeb Bush could appoint his replacement. Now he's scheduled to retire in January 2009.
The retirement payments are among the best-kept secrets in state government. When the St. Petersburg Times asked for a list of elected officials and senior management officers who are double dipping, the Department of Management Services said retiree lists are exempt from the public records law.
Gov. Charlie Crist ordered the list released. "These people aren't retired," said his public records "czarina," Pat Gleason. "They are formerly retired persons, and the statute was not designed to protect them, in my opinion."
Some information remains secret. When officials choose an investment plan instead of a pension and deferred compensation, the law exempts all information from the public record. That left the Times unable to identify the benefits received by about 45 of the state's double dippers.
Shown the newspaper's findings, Senate President Ken Pruitt was livid. He said those who have abused the retirement program may well have "killed the goose that laid the golden egg."
With budget shortfalls facing lawmakers, this is a perfect time to look at reforming the system, he said. "I wonder how many good professionals never got the opportunity for these positions because the people who had been there pushed them aside. This is totally unfair."
Lucy Morgan can be reached at lmorgan@sptimes.com or (850) 224-7263.
© 2007 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111
Letter: St. Johns River's future depends on community
Letter: St. Johns River's future depends on community
Don Beattie
Publication Date: 02/27/08
Editor: If you are concerned about the future of the St. Johns River, here are a few facts you should know. A River Summit was held at World Golf Village on Jan. 25. Your elected representatives serving on the Regional Planning Council and other important people (decision makers?) were invited to attend. The large u-shaped head table had seats for 54. When the meeting started, 20 minutes late, only 16 of the seats were filled. One by St. Johns County Commissioner Tom Manuel and another by John Delaney, former Jacksonville mayor and long-time champion of the river. One hour after the meeting started, half the seats were still empty.
The 144 seats for the public were all filled, in fact it was standing-room-only along the walls. The public was there on time although there would be no opportunity to ask questions directly. (You could fill out a card and a few were selected for answers.)
Presentations were not very illuminating. The St. Johns River Water Management District is studying the impact of almost certain water withdrawal. Not exactly the objective of former Mayor Delaney who continues to propose that the river be restored to the condition in which it was found 200 years ago.
Many years ago I attended Brooklyn Dodgers baseball games. Fans and the media used an affectionate term when they referred to the team.
They were called "dem bums" whether they were good or bad players.
So what does the River Summit tell us? Not very many elected officials cared enough to be present. For the voters of the seven counties represented at the summit there is a recourse. Come November you can vote "dem bums," (in this case not a term of affection) who do not represent your interests, out of office. A very simple procedure.
Don Beattie
Click here to return to story:
http://staugustine.com/stories/022708/opinions_txt01_030a.shtml
© The St. Augustine Record
Don Beattie
Publication Date: 02/27/08
Editor: If you are concerned about the future of the St. Johns River, here are a few facts you should know. A River Summit was held at World Golf Village on Jan. 25. Your elected representatives serving on the Regional Planning Council and other important people (decision makers?) were invited to attend. The large u-shaped head table had seats for 54. When the meeting started, 20 minutes late, only 16 of the seats were filled. One by St. Johns County Commissioner Tom Manuel and another by John Delaney, former Jacksonville mayor and long-time champion of the river. One hour after the meeting started, half the seats were still empty.
The 144 seats for the public were all filled, in fact it was standing-room-only along the walls. The public was there on time although there would be no opportunity to ask questions directly. (You could fill out a card and a few were selected for answers.)
Presentations were not very illuminating. The St. Johns River Water Management District is studying the impact of almost certain water withdrawal. Not exactly the objective of former Mayor Delaney who continues to propose that the river be restored to the condition in which it was found 200 years ago.
Many years ago I attended Brooklyn Dodgers baseball games. Fans and the media used an affectionate term when they referred to the team.
They were called "dem bums" whether they were good or bad players.
So what does the River Summit tell us? Not very many elected officials cared enough to be present. For the voters of the seven counties represented at the summit there is a recourse. Come November you can vote "dem bums," (in this case not a term of affection) who do not represent your interests, out of office. A very simple procedure.
Don Beattie
Click here to return to story:
http://staugustine.com/stories/022708/opinions_txt01_030a.shtml
© The St. Augustine Record
As the Song Says, "Another One Bites the Dust"
Great bumper sticke: "Leaving Florida? Take A Developer With You." We don't need any more tacky, ugly, tree-killing, wetland-killing "developments" around here. We need a St. Augustine National Historical Park, National Seashore and National Scenic Coastal HIghway to preserve our history, beauty and way of life.
Congratulations to St. Johns County Commission Chair Tom Manuel for persisting on Mariposa! See below.
Congratulations to St. Johns County Commission Chair Tom Manuel for persisting on Mariposa! See below.
Mariposa plans 'go silently'
Mariposa plans 'go silently'
By MARCIA LANE
marcia.lane@staugustine.com
Publication Date: 02/27/08
The massive Mariposa development project on the St. Johns-Putnam county line apparently has fallen through, say county officials.
"It appears that (Ascot Development) is withdrawing its application, and then the Board of County Commissioners in Putnam County will rescind the comprehensive plan amendments. The land will stay what it currently is, and it will stay that in the future," St. Johns County Board of Commissioners Chairman Tom Manuel said Tuesday.
An e-mail was sent Tuesday afternoon to area officials from Frank E. Matthews with the Tallahassee law firm of Hopping Green & Sams, P.A., who said he was sending notice on behalf of Ascot that they would be "withdrawing from the pending matter."
That "pending matter" apparently refers to a scheduled administrative hearing with the Department of Community Affairs (DCA), which raised a number of issues about the project and comprehensive plan amendments made by Putnam County for the 2,025-acre development of regional impact.
An individual at Ascot Development's Boca Raton office referred questions to Ascot spokeswoman Joey Kelly. She did not immediately return the call. The project is no longer listed on their Web site.
The "nutshell translation" said Interlachen attorney Michael Woodward is "they're going to throw in the towel."
Woodward represents a landowner next to the property and the Putnam County Environmental Council, which filed as interveners along with DCA after it raised numerous questions about the project.
Others filing as interveners include Hastings, the Florida Wildlife Federation and St. Johns County.
Mariposa was to put in more than 3,200 new homes as well as 153,000 square feet of commercial and business space on property off Cracker Swamp Road. It was located in Putnam, but officials said the impact would be heavily felt in Hastings and St. Johns County.
Matthews also said in his e-mail that Putnam County would be "filing a notice of its intent to repeal the comprehensive land amendment which is the basis of the DCA petition."
Putnam County Administrator Rick Leary couldn't confirm or deny any of the plans, saying he had not seen the memo, which was sent to the county attorney. The commission was in session all day.
"A hearing was supposedly coming up for mid-March. I guess there was some evaluation as to how everybody was going to proceed from this point forward to the hearing," Leary said.
"We had done comprehensive plan amendments that would have enabled the project to move forward," Leary said. "I think it's the developers' decision to make whether they want to proceed with it or not."
Jerry Cameron, assistant St. Johns County manager, said the county's legal department had received Matthews' e-mail.
"From the tone of this, it looks like that's pretty much it unless the developer decides to try again," Cameron said.
"This really just verifies what we have suspected for a long time. It was my understanding this application would go silently into the night," Manuel said.
Click here to return to story:
http://staugustine.com/stories/022708/news_txt01_001.shtml
© The St. Augustine Record
By MARCIA LANE
marcia.lane@staugustine.com
Publication Date: 02/27/08
The massive Mariposa development project on the St. Johns-Putnam county line apparently has fallen through, say county officials.
"It appears that (Ascot Development) is withdrawing its application, and then the Board of County Commissioners in Putnam County will rescind the comprehensive plan amendments. The land will stay what it currently is, and it will stay that in the future," St. Johns County Board of Commissioners Chairman Tom Manuel said Tuesday.
An e-mail was sent Tuesday afternoon to area officials from Frank E. Matthews with the Tallahassee law firm of Hopping Green & Sams, P.A., who said he was sending notice on behalf of Ascot that they would be "withdrawing from the pending matter."
That "pending matter" apparently refers to a scheduled administrative hearing with the Department of Community Affairs (DCA), which raised a number of issues about the project and comprehensive plan amendments made by Putnam County for the 2,025-acre development of regional impact.
An individual at Ascot Development's Boca Raton office referred questions to Ascot spokeswoman Joey Kelly. She did not immediately return the call. The project is no longer listed on their Web site.
The "nutshell translation" said Interlachen attorney Michael Woodward is "they're going to throw in the towel."
Woodward represents a landowner next to the property and the Putnam County Environmental Council, which filed as interveners along with DCA after it raised numerous questions about the project.
Others filing as interveners include Hastings, the Florida Wildlife Federation and St. Johns County.
Mariposa was to put in more than 3,200 new homes as well as 153,000 square feet of commercial and business space on property off Cracker Swamp Road. It was located in Putnam, but officials said the impact would be heavily felt in Hastings and St. Johns County.
Matthews also said in his e-mail that Putnam County would be "filing a notice of its intent to repeal the comprehensive land amendment which is the basis of the DCA petition."
Putnam County Administrator Rick Leary couldn't confirm or deny any of the plans, saying he had not seen the memo, which was sent to the county attorney. The commission was in session all day.
"A hearing was supposedly coming up for mid-March. I guess there was some evaluation as to how everybody was going to proceed from this point forward to the hearing," Leary said.
"We had done comprehensive plan amendments that would have enabled the project to move forward," Leary said. "I think it's the developers' decision to make whether they want to proceed with it or not."
Jerry Cameron, assistant St. Johns County manager, said the county's legal department had received Matthews' e-mail.
"From the tone of this, it looks like that's pretty much it unless the developer decides to try again," Cameron said.
"This really just verifies what we have suspected for a long time. It was my understanding this application would go silently into the night," Manuel said.
Click here to return to story:
http://staugustine.com/stories/022708/news_txt01_001.shtml
© The St. Augustine Record
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Writing in Irrelevance and Voting Against Lincolnville, GARDNER's newsletter bloviates against National Park, Seashore designation
IN HAEC VERBA from 2/22 newsletter by ex-Mayor GEORGE GARDNER, the anti-Gay bigot who voted against the Rainbow flags in 2005 and who no longer fools anyone into thinking he is progressive (he took campaign contributions from speculator ROBERT MICHAEL GRAUBARD):
Rocky shoals for National Seashore Park – Castillo de San Marcos Superintendent Gordie Wilson offered some comment on a proposal to designate the St. Augustine region a National Seashore Park, shifting management and maintenance of a broad area of historic resources to the National Park Service (NPS).
Said Wilson, “Any such designation would have to take place through the legislative branch (Congress). We (NPS) execute the laws they pass, e.g. manage areas they establish for us. In 1939, bills were introduced (HR 7068, S 2731) to establish the St. Augustine National Historical Park, but the bills died. The NPS is struggling with maintaining our structures and assets as they are now, and establishing and enlarging the area is a tough sell in Congress.”
One priority, yet to be funded, is a Castillo Orientation Center on the Mary Peck house site in our Colonial Spanish Quarter. The center was adopted last year as part of NPS long-range plans for the Castillo.
GARDNER and WILSON, like Rep. JOHN MICA, lack imagination. These dull Republicans can't rely upon Congressional inaction in 1939 to argue against preservation today. Let them lead, follow, or get out of the way!!
Rocky shoals for National Seashore Park – Castillo de San Marcos Superintendent Gordie Wilson offered some comment on a proposal to designate the St. Augustine region a National Seashore Park, shifting management and maintenance of a broad area of historic resources to the National Park Service (NPS).
Said Wilson, “Any such designation would have to take place through the legislative branch (Congress). We (NPS) execute the laws they pass, e.g. manage areas they establish for us. In 1939, bills were introduced (HR 7068, S 2731) to establish the St. Augustine National Historical Park, but the bills died. The NPS is struggling with maintaining our structures and assets as they are now, and establishing and enlarging the area is a tough sell in Congress.”
One priority, yet to be funded, is a Castillo Orientation Center on the Mary Peck house site in our Colonial Spanish Quarter. The center was adopted last year as part of NPS long-range plans for the Castillo.
GARDNER and WILSON, like Rep. JOHN MICA, lack imagination. These dull Republicans can't rely upon Congressional inaction in 1939 to argue against preservation today. Let them lead, follow, or get out of the way!!
St. Augustine Conservation Zones Are Based On 13-Year Old "Out of Date" Data -- Who's Protecting Wetlands?
The February 25, 2008 E-mail from Teresa Monson of St. Johns River Water Mgt Dist (bel0w) was not shared with City Commissioners by the City Clerk, City Manager and City Attorney of St. Augustine. Citizens were forbidden to talk, while the speculator's lawyher spun cobwebs of new evidence that ensnared two of the Commissioners.
It is disturbing enough that our Nation's Oldest City's conservation zones are based on old data.
Yet when I handed the E-mail to City Clerk KAREN ROGERFS, overbearing City Attorney RONALD BROWN and out-of-control City Mis-manager WILLIAM B. HARRISS would noi suffer ROGERS or anyone else to hand this E-mail to the five Commissioners. Earlier efforts to raise the concern about the basis of the conservation zones with one of the PZB members were unavailing.
The E-mail was not meant for them to read and hold onto -- as Cordell Hull said, "gentlemen do not read each other's mail. ROGERS, BROWN and HARRISS owe Commissioners (Iand me) an apology.
Our City makes decisions based on unsound science or no science at all.
Its officials thought it cute to
What we have here3 is a failure to communicate.
Here is the E-mail that the only three officials hired directly by City Commission refused to share with Commissioners before they discussed and voted upon the two million cubic foot boat warehouse in Lincolnville.
Ed,
As you noted, the “City of St. Augustine Conservation Overlay Zones” map is not a District map. It states that the District was the source of data. Our GIS staff believe this map to be based on 1994 data. If so, it's very out of date.
Staff say it is not immediately obvious what dataset this is, but it is not a currently active layer, nor is it one we update. The District has never had a layer called “conservation zones.”
Regardless, the District only produce these kind of datasets as planning tools. They are never intended to replace site-specific determinations. Also, what is accurate at a general (Districtwide) scale may not always be accurate at this fine a scale.
I hope this helps answer your question.
Teresa
Teresa H. Monson
Senior Communications Specialist
St. Johns River Water Management District
Jacksonville Service Center
7775 Baymeadows Way, Suite 102
Jacksonville, FL 32256
(904) 730-6258 (office)
(904) 545-5064 (cell)
It is disturbing enough that our Nation's Oldest City's conservation zones are based on old data.
Yet when I handed the E-mail to City Clerk KAREN ROGERFS, overbearing City Attorney RONALD BROWN and out-of-control City Mis-manager WILLIAM B. HARRISS would noi suffer ROGERS or anyone else to hand this E-mail to the five Commissioners. Earlier efforts to raise the concern about the basis of the conservation zones with one of the PZB members were unavailing.
The E-mail was not meant for them to read and hold onto -- as Cordell Hull said, "gentlemen do not read each other's mail. ROGERS, BROWN and HARRISS owe Commissioners (Iand me) an apology.
Our City makes decisions based on unsound science or no science at all.
Its officials thought it cute to
What we have here3 is a failure to communicate.
Here is the E-mail that the only three officials hired directly by City Commission refused to share with Commissioners before they discussed and voted upon the two million cubic foot boat warehouse in Lincolnville.
Ed,
As you noted, the “City of St. Augustine Conservation Overlay Zones” map is not a District map. It states that the District was the source of data. Our GIS staff believe this map to be based on 1994 data. If so, it's very out of date.
Staff say it is not immediately obvious what dataset this is, but it is not a currently active layer, nor is it one we update. The District has never had a layer called “conservation zones.”
Regardless, the District only produce these kind of datasets as planning tools. They are never intended to replace site-specific determinations. Also, what is accurate at a general (Districtwide) scale may not always be accurate at this fine a scale.
I hope this helps answer your question.
Teresa
Teresa H. Monson
Senior Communications Specialist
St. Johns River Water Management District
Jacksonville Service Center
7775 Baymeadows Way, Suite 102
Jacksonville, FL 32256
(904) 730-6258 (office)
(904) 545-5064 (cell)
Lincolnville wins another victory, even with illegal gag order from City of St. Augusitne
Last night, dozens of American citizens were forbidden to speak out while ROGERS TOWERS lawyer Ellen Averyh Smith appealed for Maryland and Berumadan investors from the PZB's rejection of a 2 million cubic foot boat warehouse, 49 feet high, more than twice as tall as the Berlin Wall. The City's attorney, RONALD BROWN, did not defend the PZB's decision, leading to a bizarre appeal process in which only one side was represented. As a Congresswoman once said, "jusice may be bound but she is not gagged."
Commissioners voted 3-2 to ujphold their PZB. Showing a negative profile in courage were Vice Mayor and Commissioner DONALD CRICHLOW and ex-Mayhor GEORGE GARDNER. Actually voting against a speculator's unwise project were Mayor JOSEPH LEROY BLOES, JR., ex-Vice-Mayor SUSAN BURK and Commissioner ERROL JONES.
But for the presence of Lincolnville activists, City Commissioners would have done what they've usually done in these parts in the last ten years -- shill for developers.
Last night's victory, in which the January 2, 2008 PZB decision was upheld -- even in the face of an illegal gag order and aberrant pro-specualtor attitudes -- speaks volumes. The people are revolting! We're winning, too!
The whole city is up in arms at our lazy, unaccountable, reckless, feckless city govenrment. See letter below by Ms. Merrick.
Commissioners voted 3-2 to ujphold their PZB. Showing a negative profile in courage were Vice Mayor and Commissioner DONALD CRICHLOW and ex-Mayhor GEORGE GARDNER. Actually voting against a speculator's unwise project were Mayor JOSEPH LEROY BLOES, JR., ex-Vice-Mayor SUSAN BURK and Commissioner ERROL JONES.
But for the presence of Lincolnville activists, City Commissioners would have done what they've usually done in these parts in the last ten years -- shill for developers.
Last night's victory, in which the January 2, 2008 PZB decision was upheld -- even in the face of an illegal gag order and aberrant pro-specualtor attitudes -- speaks volumes. The people are revolting! We're winning, too!
The whole city is up in arms at our lazy, unaccountable, reckless, feckless city govenrment. See letter below by Ms. Merrick.
Letter: Reform and renew St. Augustine gov't
Letter: Reform and renew St. Augustine gov't
Publication Date: 02/26/08
Editor: A letter on Feb. 15, "City fails Lincolnville residents again," is an accurate appraisal of St. Augustine city government. It is truly an "overpaid, unimaginative" group of officials; a "hassle-you city government unfit to lead in the 21st century."
The writer was referring to the blight, as well as the illegal dumping of waste in the minority neighborhoods of St. Augustine.
I am a resident of West Augustine and a street artist experiencing the persecution by our illustrious mayor and commissioners. I bought a little house on West King Street, in 2003. As an artist, I was attracted to this historically beautiful city. I first lived here in 1996 and 1997 and had sketched portraits on St. George Street. I enjoyed meeting people from all over the world, drawing them and their adorable children.
Everyone I have ever met, local or otherwise, thinks that the outdoor artists are a delightful aspect of the St. Augustine scene. In fact, the public is shocked that we are not embraced by city officials as a tourist attraction.
After the city government banned the artists from St. George Street, we were allowed to set up in the Plaza, if we paid weekly permit fees. When one artist challenged the city officials with constitutional law protecting artists via free speech, all the permit fees were refunded to us.
Now there is a new ordinance banning artists from the Plaza, and that same outspoken artist has been thrown in jail twice for defying the ban.
To require the St. Augustine police to hassle the street artists is an outrageous waste of taxpayers' money, which is wasted badly enough already.
It's time to clean house at City Hall.
Kate Merrick
St. Augustine
Click here to return to story:
http://staugustine.com/stories/022608/opinions_stories_003.shtml
© The St. Augustine Record
Publication Date: 02/26/08
Editor: A letter on Feb. 15, "City fails Lincolnville residents again," is an accurate appraisal of St. Augustine city government. It is truly an "overpaid, unimaginative" group of officials; a "hassle-you city government unfit to lead in the 21st century."
The writer was referring to the blight, as well as the illegal dumping of waste in the minority neighborhoods of St. Augustine.
I am a resident of West Augustine and a street artist experiencing the persecution by our illustrious mayor and commissioners. I bought a little house on West King Street, in 2003. As an artist, I was attracted to this historically beautiful city. I first lived here in 1996 and 1997 and had sketched portraits on St. George Street. I enjoyed meeting people from all over the world, drawing them and their adorable children.
Everyone I have ever met, local or otherwise, thinks that the outdoor artists are a delightful aspect of the St. Augustine scene. In fact, the public is shocked that we are not embraced by city officials as a tourist attraction.
After the city government banned the artists from St. George Street, we were allowed to set up in the Plaza, if we paid weekly permit fees. When one artist challenged the city officials with constitutional law protecting artists via free speech, all the permit fees were refunded to us.
Now there is a new ordinance banning artists from the Plaza, and that same outspoken artist has been thrown in jail twice for defying the ban.
To require the St. Augustine police to hassle the street artists is an outrageous waste of taxpayers' money, which is wasted badly enough already.
It's time to clean house at City Hall.
Kate Merrick
St. Augustine
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Letter: Credit card interest rates are out of line
Letter: Credit card interest rates are out of line
Publication Date: 02/26/08
Editor: I have thought about these issues for quite some time. I think it's despicable what the credit card companies are getting away with in interest rates, and our government is allowing it.
Talk about "Loan Sharking." That's exactly what it's like.
I think the government should start regulating things again. It was much better when they did.
Maureen Almeida
Elkton
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Publication Date: 02/26/08
Editor: I have thought about these issues for quite some time. I think it's despicable what the credit card companies are getting away with in interest rates, and our government is allowing it.
Talk about "Loan Sharking." That's exactly what it's like.
I think the government should start regulating things again. It was much better when they did.
Maureen Almeida
Elkton
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City denies marina's plan to construct buildings
City denies marina's plan to construct buildings
By Kati Bexley
kati.bexley.staugustine.com
Publication Date: 02/26/08
St. Augustine City Commissioners turned down an appeal Monday by a company that wanted to build three large structures on Riberia Street in Lincolnville, but the developer could instead construct a building the size of a football field.
"I'm a little concerned about what happens when we walk away from here," said City Commissioner Errol Jones after the board's unanimous vote.
Oasis Marina, owned by Charlie Spires of Beta Two of Alachua LLC, at 256 Riberia St., wanted to build three 35-foot high buildings that would contain about 300 dry boat slips. The building would have been within 100 feet of the San Sebastian River, which is a conservation zone.
In January, the Planning and Zoning Board denied the application. And on Monday, the City Commission upheld that decision.
However, the company's property is zoned for Industrial Warehouse use, and Oasis could now construct one building the size of a football field that is farther away from the water, and the firm won't need the city's permission.
"So, the threat just got a little more real," said Mayor Joe Boles when the company's attorney showed plans to construct the massive building.
Planning and Zoning denied the project because of concerns that the massive buildings would block the vista and harm wetlands.
Ellen Avery-Smith, Oasis Marina's attorney, said the Board based its decision on neighbors' testimony, who are not experts and could be challenged in the courtroom.
A resident in the City Hall audience yelled out, "It's called a community!"
The commission did not take public comment, but simply reviewed the PZB's decision. But residents filled City Hall to listen to the discussion.
All of the commissioners were against the developer building a single, large structure, but they said it is beyond their control.
"I don't like either options, really," said Commissioner Don Crichlow. "I don't know how to stop it."
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By Kati Bexley
kati.bexley.staugustine.com
Publication Date: 02/26/08
St. Augustine City Commissioners turned down an appeal Monday by a company that wanted to build three large structures on Riberia Street in Lincolnville, but the developer could instead construct a building the size of a football field.
"I'm a little concerned about what happens when we walk away from here," said City Commissioner Errol Jones after the board's unanimous vote.
Oasis Marina, owned by Charlie Spires of Beta Two of Alachua LLC, at 256 Riberia St., wanted to build three 35-foot high buildings that would contain about 300 dry boat slips. The building would have been within 100 feet of the San Sebastian River, which is a conservation zone.
In January, the Planning and Zoning Board denied the application. And on Monday, the City Commission upheld that decision.
However, the company's property is zoned for Industrial Warehouse use, and Oasis could now construct one building the size of a football field that is farther away from the water, and the firm won't need the city's permission.
"So, the threat just got a little more real," said Mayor Joe Boles when the company's attorney showed plans to construct the massive building.
Planning and Zoning denied the project because of concerns that the massive buildings would block the vista and harm wetlands.
Ellen Avery-Smith, Oasis Marina's attorney, said the Board based its decision on neighbors' testimony, who are not experts and could be challenged in the courtroom.
A resident in the City Hall audience yelled out, "It's called a community!"
The commission did not take public comment, but simply reviewed the PZB's decision. But residents filled City Hall to listen to the discussion.
All of the commissioners were against the developer building a single, large structure, but they said it is beyond their control.
"I don't like either options, really," said Commissioner Don Crichlow. "I don't know how to stop it."
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Hotel plan gets initial OK
Hotel plan gets initial OK
By KATI BEXLEY
kati.bexley@staugustine.com
Publication Date: 02/26/08
The St. Augustine City Commission gave initial approval Monday to a hotel whose construction would demolish seven homes along King and Oveido streets.
Commissioner Susan Burk was the only dissenting vote. The other commissioners moved the project to second reading so they could hold a public hearing on it.
The project will go before the board again on April 14.
The commission spent little time on the issue and no one spoke at the meeting about the project.
Donna Wendler is asking the City Commisson for a Planned Unit Development to build an 80-room hotel along Oveido and King streets. The Planning and Zoning Board has denied her request. And the Historic Architecture Review Board also denied her application to demolish seven homes to make way for the hotel.
At the meeting in April, the commission will likely also consider Wendler's appeal of the Architecture Review Board's demolition denial, Mark Knight, city planning and building department director, has said.
Many residents who own homes on Oveido and King Street, as well as others in the nearby Flagler Model Land Company neighborhood, have objected to the hotel, saying it would ruin their community's charm and clog their streets.
Wendler has said she has to demolish the homes because of economic hardship. She can no longer afford the rising costs of insurance and property taxes of the old homes. And it would take an enormous amount of money to renovate the homes, Wendler has said. She believes building a hotel would not only help her, but also revitalize King Street and bring in money for the city.
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By KATI BEXLEY
kati.bexley@staugustine.com
Publication Date: 02/26/08
The St. Augustine City Commission gave initial approval Monday to a hotel whose construction would demolish seven homes along King and Oveido streets.
Commissioner Susan Burk was the only dissenting vote. The other commissioners moved the project to second reading so they could hold a public hearing on it.
The project will go before the board again on April 14.
The commission spent little time on the issue and no one spoke at the meeting about the project.
Donna Wendler is asking the City Commisson for a Planned Unit Development to build an 80-room hotel along Oveido and King streets. The Planning and Zoning Board has denied her request. And the Historic Architecture Review Board also denied her application to demolish seven homes to make way for the hotel.
At the meeting in April, the commission will likely also consider Wendler's appeal of the Architecture Review Board's demolition denial, Mark Knight, city planning and building department director, has said.
Many residents who own homes on Oveido and King Street, as well as others in the nearby Flagler Model Land Company neighborhood, have objected to the hotel, saying it would ruin their community's charm and clog their streets.
Wendler has said she has to demolish the homes because of economic hardship. She can no longer afford the rising costs of insurance and property taxes of the old homes. And it would take an enormous amount of money to renovate the homes, Wendler has said. She believes building a hotel would not only help her, but also revitalize King Street and bring in money for the city.
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Monday, February 25, 2008
Letter: City should reject tall buildings in Lincolnville
Letter: City should reject tall buildings in Lincolnville
Anthony Seraphin
St. Augustine
Publication Date: 02/25/08
Editor: Maryland developers/speculators trying to buy the Oasis Marina on Riberia Street are back again before the City Commissioners tonight, demanding to inflict 49-foot high, two-million cubic foot steel buildings for boat storage on Riberia Street.
These monstrosities will block our views, breezes and sun for two blocks in past Twine Street. If speculators get their way, Riberia Street will become intensely crowded with boats towed to and from Oasis Marina.
It's bad enough that there are no sidewalks. Children play in Lincolnville's streets because there are no playgrounds.
Lincolnville's flooding is not remedied by our city. It's horrible that any responsible government would let them ruin an ethnically diverse, historic neighborhood by building a two-million cubic foot warehouse in a coastal conservation zone and a flood zone, a place where the city's soils map officially says that it is "Pellicer silty clay loam, frequently flooded" (soil number 109024). Our city must obey the laws applicable to all of us, including the Comprehensive Plan, and reject this indecent proposal.
Otherwise, this industrial project would keep Lincolnville blighted forever. Speculators would not dare try it behind Flagler College or on Davis Shores. The city has abused Lincolnville for more than one hundred years, Yet our taxes are the same as other neighborhoods that receive greater services.
Will our city commissioners stand up for us? They can stop this Berlin Wall, "Lincolnville Wall" from destroying our neighborhood. Once built, it's too late!! Please spread the word and come out.
Voice your outrage at the City Commission meeting tonight, 5 p.m., City Hall, Lightner Museum, Alcazar Room, 75 King St., First Floor.
Riberia Street must be rezoned immediately from Industrial to Business/ Residential. We must stop industrial development in our neighborhood. Stop this outrage now.
Anthony Seraphin
St. Augustine
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Anthony Seraphin
St. Augustine
Publication Date: 02/25/08
Editor: Maryland developers/speculators trying to buy the Oasis Marina on Riberia Street are back again before the City Commissioners tonight, demanding to inflict 49-foot high, two-million cubic foot steel buildings for boat storage on Riberia Street.
These monstrosities will block our views, breezes and sun for two blocks in past Twine Street. If speculators get their way, Riberia Street will become intensely crowded with boats towed to and from Oasis Marina.
It's bad enough that there are no sidewalks. Children play in Lincolnville's streets because there are no playgrounds.
Lincolnville's flooding is not remedied by our city. It's horrible that any responsible government would let them ruin an ethnically diverse, historic neighborhood by building a two-million cubic foot warehouse in a coastal conservation zone and a flood zone, a place where the city's soils map officially says that it is "Pellicer silty clay loam, frequently flooded" (soil number 109024). Our city must obey the laws applicable to all of us, including the Comprehensive Plan, and reject this indecent proposal.
Otherwise, this industrial project would keep Lincolnville blighted forever. Speculators would not dare try it behind Flagler College or on Davis Shores. The city has abused Lincolnville for more than one hundred years, Yet our taxes are the same as other neighborhoods that receive greater services.
Will our city commissioners stand up for us? They can stop this Berlin Wall, "Lincolnville Wall" from destroying our neighborhood. Once built, it's too late!! Please spread the word and come out.
Voice your outrage at the City Commission meeting tonight, 5 p.m., City Hall, Lightner Museum, Alcazar Room, 75 King St., First Floor.
Riberia Street must be rezoned immediately from Industrial to Business/ Residential. We must stop industrial development in our neighborhood. Stop this outrage now.
Anthony Seraphin
St. Augustine
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http://staugustine.com/stories/022508/opinions_022508027.shtml
© The St. Augustine Record
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