Letter: Article missed points on SR 206/I-95 plan

Letter: Article missed points on SR 206/I-95 plan



Bill Hamilton
Crescent Beach
Publication Date: 04/28/09

Editor: The April 22 article, "Development Vote Delayed," left out some critical points regarding developer Paul Fletcher's attempt to rezone 83 acres of open rural land on State Road 206 and Interstate 95 to Industrial Warehouse through a Planned Unit Development (PUD).

1. As much as George McClure, Fletcher's attorney, would like for the County Commission to ignore the rule regarding the required residential or retail component of a PUD because "there doesn't seem to be any demand," the law is very clear. McClure suggested the county overlook that part of the Comprehensive Plan and hopefully, in 3 years, that inconvenient requirement would be changed.

2. While McClure repeated claims of "shovel ready" and "450 new jobs" The Record didn't mention that Fletcher admitted he has no intention of actually building the project himself, rather hoping to sell it to someone else, and that the residents of Hastings and Armstrong, who McClure claimed to have consulted, would not be eligible for those jobs.

Commissioners Mark Minor and Phil Mays, both proponents of this rezoning, owe the voters of St. Johns County an explanation. Why does Fletcher deserve to be exempt from the rule of law? And why do they "not have a problem with this project at all?"

We all have a shared interest in the protection of this area. It is the headwaters of the Matanzas River, a critical wetland and water recharge area, a bear habitat and wildlife corridor, and an integral part of the agricultural and silvaculture sector of the St. Johns County economy.

Those of us concerned with the sustainable future of St. Johns County need to continue to encourage Commissioners Ken Bryan, Ron Sanchez and Cyndi Stevenson. And to thank them for their leadership.

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