Gov. Crist signs SB 360, shows his true colors are anything but "green"

Editorial cartoon by Jim Morin, Miami Herald

Crist signs controversial growth bill
By Jim Ash
Tallahassee Democrat
Gov. Charlie Crist, a U.S. Senate candidate who frequently crosses the state for high-profile bill signing ceremonies, took a far different approach Monday when he signed a controversial growth management bill vehemently opposed by environmental groups.

Crist signs bill loosening controls on growth
By Paul Quinlan
Palm Beach Post
Related editorial: The governor can't hide
Gov. Charlie Crist bucked environmental groups and local governments Monday by signing a bill that development interests say will discourage urban sprawl and jump-start Florida's stalled building industry.

Crist signs growth-management bill (includes audio)
By Mitch E. Perry
WMNF Community Radio Tampa
As we reported last night, without ceremony Gov. Charlie Crist has signed Senate Bill 360, also known as the Community Renewal Act, into law.

Critics decry growth bill
Staff Report
Daytona Beach News-Journal
Gov. Charlie Crist signed a growth management bill Monday supported by business and development interests but opposed by environmentalists and local governments.

Crist's environmental image takes a hit
By Beth Reinhard
Miami Herald
Gov. Charlie Crist waited until 5:05 p.m. tonight to quietly send out a press release saying he had signed a "growth management'' bill that environmentalists say will result in worsening sprawl.

Crist refuels the bulldozers
By Kenric Ward
TC Palm
Gov. Charlie Crist cleared the way for developers by signing Senate Bill 360. Watch out, Treasure Coast.

Governor Gridlock
Editorial
St. Petersburg Times
Gov. Charlie Crist just made it easier to pave over what's left of Florida.

Reckless rollback
Editorial
Florida Today
Brevard County residents, you've just been had. And you can thank Gov. Charlie Crist and Republicans in the state Legislature for guaranteeing that you'll get stuck with the bill for more urban sprawl and traffic gridlock when growth returns to Florida.

Wildwood Preservation Society is a non-profit 501(c)(4) project of the Advocacy Consortium for the Common Good. Click here to learn more.

"it's all connected"

Will the Florida Legislature pave paradise?

Ed. Note: Please see the letter below from Progress Florida and take action to protect Florida’s vital growth management agency, the Department of Community Affairs (DCA).



"I don't know whether they're corrupt, stupid or simply so embedded in the Culture of Concrete they can't think outside that tiny box. The pressure to pave permeates the Florida Capitol like skunk stink." - Mike Thomas, Orlando Sentinel

They're at it again in Tallahassee. As if Florida isn't getting paved over fast enough already, now Florida legislators in the pockets of big developers are trying to get rid of the agency that reviews development plans - the Department of Community Affairs (DCA). The DCA's job is to make sure we don't let unchecked development swallow up what's left of Florida's open spaces, wildlife habitat and unique character.

Please sign on to Progress Florida's letter to the Florida legislature - let them know we won't sit idly by while what's left of our state gets paved over for profit.

Florida has about 300,000 homes sitting vacant today but incredibly a new bill flying through the legislature says we need to build faster. In fact, Port St. Lucie Mayor Patricia Christensen says if Senate Bill 730 passes, "You're going to see development like you've never seen before."

Environmental advocates from The Nature Conservancy to Audubon Society to the Sierra Club have said this bill "will cripple effective growth management in Florida." City planners and local elected officials have warned it would lead to more vacant homes, more traffic and more economic woes. "Growth management didn't cause the recession. That's just not true," said Michael Busha, executive director of the Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council. "If anything, growth caused the recession."

"Dismantling the state's land planning agency sends the wrong signal to the citizens of this state," said DCA Secretary Thomas Pelham. "It suggests that it is not an important function, that Florida doesn't need to be concerned anymore about planning and growth management."

Let your legislators know this couldn't be further from the truth. Sign on to our letter today.

Sincerely,

The Progress Florida Team


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Wildwood Preservation Society is a non-profit 501(c)(4) project of the Advocacy Consortium for the Common Good. Click here to learn more.

"it's all connected"

Florida growth management under assault

Ed. Note: The following articles highlight an effort by extremists in the Florida Legislature to render the Department of Community Affairs (DCA) powerless by merging it with the Department of State. The DCA plays a critical role in growth management throughout Florida, and stood tall as the last line of defense against the notorious “Mahan Massacre” in rural eastern Leon County last year. This proposal, along with other so-called “pro-growth” measures, is being touted as a salve for the state’s ailing economy, which is a sick irony considering that Florida’s overreliance on development has only sharpened the economic pain in the Sunshine State. Moreover, just last week the Nature Conservancy released a report highlighting the tremendous financial benefits Florida receives via land conservation programs.
See the end of this post for suggested ways to take action.


Progress?

Bill abolishing state planning department gets OK
By Bruce Ritchie
Florida Environmental News
A House committee today gave initial approval to a proposed bill that would abolish the Florida Department of Community Affairs, a move facing opposition from a coalition of environmental groups.

Department In Cross Hairs
By Mike Salinero
Tampa Tribune
Related editorial: Stop Unwarranted Assault On DCA
A bill that would abolish the state's growth management agency passed a major legislative committee Wednesday but probably won't be supported by Gov. Charlie Crist.

Bill would dismantle Florida's growth management agency
By Craig Pittman
St. Pete Times
Related editorial: Developers' dream, Florida's nightmare
State legislators are pushing to dismantle the agency in charge of managing growth, arguing that it's standing in the way of reviving Florida's economy.

Efforts to Abolish Department of Community Affairs Underway in the Florida House of Representatives
Audubon of Florida
A full-blown effort to abolish Florida’s Department of Community Affairs (DCA) is underway in the Florida Legislature, with conditions in the House the most hostile to DCA and Growth Management generally.

Lobbyists bearing money a threat to state's interests
By Ron Littlepage
Florida Times-Union
The recipients of the goodies were legislators and the urgency stemmed from a ban on accepting campaign contributions while the Legislature meets.

Keep state watching growth
Editorial
Palm Beach Post
There's too much control over growth in Florida. Developers need more freedom to build. Local elected officials don't need oversight from the state. Those are the myths driving legislative efforts to abolish growth management in Florida.

Economy's no excuse to give developers free pass
Editorial
Daytona Beach News-Journal
Last April, Florida was home to 18.8 million people. Next month, the forecasters predict, the state will be home to -- 18.8 million people.


WAYS YOU CAN HELP
Let your legislators know you don’t support this move by developers and land speculators to exploit the economic problems of the state by making excuses for dismantling regulatory programs.
Support Florida Hometown Democracy.
Support the Florida Forever Coalition, of which Wildwood Preservation Society is a member.

Wildwood Preservation Society is a non-profit 501(c)(4) project of the Advocacy Consortium for the Common Good. Click here to learn more.

"it's all connected"