on our current
Socio-political Situation
planning gurus, is the notion of
making sure that all the necessary
services: water, sewage, schools,
roads, police & fire protection are
in place before new "development"
takes place.
I've long wondered why our local powers that be continue to allow more development in the Florida
Keys when we, the residents, are increasingly subjected to water rationing. Since there is, as yet, no
solution to our water problems, why aren't we following the lead of the many communities across the
country that have established laws requiring a prospective builder to obtain a water permit before a
building permit can be issued? Common sense tells us that if there's not enough water for the people
who live here already we shouldn't be adding to the burden.
So I e-mailed a friend of mine and asked him why, in a place where water is such a precious, ever-
dwindling resource, we aren't protecting it — and ourselves — with some sort water-related building
restriction. Guess what I found out? We have one. It's called "concurrency." Florida statute requires
that: "Prior to approval of a building permit or its functional equivalent, the local government shall
consult with the applicable water supplier to determine whether adequate water supplies to serve the
new development will be available."
I would like to know who is responsible for signing off on water availability under the concurrency
management statute. It's hard to believe there are "adequate water supplies" available for further
development in an area where existing residents are forced to ration their water year after year.
Janet Hartwell
Key West
Once upon a time there was a sleepy little fishing village in the Keys. Just a few mom-and-pop motels, three
or four local eateries, some quaint little Conch houses scattered around the island, and the nearshore waters
were pure and clean. Small but efficient campgrounds and mobile home parks provided clean, comfortable
and affordable living for the work force, and the snowbirds.
In the summer months after the tourists had retreated back up north, the locals would kick back and enjoy
the fruits of their hard-earned winter earnings, resting up for the next season and the rewards it would
surely bring.
Then along came the mega-hotels, high-end resorts and marinas, fast-food restaurants, the grocery store
chains, department store chains, and along with all that, more people. More people needed for the many jobs
now available, more tourists sucked down to the Keys by the TDC to support this influx of modernization,
and more pressure heaped upon the sewer system and the already too fragile eco-system. As a result, up
went the cost of living and down went the very qualities that made that little village unique to locals and
visitors alike.
The campgrounds and the mobile home parks had become about as rare as a Miami Dolphin victory, and the
work force had to scramble to find housing — and when they did they had to work two or three jobs to afford
it. (Maybe that was the idea behind it all. Make them have to work two or three jobs, and we will only need a
third of the normal work force.)
Larger schools were being built, while student registration was declining, due to the fact that the parents
couldn't afford to live there, nor could the teachers. The developers wanted to develop more and the local
officials seemed powerless to stop them, or were unwilling to do so. As a result, more condos, high-end
resorts and marinas permeated the area.
What once used to be that sleepy little fishing village has now become what it is today, and yet they still
continue to build, and spend thousands upon thousands to lure even more tourists down to support the so-
called progress that we didn't want or need in the first place.
Of course this is only a fairy tale, but the moral of the story is, my friends, "You can only put so much air in
a balloon before it eventually blows."
Dave Scott, Marathon
12–7-07
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