INDIAN RIVER COUNTY —
The six counties to the south will have to plan ahead for the next half-century
without Indian River County's input, county commissioners agreed Tuesday
In a 4-1 vote, amid
residents' applause and waving of American flags, commissioners withdrew from
the Southeast Florida Regional Partnership and its "Seven50" planning
effort.
"I don't want a
regional board deciding what's good for our economy," Vero Beach resident
Nancy Cook said. "We are small enough. We can deal with issues as they
present themselves."
Cook was one of more
than 20 people who spoke out against the partnership and its goals of creating
an economic region from Indian River County south to Monroe County.
Before a packed
audience in the Commission Chambers, some of them blasted regionalism as the
first step toward a global system under the United Nations. Most opposed the
idea of Washington bureaucrats and Miami consultants forcing the county to join
the region to qualify for federal grants.
Indian River County,
which they praised for its low-density zoning and low-rise development, has
nothing in common with sprawling counties like Miami-Dade and Broward.
"After a year and
a half or two years, most plans are history and you get a new plan," Vero
Beach builder Toby Hill said. "I don't know who would tell you a 50-year
plan makes sense — unless they plan for a living."
Kevin Foley, chairman
of the Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council, and Marcela Camblor, director
of the Seven50 project, said the planning process was voluntary. If Seven50
included things like giving up local rights to regional planners, Foley said,
the planning council would have rejected it.
Camblor likened the region to a business, with its counties as major
divisions and cities as departments. And every business, large and small, has a
business plan, she said. "But there's no business plan for Southeast
Florida," she said. "Everyone's efforts aren't coordinated." She said Indian River County could keep its
low density and stay in the region by simply embedding its existing land-use
plans as its chapter in the regional plan being formed.
Commissioner Bob
Solari drew muted applause by making
a motion to withdraw. He said he was frustrated when planners wouldn't even
acknowledge that there could be problems."This process puts us on the
wrong road, which is why I don't even want to be on that road," he said.
Peter O'Bryan, one of
Seven50's executive board members, dissented. He said the county could always
opt out once the plan was complete in 1 1/2 years.
Commissioner Wesley
Davis, however, said the county would always be a minority at regional discussions.
He balked at having to fight for the lifestyle the county already enjoys
"Why should we
have to defend it?" he asked. "People elected us to do it. Just keep
it here.
Source: TCPalm, Henry A. Stephens Posted December 18, 2012
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