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The Newscaster/Nature Coast News

PAGE 11 - July 11, 2007

Letter to the Editor:

Editorial - Opinion - Commentary

Re: Angry Tears in Inglis

Thank you, Sgt. Crow! What more perfect day to commemorate the courageous life and

Yankeetown Mayor's Report

actions of this brave young man, than the 4th of July?!?! As we celebrate this day of FREE-

DOM, freedom we have achieved as a Nation, and FREEDOM we maintain as the

A Guest Commentary by Mayor Dawn Clary

strongest military might in the world, we are reminded that it is the courage and bravery of the

There have been some new developments on Yankeetown's biggest project, a new

Sgt Crows who comprise our modern military, that allow us to stay FREE.

water plant. In June, Yankeetown finalized its purchase, and is now the proud owner of 6 acres

And to you, Mrs. Mondini........ we grieve with you, for the loss of your son..... while we

of land on CR 40, which is slated for the percolation ponds needed to dispose of waste water

thank you for the kind of parenting that led young William Crow to choose the dangerous

generated from the future plant. This was a huge milestone, as the need for the perk pond had

paths he chose. You must be quite proud of your son, and rightly so! His noble actions are

been identified years ago due to the discovery of a contaminant called Trihalomethane,

the kind we write about in history books..... the kind we remember when we sing our National

(which is a very big word for a byproduct of the chlorine addition to the water and is not good

Anthem and recite the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag..... the kind that bring a tear to our eye

for people). However, the Town of Yankeetown (TOY) has only moved forward with the

as we remember. We honor him for his leadership and for his determination to return to his

acquisition of land in the last year. Time was also becoming of the essence because the town

men who looked to him for that leadership, the responsibility for which Sgt. Crow obviously

had already received a Consent Order from the Fla. Department of Environmental Protection

took deeply seriously.

(FDEP) to do something about our problem. A consent order is a document that is a sort of

As a mother of a son who came home from Iraq safely, I cannot pretend to know your

contract that says that you know that you have a problem and that you have a plan to correct

grief. As a mother of a son, who, when his flight training is completed, will most likely return

that problem in a certain time frame. The DEP grants you the time to correct the problem if it

to Iraq in a much more dangerous position than was his last there, I do understand the anxiety

agrees with your solution. There was significant time pressure on the new town government

that comes from sending our children off to war. As a mother of a Marine who has chosen this

to procure land and proceed with the plant application. Which brings us to the schedule.

path of selfless duty to our Country, I am as proud as they come...... as proud as I am sure you

At this time I would like to clear up some misinformation expressed in a letter to the

are, of the "Alexander the Great-like" qualities that your son, my son, and ALL the sons and

Newscaster concerning the beginning date for construction of the new water plant. The

daughters serving in our military today, embody. We are sorry for your loss, Mrs. Mondini......

Consent Order (CO) from the FDEP was signed by former Mayor Johannesson when Glenn

we are sorry for the loss of life that IS war. We celebrate their memories with our fireworks, hot

Spetz was the Water Liaison in September 2006. Using the times given in this document,

dogs and bar-b-q.......... and we thank them for the honorable service and their choices that

construction of the water plant was not projected to begin until January of 2008 which in

allow us the freedom to celebrate however we choose!

Raye Kooiman, Inglis

September of 2006 was over a year away and now is 6 months away. I have never seen or

"Save Yankeetown" "From What?"

heard anyone from the current town government represent the construction schedule as

anything other than what was in the consent order that FDEP issued when Glen Spetz was

A Guest Commentary by Jim Sherwood

Water Liaison. Construction was never "a few months away" in September of 2006 as the

The unbridled stampede to "Save Yankeetown" perpetrated by a small group of

design work had not even been started, nor had the permitting process begun.

misguided individuals driven by unfounded paranoia and personal agendas is now out of

We are currently on schedule as required in the C.O. The present time period was

control. This self-appointed herd of intolerant fools have seized power in Yankeetown with a

slated for working through the permitting process. While the conceptual design was pro-

political doctrine of absolute rule. Their dictatorial approach to what's good for you and me is

posed, the real nitty gritty design work must now be done. Now that we have purchased land

in full swing as they craft their dream of a utopian "coastal village". Their little "experiment"

for our percolation ponds, we have a known quantity which we can design around. However,

is ill-conceived and based on flawed thinking. Make no mistake about it, their intolerant

the percolation tests have been disappointing. The percolation pond property does not have

desire to create their perfect little "coastal village", will be at the expense of your property

the capacity to dispose of the amount of waste water which would be generated by the

rights, property values and tax dollars. Their rejection of a basic market economy in favor of

current proposed design of our new plant which uses reverse osmosis, but it does have

a third world "coastal village" subsistence, devoid of even the most basic requirements of any

percolation capacity. At this time I would also like to clear up another misunderstanding

functional community, such as potable water, sewer, jobs, a viable commercial tax base, or any

written in a contribution to the Newscaster, there are no "mandatory percolation require-

kind of economic opportunity for anyone who lives here is in sharp contradiction to any

ments", for the perc pond. We must have sufficient percolation capacity to dispose of

functional community anywhere in the world that I am aware of.

however much water the PROCESS SELECTED in the final design generates. The initial

Over the last several weeks, Dawn's hand-picked P&Z , headed up by Larry Conan

proposal of reverse osmosis generates a significantly high amount of waste water. There are

and Ralph Waldo Candela, have been busy burning the mid-night oil designing a "new begin-

other processes which will accomplish the goal and produce much lower volumes of waste

ning" for Yankeetown. As they re-write the town's comprehensive plan and recommend new

water, a resin system is one example. Now that we know our disposal capacity, engineering

ordinances to control every aspect of your life, you might ask yourself what will all of this

can now design accordingly.

mean for me, the property owner? For starters, you will feel it first in YOUR wallet in terms of

The bottom line is that the property was purchased for use as percolation ponds and

higher taxes and lower property values. Next you will receive a citation and fine for breaking

it will be used for percolation ponds.

one of their new ordinances like parking on the street in front of your own house or trimming

Letter to the Editor

the trees in your backyard. Individual property rights and due process are not part of their

Re: Response to "From What"

grand design. If you are concerned (and you should be) and want to know what you can

do...read on.

A letter to the Editor in the July 4 Newscaster questioning the "From What" signs

Chapter 70 of the Florida Statues provides remedies to property owners if their

seems to me to have been written by one with a dreamy, but "eyes shut" view of this area's

government imposes regulations restricting the use or diminishing the value of their land.

now-certain future.

This protection of a landowner's private property rights was determined by the Florida Legis-

While the proposed IWI (Isaac Walton Investors) development is sure to result in

lature to be of important state interest. This statue is commonly referred to as the Bert J. Harris

increased population/traffic and will force improvements in our water system and infra-

Jr. Private Property Rights Protection Act. This law provides a landowner with either relief

structure, it's hard for me to visualize any effect on a yet not-planned sewage plant or on

from government regulation or payment of compensation if a state law, rule, regulation, ordi-

our recurring droughts. But, that's largely beside the point. More important is the much

nance, or state agency limits, restricts, or unfairly affects the landowner's use of his or her

larger impact on our community of the coming Florida Progress Energy power plant, with it's

private property, or causes the property to be devalued. All governmental actions and regu-

up to 7,000 temporary construction workers followed by the 2,000 permanent staff. It's hard

lations are subject to this law. This law creates a legal remedy and relief for the landowner in

for me to visualize all the changes that will be forced on Yankeetown and Inglis.

circuit court for regulations enacted and or governmental actions taken which impose a per-

In my book, the IWI project pales in comparison in scope, size and complexity with

manent and disproportionate share of the burden imposed on their property imposed for the

the power plant deal, yet strangely, the "dreamer" plus Yankeetown's Planners and the

public good that limits or restricts property value or use.

Town Council seem content to ignore it. Just how does one account for this massive

DISCLAIMER: The personal opinions expressed in this article are those of the author. The

myopia? Glen Spetz, Yankeetown

information provided in this article is based on research by the author on the subject matter and

email your news to: newscast@atlantic.net

is intended as a broad overview of many legal areas and not intended as legal advice. If such

advice or service is needed, a licensed attorney should be consulted.

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