Alachua plans conservation tax vote while Polk waits
Alachua County officials are planning to ask voters this year to extend a sales tax to provide money for conservation land purchases and park improvements, the Gainesville Sun reports. The local...
View ArticleAlachua, Polk stands on rural toll roads show contrasts
I read today the Alachua County Commission has taken a stand opposing a proposal to build a new toll road through rural and environmentally sensitive lands in the western part of the county, which is...
View ArticleNature has worth, but value draws debate
One of the underpinnings of decades-long efforts to protect key sections of Florida’s remaining natural landscape from being developed is that nature has value. How much value we can attribute to...
View ArticleThink more deeply about lakes this month; fertilize less
In case you missed it, we’re in the middle of Lakes Appreciation Month in Polk County. This is a national observance promoted locally by the Lakes Education/Action Drive, a local grassroots...
View ArticleSwiftmud board to consider tax cut
The Southwest Florida Water Management District Governing Board will set the proposed tax rate when it meets at its regular monthly meeting Tuesday at the Tampa Service Office on U.S. 301. The proposed...
View ArticleZoning in Polk has long been affected by politics
I read recently about the centennial of land-use zoning to New York City. The 1916 law, according to the article in the New York Times, brought, among other things, restrictions on building heights...
View ArticleSolar Amendment on Aug. 30 ballot draws opposition
If all you’ve heard is praise and support for a proposed constitutional amendment on the Aug. 30 ballot that would exempt commercial solar facilities from property taxes, you may not have seen this...
View ArticleHabitat matters; so does Amendment 1
Habitat matters. Habitat matters. Habitat matters. This is a fact bears repeating often in any discussion of the future of native wildlife species in Florida or anywhere else. This lesson is reinforced...
View ArticleDEP enforcement lagging, group claims
Enforcement by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection has declined significantly since Gov. Rick Scott took office, according to a report released this week by Public Employees for...
View ArticleLet homeowners look at development regs, too
In 2000 the County Commission belatedly approved development regulations to implement its belatedly approved 1996 growth plan to comply with a 1985 state growth law. The ink was barely dry on the...
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