June 9,
2014
Lee County
Board of County Commissioners
2120 SW
Main Street
Fort
Myers, FL 33901
County
Commissioners:
The
mission of Lee Public Voice (LPV) is to “advocate and educate both elected
officials and the public in Lee County on issues that affect our sensitive
natural resources, exceptional quality of life and a growing, diversified
economy.” Consistent with that mission is our concern that the county maintains
its commitment to community, transparency, and accountability. The purpose of this
letter is to request that the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) 1) hear and
adopt the County's draft Sustainability Plan and 2) reaffirm its commitment to
sustainability in Lee County.
LPV was
dismayed to learn of the Community Sustainability Advisory Committee’s (CSAC)
recent memo (attached) to the BoCC
asking that its purpose, goals, and objectives be reaffirmed. The memo
indicated that a decision had been made to not move the Sustainability Plan
forward for adoption.* This decision was made absent any public input or actionable transparent votes by the elected
BOCC. This has fundamentally
altered the BoCC commitment to sustainability made in the unanimous adoption of
the CompleteLEE Sustainability Assessment in March 2012 and in the formally
adopted purpose and goals of the CSAC committee.
Over the
last 15 years Lee County has demonstrated a long-standing commitment to smart
growth and sustainability. In 2001 the BoCC authorized the creation of the
Smart Growth Committee, following a year-long study by a smart growth task
force. Over the years, this committee has played an instrumental role in
assuring the environmental, social, and economic vitality of the county and
guiding balanced growth consistent with citizen’s desires. The Smart Growth Committee initiated the
award-winning Complete Streets policy adopted by the BoCC in November 2009.
In 2010,
the Smart Growth Committee transitioned into the CSAC as a way to stay current
with national planning and growth trends. This obvious next step in integrating
smart economic and environmental planning allowed the development of a
committee that could offer diverse perspectives and guide the development of a
Sustainability Plan. Since then the CSAC
has played an important role in Complete Streets policy implementation.
Similarly, it has guided the implementation of the Sustainability Assessment
and the development of the Sustainability Plan.
The
development of the Sustainability Plan followed a model process with extensive
public input over a three-year period. Throughout the process, the public (and
the BoCC) demonstrated significant support for sustainability. Over 2,000 residents were engaged through
surveys, interviews, and public forums. This level of support has been
consistent with other planning processes, including the New Horizon 2035
Evaluation Appraisal Report. Both
processes clearly elicited strong agreement with the fundamentals of
sustainability. These citizen voices included business, nonprofit, and public
sectors leaders from such organizations as Lee Memorial Health Systems, the SW
Florida Community Foundation, and Edison National Bank.** They have
consistently asked that the county balance economic, environmental, and social
needs, emphasizing that this approach is essential for future success.
The
Sustainability Plan was not just a top-down government plan for unincorporated
Lee County; it was a community-wide vision of numerous community partners. It
was intended to guide many organizations and agencies in the county towards a
sustainable future. By unilaterally pulling the plug on this plan, it will
adversely affect the processes of numerous other community partners and
jeopardize their ability to compete for regional or national grants. Unfortunately, the shift away from public support
for sustainability will demonstrate that the county is not a reliable
collaborative partner committed to promoting livable and sustainable
communities.
There is a
lot at stake in this decision, not the least of which is the loss of grant
opportunities based on Lee County’s previous progress. For example, the highly
competitive federal TIGER grant ($10 million) was awarded to Lee County because
of its demonstrated commitment to complete streets and sustainability. If this
commitment evaporates, the chances of securing grants of this nature in the
future go with it.
Corporate
America, however, is not so misguided about the future direction and the
expectations of stakeholders with respect to sustainability. One of the
criteria major corporations use in screening relocation spots is whether the
community is committed to sustainability consistent with their own corporate
values. This was an asset noted by our celebrated attraction of Hertz in their
relocation decision. Smart corporations
expect communities to embrace livability and sustainability, evolving as
reliable long-term partners in economic development while offering their
employees a quality of life crucial to attracting and retaining talented
professionals. Those same corporations continually hone their own operations
because sustainability is good for the bottom line and they expect of
government partners the same prudent perspective about making communities more
sustainable.
LPV views
any future BoCC action on this matter from the perspective of this one critical
question: Is the BoCC willing to support the clear public sentiment that
sustainability is important to Lee County?
The affirmative answer to this question should take the form of support
for sustainability, the continued efforts of CSAC, and moving the
Sustainability Plan forward to adoption and implementation.
As a
result, LPV requests that the BoCC take the following action: 1) hear and adopt
the Sustainability Plan in a timely fashion (such as by the end of this year) and
2) reaffirm its commitment to sustainability in Lee County by communicating to
the CSAC that there is board support for the previously adopted 2014 Goals and
Objectives.
In the
draft Sustainability Plan, this summary is offered: “Sustainability is about
quality of life -- maintaining and enhancing resources that attract and compel
people to stay here long-term.” LPV can’t imagine this current county
commission wants to turn their back on this prudent and publicly supported
goal.
Sincerely,
Don Eslick
Acting Chair
Lee Public
Voice
Lee Public Voice is a network of
organizations and associations that have come together with the purpose of
working for more inclusive County governance and meaningful public engagement,
consistent with the county's motto of "community, transparency, and
accountability." Our mission is to advocate and educate both elected
officials and the public in Lee County on issues that affect our sensitive
natural resources, exceptional quality of life and a growing, diversified
economy.
By way of background, Lee County government developed an award-winning Sustainability Plan in 2012-14, led by the County's Sustainability Office (Tessa LeSage, Director), with assistance from the County Community Sustainability Advisory Committee (CSAC). A Complete Streets approach was an integral part of the Plan and the CSAC played a key role in the development and oversight of the County's 2009 Complete Streets policy and its implementation plan. In 2014, the County Commission shelved the plan and subsequently disbanded the CSAC and the Sustainability Office.
