What Could Possibly Go Wrong with This Plan?? Marlette Manipulation 33

 

Andy Marlette's cartoon in this morning's PNJ attempts to draw parallels between Republican leadership in Florida and locally with the acceptance of anarchy and lawlessness in Blue cities like Seattle and Portland.  To do this, he pictures the Pensacola I-110 under the bridge homeless encampment and tent city.  Of course, his equivocation on this misses the mark like most of his cartoons do consistently.  Cities like Seattle that allowed entire chunks of downtown areas to be occupied by lawless criminals had nothing at all to do with homeless individuals desperately clinging to existence in Pensacola Florida.  Out west, it was all about ideology and certain quasi-political groups like Antifa flexing their muscle, showing what they could and would do in cities run by like-minded politicians in places like Portland and Seattle.

The homeless encampment in Pensacola under the I-110 bridge, by contrast, is not a political statement being orchestrated by partisan activists---and that's the huge difference between what is happening here and what happens in Seattle and Portland.

Insidiously--Andy conflates the two issues even as he knows they are different.

The issue under the bridge in Pensacola is about folks who are truly down on their luck and are homeless and desperate.  Sure--there is dysfunctional behavior and some criminal activity taking place in the encampment.  Yes, much of it has not been discussed publicly for political expediency as the city desperately tries to make the problem disappear by dispersing it out to the county---which is a disastrous plan nobody supports and for which nobody has even bothered to properly plan for.

But the Seattle "CHAZ" debacle is nothing like what's happening in Pensacola, and Andy knows it.

Nope-- this issue is about the city attempting to move a stubborn eyesore problem out of their viewshed.  And meanwhile--noone has reached out to the county to obtain permits or permission.  The city hasn't attempted to explain this plan to county residents in Bellview who ABSOLUTELY do not want this homeless camp in their neighborhood.

They are just planning on doing it--which I will not support and which I will actively oppose.

So the picture, above, is much more apropos than what Andy presented.  He's making a political attack out of the desperation of the homeless whereas my rendition, above, is a humorous jab at the folks who are naive and believe they can just move this camp next to an existing neighborhood and such a move will not have devastating consequences on the area surrounding such an encampment.

Remember--they are not telling the truth about the dysfunctional activities going on right now around the current site under the I-110.  They don't want you to know about the problems assiciated with this tent city.  This way, they can pat you on the head, tell you everything is alright, and mollify you into accepting this campsite in your neighborhood.  See the way this works?

Unfortunately I see right through them and their plan.  Others do, too.

Project Narrative Leads to Resident Concerns.....

A potential development at the NW Corner of Blue Angel Pkwy and Hwy 98 in District 1 is creating a lot of consternation among nearby residents who oppose this....

A recent pre-application narrative describing a proposed shopping center at the NW corner of the Intersection of Hwy 98 and Blue Angel Pkwy in District 1 ( along with supporting documents )has led to some significant concern among many nearby residents.

My office has begun to see a steady influx of phone calls and emails about this potential development.

I've been asked to attend an upcoming Home Owner's Association (HOA) meeting for a nearby neighborhood--which I have agreed to do.

The main issues of concern center around the potential piping of sewage from this proposed development north east to an existing ECUA sewage lift station that sits within the Southbay neighborhood.  The residents I have spoken with are vehemently opposed to having any additional sewage routed to this lift station--which many have complained eminates a foul odor already----and they don't want that increased.  Of course, that decision about where sewage would go rests solely with ECUA, not the county.

The other concerns are the two chief concerns I hear about on every potential development:  Traffic and Stormwater issues.

This narrative, pictured above, has created some significant concern among nearby residents

The narrative presented with the pre-application, above, does nothing to assuage the concerns of nearby residents on either front--as it clearly indicates the intention of cutting and filling the parcel and raising elevations to overcome the topographical issues on the parcel.  This sort of language always sparks concerns among neighbors--as many county stormwater issues have been created when one development is permitted and builds "up" (to a higher elevation than nearby parcels) to mitigate stormwater impacts.  Often, even with the best engineered stormwater mitigation "plans" baked into the developments---the development itself leads to more stormwater dumping onto adjacent properties.  It happens and has happened.  So naturally--this gets neighbors' attention.  And mine.

The other issue is traffic.  This particular area has seen a tremendous impact from the traffic snafu created by a newly permitted "ER" facility that has subsequently utilized a portion of Hwy 98 as their defacto "helipad" for transfer of patients to other facilities.  And when Hwy 98 is shut down for a