Hi, kids!

It’s time once again to turn a jaundiced eye toward the news and newsmakers of the day who, in my cynical opinion, either contributed to our quality of life or detracted from it in some significant way…

As we exit 2024 and look forward to the possibilities of the new year, everyone is talking about overdevelopment and its impacts on our quality of life. Let’s get into it:

‘No Vacancy’ – A Time for Commonsense Solutions    

“Even though we’ve added thousands of new homes and apartments in recent years, demand will continue to increase in the coming years which means more supply will be needed,” said Carl Lentz IV, managing partner of SVN Alliance Commercial Real Estate Advisors in Ormond Beach.

The ongoing surge in new construction comes amid concerns by some residents that overdevelopment is one of the causes for the increase in neighborhood flooding after major storms, such as Hurricane Milton in early October.

Volusia County Council Chair Jeff Brower has called for a temporary moratorium on new residential development until a solution can be found to address the issue of flooding.

“It could be for 12, 24 or 36 months,” he told The News-Journal recently, adding that the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2002 that such moratoriums are constitutional. “Thirty-six months is how long Lake Tahoe (Nevada) had it for. I don’t think ours would have to be that long. A moratorium would create the incentive for the county and cities together to formulate a comprehensive stormwater plan. We can’t do it independently anymore. We all have to work together.”

Lentz and local builders maintain that even if the council agrees to impose the moratorium, which is not a certainty, it should not affect projects that have already been approved.

That’s not how Brower sees it. “It should stop everything until we know what to do with the stormwater runoff. This is a very serious problem.”

“The only exceptions, in my view, would be for individual single-family homes on private property and commercial buildings. I don’t see them as the problem,” he said.”

–Business Editor Clayton Park, writing in The Daytona Beach News-Journal, “Coming Very Soon, Builders Expect 2025 to be Busy,” Sunday, December 29, 2024

In 2021, when the “M” word was first being bandied about by anxious residents, I wrote down my thoughts explaining the obvious: 

When a hotel reaches maximum occupancy, management hangs a temporary “No Vacancy” sign to alert potential lodgers that the property has no available space.

That’s because the alternative – packing guests like cordwood into every nook and cranny, placing bedding in hallways and ballrooms, overburdening recreational amenities, gridlocking parking lots, and overcrowding limited facilities – is unsafe, unsanitary, and unsustainable.

Letting potential customers know there is no room at the inn is a short-term measure that protects from the ravages of excess and overuse, frees staff to meet current needs, ensures existing guests have a quality experience, and allows management time to plan – and improve infrastructure to accommodate more customers within set parameters – ensuring that expansion does not infringe on neighbors, current residents, or detract from the unique character of the place that made it attractive to so many.  

Unfortunately, our ‘powers that be’ here on Florida’s “Fun Coast” have failed to grasp (or manage) the myriad issues that occur when one attempts to shove ten pounds of shit into a five-pound sack – my crude metaphor for the malignant growth that has metastasized along the spine of Volusia County from Farmton to the Flagler County line.

With growth and resource management now the principal concern of residents across the region, why do those we have elected and appointed to represent our interests continue to ignore the real experiences and fears of their constituents?

Why do they put the nonsensical argument proffered by real estate developers and brokers that we have an obligation to provide housing stock for potential new residents in a self-fulfilling “build it and they will come” strategy ahead of the needs of existing residents who are crying out for help with the resultant flooding and infrastructure impacts?

In my jaded view, the short answer is money – and Exhibit A is the enormous campaign contributions showered on these malleable finger-puppets each election cycle – artificially large infusions of cash to a hand-select candidate’s war chest that result in a massive return on investment for those with a chip in the game…     

On January 14, the Volusia County Council will have another opportunity to do the right thing and begin the process of implementing a temporary moratorium on new development until comprehensive growth management, stormwater, and smart building regulations can be put into place. 

I’m not talking about pouring good money after bad into more “studies,” staff paralysis by analysis, spiffs to preferred contractors, or spending limited stormwater improvement funds on neglected repair and replacement of already outpaced infrastructure.   

If history repeats (and it always does here in the biggest whorehouse in the world) absolutely nothing of substance will be accomplished now, or in the foreseeable future – because the deck on the dais of power has been stacked – and the claustrophobic Grand Plan for your family’s future and mine has already been set behind closed doors.

At the risk of sounding defeatist, there’s not a damned thing anyone can do about it. 

Not now.  The fix is in – and our grandchildren will pay the price…

That said, I believe it is our civic duty to ensure that none of the self-serving marionettes currently sitting on the Volusia County Council are ever elected to another position of public trust.  

In my view, if they won’t listen to our concerns, or take definitive action to mitigate the identified threats posed by overdevelopment (and the cronyism that perpetuates it), then we have a moral obligation to replace them with those who will at the ballot box.

That starts by cultivating (and supporting) grassroots candidates and collectively guarantee that the foul political careers of those who sold us out to the highest bidder end on the fetid ash heap of history at our earliest opportunity.

Bunnell City Commission

“One person can make a difference and everyone should try,” is sound advice often attributed to John F. Kennedy – and adage that equally applies to governing councils and commissions responsible for preserving their constituent’s quality of life… 

The forests and swamps where I enjoyed nature in my youth have all but been paved over – lost to “theme” communities, “Planned-Unit Developments,” and grotesque “Developments of Regional Impact” – once pristine places where speculative developers ground pine scrub and hardwood forests into a black muck, then drained and filled wetlands in an obscene “hurt here, help there” mitigation strategy – leaving the wild places I once hunted, camped, and fished now blanketed with zero-lot-line wood frame cracker boxes from the “low $300’s.”

We, The Little People – hapless rubes who were led to believe the “system” served our interests – watched helplessly as glib real estate attorneys, developers, compromised legislators, powerful insiders, and marketing shills shaped regional growth management strategies and their projects transitioned from gated communities to “Cities within a City.”

My God.

Planning and development in Volusia and Flagler Counties are no longer an exercise in shaping growth – the art and science of planning neighborhoods, revitalizing downtowns, enhancing civic assets, ensuring adequate transportation and utilities infrastructure, making room for cultural and creative space, and preserving our historic places.

Now, the concept of “growth and resource management” has devolved into how quickly we can allow developers to cram more, more, more into increasingly confined spaces – then watch in disgust as our elected “representatives” shrug cluelessly when confronted with massive development-induced flooding…

In an incredibly unusual occurrence for a Florida municipality, last month, the Bunnell City Commission proved that it can be done and held firm to their community’s Land Development Code and upheld the November 2024 decision of the Planning, Zoning, and Appeals Board to deny an application for the developer of the perversely named “Reserve at Haw Creek” that would have reduced the amount of open space in the massive PUD from 60% to 50%. 

If built according to plan, the PUD will see some 6,000 to 8,000 new homes which will increase the population of the City of Bunnell exponentially…   

According to a recent article by FlaglerLive! we learned:

“Northeast Florida Developers has submitted plans to build the 6,000-to-8,000-home development (up from 5,000 to 6,000 just a few months ago) on 2,800 acres west and south of the urban center of Bunnell. Chad Grimm, who represents the company, argued to the city’s planning board last November that the exception, or variance, was necessary to allow for more single-family homes, which is more profitable. Otherwise, the company would have to make up in height what it lost in spread – meaning that it would have to build more apartments.

The planning board unanimously rejected the request, citing city rules. To win such exceptions, developers have to prove that they would face “hardship” otherwise – itself an objective set of criteria. The developer did not do so in this case. Northeast Florida Developers appealed the decision to the city commission. Monday’s vote upheld the planning board’s decision, denying the appeal.”

Kudos to the majority of the Bunnell City Commission for holding firm to existing land development codes, refusing to bend to the threats and profit motives of those who will forever destroy the culture of their community, and prove the adage that one entity can make a positive difference.    

In my view, a quote by Bunnell Commissioner John Rogers should be engraved in stone and distributed to all councils and commissions in the region:

“This just isn’t right for our city. Our responsibility is to ensure this development aligns with the community needs, the infrastructure, the capacity, environmental, sustainability.”

Amen.

Volusia Politics – A Change in Leadership

“Simply put, the Democrats have become the party of the institutions. Meanwhile, the Republicans now exist in a realm somewhere between suspicion of, and outright hostility to, the institutions. I believe this simple litmus test is our most salient political divide.”

–Douglas Ollivant, “Rappahannock Musings,” December 27, 2024

I am neither a Republican nor a Democrat.

I’m an infernal realist. 

Someone who recognizes what is politically possible in a given situation – grasps the ugly backstory others pretend doesn’t exist – and see things as they truly are, not the way some self-serving bureaucracy wants us to perceive them.

Power, money, and influence don’t impress me.  They never have – and I still cling to the naïve Myth of Fairness:

The old-fashioned notion that good citizens who contribute to our society, struggle to make a living in this artificial economy, pay increasingly onerous taxes, work hard to feed their families, and follow the rules form the backbone of our community – and they deserve better from those bait-and-switch posers we elected to represent our interests.

When it comes to politics, I am a true No Party Affiliate – right of center with moderate, even apolitical, views on most issues – and I rarely involve myself in the terrible divisiveness of the national battle for partisan dominance.

Make no mistake, there is a distinct reason me and 104,942 of my neighbors here in Volusia County are now NPA.  That’s 26.51% of all registered voters here on the “Fun Coast” and just 4,347 shy of the current Democratic roll…

Like my father and grandfather before me, I was a lifelong Republican, until it became apparent during the decadeslong war on the traditional values once shared by all Americans, the rise of identity politics, the loss of reason and compassion, the deification of politicians, and the resultant irreconcilable differences that have brought us to a place of lockstep partisanship.

That’s when I realized that neither party represents my views as a moderate conservative.

In local non-partisan elections, candidates fib and call themselves “Republicans” to gain a statistical advantage.  Unfortunately, we are invariably left with sitting officials who have no understanding of the classic concepts of conservatism or liberalism.  “Republicans” who support the exponential growth and strength of the bureaucracy with perpetual tax increases – while “Democrats” remain absurdly out of touch with the values and priorities of struggling residents.

Last month, the autocratic reign of former Volusia Republican Committee Chair Paul Deering mercifully ended when members had enough of his tyrannical horseshit and elected Maryann Pistilli, a bright and successful Republican operative who led President-elect Donald Trump’s Florida campaign, to steward the influential, if often shambolic, Volusia County Republican Party going forward.

Smart move.

The change was inevitable after Deering’s controversial manipulation of the “Official Republican Voter Guide” during the recent election, along with emerging details of a shocking federal lawsuit alleging gross racial discrimination and internecine bullying by Deering and his toadies… 

Across the sandy aisle, following their national thrashing in November, Volusia County Democrats ignored the hard lessons of 2024 and elected the hypereducated South Florida transplant and Margaritaville resident Nick Sakhnovsky as their new Chair last month. 

Some might suggest that Mr. Sakhnovsky represents everything that has disenfranchised traditionally Democratic voters – the wealthy eggheaded liberal living comfortably in a gated community spewing lofty rhetoric that no longer resonates with the working class.

Because he does… 

In a recent interview, Democratic utility player Rham Emanuel – who many party leaders are favoring for chair of the Democratic National Committee said, (Democrats) “…use language to feel good about ourselves, not to communicate. We all think we’re applying to be adjunct professors at a small liberal arts college. We don’t listen to people. We tell them how to eat their peas.”   

I think Chairman Sakhnovsky’s biggest impediment to his stated goal of luring NPAs to his side of the fence is the fact: Democrats have proven time-and-again that they hate independent thought.

In my view, Sakhnovsky – the former librarian and educator with a law degree, who was recently described by The Daytona Beach News-Journal as “…an Ivy League graduate (Dartmouth at age 19) with three graduate degrees” – is probably a nice guy, but his resume (and thought process) reads like the ultimate academic naval-gazing coastal elite that turned so many off in the last election…      

When asked by the News-Journal what differences he has observed between politics in South Florida and Volusia, his response spoke volumes…

“It used to be sometimes in Broward County that you’d see people switching parties in order to get elected, let’s say, going from Republican to Democrat… It is interesting to see, at least in the last five years, that I went from an environment that was essentially dominated by Democrats to one that was dominated by Republicans, so that required some attitude adjustment.

Being from Margaritaville, where most people are from outside of Volusia, the way we adjusted initially when I would talk with friends, who all are either relatively new to Florida or Volusia, certainly, was, ‘Wow, there’s a lot of nonpartisan races up here.’ And it’s hard to figure out who to vote for. So we actually started, two and a half years ago, a group of us there, started a political committee, it’s called VOTE!

Where its real purpose was to do voter education and advocate for better leadership, but to do it on a nonpartisan basis. Because I felt that was… I’m of the belief that no matter who is my representative at whatever level there is, I’m still their constituent…

That’s why I thought it was actually useful that the County Council (School Board and municipal offices are) nonpartisan… That’s a big change between Volusia and Broward, because in Broward, we call it a County Commission, but that is on a partisan basis in Broward. Not up here… Most voters want a shorthand, if you will, and a political party label is essentially a shorthand for a relatively amorphous, in many ways, set of values or policies. When it comes down to actual governing, sometimes the reality isn’t the same as what the amorphous sense of that reality is.”

What remains of the Democratic Party in Volusia County and beyond is in its death throes – and they have no one to blame but themselves.  In my view, if Mr. Sakhnovsky wants to make a true difference in local politics, he should stick with his grassroots committee VOTE! 

By organizing and leveraging the sizeable voting bloc that new subdivisions like Margaritaville, Mosaic, and others represent in nonpartisan local races, he could truly have a positive impact on the lives and livelihoods of his neighbors.     

The potential influence of thousands of new residents on local politics – and who will emerge to control the juggernaut (I don’t think it will be traditional party bosses or Volusia’s stagnant insiders) – is something observers have waited for. 

I don’t know how things are within the gated confines of his artificial beach community, but Mr. Sakhnovsky should understand the reality the rest of us have lived with for decades:

Here on Florida’s “Fun Coast,” pay-to-play politics are a means to a very lucrative end for those influential few with a chip in the game.      

In my jaded view, Volusia County is essentially an oligarchy – ruled by uber-wealthy insiders who control everything but the ebb and flow of the Atlantic tide – where powerbrokers select malleable candidates then fund their campaigns with massive personal and corporate contributions, and political labels are certainly not an indicator of “values and policies.”   

In Volusia County, abject greed remains the overriding ethos of those who control our destiny…   

As a result, many existing residents have lost confidence in what passes for “governance” – and our fractured relationship with those who hold themselves out for high office, then sell us out to the highest bidder – has resulted in the escalating “trust issue” no one wants to acknowledge in the Ivory Tower of Power.    

Instead, they continue to deflect blame – gaslighting constituents with strategic procrastination, denial, and contradiction – delegitimizing anyone who agrees with grassroots concerns while convincing themselves of their own infallibility. 

Sound familiar?

Here in Volusia County, “We, The Little People” – regardless of individual party affiliation – rightfully share a growing distrust of those elected and appointed officials who refuse to listen to our concerns, ignore the obvious, and kick the can down the dusty political trail on critical issues of universal concern.

Increasingly, angry residents understand that development-induced flooding, transportation infrastructure, overtaxed public utilities, water quality and quantity, and strapped essential services affect everyone equally, regardless of political persuasion.    

In my view, whoever harnesses this growing sentiment will become a true force for change in Volusia County and beyond – one that transcends party politics – a dynamism that is needed now, more than ever, on this salty piece of land we call home.     

(By the way, if you’re not reading Doug Ollivant’s excellent blog Rappahannock Musings, a unique and well-formed take on politics, the military, and international affairs by one of our nation’s foremost experts on national security issues, you can find it here: https://douglasollivant.substack.com/ )  

Quote of the Week  

“As a lifelong resident of DeLand, having called this beautiful town home since February 1970, it pains me deeply to witness the rapid and often reckless development reshaping our city and the surrounding unincorporated areas of West Volusia. While we understand the necessity of growth, the manner in which it is being pursued threatens to destroy the rural charm and close-knit community that make DeLand so special.

I am particularly disheartened by the proliferation of developments featuring 35-foot-wide lots, cramming as many homes as possible into small spaces. Where are the backyards where children can play, families can gather for quiet barbecues, and neighbors can connect? These overcrowded designs sacrifice the very qualities that make neighborhoods livable and enjoyable.

Equally troubling is the County Council’s apparent disregard for the voices of its constituents. Time and again, we’ve made our concerns clear: enough is enough. While it may be difficult to impose a complete moratorium on building, it is entirely within the council’s power to stop rezoning that enables these densely packed developments.”

–Tom Sutherland, DeLand, as excerpted from his editorial, “Protect what make DeLand unique,” The West Volusia Beacon, Tuesday, December 17, 2024   

In his well thought essay, Mr. Sutherland hit on two interconnected issues facing Volusia County residents on both sides of what remains of the Palmetto Curtain – rampant overdevelopment and the obstinate refusal of our elected “representatives” on the Volusia County Council to listen to their frightened constituents.

As Mr. Sutherland noted, “The devastating flooding caused by hurricanes Helene and Milton brought another issue into sharp focus. Poor drainage systems and a lack of thoughtful environmental planning exacerbated the destruction, displacing families and overwhelming infrastructure.

These disasters are stark reminders that our current path is unsustainable, and yet the County Council continues to “kick the can down the road.” Council meetings often end with delays and excuses rather than meaningful action to address these pressing concerns.”

In my view, Mr. Sutherland has voiced the frustrations of thousands of anxious Volusia County residents – especially those whose homes are repeatedly inundated with floodwaters now that “100-year Storms” have turned into biannual occurrences – taxpayers who are exasperated by political procrastination and are demanding to be heard on the most pressing issue of our time.

In November 2024, District 5 Councilman David “No Show” Santiago successfully pushed the discussion of a temporary building moratorium as proposed by Chairman Jeff Brower by disingenuously claiming, after years in local and state political office, that he still needed more information on regional flooding before deciding whether to assist threatened homeowners.  

Bullshit.

Santiago punctuated (and telegraphed) his thinly veiled motives with more of his timewasting bashing of Brower – doing anything and everything possible to put time and distance between public outcry and the next strategic postponement.

On Christmas Eve, Patricia Gertenbach of Ormond-by-the-Sea, issued a heartfelt entreaty to the Volusia County Council in an editorial published in the Ormond Beach Observer, which read, in part:

“A moratorium is drastic but not as drastic as losing your home, and there are many solutions to the flooding issues in between a moratorium and doing nothing: revitalize older areas with existing infrastructure; buy vacant land for stormwater storage “parks;” managed retreat; and no more building in vulnerable areas, to name a few. I implore the County Council to do what is in the best interest of their constituents.”

Me too… 

On Tuesday, January 14, beginning at 4:00pm, in the council chamber at the Thomas C. Kelly Administration Building, 123 West Indiana Avenue, DeLand, the Volusia County Council will discuss a temporary moratorium on development until flood mitigation and sustainable growth management regulations can be formulated.

Trust me.  I find it just as odd and conflicting as you that the Volusia County Council would select a date and time conflicting with a previously scheduled School Board meeting, but this is one you should not miss.   

Sadly, it appears Volusia’s stodgy “Old Guard” would rather your home flood than admit Jeff Brower is right – about anything – or tighten the reins on the greed-crazed sprawl that has enriched a few powerful insiders at the expense of many… 

I fear it will be little more than politics on parade – a good old-fashioned Volusia County kabuki – where the same clueless assholes who got us into this intractable mess will tell us how they plan to get us out of it – with all the gaslighting and scary stories you’ve come to expect from those shameless shills who so willingly traded their integrity, independence, and our quality of life for a pat on the head and a campaign contribution…

Time will tell.

Kudos to Tom Sutherland, Patricia Gertenbach, and so many others who are demanding action on this critical issue.

And Another Thing!

2025 – The Year of the Snake… 

“According to the Chinese zodiac, the Jade Emperor invited all the animals to a banquet in heaven, and the order of their arrival would determine their rank in the zodiac. The Snake was clever and cunning, and hid in the hoof of the Horse, who was running fast. When they reached the gate of heaven, the Snake jumped out and startled the Horse, making it fall behind. Thus, the Snake became the sixth animal, while the Horse became the seventh.”

–The Chinese Zodiac

Sounds familiar…    

When it comes to what passes for Volusia County politics and governance poisonous, ambitious, and enigmatic snakes abound. 

That’s one reason I rarely get my hopes up.

While the faces on the dais occasional change, the ‘system’ remains, and – for good or ill – the limitations of the county charter dovetail precisely with the formal restrictions of the council/manager form of government to make it impossible for one councilmember to affect even a modicum of change.

Even when those of us who pay the bills demand it… 

Since it became unfashionable to listen to the concerns of taxpayers, the county bureaucracy largely controls the focus of our elected officials – senior “staff” who invariably limit options by bringing narrowly defined “recommendations” that leave few alternatives.

When forced into a corner on critical issues, Volusia County politicians bolster their haughty sense of infallibility with the support of useful idiots, the giddy “Chamber of Commerce” set, and others beholden to the “system” – each of whom self-servingly do their damndest to add legitimacy to the deception and manipulation.

In turn, a few are thrown the occasional crumb – usually something everyone knows doesn’t have a snowballs chance in hell of coming to fruition, yet they continue to grovel for scraps – while influential insiders with a chip in the game gorge greedily…

Snakes, indeed.     

As a result, much of the published agenda is a foregone conclusion, nothing of substance happens, and the stagnant status quo is protected at all costs, with anything of importance decided in off the agenda votes without public input, or opposition. 

That’s not going to change.

But recently, things on the street have felt different to me.

For instance, in last year’s election, Chairman Brower once again proved that votes beat money, and despite the machinations of powerful forces working behind the scenes to hamstring his run for reelection, concerned voters saw Brower’s well-funded opposition for what it was.

Increasingly, Volusia County residents are beginning to call out the cheap-jack tactics of compliant waterboys like District 3 Councilman Danny “Gaslight” Robins, the obstructionism of David “No Show” Santiago, and the backhanded sabotage of Chairman Brower’s initiatives by At-Large Councilman Jake “The Snake” Johansson – whose recently announced run for state office is getting a frosty reception from waterlogged voters… 

It is apparent that strapped residents are beginning to demand something beyond the exponential expansion of that horribly bloated bureaucracy, exorbitant raises for senior administrators, and ‘more of the same’ for their tax dollars.  

That’s all for me.  Happy New Year, y’all!