Amendment 4: Power to the people, as founders intended

Amendment 4: Power to the people, as founders intended

By Winston C. Perry Guest Columnist

I would like to present to every concerned and responsible Florida voter the many reasons that voting yes for Amendment 4 on Nov. 2 is the smart, politically correct thing to do for the future good of Florida.

This Florida constitutional amendment would establish that before a local government may amend or adopt a new comprehensive land-use plan, it would be subject to a vote by the elected officials of the local government. At the end of the state-mandated review and public-hearing process, citizens would vote on the change. Comprehensive land-use plans are designed to be long-range visions of what citizens want their community to look like.

The beauty of Amendment 4 is that it is a simple solution to rampant development throughout Florida. This overdevelopment has occurred because our elected officials have failed to follow the existing comprehensive land-use plans approved by the Florida Department of Community Affairs and voted into law by the citizens.

It is disappointing that so much misinformation is being broadcast about this well-intentioned amendment by the Florida Chamber of Commerce and developer- and contractor-dominated groups throughout the state. Look at the empty buildings and storefronts and deserted homes, and it's clear we need a change.

In spite of what developers will tell you, any proposed residential development does not pay for itself with increased taxes for a municipality or county. A number of cost-of-services studies done throughout the state demonstrate that the cost per tax dollar for any residential development greatly exceeds the new tax dollars brought in. This means that for every tax dollar a new residential neighborhood generates, it costs us, the existing homeowners and taxpayers, between $1.39 and $2.45 to provide the municipal services required for the new neighborhood.

These municipal services include roads, schools, utilities, safety services, libraries and parks. The difference between the new taxes generated and the resulting cost of services is paid for by you — the homeowners and taxpayers in the surrounding areas. So where are the savings and tax benefits for the taxpayers?

Developers will also tell you that Amendment 4 will require thousands of expensive elections every year to decide these many land-use issues. However, a study by the Florida DCA shows that between 2004 and 2008, there was an annual average of 4.2 comprehensive land-use-plan changes per city and/or county per year in Florida.

Amendment 4 does not require any special elections; neither does it cover rezonings, variances, permits or annexations. It would require voters to approve only changes to their community's land-use plans. For example, voters would be asked to decide if the future use of a certain parcel of land should be changed from farming to residential, or residential to commercial. Pretty basic stuff.

The Florida DCA has also stated that the residential density allowed by the existing comprehensive land-use plans will provide enough homes to accommodate more than 100 million people, while the state has more than 18 million residents at this time.

Also 1.3 billion square feet of office and commercial space has already been approved for development, which is close to the total square footage of 13,000 new Walmart stores.

Amendment 4 puts the decision into the hands of the voters, as it should be. If it takes a few more months to let the voters sort it out and decide how and where they want to see their community grow, that is a good thing.

As concerned voters, we try to elect the right people to office, and to hold them accountable, but if sometimes we don't like their decisions, we have to wait for up to four years to vote them out of office.

That is the beauty and benefit of voting yes for Amendment 4. It gives the voters veto power over wrong or misguided decisions by our elected officials. That is real power to the people, which is what the early founders of our democracy intended.

Winston C. Perry of Homosassa is on the Amendment 4 State Coordinating Committee

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/opinion/os-ed-winston-perry-061810-20100617,0,4003314.story