'Hometown Democracy' foes offer bogus arguments

OrlandoSentinel.com

‘Hometown Democracy’ foes offer bogus arguments

Lauren Ritchie

COMMENTARY

March 19, 2010

Good news: Now you don't have to sort through confusing wording of two competing constitutional amendments — one that would give you absolute power to limit or grant huge developments and a second that was just developers in a tree-hugger's Birkenstocks.

Rejoice! The evil amendment is gone!

Now the only thing voters have to decide is whether they want to control how land is used in their counties or continue to leave those decisions in the hands of the elected officials, who have done such a marvelous job.

Relax those tight jaws. That was a joke.

The power would come in the form of the "Hometown Democracy" constitutional amendment.

The amendment proposal that now is dead had been offered by Floridians for Smarter Growth, a developer-driven organization that has transformed itself from one proposing an alternative to one simply bashing the good guys behind Hometown Democracy.

Floridians for Smarter Growth's new incarnation — with a new misnomer — is Citizens for Lower Taxes and a Stronger Economy. It's just another ill-clothed operation. What that group stands for would neither lower taxes nor strengthen Florida's industrial base.

To get on a statewide ballot, a proposal to change the constitution goes through a long process, including a requirement that its proponents secure 676,811 signatures of Florida citizens. You don't have to support the measure to sign a card, just support giving voters a whack at it on the ballot.

The Floridians for Smarter Growth didn't get enough signatures. They had 443,510 at last count — only 535 from Lake County — before the Feb. 1 deadline rolled over them.

Even before, they seemed to have just given up.

The ill-considered amendment would have allowed at least 10 percent of the citizens of a county or city to run down to the office of the supervisor of elections in person and sign a petition to put a development proposal on the ballot. Too bad if you work during the day, which is when the supervisor's offices are open. Too bad if you're serving in the military and living outside the county. Too bad if you're disabled or can't drive to the supervisor.

How this discriminatory abortion of an amendment ever got through the Supreme Court is a mystery. But, never mind. It's gone — even though proponents spent roughly $4 million to get it on the ballot.

Now all you have to worry about is that the new group with its same cast of characters will spend another fortune to convince you that Hometown Democracy, which will be Amendment 4 on the ballot, is a bad idea. It's not.

But the smoke already is blowing over the landscape.

Take, for example, the rumor that Amendment 4 somehow is promoting sterilization of people to limit population. Oh, puhleeze. This is about land use, not resurrecting Hitler in Miami Beach.

There are, however, two other claims that contain more logic and less nutty talk.

The first is that the form of direct democracy advocated by the amendment was tried in St. Petersburg Beach and was a gigantic mess resulting in lawsuits and unending expense to the taxpayer.

The problem with the comparison is that St. Pete Beach's way of allowing people to vote on development is far different than that proposed by Hometown Democracy. Amendment 4 would give voters the ultimate say-so only after any development proposal had gone through all the steps required for change.

It would have to be approved by the county commission and then the state Department of Community Affairs, where frivolous and badly conceived developments hopefully would be eliminated. Only then would it come to voters.

In St. Pete, the votes have so far taken place on the front end of the process, which has, indeed, caused chaos.

The other argument, on the home page of the Web site of those fighting Amendment 4, is the dire warning that just as Florida is emerging from a recession, passage of the measure would lead the state into another.

Of course, they never specify just how. The presumption is that Floridians would always vote against big development, thereby stopping growth in Lake County and everywhere else.

This, too, is preposterous.

School Board officials tracking growth in Lake — county government doesn't bother to do this — estimated that roughly 100,000 parcels already have approval for building. If houses went up on them all, the population of Lake County would double. So, it's clear that there is no "stopping" growth. There is only the ability to channel it.

Development won't be stopped in areas where it should go, which is near cities that can provide services. That's presuming that there's a demand for homes, which there is not right now because of a recession, not because of any policy or political theory by any elected official, as the opponents claim. Do they really think people are stupid enough to think that some local official singlehandedly stopped growth in the whole state?

Voters, however, would have the authority to turn down proposals for big developments in rural areas. Those are the most profitable for developers, but they also cause the most sprawl and cost taxpayers the most in cash and degradation of their lifestyle.

Some voters may have gotten lax when it comes to watching politics, but they're not morons. If a good housing development that's needed or a tantalizing industrial proposal comes before them, they will jump at it and vote yes.

What opponents of Hometown Democracy won't tell you is that they most fear giving voters power. They think you're too childlike to understand the issues on which you are voting and the consequences of your vote.

Want developers to decide what your community should look like, as they've always done? Vote against Amendment 4.

Want the power in your own hands? Cast your ballot for yes.

Lauren Ritchie can be reached at Lritchie@orlandosentinel.com You may leave her a message at 352-742-5918. Her blog is online at http://www.orlandosentinel.com/laurenonlake.

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