(SANTA ROSA, F.L.) --- Nearly 30 residents spoke at the Santa Rosa County Commissioners Committee meeting.
Why?
Commissioner Colten Wright was the first to note the answer at the Tuesday, August 25, meeting.
Photo: Santa Rosa County Commissioners Tuesday, August 25
“So we've got a number of people signed up for a public forum today,” Wright said. “I've got about 25 people signed up so far. I just want to remind everyone that the Boardwalk project on Navarre Beach is not on the agenda today. “
The proposal to allow a boardwalk and event center is breeding rumors, which brought out the large crowd.
“I know there was some discussion online saying that there was a vote, so I just want everyone to understand that there's not,” Wright said. “There is no vote coming up today on that. There's no vote this week on that.”
That did not matter to the crowd.
The commissioner’s comment only seemed to charge the large audience more, beginning with resident Kathy Holmes, who started her argument with Navarre Beach’s natural dune system defense beginning with sea turtle hatchlings.
“On the west end of our beach, because of all the lighting, and of all the mainland lighting, we had all of our hatchlings lost,” Holmes said. “So we would very much like to keep it as it is, keep the lights off, keep the noise down, and make it good for the animals that come to visit our beach.”
Photo: Kathy Holmes asking Santa Rosa County Commissioners not to proceed with proposed development
One of those animals is the beach mouse, according to Holmes, who also noted the detriment to the species if the dunes do not exist as is. But it’s not just animals who are protected by the dunes when it comes to disaster.
“When Ivan came through, things that were on that island ended up on the highway,” Holmes said. “So taking down secondary and tertiary dunes can definitely impact not just the island but the mainland during big storm events.”
Next, David Jensen came to the podium wanting answers.
“I have three questions that you should be answering before awarding the construction contract or issuing a notice to proceed,” Jensen said.
First, what money is actually paying for the project.
Photo: David Jensen raises three questions to Santa Rosa County Commissioners August 25
“The public deserves an accounting showing which funds are paying each component and the statutory authority for those expenditures,” Jensen said.
Along with this reporter’s live coverage of the meeting, the OpGov.News platform also reported the more than two-hour-long meeting, offering a full transcript and summary, and noting Jensen’s second and third questions.
Question two is the county's role as both regulator and commercial developer.
“Last month, the board denied a request allowing Espresso Lane to operate a private coffee business in Navarre Beach despite a five-to-three zoning board recommendation for approval,” Jensen said. “Yet the county is using public property and public capital to develop retail spaces, a food truck court and a rentable event hall.”
That’s when Jensen called out Commissioner Rhett Rowell.
“Commissioner Rowell, you even raised concerns about the county competing with rentable existing businesses like private event venues when you talked about Spring Hill Suites and Juantas back in September,” Jensen said. “So why does the county government need to use public property and public capital to enter commercial markets already served by private businesses?”
With his third and final question, Jensen “challenged the project's public demand, stating a 2023 tourism survey only ranked amenities and did not gauge support or opposition, requesting the release of survey results with location data.”
Alex Fox got applause after introducing herself as the Chief Operating Officer of the Navar Beach Sea Turtle Conservation Center, but “more importantly, I am a marine biologist, graduated from the University of West Florida.”
“I've dedicated my career to protecting the animals, habitats, and natural resources that make Navarre Beach so special,” Fox said before adding what it is not. “This isn't a blank canvas; it's not a new venue for someone to host their weddings at; it’s a habitat; it's a dune system.”
It's a place we have a responsibility to preserve, according to Fox, who said to officials, “I'm asking you to carefully reconsider this proposal.”
Photo: Alex Fox, marine biologist lists several concerns regarding the proposed boardwalk event hall and retail developement for a proposed project
Fox said she recently met with one of the companies bidding on this project.
“When he came to the property to look at it, his immediate reaction was, wow, this is a great blank canvas,” Fox said, saying the statement stayed with her. “From a construction standpoint, maybe it is a blank canvas, but from an environmental standpoint, it absolutely is not.”
Navarre Beach is a coastal living ecosystem, home to dunes, native vegetation, wildlife, and critically important species,” according to Fox, who said, "as someone who works directly with these animals, I know that every additional structure, walkway, parking area, light, and most importantly, increase in human activity can have a huge consequence for our wildlife.”
Many others followed Fox, letting officials know exactly why they oppose the project, as seen in the OpGov.News public comment summary below.
Photo: OpGov.News platform summary of resident comments opposing boardwalk project on Navarre Beach from August 25 meeting
The actual meeting and agenda are also available through the county website for public view. The commissioners will meet again on Thursday, August 27.
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