Another day, another development proposal. That’s how it goes in Florida, the land of government of, by and for the developer.
Despite 50 years of watching the state relentlessly paved over and understanding the way and why it happens, I am still stunned when I drive by a lot quickly scraped clean of every living thing, a carcass of dirt prepared to be sprawled.
What does this obliteration signify about our government? Amongst other things, this obliteration demonstrates that nature has no value to the people in charge. What matters is keeping the developer machine happy.
Paving over Florida, lot by lot, occurred and continues to occur because of deliberate choices by thousands of elected officials over the decades. These elected officials voted to change land use laws to give developers what they ask for, one land use change at a time. No one puts a gun to their heads to force these land use changes. Elected officials vote to approve the changes.
Florida land use is largely regulated via comprehensive plans and zoning maps. When a landowner wants a zoning change or a comprehensive plan change, the owner must go before either the city or county commission (depending on whether the land is in the county or the city).
Why? Because that zoning and comprehensive plan designation are laws. Only elected officials can change a law. You are not entitled to a land use change—there is no legal requirement/obligation to grant a change.If, following public hearings, the commission votes to approve the change, it is because most of the commission decided that changing the law serves the public interest.
What is public interest? All local laws are grounded in the “police powers” bestowed upon local government. These powers extend to protecting the “health, welfare and safety” of the public. You could call the police powers the “common good” or the “public interest”: aka the well-being of the public.
The public interest means all of those things that make a community a good, safe, healthy place to live. Examples: picking up garbage. Ensuring clean water. Police protection. Public safety. It should mean enforcing land use regulations that reflect a public consensus on the character of the community and quality of life for the citizens of that community.
Florida is a classic case of captured government—government of, by and for the developer. The development machine controls the local commissions and who goes to Tallahassee. The growth machine must control local politics because land use is politics. Scratch a politician and see if a developer is underneath. Chances are good that the politician or family member is in the biz one way or another. Look who is making campaign donations.
I’ll give it to developers—they put their money where their mouth is.