Charlotte commission will have parking on agenda Oct. 28

At the October 14 Charlotte County Commissioners meeting, residents again pressed the board to take action regarding Lee County’s controversial Boca Grande parking ordinance. In turn, commissioners, including Chris Constance, told the audience that the county should move forward with an injunction.

“I think this needs to be on our next agenda with the possibility of starting an injunction,” said Constance. “We need to take a hard stance on it – they need to put themselves in our shoes and those of our citizens. It’s negatively affecting things, and they better be willing to defend the data that put them in their place, because apparently there are some holes in it.”

Gasparilla Beach Access Coalition members and Charlotte County residents Robin Wilkins, Jeff Lendroth and Nancy Martin urged commissioners to follow through on promises made more than 30 days ago when the issue was last discussed at the September 9 meeting.

“We had great expectations that a reasonable compromise could have been established between our two counties – perhaps through an interlocal agreement or a modification of the Lee County ordinance allowing parking privileges for Charlotte County residents,” Lendroth said. “At this time, it seems like there’s no compromise. We haven’t heard any update. I do want to remind you, folks, 30 days has passed, so we’re hoping there can be further action on this topic.”

Wilkins warned that the loss of public parking jeopardizes millions in beach renourishment funds since Lee County no longer meets the state’s quarter-mile beach access requirement. She added that while many Boca Grande homes sit vacant during the off-season, out-of-state renters now have more parking rights than local taxpayers.

“We are here today because the issues surrounding the county’s parking ordinance have gone far beyond parking,” Wilkins said. “They threaten the public trust, our regional economy and environmental funding that sustains the island.”

Martin said the coalition has downloaded thousands of emails and lobbyist logs obtained through multiple public records requests, raising what she called “eyebrows” relative to lobbying. Martin urged commissioners to “please stand with your residents and protect our shared right to public access and our home values in the Cape Haze Peninsula and South Gulf Cove.”

While the county attorney maintained her recommendation to “collaborate rather than litigate,” commissioners agreed to place the parking ordinance on the October 28 agenda with the option to move forward with an injunction.

Commissioner Constance questioned Lee County’s process in forming a citizens parking committee while already implementing the ordinance. “If you’re doing more fact-finding, then why aren’t you halting any implementation until you get more information?” Constance said.