EcoWatch: State Park plans stop due to brave informant
“Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul alike.”
John Muir, naturalist and poet
Last week, residents of Florida were facing a situation akin to a weather emergency, as if a hurricane were on the way. The Governor’s office released a statement stating that nine state parks in Florida were under consideration for revamping, which included plans for pickleball courts, golf courses, resort lodges, and other amenities.
Gov. Ron DeSantis denied approving the proposal, stating that the plans were “leaked to create a narrative.” Thank the heavens for whoever was the leaker. However, once the news hit the airwaves, local and statewide networks, and newspapers, the battleground was drawn. It raised the hackles of anyone who has ever visited a state park and enjoyed nature at its fullest.
The late President Teddy Roosevelt was most likely rolling in his grave at the news. Known as the conservation president, Roosevelt was deeply concerned with preserving nature, according to the National Park Service. Theodore Roosevelt was the first president of the 1900s, a time of great expansion and development. His devotion to conserving our natural and cultural history helped establish a crucial precedent when many still considered our resources inexhaustible. Roosevelt saw them as something to protect and cherish. “It is also vandalism to wantonly destroy or to permit the destruction of what is beautiful in nature, whether it be a cliff, a forest, or the extermination of fishes, birds, and mammals – not to speak of vulgarizing charming landscapes with hideous advertisements. But at last, it looks as if our people were awakening.”
While Roosevelt was responsible for the formation of national parks, he also advocated for protecting land for people, wildlife, and state parks.
And people are awakening.
Individuals, organizations, environmental groups, and locals are keenly aware of what more pickleball courts, golf courses, hotels, and restaurants would mean for Florida. First, consider that Florida’s population is estimated to be 23.381 million and growing. This means more development, which involves the removal of trees, mangroves, destruction of native plants, and loss of wildlife.
The loss of wildlife in state parks would be a travesty. The noise generated from pickleball courts, golf course events, plus the amount of chemicals used to build and maintain the green grass on golf courses, and the loss of habitat, would be devastating to all residents and wildlife in the area. The most jarring was a golf course atop the sand dune overlooks at Jonathan Dickinson State Park in Hobe Sound.
If approved in the future, the destruction not only of the ecosystem but also the paving over of parkland for more traffic and the construction of new hotels and restaurants sounds like something out of a Jimmy Buffett song. The destruction and revamping of the nine state parks would be a travesty. Gone would be the peace and tranquility of the parks.
There are 1,059 pickleball courts in Florida. It has more pickleball courts than 48 states. Jacksonville has 25, Boca Raton has 24, and Sarasota has 24 courts. It is somewhat understandable that all the new residents coming here will want amenities in their areas to pursue in their leisure time, but not in Florida’s state parks, where most citizens of Florida want to escape the noise and turmoil of city life to enjoy the serene park environment.
According to the Sierra Club, “Governor DeSantis and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) on Aug. 20 announced a so-called ‘outdoors initiative’ to start bulldozing swathes of nine of our precious state parks to develop commercial hotels, golf courses, and sports fields and courts. The public outcry from across the political spectrum was deafening. Sierra Club Florida, our partners, and Floridians from all walks of life, who immediately understood what this attack on our state parks meant, started mobilizing to descend upon these meetings.”
A report by Beth Rousseau in Hillsborough County said the goal was to boost tourism and reaffirm the state’s commitment to conservation. Those opposed to the plan felt it would do the exact opposite and harm wildlife.
Now that the hullabaloo has quieted down for a while, do not become complacent. Governor DeSantis is saying it will be back on the drawing board for reevaluation. “They are going back to the drawing board. Talk to your local communities. Here is the thing: I would rather not spend any money on this. If the people don’t want improvements, then don’t do it,’ Governor DeSantis said. There have been too many news reports claiming this project may be put on the table again next year. So, enjoy the rest of the year. However, all the armchair activists and concerned citizens should keep their pens sharp and phone numbers handy to battle a war that may revive again.
This is a perfect case where the public took the reins and quashed plans to take over nine Florida state parks. Hooray for us!
Keep in touch or join the Sierra Club of Florida to stay informed if the plans are revived. Visit sierraclub.org/florida. You can also visit floridastateparks.org to see individual park plans.
As of press time, James Gaddis was the DEP employee fired for exposing the DeSantis plans.
email: gaiasvigil@gmail.com
