Article Summary –
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is facing opposition to a plan to build golf courses, hotels, and pickleball courts in state parks. Plans were unveiled last week by the Department of Environmental Protection, but following public outcry, a golf course proposal at one park was abandoned and public hearings postponed. The governor’s office defended the plan, arguing it would attract more people to the parks, but critics argue it contradicts the purpose of state parks and is driven by profit.
Florida Governor’s Plan for State Parks Development Faces Opposition
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’s proposal to develop state parks with golf courses, hotels and pickleball courts has encountered resistance, sparking protests at several sites. This contentious plan, unveiled by the Republican Governor’s Department of Environmental Protection, initially planned a single hour of public hearings nearby the nine affected parks. However, growing public disapproval led to the withdrawal of a golf course proposal at one park and a delay in the scheduled hearings.
“It’s just contrary to what our parks are about,” said Democratic state Rep. Lindsey Cross. The plan includes building pickleball courts near the unspoiled beaches of the Honeymoon Island State Park. About 150 people attended a protest at the Honeymoon Island, with slogans like “Save Don’t Pave” and “Parks Over Profit”. Similar protests happened at three other parks and the state DEP headquarters in Tallahassee.
“The reason all this came about was to make a profit from our state parks,” observed Jeff Gaw, City Council member in Dunedin. The opposition to DeSantis’s “Great Outdoors Initiative” has crossed party lines, with top Republican leaders, GOP U.S. Senators Rick Scott and Marco Rubio, as well as Democrats and environmental groups like the Sierra Club and Cleo Institute voicing concerns.
Florida’s 175 state parks covering around 800,000 acres are some of the nation’s best beaches that have so far resisted development efforts. “We must remain vigilant and we will not stop,” stated Kim Begay, the Clearwater Audubon Society’s VP and conservation advocate.
While DeSantis’s office and the DEP did not respond to requests for comments, they have defended the plan as an approach to attract more visitors to the parks by offering golf, pickleball, and disc golf among others. However, the overall plan is still under consideration. One proposal for golf courses at Jonathan Dickinson State Park was scrapped after the main supporter, Tuskegee Dunes Foundation, withdrew following increasing objections to the proposal. This nonprofit had pledged to avoid environmentally sensitive areas and donate proceeds to Folds of Honor, a scholarship provider for the military and first responders.
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