To Grow or Not To Grow?
To grow or not to grow? That is the question. With apologies to Shakespeare, that question seems an appropriate one for the Board of County Commissioners to answer. If you log onto the Clay County web site (www.claycountygov.com) four words scroll across the top of the page - "Growth, Prosperity, Opportunity, Community". Without any further investigation, one would think Clay County government likes, even encourages growth. But growth is a contentious subject among people who live in Clay County. The population in 1980 was 67,000. Twenty-five years later, 2005, the population had ballooned to 179,000. In 2015, 8 years from now, the population is projected to be 267,000. That's 4 times the number of people in 1980. All I can say is WOW!!! Most would agree that as the number of people in Clay County has grown rapidly, services and infrastructure have been stretched to the limit, especially roads and schools. Many people say that the county government has not managed growth tightly enough, and haven't figured out how to say "NO" to developers. The state government passed a growth management law that requires infrastructure be in place, or at least funded, as developments come on line. Only time will tell how well concurrency works to meet the demands of growth. As the region figures out how to fund an outer beltway, the bigger question remains, "to grow or not to grow?" An outer beltway, along with any other transportation improvement, will increase the county's ability to grow. Should the government be encouraging more growth by adding more transportation capacity, which allows more growth to happen? Clay County is proposing a $7,000 transportation impact fee on new residential units, to go along with its $7,000 school impact fee. This is growth paying for itself - taxpayers should be happy. The outer beltway is expected to be a toll road - user funded - taxpayers should be happy. Then why all the moaning and groaning about growth? No growth (no new residential units), means no impact fee money for schools and roads. Then what - how about a tax increase? Want to hear screaming, try passing a tax increase in these parts. With property tax relief looming, the county's budget is only going to get tighter. If developers want to supply the demand for more growth in Clay County, they better help figure out how to help pay for it. If growth gets stopped, Clay County citizens better prepare for more taxes, or learn to like its crowded schools and roads. To grow or not to grow? That IS the question. Related: Baxley's blog | login or register to post comments | printer friendly version | Tags: development | Growth | impact fees
Submitted by lilyslore on Tue, 04/03/2007 - 2:24pm.
I, too, would like to see a complete moratorium on all growth for the forseeable future. The crooks in charge of eveything should be staked over ant hills. Several years ago when the current impact fee was put in place, it was noted that it was still far less than necessary to implement new infrastructure. But they did it anyway. This kind of thinking has to go. The developers don't give a damn what happens in Clay County so long as they can bleed the very last dollar out of the very last citizen to come along. The commissioners that approve these new housing developments (and worse, condo communities) really should be banished to a Turkish prison, not that I have anything against the Turks. They DO know how to handle rotten people and I applaud them that. I have never used the schools yet I am held hostage to the taxes for them. It has not contributed an iota to a better quality of life for anyone I know. Building moratoriums work. My sister-in-law lives in a beautiful little community in upstate New York that has had a moratorium for over twenty years and they are better off for it. Can anyone come up with one single additional building this community needs? I don't think so, aside from a few new schools because of the unbridled growth that has gone on for the past twenty-five years? And what is the percentage of newcomers that turn out to be criminals? One must factor this in also. Build more homes, invite more crime. I know this smacks of "Close The Door After Me" politics but someone has to say it sometime. That time was twenty years ago so better late than never. It may be an ugly truth, but it is a truth. Lily's Lore People are talking about ...Here are the recent blog postings with the most comments. |
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I grew up here in Clay county when we were just a small town. Now Eagle Harbor has taken over Fleming Island. High Schools? We only had Middleburg, Orange Park, and Clay High. It is growinglike weed and maybe that is not a bad thing. For the county - GREAT! For me....I would like a little less people.