Time Well Spent

I spent a very long day at a county commission hearing yesterday. More than 80 residents and organization representatives spoke in opposition to plans for a mega-development that would fundamentally change the rural lifestyle that area residents love and irreparably alter an environmentally valuable piece of property composed of wetlands, floodplains, and uplands.

One of the most eloquent speeches was made by the president of the historical society for one of the little towns in the vicinity. She showed many pictures of the community engaged in various small-town activities, and ended up by saying it's just fine the way it is.

She wasn't the only speaker who made me get a little teary, listening to her profess her love for the tangible and intangible treasures endangered by "progress" and -- dare I say it -- greed. So much of Florida is under attack for cash and falls without this kind of heartfelt opposition, when only the land and the creatures are there to appreciate the magic and the function of wild places.

When the county commissioners finally voted the development plan down, after 8 hours of considering the matter, there was a huge sigh of relief and some celebration. This fight isn't over -- the developer vowed to appeal -- but it's a victory for now.

I'm glad that the country folks get to keep their farms, their slower pace, their dark nights, and their quiet, and that all these other-than-human beings can remain at peace, too, at least for a while.

Photo: Joanne Bolemon

Photo: Joanne Bolemon

Photo: Joanne Bolemon