DeBary litter-box scratchings

Yes, folks, I'm back!  I took a hiatus after the elections, then my typist has been really busy with her personal life. I may have to replace her.

Anyway, it's time to chat. Just a light scratching of the litter box is turning up a lot of s@@@.

Word is that City Council members wanna give themselves a discretionary fund of a couple o'thousand bucks each to spend just as they want. And if they wanna get together and pool it for one big thing, that'll be ok too.

Hmmm. Wonder if that will come up at Wednesday night's 6 p.m. workshop. There's an agenda item under which discussion could be directed that way.

Of course, if this scuttlebutt is so, it will mean a serious Sunshine Law violation. Any such discussions among council members is supposed to be during open public meetings. We'll have to keep an eye out.

The other thing that rose to the top of the box is that the mayor wants to overturn the charter form of government under which DeBary operates now, and run the city himself. (Wonder if he'd be elected, or serve a lifetime term) Talk is the mayor would like to do this by resolution instead of referendum, but I doubt it could happen that way.

I also hear that Deltona's mayor is interested in the same thing.

The last thing turned to light lately is that the Green Bridge/Greenstein (gambling) people from Iowa are back, having quiet talks with City Council members. The local corp. they formed for this purpose, the innocuous-sounding DeBary Real Estate Holdings LLC, is still active, with an annual report filed last month. Doubt the Green Bridge people would bother to keep the corp. active, if they have no plans.

More on 4

Why to make sure you vote: Got this via email:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2JDsnb9yN0



And, from our local "Vote Yes on Amendment 4," this reminder:

Don't get mad, get Greg

In the middle of all the complacency and shyness about speaking up these days, we need people willing to speak up for the common good.

Take Greg Gimbert, for example. He got mad a few years ago, when he saw Daytona trying to ruin the town even farther than what it was already, and he got active in opposition to land-use changes that would allow massive increases in density.

Then, he fought for the Volusia Growth Management Commission to have some spine and say no to developers who want it to change its rules and give away any power it has to actually curb bad growth. That was successful, to date. Now, if only the Commission would actually do its job.

The latest — He, Ron Bynum and a bunch of friends took Amendment 4 matters into their own hands, and are urging voters to say yes to giving themselves some say in local land regulation.

The billboards are up. Here's my favorite, a good reason not to just trust our future to politicians:

Cool cat, Greg. Five purrs to you.

Caught in the act

Yes, Sandy's caught in the act!  This is at the Old Enterprise Festival last Saturday. Rog Lee plays in the background. He's in agreement, "Vote Yes on 4."

Cooler weather

It looks like Hurricane Paula will stay well to the south of us, brushing Cuba. And though we're back in the mid-80s, it's supposed to cool off a little, sunny, with a high around 81 and overnight lows in the upper 50s.

That means perfect weather for the Old Enterprise Festival 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday, at Mariner's Cove Park in Enterprise. My roommate Molly will be there to judge the doggie -costume contest.

As for me, I'd be happy listening to Rog Lee and eating the good food, but I don't think I'll get to go.

How 'bout a kitty-costume contest next year? No, scratch that. Too undignified for us felines.

Running scared over Amendment 4

UPDATE 5 P.M. — If you're not sure how you want to vote on this, here's a factoid that may help, either way: THE VOTE NO people are listing the Florida Tea Parties as joining them in opposition to the amendment.

PREVIOUSLY REPORTED:

Miami Herald columnist and author Carl Hiaaseen has a column today called "Running scared over Amendment 4."

He said, "The same people who helped ignite the housing crash and mortgage meltdown are absolutely terrified of giving citizens actual control over growth in their own communities."

They're scared of the voters who are sick of corruption, bad planning, greed and elected officials who always cave in, "making a farce of land-use regulations."

Hmmmm. You'd think Hiaasen lives in Volusia, not in Dade County.

Meanwhile, the County Council is taking applications for two openings as its representatives on the Volusia Growth Management Commission.

Dwight Lewis has been reappointed, after taking some time off to run, unsuccessfully, for a seat on the council.

Victoria Gardens: Pay up

It isn't often an old cat like me agrees with the School Board AND the Volusia County Council.

This is one of those exceptions. Victoria Gardens needs to ante up and pay the school-impact fees. Why? There should be no protected classes or groups of people who can say, "Schools aren't my responsibility."

Schools are the responsibility of everyone. I don't care if there aren't gonna be any kiddies in the gated, senior-citizen enclave. Nor do I care if there weren't any kids in the Ormond Beach mobile-home park case.

The fact is, taxes helped pay for those seniors to get an education, and helped them become the fine, property-owning folks they are. Saying, "I've got mine, now, get yours," isn't the way it should work.

Schools are everybody's responsibility.

And, if you want to get into the technical arguments, Victoria Park doesn't have a good legal reason to avoid paying the fees. The developer agreed to pay school-impact fees on the development as a part of the master development plan for the area. Now, the developer wants to wiggle out of it.

Paugh!

Of course, if the county wants to exempt EVERYBODY from paying the fees, that's fine.