Gov. Scott announces $2.2 million investment for springs protection

[Kelly Jessop]

Has this idea ever been proposed?

My understanding the state has first right to refusal

[vicp]

LOL.......the two that wrote the last posts are entertaining.

Unfortunately you are not.

[OFG-1]

LOL.......the two that wrote the last posts are entertaining.

Thank you, my sole purpose in life is to amuse and entertain others. Now I feel that my existence is worthwhile.

Perhaps comparing the Governor to a big penis is harsh, I should have compared him to Lex Luthor.

[Jay]

Just a guess, but it is directly across the river from Anderson, and the green is Twin Rivers State Forest.
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=30.356...num=1&t=m&z=15

According to the Madison Co property appraisor's website, it is owned by Damascus Peanut Company.

I thought the Anderson property seemed very small, but if it is the green that is bigget then I thought. Are there any holes in the ground on the Damascus property?

[FW]

I thought the Anderson property seemed very small, but if it is the green that is bigget then I thought. Are there any holes in the ground on the Damascus property?

The green is more than just Anderson, it even continues north of I-10.

When the state actually buys it, we can go look for "holes"

[Jont]

My understanding the state has first right to refusal

HI Kelly,

Florida has much more then that, Telfords an interesting situation, I'll get into it when I see you over the next six weeks or so if you'll be in cave country.

[Mark Long]

This is a good ending to a story that could have been much worse. It's complicated as to how this came about, I will attempt to explain. There are actually 2 pieces of property involved. My wife Annette has been going to water management district meetings now for about 10 years. The WMD has been selling off land they deam as "surplus." The peanut company owned this 600 or so acres across the river from Anderson Springs. The WMD has a piece of property around 600 acres that was aquired in a larger purchase several years ago. This property boarders up to the Damascus Peanut Company property. The current governing board of SRWMD cares little for land that is not part of the flood plain or that does not boarder on the rivers. What they were going to do was "swap" this land they own with the peanut company for the land across the river from Anderson Spring.
The land the peanut company wanted is just west of US90 after you cross over the RR track bridge. The property is on the north and south sides of US90. It boaders property they currently own. They were going to completely clear cut all this land, put circle pivot irrigation on it and grow more peanuts. They owned the land across the river from Anderson (low flood plain land) that wasn't farmable so they wanted to swap their piece for the WMD piece. Well US Fish and Wildlife Service got involved and surveyed the WMD land. They found no less than 4 endangered species. Gophers, indigo snakes etc. There are also huge long leave pines on the property. When this was brought to the attention of the WMD governing board, one of it's members replied something on the order "I don't care if someone offers us 5 milion dollars we are going to swap this land with the peanut company!" Keep in mind this property the peanut company wanted is huge for spring recharge also as there are several close by.
Annette and others "raised hell" about this. Florida Audubon and Florida Wildlife Federation got involved. It would have been unconscionable if this land swap would have happened this way.
The WMD had to back off and what has ultimately happened is DEP bought the land across from Anderson. In the near future they will "swap" so that WMD will have the land across the river from Anderson and DEP will manage this upland land. If Annette and others had not been paying attention we would have lost another valuable piece of land to agriculture. The sad thing is that Rick Scott is the one who has mandated to the WMD's to sell off land. From an environmental standpoint he has been, and contiues to be horrible for Florida. In the end they did the right thing. It could have taken a different turn.

[vicp]

Gov Scott is a good guy you are lucky to have him, you will see more of this kind of thing from him.

Yup, pretty lucky...can't wait to see more!

Well, as a Floridian I doubt this but, on the positive side, if he would wear a turtleneck, he would look like a big penis....either that or Skeletor.

Ayup, that's more complimentary than I would have been...

... The sad thing is that Rick Scott is the one who has mandated to the WMD's to sell off land. From an environmental standpoint he has been, and continues to be horrible for Florida...

Amazing!! How lucky can we get?!

[Sludge]

Stop the presses - liberals don't like the Republican governor.

[Gibby]

The sate has been relatively calm and it is growing economically.
A quiet guBmint is a good guBmint.

Can you imagine the dysfunctional turmoil that would exist is Sink made it?