Old NY Times Deltona Summary

Remember when…..  

In Florida, a Town Seeks a Smile From Mother Nature

By ABBY GOODNOUGH

Published: January 1, 2005

ELTONA, Fla., Dec. 29 – It is a safe guess that all of Florida was ready to relegate 2004, with its freakishly active hurricane season, to the history books. But Deltona was especially eager.

The town, a sprawling bedroom community between Orlando and Daytona Beach, suffered through three of the state’s four hurricanes and still has plenty of blue-tarped roofs and disfigured trees to prove it.

A week before the first storm, six teenagers and young adults were bludgeoned to death with baseball bats in a quiet neighborhood here, a crime that was provoked, investigators said, by the disappearance of a video game system.

Then, on Dec. 13, a sinkhole began opening along a busy thoroughfare, possibly an aftereffect of the hurricanes and their pounding rain. This sinkhole, a quintessentially Florida phenomenon that is now 225 feet wide and 50 feet deep, brought sightseers, traffic nightmares, more unwanted publicity (“Next up: A plague of locusts, frogs, hail and lice,” a columnist for The Orlando Sentinel quipped) and new longing for a fresh start.

“It’s crazy, the things that have happened here,” said Larry Amos, walking back to his home after watching crews plug the sinkhole with truckloads of sand – 1,282 truckloads, to be exact – on Wednesday. “The storms, the big murders and now the big sinkhole right in the middle of the road there. It’s time for something nice.”

Deltona was meant to be nothing but nice when the Mackle brothers, developers who built an empire designing inexpensive communities for northern transplants throughout Florida, created it in the 1960’s. Brochures circulated in Chicago, Cleveland and other chilly cities said Deltona, its name a hybrid of Daytona Beach and DeLand, another nearby city, offered “everything for zestful living.”

A yellowed newspaper clipping at the Deltona Arts and Historical Center shows throngs of visitors arriving on charter flights from New York and St. Louis for a glimpse of the land they had bought sight unseen. “Mackle Brothers is bringing the property owners to Deltona to dispel rumors that they’re selling swampland in the Central Florida area,” the caption read.

Then, as now, people moved here for the affordable housing (initially as low as $6,960 with $210 down and $43.11 in monthly mortgage payments) and the weather – generally warm and sunny but, unlike in South Florida, occasionally crisp enough to remind them of the sweetest autumn days back home. Advertisements bragged of Deltona’s meandering streets, sandy terrain and many small lakes, but those have proven troublesome as the city’s population has grown to more than 80,000.

Poor drainage has led to serious flooding, and the city is now building an expensive system for controlling storm water. Traffic bottlenecks have forced several road-widening projects, including on Howland Boulevard, where the sinkhole appeared in the middle of one expansion.

Gerald Brinton, the Volusia County engineer, said the sinkhole was probably thousands of years in the making but was precipitated by the hurricanes, which saturated the ground.

The gaping hole, which within minutes swallowed trees, chunks of sidewalk, a utility pole and a blinking roadside message board, was probably the largest to appear in Central Florida since 1981.

A sinkhole in Winter Park, outside Orlando, consumed a three-bedroom house and five Porsches from a repair shop lot that year and created a 350-foot-wide lake.

Because of its geology, Florida gets more sinkholes – caused by the dissolution of underground limestone by acidic rainwater – than any other state.

The region around Deltona is especially plagued by them, Mr. Brinton said, adding that many of the small lakes visible from the air over Orlando were in fact old sinkholes.

But if the Howland Boulevard sinkhole was somewhat predictable for Deltona, the murders in early August were anything but, people here said. The four men charged in the crime broke into a house on Telford Lane late at night and used aluminum bats to kill six people sleeping inside, prosecutors say, because one victim had not returned an Xbox video game system to one of the killers.

“They were just bad eggs, that’s all,” Mr. Amos, 62, who moved to Deltona from New York seven years ago, said of the accused, who have pleaded not guilty to the crime and await trial.

Lloyd Marcus, president of the Deltona Arts and Historical Center, took it upon himself to do some public relations for his city in the last days of 2004, writing to a local newspaper about how some residents recorded an album to raise money for a man who had been in a serious accident.

“I can’t tell God he’s unfair,” Mr. Marcus said, “but I do think a lot more positive things are happening here that go unnoticed.”

Mayor John Masiarczyk, who said he was playing hooky on Thursday afternoon to work on his storm-pummeled yard, said 2005 would be a year of rebuilding, replanting and, he hopes, reprieve.

“We could use your kind thoughts,” he said.

Special Property Taxes Legislative Session in June

When Tallahassee turned its attention to property taxes earlier this year, the focus of the debate for many participants was centered on how much revenue government could afford to lose. Today, as we head toward a special session that promises to deliver historic tax relief, the debate is solely focused on how much taxpayers can afford to pay.As House Republicans, we consider that newfound taxpayer focus a significant accomplishment.

Over the past three months, the Florida House of Representatives has promoted a bold idea on how to confront our state’s biggest problem: unaffordable and unfair property taxes. Our goals were simple: reduce local government taxing and spending, provide significant and immediate relief to taxpayers, and give Floridians statewide the opportunity to vote for meaningful and comprehensive property-tax reform.

We were consistent throughout the debate. Whether our idea or not, we would support any plan that met those three goals and was more focused on the taxpayer than the tax collector.

During the past few weeks, Rep. David Simmons, a Republican from Maitland, suggested an idea that met the House’s policy goals, and offered an opportunity for opponents of the House plan to reconsider their objections. The House is now considering a variation of his idea of dramatically increased homestead exemptions based on a percentage of the value of the home. We think this approach is fair and simple, and eliminates many of the inequities that have developed under our current property-tax structure.

Here is an example of how this approach might work:

On the home’s first $300,000 in just value, 80 percent would be exempt from property taxes.

On the next $700,000 in just value, 70 percent would be exempt.

On just value above $1,000,000, 30 percent would be exempt.

Under the numbers used in the example above, the new homestead exemption for a $300,000 home would be $240,000. Using the example above, 90 percent of all homestead property owners would benefit more from this proposal than under the current Save Our Homes structure. The average beneficiary of this approach would see his or her tax bill cut in half.

Non-homestead-property owners would also benefit from this approach. Both non-homestead residential properties and commercial/industrial properties would also be exempt on a percentage of their just value and would see property-tax savings.

This approach works well because it delivers targeted cuts to those who need it most. Floridians who have been hurt the most by outrageous property-tax increases will see the greatest relief.Further, by fixing the size of the homestead exemption to the value of property, we will eliminate the problem of many Floridians who are trapped in their current homes by the threat of skyrocketing tax bills if they move to a new home. This would be a great step for our seniors, growing families and first-time home buyers.

There are those who believe that taxes should be set by government determining how much government needs and then asking taxpayers to figure out how to pay for it. That kind of antiquated thinking is what got us into this crisis to begin with.A new consensus is emerging in this debate: First, let’s have taxpayers decide what they can afford to pay in property taxes, and then government must do the best it can with what taxpayers can afford to send them. Family budgets are tight, and government needs to start setting realistic priorities with the money it is given, just like our families do every month.

Heading into a special legislative session in June, our goal today is clearer than ever: The next time taxpayers get a property-tax bill, it must be one they can afford to pay. If we can achieve that measure, then I believe Floridians will judge our work a success.

Marco Rubio, a Republican from West Miami, is the speaker of the Florida House of Representatives. He wrote this commentary for the Orlando Sentinel. 

Howland Boulevard Construction Update

Construction began on May 1, 2007 to widen Howland Boulevard to four lanes from Elkcam Boulevard to Courtland Boulevard. The construction is scheduled to take 2.5 years with a completion date sometime in December of 2009.

The work will be done through Volusia County and Deltona Utilities. The contractor for the project is P&S Paving. The sub contractor for underground construction will be Scott Construction.

There will be 4 lanes; curb and gutter; 5’ wide sidewalks on both sides of the road; 20’ wide raised median that will be landscaped by the City of Deltona; and 6 Stormwater ponds.

Howland Boulevard will remain open to traffic at all times and every effort will be made to keep inconveniences to a minimum.

Wayne Jackson is the County Inspector on site all day. Wayne can be contacted with any questions at (386) 561-8655.

Howland Boulevard will also be widened from Courtland Boulevard

Deltona’s Music in the Courtyard Schedule

The City of Deltona and Publix Supermarkets proudly presents an entertainment series of musical events to be held in the courtyard at the Deltona City Hall Complex located at 2345 Providence Blvd. The entertainment series will be held from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. on the following Saturdays:

June 9th – Mark Hodgson (Blues)

July 14th – Joe Mose Band (Big band music)

August 11th – Sam Rodriguez (Latin, jazz)

September 8th – Jackson Creek Band (Fiddle, folk, & blue grass)

October 13th – Soul Cactus (60’s Soul, New Orleans’ influenced

R & B, Funk & Blues)

November 10th – Florida Strings (Blue grass)

December 8th – Holiday Program

Admission is free to all Deltona residents and visitors. Bring your own lawn chairs or blankets. Coolers allowed, but no alcoholic beverages. For questions or additional information, contact the City’s Parks & Recreation Department at (407) 302-5205.

Come on out and enjoy the music of Deltona starry nights!

Water managers warn that, unless consumption is drastically reduced, the taps could run dry

Lesley Blackner will be interviewed this week on Florida Matters, WUSF 89.7 Tampa Public Radio, to be broadcast this Friday May 18^th at 6:30 pm, and Saturday May 19^th at noon.  On the broadcast, she will be debating  Adam Babington – the Florida Chamber of Commerce’s top gun hired to take down the Florida Hometown Democracy movement. If you miss the broadcast, you can listen to it on the WUSF website:

http://www.wusf.usf.edu/WUSF-FM/Programs/Florida_Matters_pgs/Florida_Matters.cfm

 

Miami Herald.com

 

Posted on Sun, May. 13, 2007

Overcrowding? Nature will fix that

By CARL HIAASEN

In the absence of a sane growth-management policy, nature is becoming the great equalizer in
Florida.

 

A 17-month drought has made a puddle of
Lake Okeechobee and has parched the Biscayne Aquifer. Parts of the
Everglades are drying up, while advancing seawater endangers the well fields that serve hundreds of thousands of residents in Broward and
Palm Beach counties.

 

Water managers warn that, unless consumption is drastically reduced, the taps could run dry — or, at the least, start spitting salt — in several coastal communities. Forget about watering your lawn; you won’t be able to water your kids.

 

The emergency is so dire that even a busy hurricane season may not make it go away.
Florida, one of the wettest states in the country, is running dry.

 

Drought cycles here are nothing new, but this is the first one to occur with 18 million people encamped on the peninsula. They might cut back on sprinkling their geraniums, but they won’t stop taking showers or washing their laundry

Not many politicians are brave enough to cite overpopulation as a cause of the current crisis, though it is. There are too many people using too much water, but it’s easier to blame the weather.

 

The state’s primitive, low-tech economy revolves around cramming as many humans as possible onto every available acre. Few in
Tallahassee have the guts to admit that it’s time to change course.

 

This is where nature steps in. Try selling a new home or a condo when briny crud is dripping from the spigots.

 

Since its infancy,
Florida has had a contentious relationship with water. The
Everglades were diked and dredged to sabotage the natural flow, first for the benefit of agriculture and later for the benefit of land developers.

 

The
Everglades promptly began to die, and only when the financial ramifications became manifest did those same special interests rally behind the current restoration program.

 

Unlike
California and other fast-growing states,
Florida can’t hijack big rivers to supply its thirsty cities. Much of our water is pumped from porous rock underground and, without moderate rain, the levels keep dropping and salt intrusion progresses.

 

Building moratoriums

Once a contaminated well is shut down, it can take years to bring it safely back on line. Said Jesus Rodriguez, spokesman for the South Florida Water Management District, “The scenario is a grim one. We could be talking about bottled water for the municipalities for a long time.”

 

One way to gird for the future — and protect families who already live here — would be to impose building moratoriums in those counties where the water shortage is most acute.

 

This is way too simple and sensible. Moratoriums can’t be enacted unless local leaders are willing to stand up to developers, a rare occurrence indeed. The state is requiring counties to recycle water for nonpotable uses, but that doesn’t curb the liquid appetite of sprawl.

 

It’s lunacy to continue carving out subdivisions and erecting high-rises when the wells are drying up, but that’s the plan: Keep Florida growing, no matter what. Once the rainy season begins, everything’s gonna be fine, right?

 

Wrong. The state was soaked by hurricanes and tropical waves during 2004 and 2005, yet where’s all that water now?

As we all know, newcomers aren’t easily spooked away from
Florida. Despite predictions of another terrible storm season, the state’s population soared last year by nearly 431,000.

That’s the same as adding two more cities, each the size of
Orlando.

 

According to the

University of
Florida’s Bureau of Economic and Business Research, the state will have 20 million residents within three years, and almost 25 million by 2025.

 

Don’t let anybody tell you this is good news, unless you yearn for more taxes, higher insurance rates and water bills as hefty as your car payment. That’s the future, and it’s not so far off.

 

Encroaching saltwater

Rains will come this summer, as they always do, providing temporary cover for politicians who don’t want to confront the water crisis. Experts say it could take years of heavier-than-normal precipitation to restore safe levels in
Lake Okeechobee and saturate the aquifers sufficiently to stave off encroaching seawater.

 

Shortages will hit some communities sooner, and harder, than others. Eventually, state water managers will be forced to take action on a bolder scale than rationing sprinkler use.

 

Twice as many people are moving here as are moving out. The net population continues to expand at the dangerous rate of about 1,000 souls a day, and they’ll keep coming until there’s a full-blown water panic.

 

By then, we’ll all be sucking air.

 

HELP SAVE WHAT’S LEFT OF  FLORIDA…
LET THE PEOPLE VOTE to control growth! 

Help put HOMETOWN DEMOCRACY on the 2008 ballot

Please download and SIGN THE PETITION  ! 

http://www.FloridaHometownDemocracy.com

PO Box 636, New Smyrna Beach, FL 32170-0636.  

Deltona Burn Ban

Beginning Tuesday March 27, an outdoor burn ban is in place for the city of Deltona, and will remain in effect until further notice. The drought which has dried out most of Central Florida led the Deltona fire Department to call for the ban. Also, burning permits already issued by the city for residential and commercial sites are suspended. Violators of the ban face a maximum penalty of a $500 fine and 60 days in jail. Types of burning now prohibited are: Burning yard trash & household paper products Bonfires Campfires Warming fires Cooking Fires Setting fires to any brush- or forest-covered land. Contained gas or charcoal grills and burns authorized by the Florida Division of Forestry are exempted. For additional information, call Division Chief Chris Nabicht at (386) 860-7190.

Deltona Arts!

Watercolor Class photos at the art center.

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Deltona Arts & Historical Center

I just had the privilege of attending a watercolor class hosted by Brenda Starr.  What an enjoyable and relaxing night.  I have 4 more classes and hopefully I will feel confident enough to post one of my creations!

Just a reminder…the Center still has openings for volunteers for bike week at the speedway.  Put Detona Art Center in a search and there volunteer opportunities come up under Volunteer Match with the contact info.