Still on Sanibel and bemoaning a departure in just 3 days, I have loved the time ON the Island and AWAY from the daily grind. One of the many advantages to vacation time, even when mingled with many errands and tasks, is the clarity provided in seeing and reading things from a distance.
The rash of emails between the West Orange council members and We Care have been illuminating.
Work, illness in the family, a death in the family, discomfort with written communication, out of town visits: the council members are offering a variety of reasons why they have not gotten to and may not get to reading and remarking on the new tree ordinance scheduled for first reading on May 20, just 6 short days away.
While I totally understand that bad things happen to both good people and good ordinances, let's put this in perspective:
-The discussions have been on going for nearly 10 months.
-A broad field of volunteer environmental, land use, legal and community experts have hammered out several similar versions of a protective tree ordinance.
-The Council and City Administration have been shamefully negligent and/or obstructive in advocating for the environment. This has resulted in the paving over of acres of wooded areas in the township, and a huge obligation to build affordable housing.
And then there is the architect brought in by the city council to critique the new ordinance. Mind you, this is a structural architect, not a landscape architect. Don't architects depend on buildings, contractors and developers to keep their business thriving? Kind of like the fox guarding the hen house!
If this reading takes place on May 20, it will be nothing short of miraculous. The town council appear to continue to throw every obstacle in the path of progress.
And while there are reasons why things don't happen as they should, there are also excuses. Let's make sure we differentiate between the two.
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