Carl Hiaasen on Amendment 4 - Florida Hometown Democracy ballot initiative

Author and Columnist Carl Hiaasen Supports Amendment 4



Gainesville---The Florida Hometown Democracy campaign bagged a winner .....At the March 2nd lecture sponsored by U.F.'s Graham Center, long-time observer of Florida's political scene and environmental issues, Carl Hiaasen, spoke decisively in favor of Florida Hometown Democracy's Amendment 4. It will appear on the November 2nd ballot statewide. A Miami Herald columnist for twenty-five years, Hiaasen said, "There's a huge constituency for saving what's left of Florida" He railed against the out-of-control development, saying he supported the amendment for offering a voice to Florida's citizens.

Calling Florida "a place that's hard not to love," he said he thought people were tired of seeing the loss of the state's natural beauty. The Amendment 4 issue came up in response to a question from a person in the audience of some 300 people. "Do you support Florida Hometown Democracy Amendment 4?" Hiaasen quickly responded, "I do. I think the Hometown Democracy Amendment is wonderful."

"They’re [politicians and developers] squirming like, you know, worms on a frying pan right now about this whole thing: the idea that people would actually have a say in what kind of developments go to their [neighborhood] .

"I mean obviously it could be abused, but the point of this Amendment is that if you live in a place, and they’re going to come in and put in a huge subdivision or a huge mall or something, that you could actually have a vote on whether or not that’s a good idea or not.

"It isn’t just a group of people that you go in and you listen to them and you make a decision. You stand up and they ignore you – which happens -- I don’t know what happens in your town -- but in South Florida that was the M.O. They would put that last on the agenda that night -- the big Zoning Board change, the zoning change – you know, to go from pastures and agriculture to 16-unit-per- acre density apartment complex. OK, true.

"They always would put it on at like 3 or 4 in the morning, when everybody was gone or tired or left, and then they would slide [it] on through.

"Now, the idea that they might actually have to deal with public sentiment on these issues has got them all running for cover. The Florida Chamber of Commerce is upset, everybody’s upset, because “It’s gonna give away the jobs. People! Don’t you understand?”

"So they’re squirming and hopping around. I love to watch that.

"I don’t know that it’s going to pass, but I love to see how frantic they are about it because the idea of public involvement, trust me, is the last thing they want. That is the last thing they want. They do not want to hear your opinion.

"When these projects – the way they get started and the way they funnel through the political system – with the lobbyists -- and this is going down to the city commission level, city council level. It doesn’t matter.

"It’s all the same game. And that is, you get to people, and you get their support. Even if it means contributing $10,000 to their campaign; one way or another they’ll do that. People can be bought all different ways, but nobody sitting on [the council/commission] changes their vote for no reason. That’s the first lesson you learn. It’s that when you’ve got a 5-4 vote and there’s an adjournment, and now you’ve got a 5-4 vote the other way, something happened in those 5 minutes, OK. That wasn’t just a change of conscience.

"So this will put it directly in the public’s lap. At least in certain neighborhoods, they can make these decisions. I think it would be a great thing as an experiment to see how it does.

"I don’t know that it’s going to pass, but I like the idea."

To another question from the audience---" Why was there no opposition in Florida to weak land policies in both depressions, 1933 and 2008?"

Hiaasen replied:

"Greed. Greed. There’s no mystery to that. It’s not just Florida, by the way It’s not just endemic to Florida.

"The point from the beginning has been to get as many people here as we possibly could, and cram them into as much space as we could. Especially waterfront, oceanfront property. That’s been the whole game from the beginning. It’s not going to change, ever, you know. It’s just about money. It’s not about the place. It’s not about, you know, the quality of life, really. It’s about making money.

"And that’s what rules the day, generally speaking, in most states, politically. Anything that’s seen as an impediment to making money, the cry goes out, “You’re costing us jobs! Oh you’re costing us jobs!”

"We could put in this rock-mining pit in West Dade, and, “You’re going to cost us 17 jobs!” You know, 40 acres of digging up limestone on the edge of the Everglades. “But it will cost us 17 jobs!” or whatever. It’s ridiculous. That’s the battle cry. They’ve all got the same script. It doesn’t matter where you are. You go in any state and hear it."

Carl Hiaasen has authored twenty-one satirical novels with Florida settings. His next novel, "Star Island", is due out this Fall. He has also written children's books and collaborated with Jimmy Buffett to produce a movie of his book, "Hoot". The full lecture, "On Florida", can be viewed at www.graham.centers. ufl.edu/