Fool Me Once

 

Today a 3-judge appeals tribunal handed the Longboat Key commission a stunning defeat. The town lawyer's land use litigation losing streak remains intact. The town might finally look elsewhere for legal advice. The primary duty of a municipal attorney is to keep that municipality out of expensive court proceedings; especially if the municipality will lose. 

 

The latest appeals court loss may expose the town to law suits and costly litigation from property owners who have been denied unfettered access to the real estate markets due the the town's ill-advised legal gambits against its own residents.

 

Judge Roberts, and now the Florida appeals court, have ruled that the LBK commissioners broke the law when they zealously advanced the interests of the Key Club. Bob White and the members of IPOC are to be congratulated for their unflinching conviction that the town commission had violated the property owner's legal rights.

 

Those on the commission and the town's previous planning director, who opposed the Key Club expansion as being inappropriate and needlessly dense, have been vindicated. It has been stated before, I was always in favor of improvements at the Key Club, but not at the expense of surrounding property owners.

 

While on the commission, I requested that the commissioners retain an outside, disinterested land use attorney to advise the commission concerning the Key Club proposal. I had lost faith in the two lawyers retained by the town. At that time I expressed my doubts that the town was on firm legal footing if they approved the KC expansion. Unfortunately, there was no support for this proposal, most especially from the town lawyer. If the commission had insisted that the Key Club proposal be adjusted to the point where the surrounding community was comfortable, the Key Club expansion would already be in its 3rd year and close to being completed. Instead we have had a paralysed real estate market on the south end. Who in their right mind would not be cautious about investing while there was a lawsuit pending on the property.

 

Unfortunately for our residents, this commission will try to get around this resounding slam by the Florida courts by shamelessly gutting our comprehensive plan and those building codes specifically needing change to specifically address the Key Club expansion. If the commissioners once again look to the town lawyer's advice, they should also look at his win/loss record in land use litigation he has managed on behalf of our community.

 

If the new Key Club owners really want to add value for themselves and for our community, they should work with the affected property owners and the commission to create a win-win design that is more appropriate for Longboat Key, keeps the process out of the courts, and hastens the completion of the entire process.

 

The town could now retain an expert land use attorney to advise the town how to avoid another court defeat that could be even more destructive to our property owners than the most recent rout. There is that old saying - Fool me once shame on you. Fool me twice shame on me.

 

This commission, and sadly Longboat Key, will now be immortalized in the law journals and legal precedents citations as a Goat Rodeo. We can do better than that. We need some changes and we need them before more damage is done.

Where Angels Fear to Tread

Juliani Kenney Investment Capital, LLC is in the process of purchasing the old bank building owned by PFG Asset Managenent and occupied by Montgomery Asset Management. Additionally Juliani Kenney are aManagementlso trying to purchase all the land bounded by GMD, Broadway Street, Cedar Street and Palm Court. These purchases constitute a significant increase in investments for Juliani Kenney on the north end of Longboat.

Prior to their latest acquisitions, JKIC purchased Whitney plaza for $3.7 million in December, 2010 and have so far been unable to attract any retail businesses to the plaza. At a recent Village Association gathering Brian Kenney described the challenges of persuading anchor retailers, such as Walgreen Drug or Panara Bread, to locate at Whitney Plaza. Brian spoke of drive-by counts and other metrics employed by retail chains to evaluate future store locations. Given the 2010 census figures listed below, it is little wonder that Juliani Kenney are finding it difficult to rent space in the now dilapidated shopping mall.

"The percentage of residents ages 65 and up rose to 67.3%, from 58.3% in 2000. The percentage of residents ages 85 and up rose by 46%, with 8.2% of residents age 85 or older in April 2010, compared to 5.1% in April 2000. The island, which experienced a 9.4% decline in population over the past decade according to the census, lost residents in every age group from ages 15 through 74. " The number of people who call themselves "residents" decreased 41%.

In the face of daunting demographics and lack of success, over the past few months, in attracting retailers to Whitney Plaza, Juliani Kenney choose to double-down their bets, so to speak, by investing in still more commercial real estate at the north end.

I try to put myself in the shoes of Juliani Kenney in light of their most recent acquisitions. I keep stumbling on the fact that the new parcel and Whitney Plaza are separated my Cedar Street. In addition, the northern parcel is narrow, by commercial standards, and thus difficult to develop without adding to the property depth. That can only be accomplished by acquiring Palm Court which bounds the property on the east.

To my way of thinking to invest millions in two commercial real estate parcels that are separated by a well-trafficked street is going where angels fear to tread. Prior to Juliani Kenney all of this land appeared to be commercially inviable. Andrew Vaac was not able to resell the bank building just as Andrew Hlywa was unable to make a go-of-it at Whitney Plaza. In fact a succession of owners over the past 20 years have all failed to operate Whitney Plaza at a profit.

Personally I would be worried about acquiring two separate and previously financially unsuccessful commercial properties without almost absolute assurance that I would be able to join the two parcels and widen the northern parcel. That would of course require that the town commission deed the streets over to Juliani Kenney. That could be a problem if the residents at the north end do not want to abandon the well used thoroughfares. At present many village residents use both Palm Court and Cedar street as a "safe" access route to get onto GMD headed south.

In several newspaper articles about recent Juliani Kenney land purchases, a few different threads emerge about how best to utilize the newly purchased land parcels. Brian Kinney appears to believe there may be a need for a hotel on the property. Certainly this is a far more ambitious project than the one previously put forth by Juliani Kenney of revitalizing the retail space at Whitney Plaza. It is doubtful that anything now will be done to the crumbling Plaza if a new "grand design" is put forth. That could mean many years of empty building blight at the north end while the economy recovers to a point where investors might be willing to spend tens of millions to launch a large scale redevelopment of Whitney Plaza. I can envisage an exclusive low-rise tasteful boutique hotel, beautifully landscaped and blending-in with the existing ambiance of the north-end as being an enhancement to the community.

There still remains the problems for retail and tourism created by an increasingly affluent community that spends only a few months a year on Longboat. Because there are relatively few people living on our island most of the year, it is almost impossible to make a living here if you run a retail business or tourist facility. Each new hotel/motel room, each new store that is built/opened on the island dilutes the already inadequate pool of paying customers. As Longboat became more and more popular as a winter retirement retreat, more and more real estate was converted from tourism to condominium usage. Even with many fewer tourism units the occupancy rates are still dismal. Many people who come to Longboat in off season say it looks like a ghost town. As on drives up GMD at night all the condominium windows are dark. This may present a challenge to anyone looking to open a tourist attraction on the island and attract year-round clients.

Perhaps the best and easiest solution to the dilemma the commission thinks exits on Longboat is to relax and get comfortable with what we have become - a seasonal retirement retreat for the well-to-do. This is a good thing to be if you are one of the 18,000 or so fortunate residents of our island. There is really nothing that needs doing. We are all doing just fine. Housing sales are coming back. We have finally achieved a stable retail/tourism presence after the build-out of the island. Let's just settle in and enjoy our beautiful community just as it is.

Ex-mayor Spoll recently cautioned the town and the commission about community reaction to inappropriate development on the north end. I agree with his assertions that the north end ambiance is uniquely "old Florida" and should be preserved as a major asset to out entire community. To his credit Brian Kenney stated "It’s definitely not our desire to build a monstrosity that upsets the town and nearby residents.” It remains to be seem if his definition of monstrosity is similar to that of north end residents.

Let's hope our development-fixated commission and planning board heed George Spoll's advice.

The Mythos of the Vision Plan



Mythos - a pattern of beliefs expressing the characteristic or prevalent attitudes in a group.

I find it interesting that my reading of the now "adopted" vision plan differs so greatly from the interpretation of the vision plan being expressed by a couple of the town commissioners.

1. Background - the opening paragraph of the new vision plan states that the entire vision plan is crafted against the background of a momentary economic cycle. I feel that a vision plan should be rooted in prevailing community values and not on ephemeral economic conditions. Whereas the commissioners justified their actions based on business and money, those are hardly the values one looks for when looking for a new home or new schools or community social amenities. The entire vision plan is all about business and commercial profits. Only here and there is any mention made of residents or neighborhoods or town amenities.

2. Vision - the second paragraph also emphasizes commerce as stated "The core values are to create and reinforce a welcoming community and government atmosphere with a common sense approach to managing the mix of resident, visitor, and commercial uses of Longboat Key". Note that two of the three core values are tourism and business.

3. HOW WE GET THERE - in this section of the vision plan we again see an emphasis on restoring tourism and commerce, creatively reinvigorating underutilized commercial areas and supporting restaurants. In 1983 I participated in a sort of vision plan effort in Lake Tahoe. In Tahoe it was all about the people, schools and quality of life. I do not believe any mention was made about supporting eateries. Perhaps the greatest deterrent to families buying homes on Longboat is a lack of good schools. Perhaps we might do better as a community working at facilitating quality education in the two counties rather than what is on the menu.

4. CHALLENGES - here again 6 of the 8 paragraphs deal specifically with the deteriorated condition of businesses and tourist facilities on the island. As far as I can tell if a motel or shop looks dilapidated there is no one to blame other than the owner. Do the current commissioners really expect the taxpayers, most of whom cannot even vote, to devote town resources to prop-up failing businesses that are no longer in demand by island residents? I sincerely hope not.

5. "What is the potential future of Longboat Key if nothing is done? Longboat Key will be a much less enjoyable and convenient place to live, if all basic necessities, from gasoline to groceries to medical needs to entertainment, will only be found off the Island. Visitors will still be amazed at the beauty of the island, but may also come to the conclusion that there is absolutely nothing to do here beyond the beaches and possibly the resort. They will opt to purchase homes where they can have both - beauty and the conveniences that Longboat Key should offer."

I find this passage in the vision plan to completely miss the obvious - there really is nothing to do on this island. Except for a ridiculously high priced golf course and a really good community tennis center, what else is there to do for the greater part of the population? Surely the commissioners do not believe that going to an over-priced gas station constitutes something to do. As for aspiring to a robust medical system in our seasonal tiny community, I suggest the commissioners attempt to find an analogous community model somewhere else, before including it in a vision plan. We do need things to do and they are nowhere to be found in the vision plan. We need an adequate community center to the focal point of community activities that appeal to all our residents. We need social amenities and activities scattered throughout the community. We need places for residents and visitors to meet one another and provide entertaining healthy activities.

6. Points of Community Consensus - "The strength of a vision plan is directly proportional to the level of community consensus in support of it. The following points enjoyed a high level of consensus and were valued input in the writing of the plan:"

I do not know of any evidence that here is "a high level of consensus" concerning the vision plan. I was one of the 300 panelists on the original vision plan. My table of 8 was comprised of 100% business people and only two of us were residents. Observers of the process have confided in me that they believed the great majority of the panel members were business people. There is nothing wrong with the business community being the major component of the vision plan so long as that is make that clear. The town hired a $100,000.00 expert named Marlowe to manage the original vision plan effort. Mr. Marlowe advised the town that the then vision plan would not be legitimate without a comprehensive community survey to validate the vision plan. Instead of that we are now given a hand-picked committee and told that that constitutes the new consensus for the new vision plan. I don't believe the vision plan has been validated by the community so it remains illegitimate.

I suggest that the commissioners might better serve the community by finding a way to sell houses since that is our most pressing problem at the moment. What good is a vision plan, drafted by a hand-picked committee, aspiring to resurrect a business and tourist presence that may never have made economic sense, when all we see is For Sale signs everywhere. That, and not what some restaurant is serving for supper, is making the greatest impact on the vitality of Longboat Key.