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A New Gang of 3?
KONK REACTOR column
[Published in the KONK Life newspaper on February 28, 2013.]
A New Gang of 3?
Back in the 00’s, our Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) had a trio who voted YES in lockstep on any issue friendly to Keys developers. Want ROGO relief to get a project approved? SURE. Need to widen US1 to support more traffic to new developments? WE’LL DO WHAT WE CAN. Want a variance to build a big hotel in a working seaport? NO PROBLEM. They soon were dubbed the “Gang of 3”.
Nobody was surprised when they even okayed without deliberation an ordinance written by the developer’s lawyer to allow a massive Safe Harbor project! Thankfully a strong Dept of Community Affairs (DCA) rode herd on them and blocked much of their destruction. Nowadays, since our Tea Party Governor dismantled the DCA, the Gang of 3 could rape and pillage our Keys environment and quality of life at will — but all three were booted by a cautionary electorate tired of such devilment. (more…)
Rebel Yell
KONK REACTOR column
[Published in the KONK Life newspaper on December 20, 2012.]
Rebel Yell
At my home away from home in the mountains of North Carolina the old Confederate Battle Flag sore has begun festering again. Probably not so coincidental to the Tea Party bloom in that state — which was “purple” before going solidly “red” this last election — the flag has been appearing at public events lately. Those who fly them have convinced themselves that the flags are just “southern heritage” and refuse to accept the offense it brings to so many. (more…)
It Breaks a Village
KONK REACTOR column
[Published in the KONK Life newspaper on December 6, 2012.]
It Breaks a Village
Hillary’s expression “It takes a village [to raise kids]” is turned on its head in Key West. The (grown) children of the community must work to foster the village itself – especially the oldest neighborhood on the island: Bahama Village. I ashamedly have to admit, though, that our neglect has broken this Village…
The Bahama Village neighborhood dates back to the earliest days of our settlement and once covered the westernmost quarter of the populated island (when New Town was a salt marsh). Many descendents of African/Caribbean settlers ended up in this neighborhood. Over time, (more…)
2016: Romney’s America
KONK REACTOR column
[Published in the KONK Life newspaper on October 25, 2012.]
2016: Romney’s America
She closes the National Park Camping Reservations app on her cell after finding her favorite campground has been shut down to make way for exploratory oil drilling. She’d been looking forward to sharing with her kids the experience of the glorious parkland that she and her parents and her grandparents had held so dear. The kids have been heartbroken over their father’s recent tragic passing, and a visit to the pristine woodland would have done them good. Oh well…
She thinks about how their father passed away not long after his union job with health benefits had been off-shored and he’d had to accept one of Romney’s promised new jobs – barely above minimum wage with too few hours to qualify for any kind of benefits. (more…)
Unchartered Waters
KONK REACTOR column
[Published in the KONK Life newspaper on September 27, 2012.]
Unchartered Waters
There are plenty of people who’ve attended a charter school or have kids in one, and many claim they love it. There are some good charter schools that can be held up as evidence of their value. But I will probably piss off a few people when I say that I feel we need to rethink the whole concept.
Some people don’t like public schools for whatever reason. Often it’s because they want a fourth “R” – “religion” — to be added to the 3R’s — “readin’, ritin’ and ‘rithmatic”. In the old days, they would pull their kids out and put them into a private school. I have NO PROBLEM with that. If people want to spend their own money to get away from the schools that are good enough for the vast majority of us, that’s their prerogative.
But many of them feel they should get a school-tax break since they’re paying someone else to school their kids. The problem is that we don’t pay a “fee” for the kids who are in school, we pay a TAX that’s levied on our property. (more…)
People On The Street
KONK REACTOR column
[Published in the KONK Life newspaper on February 16, 2012.]
People On The Street
“There but for the grace of God go I.”
Could it happen to you? Many who are in that boat never thought it could. But unless you have very generous friends or family, you just might be one accident or illness or lawsuit away from living on the street. That guy you passed on the sidewalk yesterday certainly was. He never thought HE would be homeless one day.
I’m NOT a “bleeding heart” liberal. But I am extremely sympathetic when it comes to people down on their luck. I might not give them the change from my pocket, but I will fight on their side against those who want to kick them when they’re down. It’s really the right thing to do, and it’s also a matter of Karma, because it COULD happen to you — or me.
An old Army buddy of mine had skills, a decent job, a small happy family and a decent house. Drank one too many one day, crashed his car, drowning his wife and kid and maiming a bystander. Lost his job, and soon after, his house. He never expected he’d be on the streets. It’s that “easy”.
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Are there people on the street who are lazy and unwilling to help themselves, ready to take advantage of the good will of others? Undoubtedly. But can you tell the “freeloader” and the mentally ill apart? Are you willing to punish the hapless guy who’s trying to make it, or the shell-shocked veteran, just to make sure you don’t accidently give aid to a “bum”?
As a prime destination for the housing-challenged, Key West hosts more than its fair share of the homeless population. Anyone who’s lived on the Rock long enough knows how much stress this excess can have on our island. Back around the turn of the century, removal of encampments in the protected mangroves was a regular story. The “Bridle Path” across from Smathers Beach (as well as several other areas) was strewn with makeshift campsites. Something had to be done, and something WAS done: the City took Neil’s advice from his “People on the Street” song, where he sang “People on the street, need a place to go”.
Quickly (perhaps too quickly, from a permitting point of view) a Keys Overnight Temporary Shelter (KOTS) was born, on the property of our County “detention center” (jail) on Stock Island. It provided that “place to go” each night for about 150 with no place else to legally sleep. More importantly, it provided the City with a legal basis for disallowing the tents and sleeping hovels the homeless had been using on various public properties. The courts had held that we can NOT just run a homeless person out of town for sleeping on public ground – we HAVE to make sure that they have an alternative. With KOTS they do. So now, if you’re sleeping in an alley, you can’t claim a “right to sleep here” violation when challenged by the police.
On the same token, the courts have struck back at municipalities that try to enact an outright ban on begging. This is clearly a free-speech issue. You cannot order people to only speak what you want to hear. However the courts have held that you can regulate such “pan-handling” by limiting it to certain areas. As long as it’s not outright banned, and the areas are not completely isolated, you can regulate speech. And so again, this is what the City has done. Perhaps the currently defined “boxes” aren’t enough to withstand a court challenge, but the City is on a track that they feel can be defended.
The worst thing we as One Human Family can do is to adopt a total NIMBY (“Not In My Back Yard”) attitude. Certain communities are trying hard to interfere with facilities to help our homeless brethren get through their transition back to productive lives. Anonymous posters to the Voice and other forums call for total bans on begging anywhere – and even loading up homeless on busses for a forced ride out of the Keys. Others decry soup kitchens, implying that having to hike miles to stand in line for your next rudimentary meal is some kind of a free ride. What planet were these incessant whiners born on?
I have no doubt that the whiners will be the first in line at the soup kitchen when THEIR fortunes turn. You and I could be there right beside them.
Attacks on BCCLT hurting those it serves
David Lybrand guest editorial
[Published on the Key West Citizen Opinions Page on July 27, 2009.]
Attempts to tear down the BCCLT
are only hurting the people it serves
Here’s a Board of Directors executive “Dream Team”:
- President: Cecil Bain, a respected lifelong resident of the community and past teacher of many among us (including the esteemed Commissioner Lopez),
- Vice-President: Claude Halioua, a planning commissioner and respected businessman with many civic contacts,
- Treasurer: Glenwood Lopez, community and church leader (and Clayton’s big brother)
- Acting Secretary (previously President): Bob Kelly, community activist and Key West dynamo.
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Add the rest of the Board (no slouches there) and you get a team that should command a level of respect on par with other local housing-related organizations (e.g., Aids Help, Habitat for Humanity) or other community organization, period. (more…)
‘Keynoter’ editorial was way off the mark
David Lybrand guest editorial
[Published on the KeyNoter newspaper Opinions Page on February 25, 2009.]
‘Keynoter’ editorial was way off the mark
Under the title “TAMPOA’s arrogance hard to believe”, the KeyNoter again shows its contempt for a neighborhood full of good citizens. The editorial puts together a mishmash of falsehoods and distortions to draw the conclusion that this community — that contributes a full 10% of the entire property-tax base to the City of Key West — should be “blown out of the water”. Usually the KeyNoter is slow to participate in such muckraking, but someone there obviously has an axe to grind.
The first error in the editorial is that the gate work at the Truman Annex neighborhood entrance began “without warning”. On the contrary, the job went through the full permitting and compliance process and all work has been fully licensed by the city. There was nothing to hide. (more…)
{ Key West Senior Care blog }
This is a special case post, just directing you to the
Key West Senior Care blog
That blog is another repository of all of the letters to the editor, editorials, and radio appearances that I undertook during the push by the Florida Keys Assisted Care Coalition (FKACC) to have a portion of the Truman Waterfront assigned to them, during the second half of 2007. The repository is in reverse date order and includes additional editorial content by me that was only posted to that blog.
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Follow-up: The blog was discontinued at the end of 2007, however the lease process and RFP handling continued for at least 4 more years. I wrote a new article for the Blue Paper on this topic in 2011 ( HERE ). As of the time of this follow-up, the lease agreement with the selected builder is still being negotiated.
Proposal includes non-assisted upscale complex
Editorial by David Lybrand
[Published in Key West Citizen's Solares Hill on June 29, 2007.]
Proposal Includes Non-Assisted Upscale Complex
We need an assisted living facility in Key West. The Bayshore Manor facility is very limited at 16 units. Consequently, many of our elderly must look elsewhere (e.g., to the mainland) if no one locally is able to assist them through their twilight years. Virtually nobody in Key West would disagree with this need. It’s a given.
What’s not a given is that the so-called “assisted living” facility being planned for the Truman Waterfront is the best way to meet this need. Yes, it’ll provide more assisted units, but at what cost?
Is it really the only way to accomplish this? (more…)
City taking advantage of a good neighbor
David Lybrand guest editorial
[Published on the Key West Citizen Opinions Page on October 8, 2006.]
City of Key West taking
advantage of a good neighbor
It could happen to you, too, if you let it.
Picture this: You buy a house in front of a big empty lot.
Some of the neighborhood folks have been using your driveway to go see a pretty view from that lot. Being a good neighbor, you let them keep using it. Over the years the traffic grows, but you don’t complain.
One day the owner of that empty lot decides to sell it.
The buyer dreams of setting up new attractions on the lot, but no plan is made for how people should get there.
After all, you have been nice enough to let folks through your driveway (more…)