Resolution 482-2007
RESOLUTION NO. ~2-2007
A RESOLUTION OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY
COMMISSIONERS OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA,
SUPPORTING THE STATE FLORIDA FOREVER
PROGRAM AND A SUCCESSOR STATE LAND
CONSERVATION PROGRAM FOR THE FUTURE.
WHEREAS, the Florida Forever Program, and its predecessor Preservation 2000, have
contributed immeasurably to environmental health, quality of life, recreation, and sustainability
in Florida for this and future generations, and
WHEREAS, Florida Forever and Preservation 2000 have allocated $300 million annually
since 1990 to purchase environmentally sensitive and other lands, and have done so through
numerous successful partnerships with counties, cities, state agencies, water managements
districts, nonprofit organizations, private landowners, and others in achieving its conservation
purposes, and
WHEREAS, Florida Forever has acquired over one million acres of Florida's most special
and important places since 2000, and
WHEREAS, Florida Forever has helped to save many of Florida's beaches, rivers, bays,
forests, coral reefs and estuaries that provide the foundation for our $3 billion tourism industry
that attracts more than 70 million visitors each year, and
WHEREAS, Florida Forever, through the Department of Environmental Protection, Water
Management Districts, and other programs, produces benefits that include clean air and water;
healthy fisheries and wildlife habitat; improved water supply protection; and protected open
spaces including greenway corridors, park lands, forests, and water bodies, and
WHEREAS, Florida Forever, through Florida Communities Trust, has assisted Florida's
cities and counties in protecting their cultural and historical resources, meeting the challenges of
growth management, directing development away from coastal high hazard areas and
floodplains; fostering a healthier lifestyle for Floridians; and providing recreational outdoor
experiences in both urban and rural settings, and
WHEREAS, the other components of Florida Forever that undertake diverse land
conservation activities that benefit all Floridians are the Florida Recreation Development
Assistance Programs (FRDAP), Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FFWCC),
Division of Forestry of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Office of
Greenways and Trails, and Florida State Parks Inholdings and Additions Program, and
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WHEREAS, 50 Florida local governments have enacted their own local government land
acquisition programs in recent years, and these conservation finance programs serve to leverage
Florida Forever funding and increase the positive impact of State land conservation funding, and
WHEREAS, the current funding for the Florida Forever program is insufficient to achieve
the wide range ofland conservation objectives identified in the Florida Forever Act, and
WHEREAS, the effectiveness of Florida Forever's annual funding has diminished
dramatically because of both escalating land prices and the impacts of inflation since 1998; and,
WHEREAS, because land values have decreased slightly in the past year, after having
more than doubled between 2000 and 2006, Florida Forever has a rare opportunity at present to
take advantage of the current market for land conservation and for the betterment of all
Floridians, and
WHEREAS, research by the Florida Forever Coalition has found that over $20 billion is
currently needed to purchase parks and recreational facilities, wildlife and wilderness areas, and
open space for our state's increasing population, and
WHEREAS, public opinion surveys regularly demonstrate that 70% or more of Floridians
approve ofthe land protection benefits of the Florida Forever program, and
WHEREAS, the many important places in Monroe County whose purchase and permanent
protection have been achieved from Florida Forever include Plantation Tropical Preserve, Green
Turtle Hammock, Marathon Waterfront Park, Key West Tropical Forest and Botanical Garden,
portions of the Florida Keys Overseas Heritage Trail, and numerous natural areas from Key
Largo to Big Coppitt Key within the North Key Largo Hammocks, Florida Keys Ecosystem, and
Coupon Bight/Key Deer projects; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF MONROE
COUNTY, FLORIDA, THAT:
I. The Board supports an increase in the funding allocated to Florida Forever through a
combination of accelerated use of existing Florida Forever bond authority and action by the
State Legislature.
2. The Board supports the creation and funding of a successor program to the Florida Forever
program that provides substantially increased long-term funding for Florida Forever's land
conservation purposes.
3. The Clerk is requested to forward copIes of this resolution to the County's legislative
delegation.
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4. This resolution shall be effective upon adoption.
PASSED AND ADOPTED by the Board of County Commissioners of Monroe County, Florida,
at a meeting of said Board held on the 14th day of November 2007.
Mayor McCoy
Mayor Pro Tern DiGennaro
Commissioner Spehar
Commissioner Neugent
Commissioner Murphy
(SEAL)
Attest: DANNY L. KOLHAGE, Clerk
BY~C /~Oh1-&4--
Deputy Clerk
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BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA
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