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Delay would dim spotlight on vote, critics say

A couple who want the county to vacate a street ask that the issue be pushed back to December - after Election Day.

By BARBARA BEHRENDT
Published September 23, 2006

HOMOSASSA - The Homosassa couple asking the county to vacate a street adjacent to their waterfront property now seek a delay in the proceedings.

The request has prompted residents who oppose the vacation to sound the political alarm.

They say a delay would be politically convenient for County Commission Chairman Gary Bartell because it would push the matter off the agenda until after the November election.

Bartell faces two challengers. He has been in the crosshairs of the Save the Homosassa River Alliance leadership for supporting the controversial expansion at the Homosassa Riverside Resort.

The River Alliance is suing over that approval, saying it violates the comprehensive plan.

Some in Homosassa see the street vacation as another step in the development process along the Homosassa waterfront.

In a letter to Bartell this week, attorney Larry Haag wrote that he had recently been hired to represent landowners Gerald and Patricia Roth, who are seeking the vacation of a portion of West Seminole Point.

Because he has just been hired, Haag requested that the County Commission delay its hearing until December.

"This is a rather complicated case dealing with county drainage issues, people who have placed permanent structures within the county right of way as well as my client's property; therefore, it would likely take at least two months to address the various aspects of this case," Haag wrote.

He said the delay is fine with Clark Stillwell, who represents the owners of the property on the other side of Seminole, Pierce's Homosassa Seafood.

"It looks to me like confirmation of our suspicions," said River Alliance member Jim Nicoll. "It looks to me like people who might want to make an unpopular vote will be very, very happy to see it postponed until after the election."

Said Ron Schultz of the River Alliance: "Whenever an event of any sort gets moved from before an election until after an election, one has to consider the possibility of political implications.

"This is an issue of immense interest in the Homosassa community," he said, noting that, for Bartell, "it should be comforting to him to have this delayed."

Schultz added that "any elected official who chose to vacate a waterfront road or right of way could be punished by the voters."

Earlier this week, during an editorial board meeting with the Citrus Times, Bartell insisted that he has not made up his mind about the proposed street vacation.

It is a quasijudicial matter, which means commissioners may not talk about the details before the commission meeting. In fact, Bartell said, he hadn't even seen the information packet on the application at that point.

He also sought to deflect discussion in the Homosassa community that he has some connection to the vacation through his daughter, who is married to the son of another area landowner.

"It's just politics, sheer politics," Bartell said.

Contacted Friday, Bartell said he could not comment on the proposed delay or any political implications.

Patricia Roth said she and her husband hired Haag about the same time that their next-door neighbor hired Stillwell. She said it was a shame that it had become a political issue.

The County Commission will decide Tuesday whether to grant the delay, county officials said.

Schultz said he expected people to be paying attention to that decision.

Nicoll agreed.

He said he does not see the issue as complicated at all. "This is the last road in Homosassa to give access to the river," and the comprehensive plan prohibits street vacations unless the street serves no public purpose.

"It's so clear," Nicoll said.

Barbara Behrendt can be reached behrendt@sptimes.com or 564-3621.

[Last modified September 23, 2006, 07:00:36]