This year our parks are safe, but what about next year?   Reflections on the life and death of the NOT Great Outdoors Initiative —————————— Friend, There are moments in Florida history that stand out for their brazenness. Covert attempts to put profit over protection of our water and lands; miscalculations by politicians who think they can get away with it. This month’s sneak attack on state parks by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration will rank among the worst — and it triggered resounding public opposition that paid off. At least for now. There’s good reason to remain vigilant, and we intend to. DeSantis’ remarks at a press conference Wednesday were shifty and dismissive. He didn’t take responsibility for his Department of Environmental Protection’s plans to allow damaging development at nine state parks as part of the so-called “Great Outdoors Initiative.” Instead, he blamed environmental groups and state employees for sounding the alarm on plans to build golf courses, hotels and pickleball courts on environmentally sensitive lands. “A lot of that stuff was just half-baked, and it was not ready for prime time,” DeSantis said at the press conference. He didn’t talk about the masses of people who rose up in defense of our state parks. But we will. If you were one of the thousands who called or sent emails to elected officials, who waved signs, stood with us at rallies, and helped spread the word, THANK YOU. Our voices made a difference. DeSantis said Wednesday he was sending FDEP back to the drawing board, and the agency would not pursue any of the proposals “this year.” Read that as: This year our parks are safe, but what about next year? Even as we celebrate this news, we’re not letting our guard down and neither should you. Much of this process has been played from the shadows — from the leaked memo, to the hastily scheduled (and then postponed) public meetings, to the shady group that emerged to claim responsibility for the golf course proposal in Jonathan Dickinson State Park. Even DeSantis claimed during Wednesday’s press conference to have not known about these plans until they were leaked to the public — an odd assertion given the official press release from FDEP announcing them. The question is: Have government leaders become so out of touch with their constituents that they feel they can act with impunity to steal the public lands we already fought and won major battles to protect? What sacred space will they feel entitled to place on the chopping block next? This assault on state parks was particularly vile because these are supposed to be some of Florida’s most closely guarded natural lands. As of now, the amendments for each of the nine parks outlined for development in this initiative remain on FDEP's website. We won't rest easy until they've been confirmed dead. The silver lining to all of this was YOU — the people who refused to roll over or back down. For that, we are grateful and proud. By locking arms with environmental allies and the people of Florida, we secured a victory this week, but the fight isn’t over. Time will tell if this same proposal reemerges next year, with a new name and a more nefarious plan for selling it to the public. We will be watching. How can you help? Make a donation to Friends of the Everglades to ensure our ability to respond to threats like these when they arise. In the meantime, I hope you can get out there this holiday weekend to enjoy the state parks that we all fought so hard to protect. Keep it wild, Eve Samples   P.S. You are receiving this message because you are a supporter of our affiliated 501(c)4 VoteWater. To remain on the list receiving important action alerts and updates from Friends of the Everglades, sign up now. Friends of the Everglades was founded in 1969 to preserve, protect and restore the only Everglades in the world. VoteWater's mission is to fight political corruption in Florida by galvanizing public resolve to end the systemic pollution and mismanagement of our waterways.     VoteWater | 3727 SE Ocean Blvd Suite 200 | Stuart, FL 34996 US Unsubscribe | Update Profile | Constant Contact Data Notice