If you enjoy Home Rule of Law, which gives you a say in the future development of your community, don’t get too comfortable. Self-governance as a constitutional right is quickly becoming a thing of the past.

The Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council’s “South Florida Transit Oriented Development Grant Program” documents THE master plan for asserting dominance over all local planning and zoning regulations, which eliminates Home Rule. Google it.

In their own words, the TCRPC will be the OVERALL GOVERNING BODY regarding transportation planning, comprehensive land use planning, urban design, low income housing initiatives, town planning and redevelopment. This is an immense amount of power in the hands of unelected bureaucrats who were not voted in and can not be voted out.

Yet our city council and planning & zoning department is caving in to the TCRPC. Why? As our city manager explained, “Because they can get the grants.”

With powerful political connections and lobbyists in Tallahassee, the RPC’s have the ability to procure millions in grants—your taxpayer money— from the even larger bureaucracies of HUD, DOT and EPA.

The bait is a $860,000 grant offered under the SFTODG program that MANDATES changes to current zoning laws to include high density population, compact, mixed-use development with increased building heights.  Any developer willing to implement the plan is being offered $205,000.

Our city council’s first act of submission was to allow the TCRPC to re-develop Old Downtown. Our Marine Commission has since succumbed to using the TCRPC as “consultants” for re-developing the Three Corners. The TCRPC is now dominating land use under a $500K grant in Gifford.

The TCRPC is also about to have its way with our Comprehensive Land Use Plans beginning June 6th.

The TCRPC’s credo is: “Regionalism: One Neighborhood at a Time.”

James Otis, Rule of Law – A mans home is his castle

Goodbye Home Rule of Law.

* Phyllis Frey was a FAA Safety Check Airman and line Captain for Comair, the largest Regional Airline in the U.S. in the 1980’s, the Delta connection.