A proposal designed to prevent golf courses, pickleball courts and luxury resorts in state parks is ready to go to the full Senate.
The Senate Fiscal Policy on Tuesday backed the bill (SB 80) after rejecting a proposed change by Chairman Sen. Joe Gruters, R-Sarasota, that some parks supporters and lawmakers said would have kept the door open for sports facilities.
Sen. Gayle Harrell, R-Stuart, filed the bill after a controversy last year about the state Department of Environmental Protection’s “Great Outdoors Initiative,” a plan that called for adding golf courses, resort-style lodges and pickleball courts at state parks.
The plan was pulled back after a public outcry.
“This last summer was really a lesson in civics. It says the public does have a voice that counts,” Harrell said. “The overwhelming rejection of the attempt to do what was being done was across the state of Florida.”
A focus of last year’s plan was adding golf courses in the 11,500-acre Jonathan Dickinson State Park in Martin County. It also included building lodges with up to 350 rooms at Anastasia State Park in St. Johns County and Topsail Hill Preserve State Park in Walton County.
Pickleball courts and disc golf were outlined for other parks.
Under the bill, construction in parks could not harm natural resources, native habitats or historical sites.
Gruters’ proposed change might have allowed facilities such as golf courses, tennis courts, ball fields and pickleball courts if they were found not to cause “substantial harm” to natural resources or native habitats.
Gruters said the proposed change would have required public hearings, and his goal was to provide more recreational activities for people who can’t afford theme parks.
“The question is, do we trust ourselves, do we?” Gruters asked. “Do we trust the state government to make the right decisions?” he continued, which drew immediate responses of “no” from several lawmakers.
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Travis Moore, a lobbyist for Friends of the Everglades, said the Gruters proposal addressed lodging issues, but the “substantial harm” provision remained subject to interpretation.
“I don’t think the public this (past) summer was interested in setting a high hurdle, I think they were interested, as it came to golf courses, slamming the door,” Moore said.
Beth Alvi, Audubon Florida’s senior director of policy, said Harrel’s bill would draw a clear line between allowed and prohibited uses of state parks.
“The (Gruters) amendment, however, makes it muddy, leaving an ambiguous standard for what’s allowed and of course creates loopholes for bad ideas to be exploited,” Alvi said.
Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, encouraged Gruters to recraft the proposed change to allow “soft” maintenance needs at state parks, but to eliminate any “commercialization.”
After the amendment was rejected, Sen. Keith Truenow, R-Tavares, said more work is needed on the parks issue.
“I think there are some lands that we own today that probably shouldn’t be state parks, they don’t lend a real point to the mission,” Truenow said. “And there’s lands out in the state of Florida that need to be in the state parks.”
The House unanimously supported its version of the bill (HB 209) last Wednesday. The House and Senate would have to work out any differences before the scheduled May 2 end of the legislative session.
