Jupiter Island Friends and Neighbors,
We have a few newsworthy updates to share with you as many of us are getting back to Jupiter Island just in time to enjoy some of the most beautiful weather in the country. Below we have highlighted election news in Florida that centers on the debate around how much development is best in our beautiful, coastal communities. We also share an important update about the erosion hot spots here in Jupiter Island.
DEBATES ON DEVELOPMENT OF COASTAL FL COMMUNITIES
Ahead of the election coming up in November, we have seen the issue of how much development is best for coastal Florida communities take center stage.
In our own Martin County, for example, six-term Martin County Commissioner Doug Smith lost his primary to Eileen Vargas. As the TC Palm reported, “Six-term Martin County Commissioner incumbent Doug Smith was defeated by challenger Eileen Vargas in Republican primary voting that ended Tuesday…In his campaign, Smith stressed his past work on water issues while Vargas sided with residents concerned about growth and development.” Another TC Palm story about campaigns this year said, “There’s no disagreement among the three Martin County Commission District 3 candidates about the foremost issue this election: It’s growth and development.”
Similarly, we just saw the statewide defeat of a state plan to develop multiple Florida State Parks including our local Jonathan Dickinson State Park for the purposes of building golf courses. As the Sun-Sentinel reported, the outcry was fierce. “‘Over my dead body will there be a golf course at Jonathan Dickinson State Park!” wrote [Congressman Brian] Mast on Facebook. State Sen. Kathleen Passidomo posted her distaste on X, and U.S. Sens. Marco Rubio and Rick Scott called the plan ‘absolutely ridiculous’ in a joint letter.”
Up the coast some in Flagler County another mayor who had been seen as very supportive of the development in Palm Coast, Florida also lost his primary. Palm Coast Mayor David Alfin did not make the runoff in his election. He had been quoted in his local paper as defending the need for development and growth in his coastal area.
Specifically, Alfin said in the News-Journal, “‘I do think that the mayor in the city of Palm Coast, not the person, the seat, tends to be a focal point for the inevitability of growth and development,’ Alfin said. ‘And I think that people are having a hard time adjusting to growth. And also may not understand City Council members, including the mayor, have no authority to stop growth. But the focal point does tend to sit or reside or point toward the mayor’s seat because you are the face of the government.’”
Florida voters all around the state are clearly trying to balance the beauty of their coastal communities with the pressures of growth and rising populations that continue to mount by the day. This struggle even made national news recently when the Wall Street Journal featured a story titled, “On a once-sleepy stretch of Gulf Coast shoreline, Walton County is a hot spot in the battle over landowner rights and public-beach usage.” It features the battles in Walton County (northwest of us in Florida’s panhandle) between beachfront landowners and those in their surrounding community about who really owns the beach there and therefore who is allowed access to it.
EROSION HOT SPOT AREAS
A few months ago, we had the pleasure of hearing from Director of the Beach Protection District and Assistant Town Manager John Duchock. John flagged some “hot spot” erosion areas along South Beach Road. John said, “When we do get down towards the 300, 400 block, those areas have thinned out. They had been reported. I’ve been noting them as potential hotspot areas. So here we are in June of last year. You can kind of see where things had been eroded. In these areas specifically we had seen activity last month [see Erosion Hot Spot Area Map below]. This is fairly stable now. Still thin but have not changed on that upper beach.”
*The below map and related photos are what John presented at the meeting to explain his concerns about potential erosion hot spots forming along the 300-400 block of South Beach Road.
A big thank you to John Duchock for bringing the erosion hotspots to our attention. We will continue to keep you updated as other important information is conveyed during our town meetings, especially as many of you are traveling back to Jupiter Island for the season. Please continue to also monitor possible storm systems as more major storms are likely later in hurricane season. If you have any questions about these updates or want to receive any additional information directly, please let us know. Thank you for your continued support.
Sincerely,
Jupiter Island Forever Leaders