Jupiter Island Friends and Residents:
All of us at Jupiter Island Forever wish you and your family a very Happy Holiday season. We hope you are surrounded by cheer and that you welcome in a season of great joy in 2023.
Included below is a short note from our friends at the Jupiter Island Garden Club that we wanted to share with you as we close out an important year for our Island and Martin County.
Thank you again for all of your continued support. Best wishes over the holidays and for the start of the new year.
Sincerely,
Jupiter Island Forever Leaders
Jupiter Island Garden Club
December 12th [Email Recap]
Martin County’s Comprehensive Growth Plan has kept it one of Florida’s most desirable places to live. You have only to compare Palm Beach County’s growth along Indiantown Road with the undeveloped land along Martin County’s Bridge Rd/route 708 to know that Martin County has responsibly preserved its special character and the open lands to the west.
The Comp Plan has limited density west of the urban centers of Hobe Sound, Salerno, Stuart, Palm City, etc. The Urban Services (police, fire, school, etc.) Boundary extends a short way west of those cities to contain growth and density close to the existing cities on the coast and preserve the agricultural land to the west. A weakened Urban Services Boundary means costly sprawl, more traffic and tax hikes.
Despite a huge public outcry by Martin County Residents, Martin County Commissioners have approved by 3-2 vote (Jenkins, Smith and Hetherington voted yes; Heard and Ciampi voted no.) a new designation called the Rural Lifestyle Designation will allow a large golf course community called Atlantic Fields, owned by Discovery Land, at the old Polo Fields on route 708/Bridge Rd. Rural Lifestyle will allow an average of one home per 5 acres in agricultural land currently zoned for one home per 20 acres and open up all of western Martin County to greater density and intensity. To let your Commissioners know how you feel about their decisions, you can reach them at: hjenkins@martin.fl.us, shetherington@martin.fl.us, dsmith@martin.fl.us, sheard@martin.fl.us, eciampi@martin.fl.us
Donna Melzer has filed a challenge to the Rural Lifestyle decision because it represents extreme negative changes to the Comp Plan. If you wish to support the challenge, you can do so by mailing a donation to: Littman, Sherlock & Heims Trust Account at P.O. Box 1197, Stuart, FL 34995.