Days have passed and yet the pain and anger of what will happen to The Acreage, Loxahatchee and the surrounding areas still feels as fresh and raw as the day it went down.
Most of us residents hoped beyond hope and believed that we stood a chance and that our voices, loud and clear, would tell the elected officials that we opposed the Minto West development and the others to come. And that they would listen and understand that it did not fit and was too monstrous to consider approval. That they would hear our cries of “NO!” and vote accordingly; that the overwhelming evidence of adverse affects would be understood.
Alas, the money train that is development came barreling through the commission chambers and blew the citizens off the tracks.
There is no more rural Palm Beach County. There will only be concrete and chaos. Traffic will overrun the community and drive a wedge between neighborhoods. Our dirt roads will be paved, and we will be forced to watch the unique country lifestyle die. This was never the intention of the original “developers” of The Acreage.
When will every concerned resident in this county say enough? When will it matter to someone who does not live out west enough to realize that when it goes, it is gone forever? There will be no more “out there.” It will only be one more city melding into another. When do we stop letting the developers come in and change zoning and land use laws that create exactly what those laws sought to protect against?
Why, why, why, is no one paying attention except the people living out here? We cannot vote for the commissioners in other districts who are deciding our futures. They can vote to put a city in the middle of our country, and yet we are powerless to do anything about their actions. And they know it!
It is clear to me that the impact fees for the developments out in the west are a treasure trove for the other districts to use for their own “improvements.” Their needs are immediate, whereas ours will stay out of sight for a bit longer, and we will continue to wage the war in obscurity as the funds are gobbled up by the other districts. These commissioners will be considered heroes in their districts at the expense of ours.
This is the most shameful experience I have ever endured at the hands of strangers. I would advise all citizens of Palm Beach County to go online to the county web site and view the meeting. See for yourself what absolute arrogance and disdain these commissioners have for our way of life and what we want for our area. You might rather have sharp sticks in your eyes than to sit through a government meeting, but you must become involved to keep them from doing this again and again and again… and maybe next time it will be in your district.
Suzanne Hetrick, Loxahatchee Groves
The Commissioners listened to the residents, at least not the ones that went off half cocked at the meeting with insults and accusations.
Your side lost, GET OVER IT. No one’s lifestyle is going to be destroyed, in fact, it’s most likely going to be enhanced by better roads, newer and more parks, new amenities, and services for our area that have been sadly lacking.
But you aren’t ever going to use them…right???? wink wink