Disregard for existing conservation easements threatens Killearn Chain of Lakes | Opinion
The city of Tallahassee’s recent decisions to permit developments that violate conservation and preservation features are alarming. A recent post by Leon County Commissioner Brian Welch sparked a firestorm of comments about a development turning a natural recreational lake into a stormwater pond for commercial development on Thomasville Road and a future realignment of Velda Dairy Road. This is a result of local officials’ apparent willingness to use discretionary authority to disregard established environmental protections.
The Killearn Chain of Lakes, already deemed impaired by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) and burdened by excess nutrients under a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL), is facing water scarcity. As a result, the Killearn Homeowners Association established a Lakes Restoration Committee. According to the permit, the new pond will impound up to 60% more water during storms, further diminishing Lake Killearny and worsening its struggling ecosystem.
Construction so far has had little or no erosion control, turning the site into a muddy mess. FDEP conducted a site visit and issued a warning. Excess sediment is being carried into Lake Kinsale from turbid water pumped from the site, causing it to fill with mud, according to neighbors.
Until now, the Bull Run subdivision was a prime example of proper permitting and an environmentally responsible development. It saved many of the existing trees, including a wooded buffer around most of the parcel, although replanting should have been better. Large conservation easements preserved lakes, sinkholes, wetlands, and two natural creeks, creating a wildlife corridor ending at the once-gorgeous Velda Dairy Lake.
Unfortunately, three separate "perpetual" conservation easements meant to protect the lake, and by extension Killearn just downstream, were disregarded by city permitting.
For other projects, the city’s growing use of its “Linear Infrastructure Variance” ordinance raises concerns over its legality, as it grants the city manager or city commission unilateral power to grant environmental variances for public projects without oversight.
The ordinance’s usage for public-private partnerships further muddies the already-turbid water. For example, the city commission recently voted in a split-decision to authorize filling 6 acres of unaltered wetlands, a preservation feature, for the construction of Welaunee Boulevard. The same Blueprint project controversially violated a conservation easement established by CeRCA (Centerville Rural Community Association) for the expanded Northeast Gateway connection to Roberts Road.
The Weems Road Extension used the ordinance to turn a natural conservation area filled with egrets into a stormwater pond, and the upcoming final segment of Blueprint’s Capital Cascades Trail project also won’t be able to be permitted without a variance from the city commission.
The county has done a much better job of preserving natural features through the permitting process. But these recent decisions suggest the city can no longer be relied upon to follow its own laws. The city should hold itself to a higher standard and follow its own regulations, not just for the sake of the environment, but for the health and well-being of its residents.
Max Epstein is a researcher at the DeVoe Moore Center in the College of Social Sciences and Public Policy at Florida State University as well as an artist, scientist, and environmental advocate working to restore Lake Munson.
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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Disregard for existing conservation easements threatens Killearn Chain of Lakes
