Letters to the Editor: Dec. 8, 2021
‘Community development districts’ ought to be outlawed
Larry Reisman’s Dec. 5 column about the use of a Community Development District is timely. Undoubtedly he will get huge pushback from builders; even bankers.
CDDs are creative financing schemes which, first, provide “upfront” development financing instead of cash needed to break ground and provide infrastructure; maybe more. It’s similar to my getting a loan for my down payment on a mortgage, which is a violation of banking regulations that require I have some “skin in the game.” Therefore I assert they must be outlawed.
Second, it allows marketing at a lower sales price. Pay attention, competition. This attracts more buyers. In addition to the down payment, mortgage principal, interest, taxes; insurances (PITI) and HOA or condo fees is the CDD fee. It’s considerable. A buyer can pay off the CDD at closing or later. It’s those figures which expose the scheme. Simply add that amount to the sales price to arrive at the true purchase price.
Therefore, CDDs are not a tax, since taxes never “sunset.” They’re another mortgage which avoids banking regulations, a loophole in the various state and national regulations which protect depositors, banks (from themselves), and the nation. Recall, the sub-prime mortgages and derivatives caused the 2008 Great Recession.
Furthermore, in theory at least, since the developer had less skin in, its “walking away” is more likely. Then another development sits abandoned on the landscape.
Richard C. Silvestri, Fort Pierce
The deaths of manatees demonstrate the dire situation in the Lagoon
The situation in the Indian River Lagoon has been dire for several years now, but it appears to be reaching a critical point. This year has seen the highest number of manatee deaths ever recorded. Over a thousand manatees have died, many due to starvation. The majority of these deaths are in and around the Indian River Lagoon as a direct result of the pollution that has plagued the area for years.
The reason for this is that as water from Lake Okeechobee is drained into the lagoon, it carries large quantities of nutrients from sources such as fertilizers or leaking septic tanks. These nutrients, like nitrogen and phosphorus, stimulate the growth of algae in the Lagoon. When the algae bloom, it reduces the clarity of the water, making it harder for sunlight to reach the bottom. Without sunlight, the seagrass that manatees rely on as a food source cannot grow. This is the problem that has led to the mass-starvation of manatees this year.
The state of Florida needs to address this problem before it is too late. Manatees are a key part of the ecosystem within the Indian River Lagoon and a driver of tourism. If we allow things to continue as they have, fixing the lagoon is only going to take longer and become more costly.
The state government has made some tentative steps to address this, with Gov. Ron DeSantis recently promising $53 million to clean up the lagoon. Unfortunately, this is only a drop in the bucket compared to the $5 billion that the national estuary program estimates it will take to clean up the lagoon. Nevertheless, if we do nothing, then these manatees are just the beginning. The state of Florida needs to act before our community and its ecosystems are irreparably damaged.
Colin Dobbins, Palm City
Say it isn't so, Joe: Goodbye to annoying Medicare ads for 2021
Dec. 7 couldn't get here soon enough. That was the last day for seniors to make changes in their Medicare plans. Hopefully that was also the last day we'll have to endure the hundreds of daily commercials featuring aging sports figures and B-list "celebrities" touting one plan or another. I'm embarrassed for Joe Namath.
Eric Wells, Port St. Lucie
GOP wants to be ‘the party of parents’
Former President Obama's deputy campaign manager Stephanie Cutter sounded the alarm on the power of parents. Don't let [the Republicans] become the party of parents,” she said.
We know, the Democrats are playing politics with our children.
Let's review the “party of politics” — the Democratic Party.
Democrats have closed our schools, demanded and mandated masks for many children, and want to mandate COVID vaccines for school-age children. College-bound children are mandated to get the shot or be denied entry to some schools.
Statues are being removed from our cities, towns and universities and even the names of our schools are being changed. The Democrats are erasing our wonderful history. They have indoctrinated our children with a form of critical race theory and their twisted ideology. The teachers unions demanded and received millions in COVID-19 money, and the teachers never went into the classroom. If they received that money, how was it spent?
We are also being inundated with what they call political correctness; transgender bathrooms, gender pronouns and a choice of what sex you want to be, and of course climate change. On CNN, one of the commentators recently stated that Republicans are too stupid to understand the critical race theory taught in the schools. We do understand CNN's position.
On Oct. 15, the Martin County school system pulled their new fifth-grade reading comprehension unit. The reason given was that someone thought "it could be political and divisive." How much objectionable material was there? I want to know if this program is critical race theory under a new name.
Joanne Collins, Palm City
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Letters to the Editor: Dec. 8, 2021
