The Problem at St. Joseph Shores

Witness the slow submersion of the St. Joseph Shores community.

Increasingly, with each major storm event, long-standing stormwater has been making its way closer and closer to the abandoned highway (now ironically named Watermark Way), the high elevation point in the community which separates most of the community from the Gulf.  At this time, three houses (two with long-standing permanent residents) have standing water under them.  Though this area has traditionally and temporarily flooded, the stormwater never became standing water (and never to the levels currently attained); it drained within a day or two to the south to Chickenhouse Branch.  The development of WindMark Beach surrounding St. Joseph Shores (SJS) has eliminated any functional drainage by raising the grades all around SJS in WindMark Beach while leaving SJS grades much lower.  The stormwater continues to accumulate and remain standing for longer and longer periods.  It is only a matter of time until it becomes permanent.

Known as the “Outparcel” at the heart of the WindMark Beach development, there are only a few voters within the community of St. Joseph Shores, but this 40 acres contributes $500,000 each year to the County tax base (5 percent of the County’s budget from less than 1/10th of 1 percent of the County’s area).  Therefore, SJS is a resource to be exploited with no political consequences because those few votes can't help or hurt anything.  The owners and residents there be damned.

How can this happen? It’s not that it wasn’t anticipated.  Preble-Rish, the County/City/JOE’s engineer of record, approached the County at the wind-down of the Miraval debacle to establish stormwater basins in the platted right-of-ways (ROW’s) within SJS – ROW’s intended for streets now converted to canals!  By government fiat – no discussion, no disclosure, no sunshine – no less!  And let’s not even talk about an absence of permits.  Or the fact that some lots are now landlocked with no access.

Don’t we have an elaborate system of checks and balances to prevent this? Checks and balances do not work if everyone passes on the responsibility. The JOE Co., the County, and the City all say it’s someone else's problem. The Corps of Engineers (issuing a blanket permit), FDEP (covering their own tail), FDOT (cynical beyond belief, see the companion pieces on the newspaper’s website) and even the Governor say the same thing.

They all knew that there was going to be stormwater accumulation in SJS.  They attempted to address that eventuality but failed miserably.  And now they want to ignore it.  It would cost money, and they ain’t payin’.  And they aren’t going to be held responsible, not in any case.  Never mind SJS’s yearly contribution to the County coffers – we ain’t payin’.  Not our deal.

Individual residents have petitioned the County Commission for relief, to no avail.  Owners in SJS formed an LLC to petition FDEP and JOE to not make the problem worse, to some avail, at the cost to residents of $16,000.  The LLC petitioned the County and City to establish a position that protected their property rights, to no avail.  Short of getting the State Special Prosecutor engaged, SJS is destined to become a tidal basin – devoid of property value (but a great amenity to WindMark Beach!).  See the companion pieces on the newspaper’s website for more specific detail on the general problem and the LLC’s presentation to the County and City.

We aren’t talking about “entitlements” here; we are talking about basic constitutional rights to own property and be left undisturbed to enjoy the rights of ownership. This is not about special dispensation or restitution – we are talking about investment and reasonable expectations of protection from the avarice of government.  We are talking about what is fair and what is not.  It might be SJS today, but it could be you tomorrow.

Take heed.

H. Eric Davidson

St. Joseph Shores