You might find a local measure on your ballot this mid-term election to help "keep Florida wild” — there are a couple in the greater Tampa Bay region.
Manatee County voters are deciding on a new property tax of up to 0.16 mills to buy land and prevent development. This would also authorize the county to take out up to $75 million in bonds, maturing within 20 years.
Conservation Florida endorses the referendum, saying it'll protect water quality, natural lands, and public preserves
Traci Dean, president and CEO of the Orlando-based nonprofit, said Manatee has grown by 30% the last 10 years.
“We're seeing a lot of that rural character and a lot of the wild places be transitioned into more intensive uses and developed areas. And so right now, the demand for clean drinking water and for parks and for natural areas and for wildlife habitat is increasing,” she said.
“Conservation ballot initiatives like this one give the community a direct say in how we protect natural resources that make Manatee County a really fantastic and beautiful place to live and work and raise a family.”
Plus, Dean said there’s a precedent for this, as 71% of Manatee voters previously approved a similar bond referendum in 2020 to protect 1,000 acres of local land.
This year’s ballot initiative would incorporate farmland, allowing the county to purchase development rights on agricultural properties and limit land practices to farming and ranching.
In Sarasota County, it's a question of continuing two established programs: the Sensitive Lands Program from 1999, and the 2005 Neighborhood Parkland Program.
There are two separate questions on the ballot for these.
One asks residents to vote on keeping the existing point 0.25-mill tax through 2049 to fund both programs. The other authorizes the county to use up to $250 million in bonds.
Conservation Florida is also endorsing both measures, as Sarasota has grown by about 19% the last 10 years.
“This is another part of the state where we're seeing a lot of growth, a lot of development, and the transition of our wild and our agricultural lands into homes and strip malls,” Dean said.
“What this will do is continue a very successful program in Sarasota County. This program has protected over 42,000 acres in its history.”
The Sarasota tax is expected to cost $51 a year for a median homesteaded house, while Manatee homeowners would be paying about $34 annually on their tax.
The referendums in both counties include annual audits and citizen oversight.
There are additional local conservation measures on the ballot for folks living in Brevard, Charlotte, Marion, St. Johns, and Santa Rosa counties.
