Letter to the Editor in today's Orlando Sentinel

Worthwhile purchase

September 26, 2006

In response to Kevin Spear's front-page story, "State may buy land at 50% markup":

As a 10th-generation Floridian, I am glad to see the bureaucrats at the St. Johns River Water Management District have finally gotten both the State of Florida and Orange County to agree on the purchase of the Joshua Creek Conservation Area.

It is true that the current owners are going to make a sizable profit. But the state has been twiddling its thumbs for more than two decades before finally agreeing to buy the land. Time is money.

What dismays me more is the coverage the acquisition has received in the local media.

One television station bemoaned the cost of these undeveloped parcels of land that "no one will ever live or drive on."

When are all the newcomers around here going to wake up to the fact that Central Florida land isn't to be used only for more buildings and cars?

As more and more people crowd in around us, we Central Floridians need to take more proactive steps to preserve undeveloped areas for the sake of both posterity and our own well-being.

I, for one, hope that Gov. Jeb Bush and his Cabinet approve the purchase of the Joshua Creek Conservation Area.

WILLIAM MORGAN
ORLANDO