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Florida House passes eminent domain bill | jacksonville.com
The House easily passed a bill Wednesday giving the Florida School of the Deaf and the Blind the power — called eminent domain — to take private property if there is a “compelling state reason,” they compensate the owner and get approval from a state commission.
The bill, which passed by a 89-27 margin, is opposed by St. Augustine residents and local elected leaders who say it could put in jeopardy historic neighborhoods adjacent to the nearly 80-acre campus.
Supporters, including state Rep. Bill Proctor, R-St. Augustine, stressed that because it is a state-run school with students from all over Florida, it’s a statewide issue.
“This is not a city school. It does not belong to St. Augustine. It does not belong to St. Johns County,” Proctor said on the House floor. “It’s your’s.”
Although he is not the bill’s sponsor, Proctor has been the driving force behind the measure. Panhandle Republican Doug Broxson, the House sponsor, had to defer periodically to Proctor when other lawmakers questioned him on the bill.
The legislation splintered the three-member St. Johns County House delegation. Proctor and state Rep. Mike Weinstein supported the bill, while state Rep. Ronald “Doc” Renuart, R-Ponte Vedra Beach, voted against the measure.
“I represent the people who live in the surrounding communities, and they are very concerned about the effects of this bill,” Renuart said.
The St. Augustine City Commission is paying Tallahassee lobbyist David Ramba $250 per hour to kill the bill. The commission also passed a resolution opposing the legislation, and city residents traveled to Tallahassee to testify against it during committee hearings. Broxson called them “a few grouchy neighbors.”
The House now has the hefty task of bringing its bill in line with the Senate’s. In that chamber, lawmakers stripped it of two key provisions that would no longer allow the school to circumvent some city zoning laws and a requirement that the school have an interlocal agreement with St. Augustine.
“We will sit down and talk to them,” said Senate sponsor Stephen Wise, R-Jacksonville, whose bill now only includes the eminent domain provision.
Wise’s bill has one more stop, which could prove contentious.
In its last committee, state Sen. Larcenia Bullard, D-Miami, tried to amend the bill to exempt St. Augustine if the school does get eminent domain powers.
Her amendment failed, but she says she will work to make sure it is filed before the bill’s next committee stop.
“I’m going to ask every single member to file it [the amendment] until someone does,” she said.
Proctor, who was on the school’s board for 18 years, says he would oppose any effort to exempt the city, and that the other powers are needed because the city has given the school trouble over renovations they asked it to make.
Wise said his No. 1 priority is giving the school eminent domain powers like every other state educational institution.
The House easily passed a bill Wednesday giving the Florida School of the Deaf and the Blind the power — called eminent domain — to take private property if there is a “compelling state reason,” they compensate the owner and get approval from a state commission.
The bill, which passed by a 89-27 margin, is opposed by St. Augustine residents and local elected leaders who say it could put in jeopardy historic neighborhoods adjacent to the nearly 80-acre campus.
Supporters, including state Rep. Bill Proctor, R-St. Augustine, stressed that because it is a state-run school with students from all over Florida, it’s a statewide issue.
“This is not a city school. It does not belong to St. Augustine. It does not belong to St. Johns County,” Proctor said on the House floor. “It’s your’s.”
Although he is not the bill’s sponsor, Proctor has been the driving force behind the measure. Panhandle Republican Doug Broxson, the House sponsor, had to defer periodically to Proctor when other lawmakers questioned him on the bill.
The legislation splintered the three-member St. Johns County House delegation. Proctor and state Rep. Mike Weinstein supported the bill, while state Rep. Ronald “Doc” Renuart, R-Ponte Vedra Beach, voted against the measure.
“I represent the people who live in the surrounding communities, and they are very concerned about the effects of this bill,” Renuart said.
The St. Augustine City Commission is paying Tallahassee lobbyist David Ramba $250 per hour to kill the bill. The commission also passed a resolution opposing the legislation, and city residents traveled to Tallahassee to testify against it during committee hearings. Broxson called them “a few grouchy neighbors.”
The House now has the hefty task of bringing its bill in line with the Senate’s. In that chamber, lawmakers stripped it of two key provisions that would no longer allow the school to circumvent some city zoning laws and a requirement that the school have an interlocal agreement with St. Augustine.
“We will sit down and talk to them,” said Senate sponsor Stephen Wise, R-Jacksonville, whose bill now only includes the eminent domain provision.
Wise’s bill has one more stop, which could prove contentious.
In its last committee, state Sen. Larcenia Bullard, D-Miami, tried to amend the bill to exempt St. Augustine if the school does get eminent domain powers.
Her amendment failed, but she says she will work to make sure it is filed before the bill’s next committee stop.
“I’m going to ask every single member to file it [the amendment] until someone does,” she said.
Proctor, who was on the school’s board for 18 years, says he would oppose any effort to exempt the city, and that the other powers are needed because the city has given the school trouble over renovations they asked it to make.
Wise said his No. 1 priority is giving the school eminent domain powers like every other state educational institution.
