The message Saturday morning in Ponte Vedra: “Stop the Swap:” as hundreds of concerned neighbors, as well as state and county leaders, showed out with signs in hand to speak out against the proposed land swap of the Guana Wildlife Management Area.
“If we lose this, we have lost what is the crown jewel of this county,” county commissioner Sarah Arnold said at Saturday’s protest. “I can’t sit by and see that happen. This land was placed in conservation years and years ago.”
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The proposed deal, which would swap 600 acres of Guana land for 3,000 acres of scattered land throughout central Florida, is an absolute non-starter for many of St. Johns County’s residents.
Many residents also say the proposal seemingly came out of nowhere, much like – residents say - the proposed developments Action News Jax told viewers about last year at Anastasia State Park that drew similar widespread outcry.
“This was just quietly published on the website, and Audubon Florida were the ones who found it and started sending it out to the organizations,” explained community organizer Stacy Strumph. “So any time that the ARC or the FDEP quietly just submits something as significant as losing this rare piece of ecological, biodiverse area, it’s suspicious. It’s a red flag.”
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Now, St. Johns County residents are calling on their neighbors to make their voices heard at Tuesday’s county commissioners meeting, before the Acquisition and Restoration makes its recommendation to the governor and its cabinet Wednesday for final say.
“There’s a county commission meeting on May 20, at 5 p.m.,” Strumph said. “You can come, you can give your three minute speech to the county commissioners, who would be responsible for any rezoning of this land, should it come to fruition.”
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“The final vote will happen with the governor and the cabinet,” State Rep. Kim Kendall said. “[It] doesn’t matter if ARC on Wednesday votes it down or up, that helps put some influence, but it comes down to those three individuals.”
You can also find the “Stop the Swap” petition by clicking on the link here.
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