And a parent and an Islamorada resident and taxpayer.

The Comprehensive Plan of Islamorada is our roadmap, our bible.

The current update has been in the works since May of 2024.

That is almost two and a half years ago! To put this in perspective, consider the fact that it took the Founders of our Nation FIVE MONTHS to write and approve the US Constitution.

A purpose was to CLOSE the loopholes that have been abused by the growth supporters and their acolytes.

And the state requires Islamorada to have an updated Comp Plan……… The existing Comp Plan was approved well over 20 years ago following at least 18 room-packed public meetings to iron out every detail.

Planners and attorneys working for developers managed to find plenty of loopholes over the years bypassing the intent of comp plan limits approved over 25 years ago.

It appears we have been in no hurry to close any loopholes..

Council?

Now the only motivation to update our existing plan now seems to be the state requirement to do so.

Will we close the loopholes? Or will we just open more?

How strong is the process to UPDATE the comp plan? How involved is the public this time around? Will the state provide much oversight?

In the proposed plan by Able City East – far down in the document (page 236 of 253) we find these words:

• Public participation is at the heart of the Islamorada Comprehensive Plan. The Comprehensive Plan update seeks to guide growth, resilience, and quality of life in Islamorada, and public input ensures that the Plan aligns with the needs and values of the Village.

We all agree that planning in public creates transparency, builds trust, and ensures that the strategies developed are representative of the community.

I bet if you asked 5 residents, 10 or even 100, what comp plan policies and strategies are being updated, added or changed in this new version of our plan for the future of the special community they love, you would get a blank stare from all of them.

The prior council approved Able City East’s contract on October 10, 2024. Their timeline – completion in 12 months. (We are way over) The contracted price - $112,000. (A real bargain)

We can’t blame Able City for delays. Their effort began immediately after the contract was signed.

A week of public opportunities followed in March with Charrette Week, March 24-28. Who remembers that?

Since that week there seems to have been limited public opportunity for input while the staff had months and months of review time.

A draft was finally presented to the public – April 29, 2026 – a full year after the public charrette week.

And now, the Village posted an invitation to attend the Presentation of the Final Draft of the new Comprehensive Plan this Wednesday, Sep 30 at 5:30 PM with the words:

• SINCE LAST TIME WE MET:

  Over 300 comments from over 40 members of the public have been incorporated. Thank you!”

According to the draft itself “The final phase involved formal review and approval. After community review and official hearings, the updated Comprehensive Plan was adopted in 2026.”

Am I the only one who thinks we are far from having an acceptable Comprehensive Plan for review and approval. The public needs to be encouraged to participate. It is a very complex and critical “blueprint” for the future direction of our community.

My fear is that we have written a new plan, not amended the existing one, which contained loopholes.

We need to go through the “changes” paragraph by paragraph – page by page. We need a list of the old and the new policies so our residents understand what this plan means to the future of Islamorada.

We need to update the Land Development Regulations (LDRs) so they will be in cinque with the new comp plan. New data reports are needed instead of the old now meaningless reports from 2001, 2007 we see over and over again at public hearings.  

While this process continues, planners, attorneys and developers speed up their pursuit of existing loopholes.

We should have suspended decisions on building applications until we have enacted the new plan and LDRs. But let’s do it now.

Gutsy move? Maybe, but a move residents would likely support.

Tom

Send an email to the Village Clerk and ask her to distribute to all members of the Council, Village Manager, and/or specific members of the team at the Village …..clerk@islamorada.fl.us

The Final Budget Hearing agenda was made available to the public Friday afternoon Sep 25.  

While a few changes were made to the annual budget since Public Hearing #1 on Sep 10, the recommended millage rate of 2.7231 was not changed in the agenda, for Hearing #2. That put the millage rate at 9.9998% above the rollback rate of 2.4756, the millage rate that generates the same total revenue as it did the year before.  

The taxable value of real estate in the Village increased by approximately $491 million in the last year.

In an election year move that seemed to surprise the finance department staff, the Council voted unanimously to reduce the millage rate from the recommended 2.7231 mills to 2.65 mills, a 7.0448% tax increase instead of 10%.  

Then the Council had to approve a budget that matched the amended millage.  The Finance Director put a budget up on the screen in the meeting room and the council then voted 5-0 to approve a budget they could barely see and had no time to contemplate, knowing it could be modified/corrected at any time.

Sue Miller, representing the Islamorada Community Alliance, did point out numerous obvious changes that would significantly reduce the new budget shortfall.  Hopefully they will be incorporated in a budget amendment.  

What a budget season it was in Islamorada.  Hopefully one that will never be repeated.

How did the local governments do in Monroe County in a year in which the State of Florida pushed for tax reductions?

Key West            rollback, no tax increase

Marathon            5.2%  increase

Layton                 6.9% increase

Monroe County   7.45% increase

Islamorada          7.0448% increase

The Presentation of the Plan: Wednesday Sep 30 at 5:30 PM, Community Center Founders Park.  

Municipalities develop comprehensive plans, tailored to local needs that also comply with state-mandated requirements. The process requires meaningful public participation, ensuring residents, business owners and stakeholders have a voice in shaping their community’s future.

The draft of the new plan is available on the Village website: click here.

FKAA Publishes Rate Increase Notice in September water bills: Islamorada is proposing a 6.0% increase that will apply to the monthly Base Facility Charge, Volume Charge rates and Customer charge for wastewater charges that are on the FKAA water bills. There will be a public hearing at the Oct 8th, Council meeting.

The new monthly proposed wastewater rates listed on September FKAA bills: NPK (North Plantation Key: Base Charge - $31.84, Flow Charge - $6.91 /1000 Gal  Customer Charge - $11.19 RSA (Remaining Service Area: Base Charge - $42.83, Flow Charge - $6.91 /1000 Gal  Customer Charge - $11.19 For a single home, the typical increase is expected to be $4 - $5 per month. With approximately 5200 separate FKAA accounts and 8500 EDUs in the Village, this “small” 6% increase will be quite significant in total.  Currently the FKAA collects approximately $7 million for the Village in wastewater charges annually.  The 6% increase should add nearly $400,000 in income for the Wastewater Fund.

Don’t Miss It! Click here The Key Player’s Musical at Coral Shores auditorium: It's heartfelt, honest, funny, and deeply moving. Come experience the story that reminds us that no one should feel alone! October 1, 2 & 3 at 7:30pm October 4 at 2pm

Islamorada should follow the Key West effort to see if we can tag along in finding ways to reduce the impact of the sargassum weed in coming years.  

Sargassum workshop in Key West: Click here for article by Ted Lund, Above the Fold

 

Benihana is coming to Island Grill!  Benihana will have five hibachi tables inside the current air-conditioned dining room and will operate as a completely separate restaurant from Island Grill on the covered waterfront deck and beach.

MM74: Culvert Project Major Canal Restoration Glitch Update from last week… now we hear that the project to connect ocean and bay waterways via a culvert under U.S. One may not be aborted as we reported last week. Both the Village and the contractor, LPS, are apparently hopeful a solution can be reached.