LETTER TO THE EDITOR

The residents of Anna Maria who support Commissioner Stoltzfus are having great difficulty getting their letters published by our local papers. Fortunately they can still be heard on the blog. Bev Hospital asked for the following letter to be distributed:

Letter to the Editor:

I have been following the articles in The Islander regarding our commissioner, Harry Stoltzfus, with close interest since I’m an Anna Maria Island property owner and a friend of the Stoltzfus’. It seems to me that even the unbalanced reporting of Commissioner Stotlzfus’s actions fails to present any evidence that he did anything other than direct that the laws on the books be followed. He was elected to do just that. His actions as commissioner have all been centered on enforcement of existing regulations.
The Islander and Barfield apparently see his actions within the committee meetings as less newsworthy than how he has expressed his personal opinions through his personal emails. He is entitled to have personal opinions, but they can’t supersede his duties as commissioner. There is no evidence that he has voted to place his personal opinion over the regulations. Instead, because Commissioner Stoltzfus has been determined to hold construction to the law, he has been personally attacked. I guess when you can’t get someone on performance, then you attack them personally. By the way, who invited Barfield to the party? And why hasn’t The Islander balanced their reporting by exploring that?

The Florida “Sunshine Law” is intended to expose improper use of an elected office for personal gain. Where’s the personal gain for Commissioner Stoltzfus? He has dedicated countless hours towards holding developers accountable and he is now spending substantial hours and dollars defending himself. Instead, shine the light on Barfield and how he stands to gain. That’s the real story.


Joe Hospital
522 Pine Avenue
Anna Maria, FL