GUILTY OF WHAT?

There seems to be a pattern emerging. Anyone who asks the City to follow the rules laid out in its Comprehensive Plan is now being hounded as if they are a criminal. If the Sun newspaper this week is to be believed any 'thing' which prints the facts is also now in danger of being shut down.

According to the Islander it was Valerie Fernandez, PAR's lawyer, who instructed Michael Barfield. Coincidental? Maybe. On the other hand who has the most to lose by the Comprehensive Plan and the Land Development codes being adhered to?

Respectable citizens who have worked tirelessly for years are being defamed by our local papers and accused of running a shadow government. Yes there does appear to be a shadow government but it isn't these people!

Nobody has asked what any of those being accused have to gain out of all this. Financially? Nothing. Collectively they all have the same aspirations - to retain the quality of life everyone has come to enjoy in the City.
Does anyone really think Robin Wall wants to spend hours pouring over codes and ordinances prior to meetings double checking the City's work and then giving up her time to actually attend all the meetings? And yes if you attend these meetings you will know that she frequently points out errors being made. The residents of this City owe her a huge debt for helping to keep the status quo for as long as she has. Duke Miller, a City Commissioner for many years and highly respected by the community for very good reason. He started the blog as a voice for the citizens. I took a moment to look back at the blog over the last few months and was actually very impressed at the quality of the comments - highly informative information on many different issues substantiated by facts. What grounds does Mr Barfield have to shut down something that is reporting the facts?

Ultimately if it is a criminal offence to try to ensure that our Comprehensive Plan is followed then yes we are guilty.

Our Mayor's Hero

Banishment Ends Tiffs With Police, Prosecutors
January 09, 1997|By SARAH RAGLAND Staff Writer

Michael Barfield's latest battle with Palm Beach County police and prosecutors ended on Wednesday with a peculiar twist: He was banished.

Barfield, a paralegal who made his name taking on police officers, agreed to steer clear of Palm Beach County as part of a plea agreement on a grand theft charge. Barfield can only return to the county with written court approval.

Barfield, who pleaded guilty to grand theft, also will serve two years of house arrest at his home in Sarasota, followed by three years' probation.
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A Man Of His Convictions

By Bill Yanger

Another in a continuing series of imagined conversations over coffee at the Rod & Reel Pier. Any resemblance to persons or personalities, real or imagined, is entirely coincidental and mostly unintended.

Good morning

Is it?

Huh?

Is it a good morning?

Well…seems so. Sun’s shining, I ain’t wearin’ that ratty sweater for the first time since Halloween and the traffic is backed up only halfway down Pine.

Yeah, I guess, but…

But what?

But, just seems…I don’t know...sure, the sun’s making me squint again and I love that but don’t it feel like there’s a cloud hanging low and dark around here?

Cloud…oh, got it. Right. You mean all that email in the sunshine shi…uh…stuff with that new commissioner and the convict guy from Sarasota?

Exactly what I mean. What the hell’s going on around here?

What’s going on? Nothin’ new really. A classic Florida clash of growth or no growth, development or no development, Disney-ized towns or real towns with real people…you know. People get real serious when it comes to makin’ money. And people get just as serious when it comes to protecting their town, especially this one.

Shadow Government? Which One?

Recently a small but vocal group of people, the same people who opposed my candidacy for Anna Maria City Commissioner, have accused me of violating Sunshine Laws and called for my resignation. Their claims are baseless, false, and possibly slanderous.

So why are they lying? Because, in the words of one of my opponents, I’m “scary.”

What are they afraid of? Simply, one meeting at a time, one issue at a time, we the people are making a difference. What some call “a shadow government” others call a strong, informed, active group of like-minded citizens committed to preserving Anna Maria. Call them what you will; I represent them with pride.

Most of us knew back in November the election was going to be a watershed moment. It may sound like hyperbole, but many said it was the most important election in the history of Anna Maria.

We are now witnessing the desperate acts of “the losers.” This current controversy is not about Sunshine Laws or public records disclosure. It’s about discrediting the residents and elected officials of Anna Maria who dare to stand up to those who’ve made a mockery of our Comprehensive Plan and our Land Development Regulations and say, “Enough is enough.”

Thank you to all who have voiced your continued support.

Harry Stoltzfus

Anna Maria City Commissioner

WHO ENGAGED THIS MAN AND WHY?

The following is quoted, verbatim, from the 1999 Report to Congress on the activities and operations of the Public Integrity Section, Criminal Divison, United States Department of Justice:

United States v. Barfield, Middle District of Florida

Michael A. Barfield, a paralegal and litigation consultant, pled guilty on May 12, 1999, to five felony offences, including conspiracy, obstruction of justice, perjury before a federal grand jury, and two separate wire fraud schemes. On October 25th, 1999, Barfield was sentenced to ten years in prison, fined $7,500 and ordered to pay $50,500 in restitution.


The conspiracy, obstruction of justice and perjury convictions stem from Barfield’s role in concocting a false accusation in 1997 against then - United States District Judge Lee P. Gagliardi, now deceased, and United States Attorney Kathleen A. Hayley, in an attempt to disqualify the judge from presiding over a pending criminal case. Barfield hired two private investigators Deana Scappacino and Dana Corum, to help carry out the illegal scheme. Barfield, Scappacino and Corum, falsely claimed that the Judge and the Prosecutor met at a restaurant where they discussed details of the pending prosecution and exchanged case-related documents. During the federal grand jury investigation triggered by this accusation, Barfield and his coconspirators repeatedly attempted to bolster their false accusation by providing false information to the FBI and false testimony and fabricated documents to the grand jury.


Judge Gagliardi was advised prior to his death that the Justice Department had determined that the charges against him were false.Barfield also pled guilty to two unrelated wire fraud offences that were committed and uncovered during the course of this investigation.


In late 1998 and 1999, while working for a Florida attorney, Barfield falsely represented to two convicted criminal defendants that he could secure leniency for them in exchange for substantial monetary payments. After obtaining approximately $50,000 from the defendants’ families, Barfield made preparations to flee the country. He was arrested by the FBI in January 1999 and has been incarcerated since that date.

Hometown Democracy Debate /Correction

The Hometown Democracy Debate is being held this Saturday at 10:30, the 27th, at the Holmes Beach library. This is a correction of an earlier post.

An Interesting Take on Hometown Democracy

The following is from St. Petersburg Times columnist, Howard Troxler.

A bunch of Greek guys started a political debate 2,500 years ago that we're still fighting about.

Can people govern themselves wisely by a direct vote?

Or should they put their trust in leaders to make wise decisions?

Here in Florida, we're smack in the middle of that age-old fight. This November we'll vote on the idea called "Hometown Democracy."

Beyond our city's boundaries…

Although this is an Anna Maria blog, we are part of a larger community and as such I wanted to assure you are aware of several recent actions taken by the Manatee County Commissioners.

1. This past Tuesday the Board of County Commissioners, with the exception of Commissioner McClash, approved PA-10-02 Robinson Farms. This Plan Amendment would raise the current density from 1 unit per acre to 3 units per acre on property located within the Coastal High Hazard Area and the Coastal Planning area. Our Comprehensive Plan Objective 4.3.1 limits development type, density, and intensity in the Coastal Planning Area and directs population and development to areas outside of the Coastal High Hazard and Coastal Evacuation Areas. This obviously goes against our Comprehensive Plan and should have been denied.

Manatee County has a 49 hour level of evacuation. We should not be increasing density within the Hurricane Evacuation Zones we should be reducing density.

This is the second try to increase density on this parcel. The first was in 1997 and was denied by the Department of Community Affairs because density was being increased in the Coastal High Hazard Area.

If you are so inclined please contact the following to voice your concerns and call to action:

Ray Eubanks ray.eubanks@dca.state.fl.us and copy chris.wiglesworth@dca.state.fl.us

2. Also approved by the Board of County Commissioners, with the exception of Commissioner McCash, was PSPI-09-13(Z)(P) Solar Biomass Integrated Power Plant. There has not been a needs analysis done for this project. There are unanswered questions as to how much where water will come from to operate the plant and how used water will be disposed of. There are air quality issues. Currently Manatee County doesn't monitor fine particulates. How and where will the ash be disposed of?

3. The County, again with the exception of Commissioner McClash, passed PA-10-05 Evers Reservoir Watershed Amendment. This allows the reuse of reclaimed water within a specific area of the Evers Reservoir Watershed. This is where the City of Bradenton gets its drinking water. This has been prevented in the past in order to err on the side of caution. This reuse water will meet quality standards that are now in place. What isn't in place are standards for pharmaceuticals, and chemicals such as pyrethroid insecticides. We are just learning the harmful effects of these unregulated chemicals. The long term consequences of individual chemicals and combinations of chemicals are unknown. It seems prudent to continue our current policy until we know more.

Can't You Smell That Smell?

By Bill Yanger

Another in a continuing series of imagined conversations over coffee at the Rod & Reel Pier. Any resemblance to persons or personalities, real or imagined, is entirely coincidental and mostly unintended.


Good morning

Hello hello.

What’s with the collared shirt? Didn’t know you owned one.

Don’t. Borrowed it from my neighbor.

You…uh…borrowed a shirt. What’s the occasion?

Just spiffin’ up my image. First impressions and all that stuff.
Then why don’t you buy your own shirt?

Baby steps my friend, baby steps.

Uh huh. You even combed your hair...both of them. So who you tryin’ to impress?

No one in particular…just, you know, folks I see, people I meet. My neighbors and friends here in my little town.
Our little town.

Yeah yeah, our town.
So why the sudden urge to impress folks?

Is an apology in order?

At a joint meeting of the Anna Maria City Commission and Planning & Zoning Board on March 4th, City Commissioner JoAnn Mattick publicly delivered this rebuke of our city’s Comprehensive Plan (quoting from the recorded transcription):

We need a vision for ultimately what we want to have on Pine Avenue. All of these terms we keep coming up with on the LDR’s [Land Development Regulations] and Comp Plan  …  is a boilerplate that got dropped in by Tony Arrant that not one person commented on. I mean I participated in all the meetings when we were looking at the Comp Plan review. I don’t think anybody really understood what some of those things were. If they did, they weren’t concerned about it. I think we need to make decisions based on what we want to ultimately see on Pine Avenue. If it means rewriting the LDR’s and the Comp Plan, that’s what we should do to get the final vision of what we want...

This castigation is remarkable, to say the least, especially from an elected official who took part in the process.

The Future of Pine Avenue? Really?

Commission Meeting Tonight March 11, 2010, 6 PM on Temporary Moratorium

Tonight at 6 p.m., the City Commission will be holding a Special Meeting on the following agenda item:

Temporary Moratorium on Development Permits for Commercial Development and Re-development, including mixed use, in the ROR District; Providing for a Time Frame in Which to Review and Update Specific Language of Chapter 90.

This is an important issue in our City today. Residents who care about how our commercial streets of Pine Avenue and Gulf Drive are developed should attend.