Marathon rebels - Weekly briefing - January 16, 2024

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Wait, what? Marathon City Manager George Garrett proposed that the state give the entire Florida Keys 8,000 more building allocations and increase the allowable hurricane evacuation time from 24 hours to 31 hours.

• The request, contradicting a resolution by the Monroe County Board of Commissioners, caught Commissioners and other officials by surprise. 
• "This is not what we talked about," said County Mayor Holly Raschein. "...It's unnecessary...We are still doing our homework."

State of the City. Key West Mayor Teri Johnston delivered what could be her final State of the City address on January 11. 

• Johnston has not yet announced her decision about running for another term, which would be her last. 

Still more candidate filings. 

• Margaret Romero. The former Key West City Commissioner filed to run for the Monroe County Supervisor of Elections, making her the third candidate and second Republican to run for the position. Romero was easily defeated by incumbent Key West Mayor Teri Johnston in her bid in 2022.
• Speculation. Keys Weekly offered an overview of local election scenarios, including the possibilities of runs by familiar names Sam Kaufman and Mark Rossi.  
• Term limits. Incumbent Key West  Commissioners Clayton Lopez,  Billy Wardlow, and Jimmy Weekley cannot seek reelection due to term limits.
• Thaddeus Cohen. The former Key West planning director and unsuccessful applicant for the City Manager job is running for Lopez’s seat in District VI, which includes most of Bahama Village and parts of Old Town.
• Donie Lee. The former Key West police chief  said  he expects to file his paperwork to run for the seat being vacated by Wardlow.
• As yet unannounced. Key West Voices is aware of two unannounced candidacies by formidable local leaders. Rumors about others abound. Those interested are encouraged to consult keys-elections.org periodically for the latest filings. 

New financial disclosure rules for candidates.  A Florida law that took effect on January 1 requires disclosure of candidates' finances, even in  local races. Among other financial information, new candidates must disclose their net worth, assets, debts, real estate, jewelry, and 401k plan when they file. Several officeholders on the mainland have resigned as a result. Incumbents have until July 1 to file. 

Vote by mail worries. Incumbent Monroe County Supervisor of Elections Joyce Griffin is concerned that voters aren’t aware that their vote by mail requests may have expired. Voters can review their status at keys-elections.org.  

No Park and Ride garage agreement yet.  “The lease has expired,” said Key West City Attorney Rod Ramsingh. “We are currently holdover tenants. They (Keys Energy) are not discussing enforcing the lease or an eviction until at least Feb. 1.” 

Floodplain portal. The City of Key West and its software partner unveiled a new online portal to provide property owners with individualized floodplain and insurance zone information.  

Jimmy Buffett honors. A bill to honor the late musician and local favorite advanced out of committee in the Florida Legislature.   

Stop whining. Linda Cunningham is a fan of our airport, as it was and will be. 

Lake Margaret. Mark Hedden visited the pond on Summerland Key and appreciated the wildlife there. 

Our Eyes

White Pelican On Big Pine Key - Philip Dodderidge

Previously in Key West Voices

Former Trumper seeks Supervisor of Elections office. Republican Sherri Hodies filed to run against Democratic candidate Ron Saunders, who has the endorsement of several prominent Republicans, including Monroe County Commissioner Craig Cates and Monroe County Sheriff Rick Ramsay.

• Hodies said that she is not a MAGA Republican. But her public Facebook post tells of her enthusiastic volunteer efforts at a Trump rally in November 2020. 
• Incumbent Supervisor of Elections Joyce Griffin will step down in 2024.

Four incumbents filed to run for office in Monroe County.  Jim Scholl and Craig Cates filed for reelection to the Monroe Board of County Commissioners. Tax Collector Sam Steele and Property Appraiser Scott Russell also filed. Details at the Supervisor of Elections web site.

Vaccine disinformation is so last year. Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo recommended against mRNA COVID shots, contradicting guidance from the FDA. Experts lambasted the recommendation, which is based on debunked conspiracy theories. 

Migrants land in the Marquesas. A group of up to 30 people arrived on an uninhabited Keys island, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. 

Artificial reef coordinator job. Monroe County received over 35 applications for its first-ever artificial reef coordinator job. 

Closer, but no garage agreement. The City of Key West and Keys Energy have not reached a lease agreement on the Park N Ride garage at Grinnell and Caroline streets. The topic is on the agenda for this week's City Commission meeting. More details here. 

Hurricane evacuation model. WLRN did a deep dive into the status of the controversial model, which could come before the Florida Legislature as early as today (January 9th). At stake are the number of new building permits that will be issued. The county and the city seek a delay, a working group, and possibly a referendum. The topic is also on the agenda for this week's City Commission meeting

She didn't win. But Mandy Miles imagined what she'd do if she won the lottery. 

Not Disney, not a big city. Linda Cunningham reminded us that in many ways, Key West isn’t a small town. Or is it?

Gull-able. Mark Hedden told us how hard it is to tell different gull species apart, and marveled at the Bonaparte’s gulls he photographed.