Currently, because we are not a city, we do not have the power to “Mind our own business.” That’s left to the county commissioners who clearly favor pouring all the discretionary funds into areas like Milton, Jay and Gulf Breeze (all incorporated cities). As a city, we can have Home Rule. Currently nobody is minding our business or our best interests here in Navarre. To add injury to insult, it is our very own Navarre Beach tourism dollars that is the breadbasket of Santa Rosa County. The incorporated cities in our county get the good loaves and we get the leftover crumbs.
Second, “The county Government generally leaves us alone unless we ask for help.” I do believe that they do leave us alone, but I can’t believe that all we need to do is ask for help and then all concerns are magically addressed. Have you driven any of the neighborhood roads off East Bay lately? And I use the term roads lightly. The county-maintained roads in Holley by the Sea (HBTS) are just pathetic. Some pretty bad stuff up here. The growing groundwater problems are also pretty scary.
I believe that the only way we can effectively “Mind our own business” here in Navarre is to become incorporated and in fact “Mind our own business.”
Some detailed information on the current incorporation efforts can be found at Preservenavarre.com.
Chelle Concha
Navarre
