All in all, 2018 was a terrific year for our community, which should benefit greatly from Florida Power & Light’s purchase of Vero Beach’s electric utility, Cleveland Clinic’s takeover of the Indian River Medical Center and Major League Baseball’s long-term lease with the county to run Historic Dodgertown.
So 2019 has a tough act to follow.
That said, there are more than a few issues that still need to be addressed, problems that need to be resolved, and opportunities that need to be explored across the next 12 months.
Here’s some of what I’d like to see happen locally in the coming year:
- A plan for the development of the Vero Beach-owned, lagoon-front property at the intersection of 17th Street and Indian River Boulevard, where the city – when it eventually relocates its Wastewater Treatment Plant – has a wonderful opportunity to transform this prime real estate into another popular gathering place for social, commercial and recreational activity.
- The Vero Beach City Council finally show some courage, stop procrastinating and get serious about the Central Beach business district’s parking situation, which will only worsen with all the new residential development on the mainland. (Lots of newcomers are buying homes west of 43rd Avenue, but they find their way to Ocean Drive to dine, drink and shop, or to go to the beach.)
- Our School Board, particularly the recently elected members, take their oversight responsibilities seriously and stand up to Superintendent Mark Rendell, leaving no doubt that he works for them by holding him accountable and publicly questioning his decisions and recommendations.
- The Orchid Town Council abide by the will of the people when it decides the fate of Publix’s plan to build a supermarket-anchored shopping center on a 7-acre parcel in the southeast corner of the town, even if it means putting the issue to a referendum. (The council also needs to appreciate the importance of being a good neighbor.)
- Serious discussions between Vero Beach Regional Airport Director Eric Menger and a second commercial airline to complement the passenger service offered by Elite Airways. (Flights connecting our community to markets in the Midwest might be very popular.)
- Major League Baseball fully and enthusiastically embrace its long-term commitment to Historic Dodgertown – especially the much-needed renovation of Holman Stadium – using its clout to bring at least one Grapefruit League game to Vero Beach each year. (We’d pack the place.)
- The City Council approve the “urban market” plan proposed by Lakeland-based builder Mark Hulbert and Vero Beach resident Terry Borcheller, who want to buy and develop the 35 acres that once contained the Dodgertown Golf Club. (The hard truth is, the city needs the ongoing tax revenue more than it needs another park.)
- Local law enforcement – with call-in help from the public – crack down on a worsening road-rage problem, which already has resulted in one deadly shooting that prosecutors here said was legally justified under Florida’s recklessly rewritten “Stand Your Ground” law.
- Something to cause Virgin Trains USA to abandon its plan to expand its high-speed passenger rail service from West Palm Beach to Orlando, via the Treasure Coast and through the Vero Beach community. (That’s probably not going to happen, but at least there’s no talk of putting a station here.)
- The Vero Beach Lifeguard Association raise the $250,000 it needs to build an oceanfront headquarters – an L-shaped, 600-square-foot observation tower and command center at Humiston Park – that would allow lifeguards to see more of the city’s shoreline.
- The county succeed in its efforts to protect public access to local beaches by winning its recently filed lawsuit targeting a 2,000-foot stretch of beach in the Summerplace subdivision, north of Wabasso Beach. (The action was in response to a new Florida statute that prevents local governments from simply declaring beaches public through the “customary use doctrine” and requiring such disputes to be decided in court.)
- The City Council find the right tenant willing to pay the right price to lease the city marina and make the repairs and improvements needed for it to become a first-class mooring, fueling and storage facility – an asset Vero Beach can be proud of.
- The owner of the Indian River Mall find new ways to attract customers and keep the shopping area financially viable at a time when an increasing number of people are opting to shop online.
- The United States Golf Association, encouraged by the overwhelming success of the 2015 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship at John’s Island and the 2018 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur Championship at Orchid Island, award another of its major tournaments to our community – possibly Quail Valley, which has a course worthy of such an honor.
- The Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission use its legal authority to more quickly remove derelict vessels from our lagoon and recover from the boats’ owners all costs associated with the removals.
In closing: Let’s refuse to settle for merely keeping Vero Vero in 2019 and, instead, keep trying to make Vero better.
Like we did in 2018.