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Highlands Today

Venus training center not a dead deal

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By GARY PINNELL

Highlands Today

Published: November 13, 2009

SEBRING - The fight continues to put a training facility for first responders and soldiers in Venus.

On Nov. 6, Highlands County Planner Don Hanna received an e-mail from Southern Farms attorney Bert Harris, asking for an administrative hearing.

Southern Farms is appealing the Oct. 20 decision of the Highlands County commissioners. They decided not to accept the settlement agreement among Southern Farms, the county and the state Department of Community Affairs.

"Southern also demands that the fully executed settlement agreement be filed with (Division of Administrative Hearings)," Harris wrote in the e-mail to Hanna.

Two events are scheduled:

• The county administrator is placing an item on the Dec. 15 board of county commissioners agenda to rescind the 2008 ordinance, changing the zoning from agricultural to agricultural-training center.

• Administrative law Judge J. Lawrence Johnston has given Highlands County, DCA and Southern Farms until Jan. 5 to decide on the stipulated settlement agreement, even though the county commissioners have already voted 5-0 against the deal. The parties are required to advise the judge no later than Jan. 5. Johnston works for the Department of Management Services, Division of Administrative Hearings, in Tallahassee.

That administrative law case was filed in February, after DCA decided the rezoning did not comply with state land use law. DCA, Highlands County and Southern Farms worked out a settlement agreement. However, Venus residents protested when they realized in mid-August that Eagle planned to build a $425 million paramilitary training center in their community.

Right to appeal

During the Oct. 20 meeting on the DCA settlement, Tampa attorney Ron Weaver said he intended to appeal the Oct. 6 zoning decision of the commissioners and the Oct. 20 decision. Weaver said he would appeal the zoning decision to circuit court, and the settlement agreement veto to DOAH.

After that meeting, Southern Farms owner Ron Grigsby called and disputed Weaver's statement.

"That certainly is an option," Grigsby said. "But I'm not going to threaten anybody. I'm sorry (Weaver) even said that."

Grigsby, not Cape Coral developer Greg Eagle, is now running the show. Revised presentation materials to the commission left out the name Eagle. Eagle originally proposed the project, but Grigsby said Eagle is now involved "peripherally."

Grigsby wavered several times during his call. First, he wanted to sell the 7,700-acre farm and ranch, then he wanted to read the transcript of the hearings before he decided. But before he ended the call, Grigsby repeated his earlier statement, "We are going to sell the property."

Background

The effort to build the facility started long before July 15, 2008, when financier Seth Ellis appeared before the Highlands County commissioners and revealed plans to build the Eagle National Security Training Center on the Highlands-Glades county line.

In a written statement, Greg Eagle proposed to locate a "first responder" facility, and requested the Highlands County staff to expedite the permitting.

Ellis told the county commissioners the paramilitary center would provide at least 100 full-time jobs after year three, and up to 240 jobs after year five.

Highlands Today reporter Gary Pinnell can be reached at 863-386-5828 or gpinnell@highlandstoday.com

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