Since its inception, the Islamorada Community Alliance has been dedicated to the premise that we are duty-bound to inform and educate our residents of the factors that may hinder the Village Mission statement:

To Protect the Residents' Right to Quiet Enjoyment of Life

To Plan for Enhancing Our Village Character

To Preserve Our Community; Its People, Natural Resources, Pride

To Provide Basic Services to Support our Quality of Life

I believe the ICA has been very successful, in informing and educating. This is underscored by the fact that the ICA weekly newsletter has a viewership of several thousand. We thank those who honor us with their viewership. We must be doing something right.

I want to commend the Village Manager for responding to some of our inquiries and suggestions on how to better serve our public. I submit that this is the type of governance that residents want.

Residents want to be heard from and answered in a timely fashion by our public officials (both elected and appointed).

At one point, the Village Manager related that so few residents attend Council meetings because residents are totally happy with decisions being made.

I see that differently.

Many people feel that the residents have given up, but I am convinced that many pay attention to the issues but shun the spotlight.

In my editorials, I have often been quite tough on the council, manager and staff. It is our responsibility to point out their actions and decisions – and associated concerns.

It is important to remember, it is not personal, its business.

A couple weeks ago it was lack of follow-up by staff and/or council that I criticized with a long list of pending items that need to be addressed.

Again, I commend Manager Saunders and staff for listing the status of 5 or 6 items from my list of 20 in his weekly status report. This is a good start and we encourage more of the same. It is important to keep residents up to date with the Manager’s “After Action” report. Why not have an up-to-date “After Action” report, on the Village website?

That would be real transparency.

We voiced concern that the Mission Statement was removed from the Community Center wall. We understand it has been returned. We appreciate the quick response.

We have regularly questioned whether the village staff, and particularly the Planning Department, understands and cares about what residents of Islamorada envision for the future of the community.

In an effort to remedy this, “Plates and Plans” an April 15 forum, has been scheduled by Planning. Bravo! This is an innovative effort to begin a dialogue between residents and the Village Planning entity. We hope lots of residents show up with great suggestions to make our community better. We encourage members of council to listen to fresh ideas as well.

Together our voices can be a lot louder and then they will surely be heard more often.

My thanks to the Village Manager and Planning Department for this first of its kind forum.

We encourage all the additional Village departments to do likewise. i.e. code enforcement, wastewater, public works et al.

It’s good business. We want a united Village with common goals.

Speak up residents.

Tom Raffanello

Date: April 15, 2026 Time: 11 - 1 Where:  Community Center What: Light lunch provided, no appointment necessary, all welcome Plates & Plans: Community Planning Conversation. Mark your calendar for a no-strings-attached lunch where you can talk directly with village planners about what matters to you. No presentations, just come by to talk about what matters to you at an informal, accessible setting designed to foster community dialogue. Whether you have specific concerns, ideas for improvement, or simply want to stay informed about local planning initiatives, this is an opportunity to engage directly with decision-makers.

Bring your questions, insights, and perspective. Community input strengthens planning processes.

What type of affordable housing is the most critical need? An important question that needs a legitimate answer. The Monroe County Commission has called for an analysis for Key Largo, Tavernier, Marathon and Cudjoe Key to determine what kind of affordable housing is most needed and where.

Why isn’t Islamorada included in this study?  The county recognizes that they need answers as to the size of the dwellings most in demand, rental versus ownership, location, cost.  Doesn’t the Village need the same analysis?  The most recent Islamorada study was done in 2007 and focused only on the Village rather than including surrounding communities. Monroe County purchased a complex with 18 one-bedroom deed restricted apartments in Key Largo 9 months ago. They’re having a really tough time finding any tenants.   Much of the workforce in Islamorada comes from outside the Village, often from the mainland. With the extremely high cost of living here, would they even consider moving away from their own community to live in Islamorada even if there was affordable housing available?

The planning staff has been directed to move forward with an extensive list of changes to our regulations from the Workforce/Affordable Housing Committee. These could change many limitations.

Islamorada put out an RFQ in January looking for proposals to create deed restricted multi-family rental housing at the “Machado” property at MM88.6.  The village received just two proposals.  The selection committee is scheduled to meet April 2 to evaluate the proposals. The affordable housing needs analysis, required by our current Comprehensive Plan, is extremely out of date. Shouldn’t the selection of a contractor for the Machado property be deferred until an appropriate study has been completed? And until any recommendations by the Workforce/Affordable Housing committee are considered, along with any changes from the Comp Plan review and Charter Review? There are hundreds of potential units in projects that are in the pipeline. The Village has waited for years to seriously address affordable housing.  Now is not the time to fast track the process. There is a significant need for current facts and to study the real needs.  No more depending on studies done a decade ago when times were so different. Much thanks to the research and analysis of the local Habitat for Humanity efforts. Click here to see their statistics for Upper Keys affordable housing and adjacent their Mainland Study.

Anchors & Atolls: Ocean Adventures with Dr. Jack Grove Florida Bay Forever invites you to an unforgettable evening of ocean exploration, storytelling, and discovery with renowned marine biologist Dr. Jack Grove.

Dr. Grove will be sharing his incredible experiences from decades of work across the tropical Pacific. Grove has spent over 50 years exploring the world’s oceans, traveling to more than 100 countries and studying marine ecosystems from the Galápagos to Antarctica. A respected scientist, author, and educator, he is best known for his work on tropical marine life and his book “The Fishes of the Galápagos Islands.” Now based in the Upper Keys, Dr. Grove continues to inspire others through his work in conservation, education, and research. Event Details Date:Friday, April 10. at Safe Harbor Angler House, Islamorada, MM80.5 Time: 6 PM – Meet & Greet; 6:30 PM - Presentation Free & open to the public   RSVP (appreciated): Email: info@floridabayforever.org; Text/Call: 561-818-5341 Cash bar; free hot dogs, popcorn, and light snacks

The latest draft from Able City East was received on March 11 and is available on the Village website. Click here. If you care about the future of the Village, get involved.

A Public Workshop is scheduled for April 29, 5:30 PM. Be there.

You can submit recommendations to the Village in advance or at the workshop.

Thanks to Nancy Klingener for providing info from the Wright Langley Collection. March 30, 1926 – A delegation appointed by the Monroe County Commission traveled to the Matecumbe Keys to help find the best route for a new highway. Some Matecumbe residents feared land values would plummet if the planned road traversed their properties, and the delegates hoped to ease their minds. Below: Aerial View of Lower Matecumbe Key, ca. 1920, showing the route of the railroad available from the Library’s Florida Keys History Center.

Monroe County Mayor, Michelle Lincoln, has been traveling around the county providing a “State of the County” presentation.  She was at last week’s Islamorada Chamber of Commerce luncheon. We hope she will make the presentation at the April 7 Village Council meeting. Click here for the report.

Many, if not all, Islamorada residents are aware that the Village’s “Constitution” is our Comprehensive Plan.

We have been without one for several years.

Developers, speculators, land use attorneys and their minions are driving trailer trucks through the loopholes that need to be remedied. Is this intentional or incompetence?

Draw your own conclusions but here are the facts:

On April 9, 2024, the Village Council gave direction to the Village Manager to seek the services of a professional consultant to UPDATE our Comprehensive Plan. 

The Council approved the $112,000 contract with Able City East on Oct 10,2024.

They were contracted to Update the Village’s Comprehensive Plan, with a projected completion and implementation date in 12 months?

We are now up to 17 months for this 12-month project. 

Unfortunately, it appears we are still months or maybe even years away from completion/implementation? Again, I question why? Our Village Manager and planner owe us an explanation. It appears that the powers that exist think that nobody cares. 

Perhaps new development benefits from this slow walk.

Updated Comp Plan?Instead of receiving a draft with Updates to the Village Comp Plan, we have received an all-new proposed Comprehensive Plan from Able City.  The difference between amendments that improve our existing Plan and an all new plan are like the difference between night and day.

Updates that must be approved by the Florida Commerce Department must be in legislative format with new text inserted underlined, and words that are to be deleted stricken with hyphens.  (Florida Statute 163.3184 C3)

Even if the draft is considered a “brand-new” Comprehensive Plan, it is clearly intended to update the existing Plan. Just semantics.

Without the legislative format it is extremely time-consuming and confusing to figure out what has been changed, what new text has been added, and what has been deleted.  The legislative format is intended to make that job easier. Without the appropriate formatting the review is next to impossible. 

If the intent was to make the document easier to read and navigate I think the effort failed. Most residents would likely be overwhelmed by the task of figuring out how this new plan and the updates will change life in the Village.

Spell it out? Bottom line…Format the Plan correctly.

Other observations- The future land use map is too small in the draft and not legible. Every single property owner should be entitled to see how their property has been treated in a “new” Comp Plan.  Haven’t we learned that from experience? Will every property owner be specifically informed?

During the creation of the first Islamorada Comprehensive Plan over twenty years ago, 18 public meetings were held, with standing room only.  The public was able to thoroughly consider every Goal, Objective and Policy, every property on the maps.

Local land use attorneys still, after over 20 years with the current plan, find continuing obscure loopholes to help their clients beat the system. Here we go again, new plan, new loopholes!

To complicate things further: Senate Bill 180 that passed the legislature last year, bars local governments from adopting or enforcing any “more restrictive or burdensome” planning rules for three years after the 2024 hurricanes Debby, Helene and Milton.

That takes us until Oct 1, 2027 even though none of those storms damaged Islamorada or the County. Unnecessary and misguided, but, we were told, there was a legislative fix. Where are our lobbyists and Legislators in Tallahassee on the status of this issue?

Please explain? The legislative session ended without a much-needed fix.

The Village should continue the update process, with public workshops in the coming months. Now we have significant time until the fall of 2027!

Let me quote from the Able City East plan, page 228: “Public participation is at the heart of the Islamorada Comprehensive Plan. The Village recognizes that in order to build a plan that truly reflects community priorities, residents, business owners, civic organizations, and elected officials must be directly engaged throughout the process.”

It has been about a year since there has been any public involvement in the update process. Finally a workshop - April 29, 2026!

Who is in charge of this update? Is it the Village Manager and our Planning staff? Be transparent and embrace your constituents. You can do better. Our fear is that land use attorneys and their accomplices are getting more input than we are.

The draft contains 11 main elements, including areas like Future Land Use, Transportation, Housing, Conservation, Sustainability, Recreation and Open Space, and more. Each element deserves a separate public workshop. 

When we finally adopt this new Comprehensive Plan, will it be in cinque with the prior Land Development regulations and other Village Code? Doesn’t that extend the process even more?

Village Council, management, State Legislatures and lobbyists: We await your responses. There are a ton of unanswered questions.

This important process has been neglected and poorly executed.

Step it up or tell us why you can’t.

Elections have consequences.

Tom Raffanello

for Coral Shores Baseball Field at Founders Park. And the Design Build contract, never approved by the Village.  And so, the battle continues.  Do you have an opinion?

Coral Shores is the only county high school that does not have a school owned baseball facility.  The Village is property owner (bought with Village tax funds) and provided to the school at no cost. The School Board is funding the proposed upgrades just as they do for the other high schools in the Keys that are on school property. (School Tax funds come from Upper Keys taxpayers.)

The Village, as property owner, wants some say as to improvements, use in the off season, and maintenance, including the quality of the artificial turf. The School Board wants control over expenditures of the $5 million plus in costs.  

The kids just want to play ball.

Click here for analysis from Jamie Engel (served on the Village Baseball Task Force)

Click here for analysis from Capt Ed Davidson (Fla Keys Citizens Coalition and former member of the School Board)

If the project is to proceed for completion for the 2027 season, deadline for a decision is apparently April 7 when the Village Council and School Board both meet, separately.

To email the School Board: SchoolBoard@KeysSchools.com

To email the Council: clerk@islamorada.fl.us