On Monday Nov 10 at 4PM our Village Council will be meeting in a private Executive Session to discuss litigation strategy for a lawsuit against the Village filed by a prior Village Manager – Ted Yates. 

The nonsense has to stop. Yates came to Islamorada on with a one-year contractual term and served at the pleasure of the Village Council. Before the contract was to auto-renew, a 3-2 vote of Council (Jolin, Mahoney and Rosenthal, with Pinder and Gregg dissenting) chose not to allow the contract to renew.

Therefore, it expired at the end of its initial term. 

Village council members had their reasons for non-renewal. Yates and his attorney came up with the ridiculous notion that anyone who had previously disagreed with Yates’ actions as manager should have recused him/herself.  That’s ludicrous. As an example, Supreme Court Justice Kagan argued for ObamaCare, as solicitor general, in front of the Supreme Court.  When appointed to the Supreme Court later on, Kagan voted for the approval of ObamaCare. Did she recuse herself because she argued in public to uphold the law?  No. And there was no recourse, criticism or lawsuit.

The Yates lawsuit (filed 10 months after his separation) has no basis and claims “termination” circumstances that are simply not covered in the employment contract’s very specific “without cause” termination provision. 

The contract spells out the circumstances – there are only four – in which Yates would be entitled to severance.  Not allowing the contract to automatically renew is, of course, not one of them.

Our Village attorney’s associate commented that the case should be dismissed.  After conferring with several of my attorney associates with employment law expertise, I strongly agree.

So after 18 months why hasn’t the Village:

- filed a motion to dismiss?

- filed a motion for judgment on the pleadings?

 -filed a motion for summary judgment?

None of these legal maneuvers have been taken by our attorney.  Yet they are the logical legal steps to be taken after acknowledging the legal weaknesses of a lawsuit such as this.

I am not going to detail various reasons that the council voted not to renew the Yates contract.  Suffice it to say, they exist.  Ask the council members serving then.

We have kicked this lawsuit down the road for 18 months. Some want to offer a cash settlement to make it go away.  That is the easy way out.

When you are right, you must be strong and determined.

My final takes:

The law community has figured out that the Village will cave and pay, rather than stand behind their decisions. 

This just invites more frivolous litigation, and ultimately more tax dollars spent and less respect accorded to Council’s resolutions.

We often pay opponents’ legal fees. This is wrong.

We also need to reassess how we enter into contracts and their content. I have not been impressed:

• Contract content should be based on the best interest of the Village residents and the environment.

• At this point that has rarely happened.

We must do better. Remember, elections have consequences.

Tom Raffanello

An EDU is an “Equivalent Dwelling Unit” assigning wastewater system usage based on the water consumption.

In recent newsletters we have already questioned: Is Sun Communities paying their fair share of wastewater costs? Is the tiny 1947 trailer park near the Islamorada Post Office paying too much? What about the three breweries in the Village paying a minimal amount? Why does Village policy provide a volume discount for wastewater costs to the larger developments, resorts, marinas, restaurants with more than 10 EDUs? This week’s concern: On Oct 30, the Village agreed to the consent order from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) to address MM92 issues and the raw sewage leaks. There was no public discussion and vote by Village Council before agreeing to a fix estimated to cost $4.5 million. The twenty-day time limit for response to FDEP seemed to allow time for a special call public meeting… not just phone calls to council members for approval.   The Islamorada wastewater department is required to be self-supporting. When is the last time the Village established updated EDU counts and reviewed the billing policies?  Now there is an urgent need with an FDEP mandate for costly fix.

Gov. Ron DeSantis and House Speaker Daniel Perez, both Republicans, are at odds over proposals to slash or eliminate property taxes as the 2026 legislative session approaches.

Here's the list of eight proposed resolutions to date, which must be approved by three-fifths of the Legislature before appearing on the ballot:

• HJR 201 — Eliminates non-school homestead property taxes.

• HJR 203 — Phases out non-school homestead property taxes over a decade.

• HJR 205 — Exempts residents 65 and older from paying non-school homestead property taxes.

• HJR 207 — Creates a non-school property tax homestead exemption equal to 25% of the assessed value of the house.

• HJR 209 — Creates a $100,000 non-school homestead tax exemption for residences with property insurance.

• HJR 211 — Eliminates the cap on portability, which lets homeowners transfer tax savings from their previous place to a new one. This means a homeowner can transfer their Save Our Homes tax cap benefit to a new home.

• HJR 213 — Limits how much the assessed non-school property tax can grow for a home, from 3% every three years instead of 3% annually for homestead property, and 15% over three years for non-homestead property instead of 10% per year.

• HB 215, which would make various changes including requiring a supermajority vote from a local government to pass a property tax increase and allowing newly married couples to combine their Save our Homes tax cap benefit.

  
  

According to Perez, "It is our position that the House does not need to limit itself in presenting one single plan, but instead allow the people of Florida the ability to choose some, all, or none of the proposals on the 2026 ballot,"

Governor DeSantis disagrees and believes a single issue should be on the ballot in November 2026 to simplify the process for voters.  DeSantis has called for the homestead property tax to be eliminated.

There is a Legislative Delegation meeting November 13 for local governments and taxpayers to tell their Tallahassee representatives about wishes for the 2026 legislative session.  Property tax is likely a controversy to be addressed.

Nov 13: 10 AM Monroe County Legislative Delegation Meeting; password:500812

DOGE, may hold the answer as to how  property taxes can be reduced. CFO Blaise Ingoglia and his team are focused on three priorities to boost affordability for Floridians and business owners: government waste, property taxes and insurance.

He’s constantly looking for ways to balance Florida’s business-friendly environment with making the state an affordable place for families.

“Traditionally, the places that have the highest cost of living are the places that have the most coastline and the most sunshine. It is very, very difficult to make ends meet there.” Ingoglia said.

“The fact of the matter is, many people from more expensive states are moving here to the state of Florida to experience the American dream. We are almost a victim of our own success because we are  attracting people from all the other states now.”

Ingoglia criticized local governments for expanding their reach at taxpayers’ expense.

“Your local governments are not being good partners with you guys. They’re not being good partners for your family, they’re not being good partners with your business, because they are taking your property tax dollars and they are expanding the scope and the size of the government,” he said.

Ingoglia said his focus remains squarely on keeping Florida affordable.

A program at the Islamorada History and Discovery Center next week may be a chance to learn what our tax dollars do to keep the mosquito population in check… 2025 has been a bad mosquito year.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention dubbed mosquitoes the "world's deadliest animal" due to the diseases they spread, causing over 700,000 deaths globally each year.

In Broward County, they are now using drones to control mosquito populations, enhancing precision and effectiveness in combating mosquitoes.  Will drones be a feasible way to reduce the use of mosquito spraying helicopters here?

November 12th - Social Hour 5pm, Lecture 6pm

Dictionary.com has announced its 2025 Word of the Year, and if you're not up to speed on this year's slang, you may be puzzled by the outcome.

On Oct 29, Dictionary.com announced its Word of the Year is "6-7." To younger folks, the phrase means "so-so" or "maybe this, maybe that," according to the news release.

We also have trouble understanding the expression “Ghosting.” It is a relatively new term that refers to abruptly cutting off contact with someone without giving that person any warning or explanation for doing so.  We think perhaps that is what happens to folks providing public comment that the Council doesn’t want to hear.

We continue to make rational suggestions. Is anyone in Village Hall listening?

In America we have a Representative Democracy.  I assume that applies to the Village of Islamorada.  

Voters elect members of Congress and Village Council to make decisions on our behalf based on our input.

Any decision by a representative to ignore their pledge to represent the will of voters, is a risk. Some are anesthetized by their perceived power and fail to express the will of the people.

 

A few years ago a  Councilman insisted the voters had elected him to make decisions, sometimes disregarding their input.  He was not reelected.

Founders Park, Baseball Field, Artificial turf: The council has an important decision to make impacting our much-loved community park.

The Founders Park purchase in 1998 has often been referred to as the smartest thing the Village has done (I concur), creating a much-loved centerpiece for the community owned 100% by Islamorada and its residents.

We elect 5 members of Council – and they have the final say in what happens at the community park.

Will they be strong representatives of the voters who care deeply about the park?

The baseball field is used by the Coral Shores High School baseball team, January through May via an agreement with the School Board. The School Board wants to upgrade the baseball field at taxpayer expense. Islamorada property owners all pay school taxes as well as Islamorada taxes.  Ergo, it is our money.

Artificial or Real

The School Board’s planned design for the Village Park includes artificial turf.  There is also a tremendous case to be made for “God’s green grass.”

Last week a Baseball Task Force met, made up of 5 local residents, formed to help the council with decisions related to the baseball field at the park. 

Choosing between artificial turf and real grass involves many factors:  

Costs, maintenance, aesthetics, durability, playability, environmental impact are all important factors 

The task force heard from a scientist favoring real grass with scientific reasons and a salesman who sells artificial turf.  Do we listen to the dynamic salesman?  Or do we want the scientific facts? It seems like there is more research to do.

Will there be a survey of residents?

The task force recommended that a survey be conducted to find out whether the property owners/taxpayers want real grass or artificial turf at the park. 

Will our council want to hear from the voters?

 Will our elected representatives choose to ignore their campaign promises to represent us, safe in the knowledge that their position is secure until the next election and perhaps forgotten by then.

Many residents have long memories and will vote accordingly.

The baseball coaches think the decision needs to be made immediately so there will be artificial turf installed by the 2027 season.

 

The real grass will be what they play on in 2026 (and what Coral Shore players have played baseball on for generations). 

If we don’t have all the answers, we should continue to gather the facts.

  

There is sufficient time to hear from the Islamorada residents. The residents own the park and their will should be the litmus test.

Waiting another year will only reflect a better decision… and the continued improvement of the artificial turf product.

We have artificial turf at the dog park.  And we are getting artificial turf at the new playground at Founders Park. 

I say - Ignore self-imposed deadlines and make good decisions.

The council owes the residents the ability to weigh in. We urge our Council to commission a survey of the residents of Islamorada. Let’s make the right decision.

 

 

Another topic: WE HAVE A WASTEWATER EMERGENCY!

While we thankRon Saunders for making wastewater a high priority, proper wastewater decisions are at a critical stage. What does it take to convene the council to explain our problem to residents and lay out the solutions and taxpayer costs?

It is undoubtedly the NUMBER ONE health and safety issue we have. Raw sewage is known to contain harmful disease-causing bacteria, viruses, and parasites.  If we continue to slow walk, we can destroy the environment that makes us special.

Anybody listening?

A maintenance plan and review of the 7 water crossings that contain buried sewer pipes should be regularly assessed for functionality and longevity. Foresight and prevention will prevent another wastewater calamity.

We urge a special public meeting to be conducted outlining problems, solutions and costs. It is what local governments are required to do for their constituents.

Elections have consequences.

Tom Raffanello

Coastal flooding damaged beyond repair the old restaurant at Plantation Yacht Harbor that had been serving as Islamorada’s Village Hall. Many public record documents were stacked on the floor. Numerous homes on the bay side of town were also badly damaged by storm surge.

On Oct 18, 2005,  Wilma transformed from a tropical storm to a Category Five hurricane in less than 24 hours.  Oct 24 was the 20-year anniversary of Hurricane Wilma plowing through Islamorada with 4-8 foot storm surge.

Perhaps now there is reason for just a touch of optimism.

But first the latest news: FDEP, Florida’s environmental regulators, have ordered the Village to fix Islamorada’s wastewater pipeline to Key Largo and pay $11,320 in fines for the repeated sewage spills that violated state clean-water rules.  There have been six overflows from May 2021 to March 2025 with a total of 430,000 gal of raw sewage leaking from pipe ruptures.

On 12/23/23, FDEP authorized the Village plan to remedy the problem by replacing the pump facility on Gardenia St.   But nothing has been done since then - almost two years and no action. And so the letter, dated October 15, 2025, from FDEP asks for the Village “Consent” to proceed with the changes the Village requested, with deadlines and stated penalties for pipeline failures - up to $15,000 per day.

Click here for the Consent Order draft to the Village from the Department of Environmental Protection detailing the issues, deadlines and possible fines they are asking Islamorada to agree to.

The Village has allocated $4.5 million in their current budget for the fix.  It is unknown whether that will be the actual cost.  

Since 2021, the Village engineers and Key Largo engineers have disagreed on the best approach, delaying work and resulting in more ruptures. Now Key Largo has agreed to accept the Village solution and will no longer object. Islamorada can now move forward. Whether Key Largo engineers had a better solution is still possible, but a stalemate resulting in doing nothing is not an option.

Since the first leak in 2021, Islamorada has had 4 Village Managers and 4 Interim Managers. Finally current Village Manager, Ron Saunders, is treating wastewater problems as a very high priority concern. And Saunders has brought in Peter Rosasco to help straighten out financial issues and EDU inconsistencies with our Wastewater Fund.

Best news: Saunders is being transparent about Village concerns and the impact on taxpayers.  He provided the details of the FDEP demands in a Village newsletter last Friday.   He acknowledges the wastewater concerns and is determined to clean things up.