DIRECTOR OF PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT SERVICES

NEW PLANNING DIRECTOR: NEW HOPE

On December 1, 2021, Dan Gulizio, a new head of planning and development services will begin work for the Village, addressing the challenges the Islamorada community faces regarding the sustainability of our community, the environment and our limited infrastructure and resources.

Mr. Gulizio, with 25 years of planning experience in larger communities on Long Island, NY, comes to Islamorada with a long history of efforts to protect the environment and particularly water quality. 

His efforts on Long Island, not unlike Islamorada in many ways, may give him a head start understanding our local concerns.   In his own words from several years ago about his own area:

By any objective measure, the thirst for economic development has overwhelmed the capacity of our environmental resources. Reversing these trends won’t be easy, but it is not as difficult as one might think. Here are three simple steps to get started. 

Science-Driven Policy. Environmental quality and the protection of our precious water resources must be guided by science, not special interest needs and petty politics. 

Tougher Sanitary Standards. It is time to take the politics out of the region’s water quality and enact more effective standards.

Improve the Regulatory Process. Fighting individual development projects has proven to be ineffective. Civics have won individual battles but are clearly losing the war. We must begin to focus more attention on making changes to the regulatory process.