VOTE NO! to change of Zoning

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This online petition is in regard to the Galveston City Council's vote to change the Zoning of approximately 1,100 acres of Beach to Bay property, potentially, the largest developed tract on the Texas Gulf Coast from single family to recreational.

If the change of zoning is approved for the Marquette development, ironically called "The Preserve", it will mean the developers will circumvent the process of the city's planning department and have an open ticket to do what they want with the property without the City's oversight.

A bevy of attorneys are working on a development agreement that should 'iron out' all the inconviences for the city and 'hold the developer's feet to the fire', but the truth is the City of Galveston is giving up a huge chunk of their little remaining opening space to a group that has
never developed south of Chicago and thinks the planning process is too contentious and will drag things out.

Please sign the online petition and forward to others that are opposed to changing from single-family zoning to recreational zoning by going online:

CLICK HERE TO SIGN THE PETITION

Reasons for Voting “No” to Recreational Zoning regarding Marquette Dev.

* If city council allows re-zoning, citizens of Galveston will NOT have the ability to preserve and maintain the quality of life within their single-family neighborhoods

* Family residences could be living next door to retail businesses of unknown origin

* The island and the type of lifestyle we have become accustomed to could be completely controlled by developers with no way for citizens to have a choice in the type of community in which they want to live – except to move to the mainland

* Recreational zoning does NOT require the city’s approval regarding future development projects

* A very dangerous precedent will be in place that could affect the whole island if recreational zoning is allowed

* If the largest parcel of land to be developed on the island can be zoned for recreational use, it is a strong possibility that city council could approve recreational zoning for other parts of the island as well

That is why VOTING NO for Recreational Zoning by our City Council is Crucial!!!

Our government is based on citizens’ input. We elect leaders to protect and serve with our best interests in mind. Constituents’ welfare is being denied if City Council votes for changing a single-family zoning area to recreational zoning in order to accommodate Marquette Development.

LINKS:
* Beach to bay preserve

* See who's signed the Petition

*http://www.savegalvestonisland.com

The Formation and Future of the Upper Texas Coast

Letter-to-the-editor from Professor John Anderson (RICE U.), author of the very latest May 2007 book by Texas A & M Press:
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"I was one of the three authors of the Geohazards Map that has raised so much attention in recent months. I am bit miffed by the apparent misunderstanding of the map by Galveston City officials. It is really not that complicated. It is based on island elevation, existing habitats and future habitats. The first two are fairly simple, the elevation of the island controls storm impact, the distribution of modern habitats and the rate at which these habitats will change as sea level rises and the land surface subsides. The third ingredient sounds complicated, but it is based on careful monitoring of the rate of Gulf shoreline and bay shoreline migration over the past several decades. If anything these rates will increase in the next several decades, so beaches, dunes and wetlands will need to have room to migrate landward.

The Geohazards map is color coded, with red designating areas that are of imminent geohazard potential and orange designating areas with high geohazard potential. Existing wetlands fall within the red zone and areas that will become wetlands in the next few decades occur within the orange zone. The proposed Marguette Development has significant overlap with both red and orange areas. It is estimated that 75 acres of wetlands will be lost.

During the June 19 meeting of the Galveston Planning Commission, Commissioner Listowski stated that he was not concerned about the wetlands because the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will serve as the watchdog agency to assure that the wetlands are protected. Mr. Listowski clearly misunderstands the Corps responsibility and their track record. He needs to drive the far west end of the island to observe how the Corps failed to consider wetlands migration in at the Cintex Development. So, if the Corps of Engineers is not watching out for the wetlands, who is guarding them? When the Geohazards map was submitted to City Council two years ago it was our hope that the City would assume responsibility for safeguarding the island environment. They are the ones who issue the permits for development on the island.

I am not apposed to development on the Island and fully appreciate the city’s desire to raise new tax dollars. But, the attitude of the commission seems to be that wetlands have no economic value, and they clearly are not concerned about the next generation of citizens who will have to clean up after our mistakes. City officials now have the information needed to assess the impact new development will have on the island and its fringing waters over the life span of the project, not just on the day of ground breaking. It is no longer acceptable to simply ignore these impacts are try to assure us that someone else is guarding the hen house. If city officials have problems with the current Geohazards map, we need to work on these problems in order to come up with a map that can be used to preserve the island environment for all of its inhabitants, including those who will inherit it."

Galveston developement threaten wetlands

"The site of the United States' most deadly natural disaster, the 1900 Hurricane, Galveston Island is one of the most vulnerable targets for a deadly storm strike. The city hangs on the northwest lip of the Gulf of Mexico, with only one major escape route to the mainland and subject to fast-developing cyclones that leave little time for evacuations.

Yet as city planners consider a proposal for the biggest single development of homes, hotels and marinas in the island's history, they are resisting using a $50,000 geological hazard map the city commissioned to help plan safe and sustainable development."

City commission members John Listowski, Kelley Sullivan, Willy Gonzalez and Craig Brown voted to approve a preliminary plat and zone change for the huge new Marquette development project on Galveston’s West End....only three members of the commission — Chula Ross Sanchez, Janice Stanton and Elizabeth Beeton — voted against the project.

On of the members states that "1,000 acres of open ranch land reaching 3 miles down the island from beach to bay, 8 mile road to 11 mile road on Galveston Island is in jeopardy of being smothered in 4,900 units, 2 high rises on the beach, a marina in the wetlands and uplands, a golf course, filling in 74 acres of wetlands for weekend homes. All this in an area cited as a fragile geohazard zone by the Bureau of Economic Geology at the University of Texas."

Sources:
Dolph Tillotson, publisher's column sunday June 24

Chronicle editorial, June 11, 2007