Join us this Saturday, August 19, 2017 at 10am for a community rally to protest Petition 17-01 to build a construction- & demolition-debris processing facility on Celery Fields lands.
The rally will be held at the corner of Apex Road & Palmer Boulevard in Sarasota, just west of the entrance to the Celery Fields parking area.
Share this event on Facebook here (and RSVP if you’re thinking about joining us!).
About this Threat to the Celery Fields
Local developer James Gabbert plans to combine 3 adjoining properties in order to build a facility to process construction and demolition debris and yard waste with concrete crushers, wood chippers, and dozens of inbound and outbound truckloads per day of waste. The combined properties will be bigger than 16 football fields and will operate 6 days per week, starting at 7AM.
This property threatens the Celery Fields with:
- NOISE – Concrete crushers produce substantial amounts of noise, as do wood chippers. If this project is approved, both will be in use on this property—just a few feet away from Sarasota’s beloved bird habitat. Additionally, trucks containing loads of yard waste, construction and demolition debris, will be entering and exiting the property 6 days per week, adding significantly to the noise levels
- POLLUTION – Crushing concrete releases silica particulates into the air, which are damaging to the lungs and respiratory system. Imagine what this will do to the birds! The developer plans to control this by spraying it with water, which will produce runoff into the Celery Fields Regional Stormwater Facility which was built at a cost of over $24 Million to protect the Phillippi Creek Stormwater Basin. Water in this system feeds directly into the Gulf of Mexico. Additionally, pesticides, insecticides and other harmful chemicals from yard waste, as well as other substances from demolition debris (remember Chinese drywall?) will also end up in this critical water supply
- TRAFFIC – Roads like Palmer Boulevard and Apex Road, already suffering from overuse, will be clogged with trucks entering and exiting this property. Remember, 600 new homes are being built at the east end of Palmer Boulevard in the new development. We already experience long wait times trying to leave our neighborhoods or the Celery Fields on Palmer Boulevard. We can’t handle more industrial traffic as well!
- PROPERTY VALUES – Already Realtors® are expressing hesitancy on the part of buyers due to the potential for this project to be constructed. This means homes will stay on the market longer and sell for less than they would without this project.
In short: there are better places in Sarasota County to handle the recycling of construction and demolition debris and yard waste. Next door to this beautiful eco-tourism attraction and bird habitat is not a good place for this activity!
Let Your Voice Be Heard
Call or write your County Commissioner and let them know how you feel about this petition!
Sarasota County Board of County Commissioners: (941) 861-5344
- Michael A. Moran (District 1) mmoran@scgov.net
- Paul Caragiulo, Chair (District 2) pcaragiulo@scgov.net
- Nancy C. Detert, Vice-Chair (District 3) ncdetert@scgov.net
- Alan Maio (District 4) amaio@scgov.net
- Charles D. Hines (District 5) chines@scgov.net
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