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Conservation groups and residents press LPA for stronger protections and more outreach on Southeast Lee changes
Summary
Multiple residents and conservation organizations urged the LPA to slow or change the Southeast Lee amendments, citing inadequate outreach, groundwater and wildlife concerns — including potential impacts on Florida panther habitat and regional flowways — and asking that density incentives be tied to measurable conservation outcomes.
During the public comment period on the Southeast Lee update, conservation groups and residents urged the Local Planning Agency to ensure environmental protections are measurable and enforceable. Marsha Ellis (for the record) told the LPA she was "not satisfied" with notice and outreach and called expedited review inadequate for changes of this magnitude. Julianne Thomas of the Conservancy of Southwest Florida asked that primary panther habitat and adult breeding habitat not be incentivized for increased density and recommended maintaining 1 unit per 10 acres in these zones.
Marissa Figueroa of Audubon Florida thanked staff for the conservation emphasis but urged that any increase in allowable density be tied to lasting, enforceable conservation measures; she warned that optional incentives could permit projects to gain density without delivering broad landscape benefits. Other public speakers echoed concerns about public notice, definitions of "significant harm" and how land-credit swaps would be regulated. The LPA discussed definitions, timing for companion LDC language and requested staff to clarify what constitutes "adequate protection" and how incentives will be enforced.
