about my county st johns county florida

Political candidates often have campaign managers whose responsibility is to find the right media to share their candidates’ words.  They don’t typically write the candidates’ words or fashion their political stance.

And then, there are some who do just that.

The campaign manager

There are two candidates running for County Commissioner who are working hard to tell their stories in public appearances, in social media and news outlets.  I have a lot of respect for anyone who is willing to work so hard and sacrifice their personal time, ostensibly to give back to their community.  Campaigning, I suspect, is a tough job.

But these two candidates, along with a sitting Commissioner, are being fed words and politics by their “campaign manager,” Nicole Crosby.  Her platform (um, their platform) is to slow the development in St Johns County until the infrastructure catches up.

It is easy to get on board with that platform… sort of like mom and apple pie – no one can dispute the importance.  Unfortunately, it just isn’t as easy as saying “No” to developers, as the campaign platform promises.

This year’s platform and candidates were introduced as an opportunity to add to the lone voice on the Board of Commissioners who dares to vote “No” on development proposals.  By having a majority of commissioners who promise to vote “No,” the inference is that development will slow.  Maybe it will, for a time.

But there are consequences

At some point, the developers who have invested in land will sue the County for investment losses in accordance with the Bert Harris Act.  And without developers to contribute to the infrastructure needed for growth, the County will have trouble maintaining what we have, and will be unable to provide new facilities over time.

Who is really under attack?

Anyone who expresses a difference of opinion with what Ms. Crosby posts on her Facebook page is immediately attacked for being in the pocket of [insert name or group.] 

The background

Ms. Crosby is angry at a state senator for dissolving the Soil and Water Commission, to which she was duly elected, beating out the senator’s choice for the position. I’ll give it to her – that is a bad pill to swallow, particularly when you are as passionate about conservation and preservation as she is.

But that anger, without any vehicle to find resolution, has become the rallying cry for the County Commissioner election of 2024, with fingers pointing directly at four of the five commissioners to be in cahoots with the senator’s father’s development company.  The fifth commissioner is closely aligned with Ms Crosby.

What about the candidates, themselves?

Could the two candidates survive on their own without Ms. Crosby behind them?  Perhaps. But that they have allowed her to represent them so publicly is disappointing.

Of course, that they align themselves with an individual who is on the board of the Oath Keepers is troubling as well.

These two candidates will be forever linked with Ms. Crosby who has burned many bridges with state officials.  That will probably be remembered the next time the County asks the State for money.

Ms Crosby’s attacks on anyone who disagrees are hurtful and mean. She says she is under attack from those who dare to say that they disagree with her.  When did debate and dialogue over difference of opinion become an attack? 

So how do you know what is really behind the candidates’ platforms?

The simplest way is to stop simply reading headlines and memes and dig deeper.  Read differing opinions. Talk to others about their thoughts. Then form your own.

We don’t have to agree.  But we do have to listen to each other and to realize that our community is made up of many different perspectives and opinions.  What we do have to do is to make decisions for the good of the County overall, not for an individual and singular platform.

We can’t do that if we can’t listen and engage in dialogue. 

A thought from Nigerian author Wole Soyinka. “The greatest threat to freedom is the absence of criticism.”