Letter to the Commission

They are proposing a great many homes at the corner of Loretto Road and Kennedy Lane. We want less. Here is my letter.

To Whom It May Concern: 

Citizens of Mandarin and Jacksonville and Adkinson, Marshall, Blanchard, Daniel E. ,Brown, Ian A. (Secretary),Elsbury, Jordan, Gallup, Randy, Garrison, Joshua A. , Hacker, David (Chair), Moldovan, Alex (Vice Chair),Porter, Jason, Schellhorn, Matthew E., Motes, Dawn D. , Padgett, Nicole.

RE: Exception-E-22-29

Have any of you noticed what the Nation’s Oldest City Planning Commission has allowed and voted for?  Well, if you go to the City of St. Augustine, Florida, one of the Nation’s prime pieces of real estate, you can hardly move in the historic small space, as the commission has allowed such growth in a tiny area, the citizens can hardly enjoy their town.Visitors end up spending time in back-to-back traffic and walkers can no longer seemlessly walk the lanes without concerns of traffic. It is tragic.

We are asking that this NOT be said of our commission and that the historic property at the corner of Fairbanks Road and Loretto Lane be at least left to the less amount of homes.

Even with the lesser amount of homes, old and majestic great oak trees will be removed, a full pecan grove taken out, land and animals misplaced and flora and fauna disturbed  on this 23.9 plot area. Devastatingly enough, the historic Bowden home which has been there since 1907 will be demolished.

Only 10 minutes south of Loretto and Kennedy Lane, where this proposal is being pushed by the wealthy builders,  St. Johns County Commission, who allowed the historic district in St. Augustine to be overcrowded, has confirmed the Rivertown Project building of 4,950 homes.  This is only 11 miles down San Jose Blvd, one of the 2 roads east of the St. Johns for traveling in and out.  It is estimated at bringing more than10,000 people.  San Jose Blvd is only one of two actual N-S entrance and exit points.  What will happen to all of those cars traveling north and south in Mandarin?  Back-to-back traffic, long waits, additional road stress, the need of more lanes( San Jose already cannot be expanded).

Too, a new bridge to connect Clay and St. Johns counties was projected to begin in 2022 so all of that new traffic and everything that comes with that is soon to be enacted.

Please….vote for LESS HOMES and more happy lives in Mandarin.

Thank you for your attention to this important matter.

Nannette V. Ramey

Resident of Mandarin

See you tomorrow,