AVNA Resolution to oppose sale of Hatton Property, May 2020
Also, AVNA has created an on-line petition for this opposition: https://tinyurl.com/SaveHatton
SaveHatton Street!
We, the members of Alta Vista Neighborhood Association are opposed to putting homes on the narrow parcel designated as 899 S School Ave, which runs along the north side of Hatton St between School Ave all the way to Euclid Ave, straddling Shade Ave and is currently owned by Sarasota County. The County must continue to keep and manage this precious resource.
* Home security: This land is vital for flood control. And homes back right up to the edge of the waterway on the other bank. Any loss of that open space is a potential hazard in an age of increasing storms and sea-level rise. Even if an easement were retained to the canal and ponds, we would still lose both permeable area and direct municipal control. Conserving the area is key flood protection for the neighborhood as well as the adjacent schools and the water quality of Hudson Bayou and the Phillippi Creek Watershed, which is an impaired waterway.
* Ecology: From the footbridge that connects Euclid to Browning St, or the sidewalks along Shade Ave, view one of the last refuges of wildlife in this part of the city. Hawks, wading birds, otters and red fox frequently visit.
* Safety: Traffic. We just got more traffic funneled onto Hatton St. This reduces safety right where kids are. Any more will increased noise and air pollution, harming current neighbors as well as anyone considering these new homes. And, unfortunately, parents chauffeuring their kids may become the rule (crowded busses expose vulnerable people).
* Quality of life: Would we want to subject residents to living on such a narrow strip, sandwiched between a road and a waterway, with barely enough room for a home, let alone room to back out a car?
* Burden to taxpayers: Building and maintaining infrastructure for all new...sewer, drinking water, gas, reclaimed irrigation, etc.
SaveHatton Street!
We, the members of Alta Vista Neighborhood Association are opposed to putting homes on the narrow parcel designated as 899 S School Ave, which runs along the north side of Hatton St between School Ave all the way to Euclid Ave, straddling Shade Ave and is currently owned by Sarasota County. The County must continue to keep and manage this precious resource.
* Home security: This land is vital for flood control. And homes back right up to the edge of the waterway on the other bank. Any loss of that open space is a potential hazard in an age of increasing storms and sea-level rise. Even if an easement were retained to the canal and ponds, we would still lose both permeable area and direct municipal control. Conserving the area is key flood protection for the neighborhood as well as the adjacent schools and the water quality of Hudson Bayou and the Phillippi Creek Watershed, which is an impaired waterway.
* Ecology: From the footbridge that connects Euclid to Browning St, or the sidewalks along Shade Ave, view one of the last refuges of wildlife in this part of the city. Hawks, wading birds, otters and red fox frequently visit.
* Safety: Traffic. We just got more traffic funneled onto Hatton St. This reduces safety right where kids are. Any more will increased noise and air pollution, harming current neighbors as well as anyone considering these new homes. And, unfortunately, parents chauffeuring their kids may become the rule (crowded busses expose vulnerable people).
* Quality of life: Would we want to subject residents to living on such a narrow strip, sandwiched between a road and a waterway, with barely enough room for a home, let alone room to back out a car?
* Burden to taxpayers: Building and maintaining infrastructure for all new...sewer, drinking water, gas, reclaimed irrigation, etc.
