Clearing up a few things on Cara Jennings

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Self-proclaimed Anarchist, Commissioner Cara Jennings

Patrick Parrish of the Lake Worth Herald came out with a scathing editorial of Commissioner Jennings. He entitled his commentary, "Are Law Suits Accomplishments?" Well, sometimes they are.

The other thing that must be said is that any idiot can file a law suit. If you remember the anarchy on the Dais, Retha Lowe grabbed the Contract with Greater Bay away from Mayor Marc Drautz, and signed it as Vice Mayor. Even our self-proclaimed anarchist would not have done that! The Dirty Dozen was in the Chamber that night jeering and saying all sorts of vile things toward Drautz. The mayor wanted to study it first...read it, unlike Lowe. They were determined to get our beach out of public control for the enrichment of their friends and themselves.

There was no haste here, as the Lake Worth Herald states, in this contract termination. Greater Bay was given every opportunity to perform--the City bent over backwards. Greater Bay had dragged its feet for over a year. Even Retha eventually voted to kick the flim flam man out of town. As I recall, the entire commission voted to do that--reason? Non-performance. Cara Jennings is not responsible for this frivolous law suit. Those commissioners who voted for the Greater Bay Contract are responsible: Lowe, Clemens and Vespo. They started the entire mess and several law suits that followed.

The Herald further complained that she interjected herself into the city's problems at the south end landfill that is out of her district. Commissioner Jennings represents this City, not just her District. That is why we get to vote for all commissioners up for election. She was not interfering. She was doing her job. And where was the Herald's good friend Retha Lowe in all this landfill mess? Did she even support that community? No. She got campaign contributions from Sun Recycling, the company that was doing all the dumping and damage to our land and causing health problems to her neighbors in her District that she represented. Later she was fined by the Florida Elections Commission.

As far as Jennings trying to get support of the Haitian community for her re-election this year when she tried to divert the delivery of our ambulance to St. Mark's Hospital in torn ridden Haiti, is nothing more than a fictitious and malicious allegation by the Herald. The Haitian community is a very small voting block. Jennings has worked closely with them through the years advocating and supporting their needs. She has always had a good relationship with them. She always said that she would not seek a third term.

It is true that our Comprehensive Plan is being held up but that is not Jennings' fault. The City Commission approved 35 foot height limits. The Comp Plan is being help up by La Sonna Hayes, a resident who wants to change her residential neighborhood into mutli-family zoning. She does not like height limitations. Jennings had never said that she is against development. What she did was to make the developer establishment and friends act like rabid dogs when they thought they were ensured of a developer's field day on 6th Avenue South and 10th Avenue North by building high. This is the one action of Jennings that motivated them to action...money slipping from their fingers is not a pleasant feeling. They even formed a PAC, Businesses Aligned for Change. Limiting heights will not deter developers. That is always their excuse and a main reason why the State of Florida is in the shape it is in. It was all about money with this Group. It always is and why we need Amendment 4.

I look forward to Commissioner Jennings presentation prior to her ending term and to be reminded of her accomplishments. There were many. Because she refused to "toe-the-line" to conservative politics and developer interests, should not deny the existence of truth nor should it diminish her skills and achievements during her tenure. She will probably take this opportunity for her one last anarchist action to remind us that we are all equal, no one is "illegal," and that it is government's responsibility to take care of humankind. The majority of citizens did not agree.