Response to editorial opinion
To the Editor:
An editorial opinion was printed in the Fort Myers News-Press on Thursday, March 19, titled, “Farmworker housing is no threat,” and stated, “Lee County commissioners made a wrong decision on Tuesday (March 17) on proposed farmworker housing on Pine Island.” The column went on to say, “Some of the public comments Tuesday indicated unwarranted fear and prejudice.” The column further stated, “Comparisons of the proposed project to the crime-ridden Jones Walker public housing complex in Fort Myers were offensive.” At the end of the column the editorial stated, “Denying them the chance to improve their lot is unfair; it’s un-American.”
I am astonished that the News-Press could endure several hours of testimony on Tuesday, March 17, and conclude that Pine Islanders are all against low income housing and we discriminate against hard-working minorities. Nothing could be further from the truth! What hearing did the News-Press attend?
Pine Island depends on farmworkers for our number one industry – thousands of acres of palm fields. We are not prejudiced against them. On the contrary, we welcome them into our community and all of our outreach programs are available to meet their needs and to make them feel comfortable among us.
I am curious to find out, how did you dream up the comparison with the Jones Walker project in Fort Myers? This comparison was never made at Tuesday’s hearing! Several property owners did testify that we already have a surplus of low income housing available and, although rates are much lower that the units in the proposed plan, several units have been vacant for several months. Pine Islanders are not only FOR farmworker housing, we rely on it! We are, however, against segregating low income people of any background into unhealthy, condensed housing projects that isolate them from community and create an “us and them” mentality. Expert testimony compared the benefits of scattering farmworker housing throughout the community, like we have on Pine Island, to condensed segregated housing projects like the plan being proposed. The farmworkers on Pine Island have quickly disseminated into the community and are reaping the benefits of our outreach projects.
In my opinion, there are three primary reasons the proposed housing plan will never be approved: location, location, location. Ample farmworker housing already exists on Pine Island. Why build at this location when laborers are desperately needed elsewhere in Lee County? The housing project calls for initial construction of 64 units followed later by another 64 units. The project is approximately one mile from the elementary school and much further for other needs like dentists, doctors, groceries and pharmacy. Lee County does not provide school buses for children living within two miles of their respective school. Pine Island’s only sidewalk/bike path is located on the opposite side of the major thoroughfare, Stringfellow Road. The housing plan presumes that elementary school children can cross Stringfellow Road during early morning traffic. The only crossing is at the peak of a curve on Stringfellow Road which substantially reduces the margin of – error for their one-mile trek to school. After walking a mile back home in the afternoon they find themselves at the bottom of a “blind curve” with oncoming traffic approaching at 55 mph with no margin for error. I am confident that, like the Lee County commissioners, any future legal review will see the location of this plan as a recipe for disaster. I suggest the News-Press re-title their editorial to: Farmworker housing IS a threat – to farmworkers and their children.
Respectfully,
Barry Thrasher
Pine Island resident