The Future of the SRIA Talking Points

Pensacola Beach Citizens Forum – May 12, 2008

Presented by Steve Speirs, Beach Resident

The Santa Rosa Island Authority (SRIA) was created in 1947 by a special act of the Florida legislature. That special act also authorized the Escambia County Board of County Commissioners to use Santa Rosa Island in the public interest and to lease the owned by Escambia County for purposes it deemed in the public interest. The Board of County Commissioners delegated to the SRIA all of its powers, duties and authority relating to the development, leasing and operation of the Island.

The SRIA Board was established with 5 members –appointed by the 5 Escambia County Commissioners. In 1983, a sixth elected member was added to the Board, who must be a resident of the Beach and elected by registered voters on the Beach. This change came about through the efforts of a few concerned Beach citizens.

Functions of the SRIA include:

1 Managing public lands and safety on the Beach – including lifeguards, beach cleaning

2 Promoting the Island – sponsoring or supporting events like the Mardi Gras Parade, Blue Angels weekend, and Bands on the Beach.

3 Overseeing leasing, zoning issues, and development

Probably the most critical long-term function, also it’s most controversial ( if you have ever had a problem with the SRIA, it was probably in this area)

However, through effective lease management, they have created an island

community where 60% of the land (not including the National Seashore) is

reserved for public use, making us unique among other barrier island and beach communities.

I would give the SRIA an A for effort in creating public access. We are a community with good churches, a school and public parks. I think it is fair to say that the SRIA has been successful in carrying out its leasing function. During its early years, Escambia County had to subsidize the operation of the Beach. People were encouraged to build on the Beach, lured by promises of no property taxes. Since the mid-1970’s, the SRIA began generating enough revenue from lease fees to be financially self sufficient. For over 30 years, no County tax dollars have been spent to maintain the County’s “playground”.

Pressure to abolish the SRIA:

There have been periodic efforts to abolish the SRIA. Commissioner Mike Whitehead is the most outspoken advocate. A couple of years ago, his idea was to create a special division of the County to administer Pensacola Beach and Perdido Key. Pressure to abolish the SRIA will intensify if the County prevails in its legal actions to tax the beach leaseholders. Now we are litigating the ad valorem taxes on our improvements – next we may have to litigate taxation of our land. If the County receives federal permission to grant leaseholders fee simple interest to our properties, the SRIA would likely be done away with completely.

The key question is – How do we best administer Pensacola Beach?

Proponents of the SRIA point out how unique the island is, and how unique its administrative issues are. They feel we need a governmental body to focus on the needs of the island for the benefit of all Escambia County citizens. They argue that there would be minimal dollar savings by adding SRIA functions to existing or new County departments, with a disproportionate loss of focus. Even those strongest in their support of the SRIA, acknowledge that they have disagreed with decisions made by the SRIA. But they maintain that beach citizens will have just as many if not more complaints about the decisions made by county commissioners and staff that are 2 bridges and a county away. They also point out that the County government broader focus and need for revenue would lead to more development of the island and more revenue generated on the Beach being spent on the mainland.

Opponents feel there would be substantial fiscal savings by merging the SRIA into the County, and that development will be spurred by a streamlined approval process.

Incorporation might be an option. This may be difficult to achieve, as we lack the necessary population required by the State. There is also the reality that an incorporated Pensacola Beach would have to levee property taxes to operate. These taxes would be in addition to the taxes paid to the County

Let me conclude by saying how pleased I am to see such a large crowd. I encourage each person to get involved to retain the quality of life on Pensacola Beach.