Last week, in a not-so-shocking turn of events regarding the planned desecration of Florida’s “protected” coastlines, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection employee who reportedly blew the whistle on the state’s agenda to erect golf courses, hotels, pickleball courts, and more, caught the ax by way of a proverbial pink slip found waiting for him on the doorstep of his Tallahassee townhouse–on a Saturday afternoon, of all times, according to the Tampa Bay Times.
James Gaddis, who is said to have leaked the plans to the Times had worked with the state’s Office of Park Planning as a cartographer focused on Florida State Parks, had been serving in the role for more than two years when he caught wind of “the rushed secrecy that was behind the park plans, and the vast environmental destruction that would be caused if they were to be completed,” the Times writes.
“It was the absolute flagrant disregard for the critical, globally imperiled habitat in these parks,” Gaddis declared in an interview with the news agency Tuesday morning, adding that the most devastating proposals were the Jonathan Dickinson State Park golf course near Jupiter Inlet, and the 350-room hotel at Anastasia State Park in Saint Augustine, both on Florida’s East Coast.
Story has it that rushed and hushed orders came down the pike from Governor Ron DeSantis’ office through the office’s deputy chief of staff, Cody Farrill–the Governor’s office has yet to respond to the Times’ requests for comment. Gaddis recounted that his senior powers that be–or were–directed him to hurry up with his mapping so that the proposals could be put into bills and passed without much, ideally if any fuss from the public.
“This was going to be a complete bulldozing of all of that habitat,” Gaddis went on to tell the Times on Tuesday. “The secrecy was totally confusing and very frustrating. No state agency should be behaving like this.”
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection tracked what was intended to be an anonymous tip back to his work computer. Per Gaddis’ dismissal letter: “Recently the Department became aware that you intentionally released unauthorized and inaccurate information to the public. At least one document was created, authored, and disseminated by you without direction or permission.”
“I’ve taken sole responsibility for this,” Gaddis said last week while in the process of acquiring an attorney. It looks like he may need one, but he can safely rest assured that it’s not all for naught, as much (if not most) of the public and the political elite–particularly that of the great state of Florida–have his back. Here’s to natural beauty and grace at all costs.
Related: Florida’s “Protected” Coastlines Facing Potential Development