Raising the bar for scouting
Van Duzer leads trip to Ferguson, Mo.
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Slow-going charter Somerset move dragging
A10
May the farce be with you IRSC drama opens with comedy
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ST. LUCIE WEST • TRADITION
YourVoiceWeekly.com VOL. 2/ISSUE 51
YOUR INDEPENDENT LOCAL COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2014
McCarty Ranch dispute finally ends Brandon Zeris STAFF WRITER
bzeris@YourVoiceWeekly.com
ST. LUCIE COUNTY — The St. Lucie County Commission took the first step Oct. 7 in approving an agreement to end the yearlong dispute with Port St. Lucie over the city’s plans to annex the land, but that wasn’t enough.
Governor stumps in St. Lucie
The City Council followed suit and approved the agreement Oct. 13, officially ending the battle over the 3,100-acre tract it purchased in 2012 for $10 million. The city purchased the site, which borders Glades Cutoff Road to the north and Range Line Road to the east, to build a water storage and treatment facility to accommodate the city’s future
growth — a projected population of 400,000 by 2040. Port St. Lucie annexed the land in April 2013 to start planning for the facility, but the county disputed the annexation. County officials said the land didn’t fit state contiguity requirements, meaning it didn’t border enough existing city-owned land. Just a 650-foot parcel bordered
existing city land to the east, Dan McIntyre, St. Lucie County’s attorney, said. Since the dispute started, the city has purchased additional land southeast of the ranch that would increase the total acreage bordering existing city land. The ranch, along with the newly purchased land, now meet state
See RANCH page A4
Do-gooder pirating Bottoms Up owner Jim Freitas gives a paella lesson to Mary Melber following the Spoil Islands Scavenger Hunt benefitting Hibiscus Children’s Center serving the Treasure Coast. The event had pirate-themed teams boating to several spoil islands in the Indian River Lagoon searching for clues.
Patrick McCallister STAFF WRITER
pmccallister@YourVoiceWeekly.com
ST. LUCIE COUNTY — Gov. Rick Scott made a campaign stop by Port St. Lucie to thank veterans for their service and the community for working hard to get the next state veterans nursing home in Tradition. Before making a short campaign speech focused on job creation since he took office in 2011, Scott talked about his earliest tie to the military. “My dad was 82 Airborne,” he told a crowd of local veterans and supporters at the Flamingo Hometown Café on Oct. 16. Veterans called back, “Hooah!” and “Airborne!” to the smiling governor, who is a Navy veteran. He said Marines used to beat up his shipmates and him.
Mitch Kloorfain chief photographer
See SCOTT page A6 PRSRT STD US POSTAGE PAID FORT PIERCE, FL PERMIT NO. 248
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