21-Jul-2003
Hon. Mayor and Commissioners,
City of DeLand,
120 S. Florida Ave.,
DeLand, FLA 32720.
To the Commission:
Staff is advising approval of a contract with Alan Cajacob for ‘‘architectural review’’. The entire idea is of course folly.
At the outset, the record should reflect the fact that I have better taste than Mr. Cajacob. Much better taste, in fact.
However, when I am not available, and someone wishes to work on their property, Cajacob is the designated hanger-on who gets to decide if the proposed work is sufficiently quaint. This has a creeping, fungal nature: over time, the City will claim the right to decide if a color of paint or type of grass is appropriate.
You should be aware that I own property within the City. As required by my property manager, I paint and otherwise maintain that property. It is my intent to continue to maintain my property. Be assured that I shall do so; at such time as you block that maintenance, that interference is likely to be perceived as a taking.
Of course you have to work fast; with my sprayer, I shoot the whole house in a single Saturday morning. What are you going to do then? I have made the City more attractive by keeping my property painted, so any relief you might seek would necessarily be to the detriment of the City.
And that brings us to the ultimate problem here: Cajacob might be able to make the city look more like Cajacob-ville, and he might be able to make it a slum by discouraging maintenance and improvement, but he certainly won’t make our City more like the DeLand we know and love.
Yours,
Tanner Andrews