Opposing sides in Navarre incorporation debate to face off before Santa Rosa Commission

It may yet be too early to label as "age old" the question of whether or not the community of Navarre should incorporate, but there's no denying it's been around a good long while.

Come Monday, the pros and cons of establishing Santa Rosa County's fourth city should once again be roundly debated.

At the request of state Rep. Joel Rudman, County Commissioner Ray Eddington, who represents Navarre, has agreed to provide pro-incorporation group Preserve Navarre the opportunity to address the full board at its Committee of the Whole meeting.

In anticipation of a show down, Protect Navarre, an anti-incorporation group headed by Debbie Gunnoe, took to social media to encourage its supporters to email commissioners and let their feelings be known.

Wes Siler, the leader of Preserve Navarre, wants to convince commissioners to agree to place a referendum on the November ballot asking the approximately 37,000 people who would be impacted by incorporation to weigh in on the issue. A non-binding straw poll will simply provide a gauge of where the majority of local voters stand, Siler said.

"It will be the same language we've had before, 'Do you support incorporation?'" Siler said. "Then, based upon the barometer of support, Rep. Rudman could take our case to the Legislature for a vote or we'll stop talking about the issue for another at least 10 years."

Siler said Rudman, who could not be reached for comment, wants to see the incorporation debate "settled for the foreseeable future."

"The American way to do that is with a vote," Siler said.

Should the commission agree to put the incorporation question on the ballot, and the measure win support of the majority of Navarre residents, Rudman could then introduce local legislation, along with an updated 2022 feasibility study and other documents, to the Florida Legislature. If his bill passes both houses and is signed by the governor the issue would come back to voters as a binding referendum.

Siler said he's taken the incorporation request to Rudman rather than state Rep. Alex Andrade, who also represents a portion of the affected area, "because I think he's more likely to file it and see it through."

Previously: What could a city of Navarre look like? Check out the first set of proposed city limits.

There have been non-binding votes on Navarre incorporation before, the first time in 2006 and again in 2014. Neither indicated support for the idea.

In 2021, a petition drive to get the issue on a ballot failed when supporters couldn't gather enough signatures. The failure was largely blamed on the arrival of COVID-19 and the global pandemic.

Siler does see hope in the fact 44% of those who voted in 2014 cast ballots in favor of incorporation and believes with the population increases of the last decade his group could emerge victorious in a third round of polling.

"With more people living here we're seeing a lot of changes in the demographics," he said. "There's a strong presence among people like me, who moved in seven years ago, who have been unable to weigh in on the issues."

Preserve Navarre can also feel encouraged by a poll taken in 2021 that resulted in 66% of the 2,615, or approximately 7% of would-be voters, who weighed in supporting incorporation, while just 23% rejected the proposition out of hand.

Siler said one need only look west to Gulf Breeze to see how successful incorporation can be. The city government there has added parks and other recreational amenities and embarked on an effort to improve infrastructure by addressing storm water and wastewater treatment issues, while working to install underground utilities.

In a letter posted on Facebook, Gunnoe argues that incorporation will create another layer of government "to become corrupt, to control, and to levy more taxes."

The letter states that taxpayers in Milton, Gulf Breeze and Jay all pay city taxes on top of the county millage rate and warns of "hidden" city taxes introduced as franchise or communication service fees.

"Protect Navarre stands 100% against incorporation," the letter said. "Protect Navarre wants to leave people alone to live within the government we already have."

Siler calls the notion of adding another layer of government absurd. He contends that an effective city government would prove an asset to the county. Cities, he said, again citing Gulf Breeze, can have success lobbying state, federal and county sources for assistance in adding services and amenities.

"Our thinking is, 'let's get Ray some help with representation here that can bring a greater say in our governance and more investment in the city that can help with challenges in the future,'" he said.

He said he finds it "fascinating" that the Protect Navarre organization, which has long asserted it had numbers to defeat any incorporation proposal, would be fighting so hard to keep a non-binding referendum off the ballot.

"Their guys are actively lobbying the county commission not to have a vote this fall," he said. "If they have such strong support in the community why won't they support a vote?"

Eddington said he'd been contacted by both Preserve Navarre and Protect Navarre and, while he personally opposes Navarre incorporation, supported each side's right to make their case before the County Commission for or against holding a November referendum.

"They've got the right to come to us and talk to us. I will listen to everybody on both sides. I'm not going to tell anyone they can't come in front of us," he said. "That's not our place."

More: Navarre incorporation efforts need green light from Rep. Williamson

While it is unclear whether the board will take action Monday rather than at its Thursday regular meeting, Eddington said he's in favor of getting the issue out of the way.

Siler said he's hopeful commissioners will go into the debate with an open mind, realizing that voting against holding a referendum is taking power out of the hands of the people.

"I don't want the county commissioners to decide whether we have a voice or not," he said. "That would be stepping in to block the people of Navarre from having a say in what they are doing."

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Preserve Navarre and Protect Navarre to face-off over incorporation