As a 44-year resident of southeast Florida, I have a different view of the impact of the Florida Hometown Democracy initiative than your recent guest columnist. "Ballot-box zoning" may stifle construction in some areas of Florida, and that could be a very good development. However, this initiative would not affect development plans that are already approved on a county's comprehensive land use plan.

The reason we need the Hometown Democracy amendment is because time and again citizens in South Florida and elsewhere have made their views on growth known to their elected officials but development interests almost always prevail. Business interests carry greater weight than citizen interests, which include the quality of life values that are given short shrift by those deciding our future. Comprehensive land use plans are repeatedly amended to push our communities way beyond livability.

How often can we expect our citizens to devote their time to sitting through hearing after hearing before various levels of officialdom when those who want to push more and more congestion down our throats are on paid time? And, those developer teams are usually rewarded with mega profits by squeezing more and more units on properties whose zoning under the prevailing comp plan would not permit such densities. No one has an inherent right to an upzoning, and the right of the community to decide these issues has been upheld by the Florida Supreme Court.

One of the most often stated fairy tales to sell upzoning is, "We need to increase the tax base to keep taxes low." If true, why are taxes skyrocketing? Currently, Florida's comprehensive land use plans, filed by every county in the state with the Department of Community Affairs in Tallahassee, already exceeds approvals for over 100 million residents in Florida. 

If this is good planning, why are we experiencing water restrictions with a population of 18-plus million? As for the ability of Florida's citizens to understand the complexities of a requested comp plan amendment when they see it on their ballot, all they need to know is how many more people and automobiles, plus additional water supply, will be required if this comp plan amendment should pass.

The most ludicrous pitch by comp plan amenders is to dangle the need for "affordable housing" as a given if we continually approve more and more construction. That has not happened yet despite rampant building in southeast Florida. Passing the Florida Hometown Democracy amendment is a triage effort which, hopefully, will lead to people all over this country demanding from our Congress a population policy that reduces population pressure to build more, consume more, throw away more.

Quality in our lives cannot be won by adding another 12 million people to Florida's rapidly deteriorating environment. Let the people vote! I urge Floridians to download a petition from the Hometown website ( http://www.floridahometowndemocracy.com), sign it and send it in along with four more from your neighbors. Or call 1-866-779-5513.

Joyce Tarnow is president of Floridians for a Sustainable Population.