Our condolences to the county commissioners.
Making a decision about Swamp Hammock isn't easy.
Should the county allow the outdoor recreation club to open for business, or should it protect a quiet neighborhood and sensitive environmental area?
The discussion has been ongoing for about a year.
Opinions on the issue are strongly held, emotions run high.
Worse, proponents and critics both make powerful points. Just when you decide one way, you change your mind and go the other.
No matter the decision, however, it's a sure bet 50 percent of Highlands County residents will be angry and upset when the decision is made, Commissioner Don Elwell has said.
Given the stress of deciding what to do, it is a shame that the county attorney didn't do a better job of supporting and preparing commission members for the quasi-judicial proceeding Tuesday night.
Because a public hearing like Tuesday's has legal standing, speakers must be sworn in, and all commissioner communications with principals must be revealed, explained and made a part of the official record.
No one expects commissioners untrained in the law to be aware of its finer points.
An attorney, on the other hand, must know better to be of any use. Understanding the rules and the process is a huge part of the county attorney's job description. Commission members should have been forewarned so the mandated records of their conversations with principals on either side of the Swamp Hammock issue were ready in a timely manner.
Having failed to prepare the commission, the county attorney almost shut down the meeting -- never mind it was dinner time and raining, so citizens were going out of their way to be heard.
A wave of angry unrest swept the crowd. A compromise was reached. As long as no decisions were made until individual commissioner correspondence on the issue was accounted for. The lawyer, reluctantly, allowed the hearing to continue, but no action was allowed.
Had the board of commissions made their decision Tuesday night -- something the commission was ready to do -- we'd be getting on with our lives by now.
Sunday, March 03, 2013 - www.newssun.com/editorial-030313