Peace River/Manasota Regional Water Supply Authority - An email thread and a bit of History
Too often the lens through which we view the past becomes dimmed with time and fading memories. I post this email thread which took place on April 29, 1918, only in the interest of keeping the story straight. It is a series of emails between a few of the players in the early history of the PR/MRWSA that reflects a snippet of some the personalities and extraordinary decisions that made it happen. (Email addresses have been removed for the privacy of the senders.)
.... for history's sake.
The Players in this scenario:
From: Gene Schiller
Sent: Sunday, April 29, 2018 9:34 AM
To: Gene Schiller
Subject: Fwd: Sarasota Herald Tribune E-Edition Article: Peace River
For your info
Subject: Sarasota Herald Tribune E-Edition Article
Follow the link below to view the article.
Herald-Tribune Media Group
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On Sunday, April 29, 2018, Sonny Vergara wrote:
Gene,
Thanks for sending this. Interesting how history gets writ by those who’ve apparently forgotten it. Pat Lehman wasn’t working with the authority when we, Ed Chance and I, spent weeks/months convincing all the governments involved (Char. Co., Mana. Co, Sara. Co., DeSoto County, SWFWMD Gov. Bd., Mana Basin Bd., City of North Port, and the City of Punta Gorda) to take the plunge and make the purchase from the failing General Development Corp.
With Ed’s announcement (before he lost his next election) that maybe the Authority should buy the Peace River Plant from GDC using $50,000,000 that Manatee Co. Utilities had in is capital reserve fund, they all freaked. But then Ed and I met with Charlie Black (SWFWMD Bd. Chair.) and urged him to commit $2,000,000 toward the purchase, Charlotte and North Port, the harshest critics of the idea, had to back off and the Manatee County “threat” while always there eventually evaporated.
This, after we convinced the Authority Board that Charlotte County, pursuant to their demand, could own the bond sale of $73,000,000. (Behind that negotiated point was the lobbying of their bond advisors who suddenly became the bond sellers who then made millions (?) on the sale).
Meantime, Ed lost his election. I then hired him as my “local government coordinator” and we continued to negotiate the deal. When it was becoming clear the purchase was going to happen, I hired Pat Lehman who was just released from the City of Tampa (he was blamed for some things that were not his fault; classic political fall guy.) because I needed a competent operations engineer, and rehired Sam Stone who GDC had released a year or two before. Sam had worked for years as the GDC plant’s permitting person dealing with SWFWMD, a respected, ethical and knowledgeable techie whom I knew would be invaluable.
There were many very wise folks on the various commissions who were also Authority Board members in addition to Franz Ross who were instrumental in moving the Peace River toward a regional water supply leader such as RV Griffin, Bob Allen, Jerry Hill and Ed Johnson from DeSoto County, Mabry Carlton and Charley Richards from Sarasota, and Don Ross from Charlotte County.
Pat L. has done a wonderful job navigating the treacherous waters of having to keep so many local governments engaged in benefitting all their interests rather than just their own and nothing here is to disparage that, but, to lay the historic success of the organization primarily at his feet is not accurate and disparages all else who also deserve inclusion.
A last point while I'm at this, in order for the PR Authority to own the PR plant and be a regional water supplier, we had to negotiate and renegotiate water supply agreements with all the aforementioned entities who were so afraid one would get the upper water supply hand over the others that Don Ross once asked me how could one agreement be put before so many governments at one time so all could sign the same exact agreement at the same time. Recognizing that would be impossible, each approved as their boards met but it would not take effect until the last party approved it, like a real estate closing.
We went on to administratively reinstitute the plant from a private to public entity while maintaining in place the entire operations crew and begin the planning for a true regional water supply authority. I named the plan the Peace River Option which became the guiding blueprint for what Pat Lehman, all to his credit, built.
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To: 'Sonny Vergara'
cc 'Charley Richards' ; 'Tom Tryon' ; 'Don ROSS' ; 'Patrick Lehman' ; 'Jerry G. HILL' <; 'Ray Pilon'
I appreciate the article.
Lots of water has gone through the pipes since the first shots were fired. I’m the only living board member who remains that hired you and fought to protect my county from those who would have run rough shod over us except for this old Marine and few of his fellow county commissioners were game for the fight. I didn’t even get an honorable mention, much less an invite to the last Bar-B-Q; and my grandmother was born just a few yards south of that plant in March 1883. And history is once again rewritten by those who were not there. I guess we have to keep everything warm and fuzzy and politically correct, but that’s not the way I remember it. I remember going up the beach, not watching from the boat. I was there when it happened, I remember it well.
I still remember Ed Chance, Mabry Carlton and Col Ross with deep respect. Good men with honorable intentions and back bone enough to stay the course.
Take care and stay well.
Thanks, Ed Johnson
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From: Tryon, Tom
Sent: Sunday, April 29, 2018 2:28 PM
To: Sonny Vergara
Subject: Re: Sarasota Herald Tribune E-Edition Article: Peace River
To be honest: I’m one of the few left who know most of the story and care.
Tom
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To: Sonny Vergara
Unfortunately I had 425 words to explain 30 years.
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To: Tom Tryon
Sent: Sunday, April 29, 2018 4:50 PM
Cc: 'Ed Johnson'; 'John Zimmerman'; 'Don ROSS'; 'Patrick Lehman'; 'Gene Schiller; Ray Pilon
Subject: RE: Sarasota Herald Tribune E-Edition Article: Peace River
Tom, yes, I withdraw the inference as it relates to you, gladly, and apologize. I agree you were a great, true friend of Eddie’s and one of the forward thinkers who understood what was happening and supported us in all the important issues. The focus of my comment was toward those who are surely in your ear today and would spin the history of this grand story toward the advancement of their own personalities and politics at the expense of those, some of whom are no longer here to defend themselves or at least set the record straight, who long ago worried and risked greatly to do the right thing for the people and the future of the region’s natural systems. Please do write “the rest”. Time is, as is said, flying.
To: Sonny Vergara
Thanks, Sonny.
Trust me, please, no one is spinning or pissing in my ear. I checked in with Pat several weeks ago, thinking that it was time to remind that Charlotte would be up the canoe with no paddle or water without the project. He agreed to stop by my office and update. I added in today's board members as a strategy because we need to get them to fight hard and publicly for Orange Hammock acquisition because for some reason Swiftmud is dragging on it. Can't even get a straight answer from Swiftmud these days and the board members' emails are not even public, best I can tell.
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To: Sonny Vergara
Glad you still have your memory! Great commentary
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To: 'Sonny Vergara'
Sonny,
Both you and I were there from the very beginning of any serious discussions. You and I date back to a Desoto County Commission Meeting circa 1977-78. The others are building on the beach head that was fought out in the late 1980’s and established in the early 1990’s. Maybe they should read the plaque on the wall of the Water Plant to see who the “survivors” were.
Bucky Waldron asked me a couple of years ago now that I am older do I chose my fights. I told him no, I was afraid I would miss out on a good one.
Thanks, Ed Johnson
PS: It is doubtful that there would be a Regional Water today, if it were not for the many hours of hard work, a few fights along the way and a diligent effort to make it work, long before these others ever arrived on the scene. Hang in there Captain. Holler if you need help.
PSPS: I wish I had all of the cut film on Honey Rand’s editing room floor. There was a lot more history told than published.
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From: Ed Johnson
Sent: Sunday, April 29, 2018 5:00 PM
To: 'Sonny Vergara'
Subject: RE: Sarasota Herald Tribune E-Edition Article: Peace River
Did I miss something or are these just ricochets flying around?
Thanks, Ed Johnson
PS: Is anyone other than you and I still standing from that 1992 Water Plant agreement?
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From: Sonny Vergara
Sent: Sunday, April 29, 2018 5:20 PM
To: 'Ed Johnson'
Subject: RE: Sarasota Herald Tribune E-Edition Article: Peace River
Sort of. He reacted to my inference that his article didn’t exactly recognize others who should’ve been. He’s a good guy so I apologized. In reality, I’m a bit miffed that Pat is letting his “spinners” suggest the current crew, himself and the current pols, are the ones that achieved it all. All the work of so many, such as yourself, appears to becoming systematically relegated to the latrines of history and unceremoniously buried.
Sonny
To: Sonny Vergara
Sonny,
Both you and I were there from the very beginning of any serious discussions. You and I date back to a Desoto County Commission Meeting circa 1977-78. The others are building on the beach head that was fought out in the late 1980’s and established in the early 1990’s. Maybe they should read the plaque on the wall of the Water Plant to see who the “survivors” were.
Bucky Waldron asked me a couple of years ago now that I am older do I chose my fights. I told him no, I was afraid I would miss out on a good one.
Thanks, Ed Johnson
PS: It is doubtful that there would be a Regional Water today, if it were not for the many hours of hard work, a few fights along the way and a diligent effort to make it work, long before these others ever arrived on the scene. Hang in there Captain. Holler if you need help.
PSPS: I wish I had all of the cut film on the editing room floor. There was a lot more history told than published.
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To: Sonny Vergara
Hi Sonny,
Thanks for that walk down memory lane. I think you are right that Ed C. may have suggested that Manatee County should buy the GDU plant. That was because our Director at the time (Mr. Wilford) was suggesting that to him. We were reviewing the Water Supply Plan that the Authority had out in draft which actually suggested the Authority build a plant upstream of GDU. We were telling Mr Wilford that was a bad idea with GDU downstream and thought it would be better if the Authority bought out GDU. He liked the idea of having Manatee buy GDU’s plant and shared it with Ed C. and all is history after Ed took off with it. Although I’m pretty sure Ed proposed it as a way to get the Authority moving. At the time he used to tell me he thought of the Authority as a mumbly bug which would never get it’s act together. That was after years of focusing solely on emergency interconnects. Best thing we did was hire that flower dealer - you - who knew how to negotiate.
Have you visited the plant lately? I’m not even sure
where the administrative offices are now. Making me think I need to
attend a meeting now and then, to see how the Authority is doing. BTW
Your photography is awesome.
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