Whistleblower who warned about Florida state parks fired by state agency

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Whistleblower who warned about Florida state parks fired by state agency
The employee’s dismissal letter, shared with the Tampa Bay Times, said he released ‘unauthorized’ information to the public.

Max Chesnes
Tue, September 3, 2024 at 11:08 AM EDT
6 min read



James Gaddis had just returned home Saturday afternoon when he found a dismissal letter waiting on his townhouse’s doorstep. … The former two-year Florida Department of Environmental Protection employee told the Tampa Bay Times he was the one who leaked information about the state’s plans to build golf courses, 350-room hotels, pickleball courts and more at nine state parks, including two in the Tampa Bay area. … Now, the agency appears to be firing him, according to a copy of the letter shared with the Times.

Gaddis, 41, who was hired by the agency as a cartographer, said his actions weren’t political, and that there were two main reasons he chose to speak out: The rushed secrecy that was behind the park plans, and the vast environmental destruction that would be caused if they were to be completed.

“It was the absolute flagrant disregard for the critical, globally imperiled habitat in these parks,” Gaddis said in an interview Tuesday morning. Gaddis said he was tasked with making the proposed conceptual land use maps that depicted the golf courses and other developments. Two proposals were especially egregious in his eyes: The Jonathan Dickinson State Park golf course, and the 350-room hotel at Anastasia State Park.

“This was going to be a complete bulldozing of all of that habitat,” Gaddis said. He recalls his hand, hovering over a computer mouse, shaking with anger and frustration as he was told to rush his maps from senior leadership. “The secrecy was totally confusing and very frustrating. No state agency should be behaving like this.”

{snip}

Max Chesnes is an environment and climate reporter, covering water quality, environmental justice and wildlife. Reach him at [e-mail].

[Marcuse]

1. DeSantis' 15 minutes had been over.

Gaddis said the directive was coming straight from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office, and that the governor’s deputy chief of staff, Cody Farrill, was the liaison between the Florida Department of Environmental Protection senior leadership and the governor’s office. Farrill and a DeSantis spokesperson have not responded to requests for comment.

[Old Crank]

2. No surprise there

Just typical of the GOP.
Have to punish people who work for the public's interest and not the corporate interest.

[royable]

3. And would DeSatan or any of his cronies have benefited from this rampant development?

Follow the money. There must be a story of corruption there.