It seems that quite a few people want to simplify the problem of local government's poor growth management by demonizing developers and others making a buck by building new homes, which results in more strangling traffic jams, the need for more teachers, cops and firefighters, and a public education district in need of a billion dollars worth of new schools.
Not only is simplistic to blame those folks, it's wrong. Those who despise developers fail to recognize their own fault in the tragedies of Clay County's growth management record. They resort, instead, to demonizing the very people who have proven themselves to be better Americans.
Developers catch heat, while rarely being recognized for the good things they do. Rarely are they applauded for the donations of large tracts of land for schools, or the staggering sums they contribute to the public coffers in Fair Share agreements. Plus, the jobs created when a subdivision is built includes a long list, from architects and lawyers to framers and concrete layers. And that doesn't even include private donations to charities and other worthy causes. And in America, being rich and getting richer isn't a crime, it's the national dream.
Increasing personal wealth is not a crime, nor is influencing the decisions made in local government - within the constraints of some specific legal exceptions. And blaming developers and others in the Clay County growth industry for using their opportunities to lobby for themselves is unfair. Akin to complaining because the cop picked your car to pull over when everyone was speeding. They use their rights as Americans to organize, dominate the one viable local political party, nominate people who are sympathetic to their views, donate to political campaigns and establish amenable allies in elected positions. That's the American Way.
There aren't many citizens outside the growth industry who make any attempt to effect change in local government Growth Management policies, so why is everyone surprised that Clay County is unbalanced?