Hey, I have a proposal...since Driftwood totally deserves to drown since nobody combed through years of property records and trusted the county to have enforced codes, and therefore don't deserve to have their life an property protected...maybe we should just exempt Driftwood from paying property taxes. Make Driftwood an tax free zone!
The real answer in Driftwood Estates is for the county to man-up admit that they did not monitor the DRI - that their employee's signoff on the inspections of the drainage and go back against the developer as the DCA and the special magistrate has suggested.
Regretfully, that action appears to not be on the table. Our elected officials seem to be once again burying their heads in the sand and are going to pass the cost of repairing the drainage issues along to the taxpayers of Walton County.
Mr. Osborn has proven to be someone that they could not spend-out - silence or that did not simply grow tired of the fight. He will gain nothing personally from this fight other than having the drainage repaired, just as MS. Harris gained nothing from her suit. In both cases they will have or have recovered their legal costs only while simply for long periods of time to follow their own "rules". In both cases it appears that the "Walton County 5" allowed personalities to dictate policy and procedure.
Mr. Osborn will have his property values increased once the stigma of "the swap" goes away and will have spent a tremendous time in the process.
It would be interesting to know the legal cost that the county has incurred in defending their actions in Driftwood. We know the cost of simply not following state statute. Between their settlement cost of $155,000 (actually legal fees she incurred) and the counties cost of legal fees to their contract lawyers, mediators, and special counsel of $120,000+ dollars their failure to follow state statute costs the taxpayers almost $300,000.
I have heard that the cost of engineering and construction will approach 4-5 million in Driftwood.
I have difficulty understand why some attack either Ms. Harris or Mr. Osborne rather than directing their anger at the five people that have received bad legal advice, allowed the issues to become personal, and are not having their feet held to the fire for a total waste of precious dollars during this down economy.
Where is your anger at those that have not been held accountable.