County extends deadline for iguana MSTU petitions
The Captiva Community Panel has received a deadline extension for the iguana MSTU petitions.
Last week, the panel reported that Lee County officials agreed to extend the original April 1 date for the county to receive the correctly completed and signed petitions to a new April 30 deadline.
“But we still have a ways to go to make the necessary total,” Administrator Ken Gooderham said.
The panel is collecting the petitions to ask the county to form a MSTU or Municipal Services Taxing Unit, which will fund a trapper service for Captiva to help curb or eradicate the invasive iguanas.
In order to create the MSTU, formal petitions were sent to every property owner who would be assessed as part of the new taxing unit. Fifty percent plus one of the total petitions sent must be signed and returned — “votes” in favor of the MSTU — for the county to proceed on forming the unit.
The panel needs to collect and submit at least 575 petitions.
“We have about 350 in hand,” Gooderham said on March 25, noting that another 100 or so petitions had been requested and sent to people, but had not yet been returned to the panel for submission.
“If you support this drive, we need your petition,” he added.
While the new deadline is April 30, the panel will need to submit the petitions before that cutoff.
“So we need them back to us by April 27,” Gooderham said.
The MSTU will cost the average island property $52.68 in taxes the first year.
The petition is available online at https://captivacommunitypanel.com/panel-info/invasives-mstu/. Property owners who support the formation of the unit can fill it out — one petition is needed for each Captiva parcel owned — then return the signed original to P.O. Box 72, Captiva, FL 33924-0072.
“Unfortunately, the snail mail return is necessary because the county requires original signatures on these petitions since they waived the requirement that they must be notarized,” Gooderham said.
Those unsure if they returned one can contact the panel and have it look it up.
The panel also provided an update last week on Alfredo Fermin, of AAA Wildlife Trapping and Removal Services, who is currently providing iguana control services to Captiva while the panel and county work on the possible MSTU. He recently was involved in a fairly serious dirt bike crash.
The accident put Fermin out of commission for a few weeks. Liaison and Panel Member John Jensen reported that Fermin was set for a doctor’s appointment this week and he hoped to get the all clear.
If given the approval to return to work, Fermin expected to be back on the job on April 6.
“He sounded good, and he’s real happy with his progress,” Jensen said.
“We are looking forward to him coming back,” he added.
Jensen also reported that he planned to set up an informational booth outside of the post office on March 29 to talk to the public about the proposed MSTU, provide information and answer questions.
“Now we’re doing a real push,” he said.
“If we don’t get this through than we’re on our own, Captiva is on its own,” Jensen added.
For questions, contact the panel at captivacommunitypanel@gmail.com.
For more information, visit https://captivacommunitypanel.com/panel-info/invasives-mstu/.
To reach TIFFANY REPECKI / trepecki@breezenewspapers.com, please email