Manatee County Commissioners recently had a heated discussion over whether a board member violated a Florida Statute when over 180 emails showed up opposing a new housing project in Lakewood Ranch.

The project, called the Chalets at Lakewood Ranch, would add 35 new homes on 12 acres of land at 4821 Lorraine Road. It needed a zoning change and approval of the site plan. At a meeting on June 5, all seven commissioners said they had not communicated with anyone about the project outside their public meeting, which is required by law.

However, one of the emails seemed to suggest that a commissioner had been in contact with residents about stopping the project. This raised questions about whether the statute was followed.

The commission ended up approving the project in a close 4-3 vote. The developer, SMR Northeast LLC, is part of the group behind Lakewood Ranch. The discussion among commissioners was more about whether someone had acted unethically or unlawfully than about the project itself.

Commission Chairman George Kruse said the project was one of the most well-planned they had seen. He said it followed all county and state rules, used 50% open space, and retained its own stormwater properly.

Kruse said most of the 182 emails came from residents in the nearby Esplanade at Azario neighborhood, and many of them had moved in within the last 12 months. Some of the people didn’t seem to oppose this project but wanted to stop it to set a precedent for stopping a larger development coming at a late date.

One email, written by Jack McGourty, a local resident and part of a group that opposes new development, asked neighbors to copy and send the same email to all Manatee County Commissioners. The email stated the goal was to work with “our commissioner” to stop any zoning changes along Lorraine Road. McGourty believed this would help stop a future project with 234 apartments nearby.

Kruse said this email showed that some people were trying to manipulate the commission into saying no to a good project just to block future development. He called this “weaponized NIMBYism,” meaning people were trying to stop development simply because they don’t want anything new near where they live.

Kruse did not name the commissioner mentioned in the email, but District 5 Commissioner Robert McCann, who represents Lakewood Ranch, reacted strongly. He said he had no outside communication and told Kruse to stop accusing him. Kruse replied that he was not accusing anyone and had not referenced McCann. Kruse was simply reading a public email.

Other commissioners were also concerned about whether state statute was followed. In Florida, decisions on land use must be made in a way similar to court cases, with all evidence discussed publicly. Undisclosed, ex parte communication is a direct violation of Florida statute.

Commissioner Tal Siddique voted in favor of the project and said his concerns about traffic and stormwater were answered. He said Lorraine Road is already scheduled for major improvements and that the builder had gone above the required standards.

Siddique also said he’s worried that commissioners aren’t following the legal process. He warned that opinions or outside evidence shouldn’t be part of these decisions, because that’s not fair or legal.

Commissioner Amanda Ballard agreed, saying they must follow the law and look only at whether a project meets all county and state requirements-not whether it’s popular.

David Truxton, a consultant working on the project, told the Sarasota Herald Tribune that he believes Commissioner McCann was likely the one mentioned in the email, even though McCann denied it. Truxton said it’s legal to talk to residents, but only if the commissioner says so publicly. In this case, that didn’t happen.

Truxton said if the commissioner had just shared what was discussed with residents, it would have been fine. But since it wasn’t disclosed, the issue became a bigger deal.