I remember driving one day, years ago, in this area before the port expanded around the north base of the Dames Point Bridge. It was amazingly beautiful with countless grand century oaks. All ripped away by the JPA. As there seemed to be many old rural houses/lots, I think the JPA may have taken much of the land by eminent domain to assemble it but can't recall for sure. That land should have been protected... so sad to watch much of old Florida slip away to "progress."
The port, to me, is a mixed blessing. While an economic driver, it has also been an environmental "destructor" between actions like the above and the dredging of the river. I wonder sometimes if ecotourism might have been a better path for our community than endlessly growing the port's facilities. Where does it stop?
