Cumberland Island Update

Dec. 7, 2016

The Camden County Planning Commission voted to approve Lumar LLC’s Cumberland Island hardship variance. The applicant will now be free to subdivide the 87+ acre property (¼ mile from Sea Camp) that stretches from the river on one side of the Island to the ocean’s high tide on the other. The fact that the applicant failed to meet any of the hardship criteria was ignored. Concerns about the impacts on the Island’s visitors and environment were ignored (despite the statement by the National Park Service Superintendent, Gary Ingram). Lumar LLC (aka The Cumberland Island Conservancy) will now seek rezoning so as to allow for their planned “family compound.”
We have a 30-day window of time to appeal. Once that appeal is filed, the matter will go before the Camden County Commissioners.

Cumberland Island National Seashore

This (below) is the letter that was sent to the Camden County Planning Director. We urge everyone to email their comments to County Planning Director Eric Landon at elandon@co.camden.ga.us, and plan to attend the Dec. 7 meeting (6 p.m. at the Camden County Annex Building, 107 N. Gross Road in Kingsland). 


November 28, 2016


Dear Mr. Landon and Members of the Planning and Development Commission, 

On December 7 you will meet to discuss the Hardship Variance that has been filed by Lumar LLC regarding 87.51 acres on Cumberland Island. Citizens have been instructed to confine their comments to the issue of road paving (as required by the County) but we contend that it is impossible to fully analyze the matter without considering Cumberland Island and its surrounds as an entire entity. 

Lumar LLC seeks to create a 10-lot subdivision in the heart of the Island – on land that is less than a quarter-mile from the Sea Camp ferry dock and currently zoned “conservation preservation.” As you know, Cumberland Island is, in many respects, the economic engine of St. Marys Historic District. Our shops, hotels, B&Bs and restaurants rely on a daily influx of tourists and if the wilderness experience of the Island is compromised, our economy will suffer. This holds true for the I-95 corridor and thus all of Camden County. If visitors to the Island encounter bulldozers, noise-pollution, an 87+ acre development, and a decimated environment, the ramifications will be far-reaching. 

Consider, too, the profound environmental cost: old growth forest destroyed, watersheds effected, and the displacement/destruction of indigenous species. 

Cumberland Island’s establishing legislation directed that the Island should be allowed to steadily evolve into a wilder, less-developed national seashore as retained rights expire. A 10-lot subdivision would be a clear violation of this mandate, Congressional will, and the public trust. 

On behalf of the Board and Members of the St. Marys EarthKeepers, we respectfully urge you to deny Lumar LLC’s request. 
 
Alex Kearns
Chair
St. Marys EarthKeepers, Inc.

Almost 88 acres of land - located 1/4 from the Sea Camp dock. 

Update, Dec.4, 2016: 

The lawyer for Lumar LLC has openly stated that the reason behind the variance is that the family (represented as Lumar LLC) wishes to build a 10-unit “compound” on the property in question. The applicant is Glenn Warren, a member of the Cumberland Island Conservancy. (Image below). 

Thornton Morris, another member of the Conservancy, contacted EarthKeepers Chair Alex Kearns. During the conversation, Mr. Morris stated that the purpose of the variance and 10-lot subdivision was to “ease the population burden on the north end and move it to the south end.” He was asked if the plan was to demolish the 7-unit family compound on the north end but he declined to answer. He was then asked how their goal would be attained in that the area is zoned Conservation Preservation and building is not allowed.
He replied that the point of the variance was to change that zoning.
We have requested a written statement from the Conservancy.

The Cumberland Island Conservancy’s stated mission: “An integral part of the mission of the Conservancy is to serve as a co-steward of the natural, cultural, and historical resources of Cumberland Island with the National Park Service to provide a rich and rewarding experience for the visitors to the Seashore. We are not a political organization and we do not support groups who claim to “save” Cumberland Island.” http://cumberlandisland.com/conservancy/our-mission/
 
“The Cumberland Island Conservancy, Inc. is a nonprofit entity organized by individuals on the Island and others interested in its preservation. Its current board members include the Right Reverend Samuel G. Candler, Franklin W. “Whit” Foster, Thornton W. Morris, Glenn D. Warren and Per G. Lofberg.” http://cumberlandisland.com/conservancy/our-members/