Why is the fate and future of the most valuable parcel of public land in Broward County being decided on December 5 by five politicians who may not be here next year. This decision is so important that it must be deferred and placed before the public for open and thorough debate and Referendum. This has been proposed but the Mayor and City Commissioners are ploughing ahead anyway. The public should be outraged that this is happening without a Referendum. This is the biggest land grab and coverup in Fort Lauderdale history and it is being perpetrated by MIami Developers while complicit City Officials are asleep or looking the other way. According to some experts, based on recent sales and valuations, the property’s “upland” area, composed of 15.96 acres is potentially undervalued by the City and Developers by perhaps $250 million or more. The “submerged land” of 22.69 acres is potentially worth so much that neither the City Officials nor the Developers have a clue or don’t want it to be known or discussed. THE BAHIA MAR PROPOSAL MUST BE STOPPED! BACKGROUND The area, known today as Bahia Mar, was federal “property” dating back to the Seminole War in the 1840s when Major Lauderdale built a Fort on the bay side of the beach behind the dunes. When the City of Fort Lauderdale purchased Bahia Mar from the Federal Government it consisted of: Total area:: 1,683,574 sq ft = 38.65 acres “Upland”: 695,430 sq ft = 15.96 acres (euphemism for the wetlands and sandbar filled with sand dredged from the lagoon and inlet). “Submerged Land”: 988,144 sq ft = 22..69 acres (the marina).