Columnist gives post-op on failed "baby grand" tree protection bill; Sarasota, FL

Ernst: All-or-nothing stance doesn't help the trees HeraldTribune.com Sarasota Florida Southwest Florida's Information Leader:
The news often depicts public debate as a battle between two sides. One recent example is Sarasota County's discussion over how to save trees through the so-called baby grand tree ordinance, which the county commissioners scrapped last week.
While we could generalize that the proposed ordinance pitted environmentalists against developers, builders and the business community, the reality was more nuanced. That's the trouble with labels. Within each camp, plenty of individuals either supported or opposed the ordinance for varying reasons and with varying fervor.
As part of the political theater on the environmental 'side,' we had an exchange between Dan Lobeck, slow-growth land-use attorney, and Jono Miller, former director of environmental studies at New College.
In well-circulated e-mails, Miller actually opposed the ordinance and offered several other suggestions for conserving the county's tree canopy.