DeSantis: State Parks Plan Goes Back To The Drawing Board

WINTER HAVEN -- Governor DeSantis says plans to add golf courses, pickleball courts and lodging at Florida's state parks is going "back to the drawing board."

The governor told reporters at a Polk County news conference that he never saw or approved the plans that became the source of controversy in the past few days, and describes them as "half-baked." He says they'll go back for public input. DeSantis says the proposals were leaked to a "left-wing group" to create a narrative.

DeSantis says that if any improvements are planned in state parks, they won't take away from green space. He says

The governor says he met with the group Folds of Honor back in April to hear about their plans to use an abandoned military facility in Martin County to be redeveloped into something that could provide revenue to support their charity work with military and first-responder families. He says Folds of Honor does good work, but they've withdrawn from plans at Jonathan Dickinson State Park to avoid controversy.

The project dubbed the "Great Outdoors Initiative" by the Department of Environmental Protection drew a firestorm of controversy when it became public, with politicians on both sides of the aisle calling for a reboot after it became public in the last few days.

DeSantis was in Polk County to promote "law and order" policies, joined by Attorney General Ashley Moody, Hillsborough and Orange-Osceola state attorneys Suzy Lopez and Andrew Bain, and Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd.

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