NO ONE KNOWS MORE ABOUT THE SARASOTA/MANATEE POLITICAL SCENE THAN THE SARASOTA PHOENIX
Robinson
PART I
CHRISTINE ROBINSON IS A PRIME EXAMPLE OF WHY SARASOTA COUNTY HAS BECOME PARADISE LOST
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PART II
CHRISTINE ROBINSON IS A PRIME EXAMPLE OF WHY THE CITY OF SARASOTA IS A 21ST-CENTURY WHITE SOCIAL ELITIST PLANTATION
Ever since Christine Robinson parachuted in with her husband, Eric “The Prince of Dirty Dark Money” Robinson, to Sarasota from Miami by way of Randy Benderson’s Buffalo, Christine Robinson has been turning Sarasota into Paradise Lost.
Eric Robinson-The "Prince of Dark PAC Money"
Christine Robinson is the architect of the local UNI Party, which, along with self-declared liberal Democrat commissioners and an occasional Republican commissioner like Eric Arroyo, has turned what was once a neighborhood-friendly commission into a cash cow for multimillion-dollar “pay-to-play” developers.
A Robinson-created UNI Party, with the assistance of an Arts and Culture Coalition, multimillion-dollar nonprofit foundations, and the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce, has turned what was once the jewel on the West Coast of Florida into Paradise Lost.
Merrill
Robinson works cooperatively with William Merrill III of the Icard/Merrill law firm, who have a go along get along City Manager Marlon Brown pulling the strings of the City Commissioners turning the City into Paradise Lost while making $millions for “Pay to Play” developers.
Brown
Robinson pulled Brown’s strings at City Hall from her perch at the Argus Foundation on behalf of “Pay-to-Play” developers, as she and others have done with various Sarasota County administrators at the Sarasota County Commission.
SARASOTA'S DIRTY DARK RACIST SECRET
Both Robinson and Merrill operate out of the same building on Main Street, reestablishing a plantation mentality where wealthy white social elites are making millions as they promote the gentrification of once-minority neighborhoods into enclaves of white social elites.
Robinson and Merrill have led the process of turning Sarasota from what was once the jewel of the West Coast of Florida into another concrete jungle with massive urban sprawl like found on the East Coast of Florida.
Harvey and Battie
The City of Sarasota, under Robinson and Merrill’s tutelage, along with their social white elitists at Argus and the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce—who, with the help of a few self-appointed Black leaders like City Commissioner Carl Battie and NAACP President Trevor Harvey going along to get along—has turned the city into a haven for wealthy white elitists.
Upon arriving in Sarasota, Christine Robinson got a job as a local Assistant State Attorney and followed that up by being appointed a Sarasota County Commissioner by then-Republican Governor and former Democratic U.S. Congressman Charlie Crist.
While Christine Robinson was building her resume, Eric Robinson established a CPA office in Venice, where he manages hundreds of PACs and LLCs for various politicians, moving millions of dollars from unknown donors seeking political influence, turning Florida into Paradise Lost.
Reid
Before moving full-time to her perch at the Argus Foundation, Christine Robinson was the Sarasota County Commissioner who led the Sarasota Commission in firing County Administrator Randall Reid, who had been brought in during 2011 to clean up the scandal-ridden regime of former County Administrator Jim Ley.
Ley
Reid was brought in to clean up the scandal-ridden Ley County Adninistration, who resigned in May 2011 following revelations of widespread corruption in how the county handled contracts.
Ley had been sent packing back to his native Kentucky with a $165,000 golden parachute after it was discovered that, starting in 2007, a string of problems—some public, others behind the scenes—raised serious questions about how Ley and his staff oversaw the spending of millions of taxpayer dollars in ways that benefited major developers.
Experts from outside Sarasota, such as the Institute of Public Procurement (NIGP), were called in to investigate Sarasota County purchasing practices. After their review, they wrote in emails that they were “shocked” by the disarray they found.
NIGP NEEDS “HAZARD PAY” TO CLEAN UP LEY’S MESS
The review of Sarasota County purchasing practices by NIGP, released June 23, 2011, exposed numerous problems in how the county spent $300 million annually on projects such as road work and sewer systems. Internal emails from consultants indicated that the purchasing department was in disarray, with one consultant joking that he “needed hazardous duty pay to clean up the mess.”
NIGP RECOMMENDED 151 FIXES TO CLEAN UP LEY’S MESS
Those NIGP officials recommended 151 fixes, stating that the county lacked important safeguards against favoritism and corruption.
Reid, who took over to clean up Sarasota County government, had served 12 years as Alachua County Manager. Before that, he was deputy county manager in Martin County and city manager in Titusville.
In his application, Reid highlighted his ethics, fiscal conservatism, and ability to collaborate.
“Pay-to-play” developers and their allies on the commission, which included Robinson, wanted no part of Reid’s ethics or fiscal conservatism as he attempted to clean up the toxic environment left behind by Ley.
Jensen/Benderson/Beruff/Neal
The developers, led by the Pat Neal Gang, did not want reform—they wanted a return to the previous system. Less than two years later, Reid was gone, fired by a commission led by Robinson.
Reid was abruptly removed after months of clashing with commissioners over changing the pro-development agenda.
Robinson led the behind-the-scenes efforts to remove anyone who placed obstacles in the path of developers seeking control of the commission.
Robinson was not the public face of Reid’s removal. Instead, she positioned Commissioner Carolyn “Second the Motion” Mason to lead the effort.
Mason earned her nickname by consistently seconding pro-development motions.
Wachter with his Sarasota County Commissioner "Second the Motion" Carolyn Mason
Mason, who was a former Democrat turned Republican County commissioner due to Mason promising local Republican political operative Bob Waechter to become his voice on the Commission when she turned Republican.
Mason agreed with the Waechter proposal. and aligned with Waechter and became a commissioner supportive of developers like Neal, Randy Benderson, Carlos Beruff, Rex Jensen, and others.
Harmer
The Sarasota Herald-Tribune described how Tom Harmer entered the picture to replace Reid when Mason called him after the commission abruptly fired Reid and asked Harmer to step in as interim administrator. Harmer.
Harmer agreed temporarily, but within three months was permanently appointed. Following Reid’s removal, business as usual resumed under developer influence.
Harmer was the senior vice president of The Pizzuti Companies, a national real estate development firm. He managed the southeast U.S. office overseeing all real estate and public-private development projects in the region.
Harmer later transitioned to Longboat Key as town manager after serving six years as County Adminstrator.
Lewis with one of the Neal's Gang County Commissioner Al Maio
Jonathan Lewis replaced Harmer in 2017, as a Neal Gang flunky and the Sarasota County Commission continued to be in control of the "Pay to Play" developers, as it was under Ley and Harmer. Lewis has continued the same pattern of development-driven governance.
Lewis had joined the Sarasota County as a deputy administrator under Harmer after the previous six years carrying water for the Neal Gang, as the North Port's city manager.
Lewis has continued advancing projects favored by developers, contributing to unchecked development, infrastructure strain, and flooding concerns.
Lewis , as the ring master of the Sarasota County circus continues, as Ley and Harmer before him did filling the Commission agenda with “Pay to Play” developers pet projects, as the Commissioners vote approval.
ROBINSON'S REWARD
Robinson, as a reward for being a Sarasota County Commissioner carrying water for the developers and getting rid of Reid, and while still being a County Commission, Argus President Merrill proceeded to appoint Robinson as the CEO at Argus.
While double dipping as a County Commissioner and appointed CEO at Argus, Robinson voted as a County Commission for a multimillion-dollar project of Merrill's in Englewood.
Robinson also voted for various other projects as County Commissioner for other "Pay to Play "developers, while being the Argus CEO.
Incredible on 2/17/16, Commissiiner Robinson nominated the disgraced Ley, who had returned from Kentucky to the Sarasota County's Health Facilities Authority & Industrial Development Revenue Bond Citizens Advisory Board.
It took the Commission only about 90 seconds to appoint Ley, who had turned the Commission into a disgraced, corrupt, scandal ridden Commission after Commissioner Al Maio called for the vote.
Robinson, after being term limited as a County Commissioner, she transitioned full-time to the Argus Foundation, where she continued influencing local government.
Robinson’s role at Argus focuses on shaping city government in a similar manner as she did as a Sarasota County Commissioner, aligning commissioners with interests tied to developers, business groups, and affiliated organizations.
NEXT
PART II
CHRISTINE ROBINSON IS A PRIME EXAMPLE OF WHY THE CITY OF SARASOTA IS A 21ST-CENTURY WHITE SOCIAL ELITIST PLANTATION
