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Florida's prized state parks are shielded from golf courses and hotels as DeSantis bows to backlash

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) 鈥 The millions of tourists and Florida residents who visit state parks each year will see them remain free of golf courses, new hotels and sports facilities, as Republican Gov.
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FILE - Bonnie, a seven-month-old dachshund, licks Alexandra Maxwell's face as they a protest against Gov. Ron DeSantis' plan to develop state parks with business ventures such as golf courses, pickleball courts and large hotels, during a demonstration at Oleta River State Park, Aug. 27, 2024, in North Miami Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee, File)

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) 鈥 The millions of tourists and Florida residents who visit each year will see them remain free of golf courses, new hotels and sports facilities, as Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis curtailing his administration鈥檚 plans to allow more kinds of development on conservation lands.

The law is a direct response to a bipartisan last summer when the plans became public, although DeSantis has since distanced himself from the proposal and said he never even saw it. The governor signed the law protecting state parks on Thursday and it goes into effect July 1.

Eve Samples, executive director of Friends of the Everglades, declared it a 鈥渉uge win鈥 over powerful development interests.

鈥淧eople really want to build golf courses on some of our more protected lands in the state," she said.

The law's new will balance preserving natural resources with ensuring public access for things like boating, camping and swimming, according to the measure's sponsors. It also gives Floridians at least 30 days鈥 notice ahead of public hearings to discuss proposed changes to the conservation areas.

The governor鈥檚 office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday. DeSantis signed the law days after another wave of bipartisan backlash scuttled a company鈥檚 plans to swap some of its properties for state-owned conservation lands.

Unlike thorny issues such as abortion, immigration, LGBTQ+ rights, race and guns, state parks apparently hold a place in Floridians' hearts regardless of party.

The law was unanimously approved by both chambers of Florida鈥檚 Republican-controlled state legislature. Organizers for the environmental group Sierra Club Florida called it a monumental victory for grassroots activism in a politically divided state.

Last year, hundreds of nature lovers and conservationists thronged to protests at parks across the state, carrying signs with slogans like 鈥淪ave Don鈥檛 Pave鈥 and 鈥淧arks Over Profit.鈥

The push to rein in DeSantis鈥 administration is a sign of how the governor's once rock-solid support from fellow Republicans has eroded. Until recently, for DeSantis to get on anything from the GOP lawmakers who dominate the state鈥檚 politics, and he has a reputation for seeking vengeance when they do.

But it appears a political line in the sand has been drawn around Florida鈥檚 beloved state parks, which are a bastion of wildness in a state where vast stretches of beaches and mangrove forests have long given way to high-rise condos, roadside motels and strip mall souvenir shops.

Republican state Sen. Gayle Harrell, one of the measure鈥檚 sponsors, said the safeguards ensure there's 鈥渘o wiggle room鈥 for unwanted development.

Harrell鈥檚 South Florida district includes Jonathan Dickinson State Park, where DeSantis鈥 Department of Environmental Protection had proposed building a golf complex. That would have entailed removing a boardwalk and observation tower while relocating existing cabins for visitors as well as the offices and residences for park staff.

Harrell said backlash on the issue pushed it to the forefront of .

鈥淚t took the entire state of Florida to do that,鈥 she said. 鈥淭his is democracy at work.鈥

The Republican governor following the uproar, saying he never approved the plans to allow resorts and sports facilities on state park land.

The DeSantis-appointed environment secretary at the time, , eventually stepped down after facing intense scrutiny and bipartisan pushback on the initiative. In November, DeSantis tapped a new head of the agency, Alexis Lambert.

___ Associated Press writer Curt Anderson in Tampa contributed to this report. Kate Payne is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

Kate Payne, The Associated Press