SUMMERFIELD, Fla. — Manatee County commissioners recently heard the results of a study conducted by a third-party firm on last year’s flooding after Hurricane Debby and the water that was ...

Floridians love manatees. The marine animals, lovingly known as "sea cows" or "gentle giants," spend the winters swimming in rivers, bays, canals, estuaries and coastal areas from Nov. 15 to March 31.

Manatee County is hardly the leading edge of liberalism. Yet it says something about Florida’s tortured approach to growth when the county commission there — all seven Republicans ...