Opponents stage protests against Florida state parks development plans pushed by DeSantis

DUNEDIN, Fla. (AP) — Opponents of a plan pushed by Gov. Ron DeSantis to build golf courses, hotels, pickleball courts and other development at Florida state parks staged protests Tuesday at several sites as pressure builds against the proposal.

The Republican governor's Department of Environmental Protection unveiled the plans last week and had planned a single hour of public hearings near the nine affected parks. Amid growing outcry, a golf course proposal at one park was abandoned and the agency delayed hearings until at least week — if they happen at all.

“It's just contrary to what our parks are about,” said Democratic state Rep. Lindsey Cross prior to a rally outside Honeymoon Island State Park along the central Gulf coast, where the plan envisions pickleball courts to be constructed near its unspoiled sugar-sand beaches. "It's a place to slow down, to reconnect with nature.'

About 150 people gathered at the Honeymoon Island event, many carrying signs with slogans such as “Save Don't Pave” and “Parks Over Profit.” Similar protests took place Tuesday at three other parks and at the state DEP headquarters in Tallahassee.

“The reason all this came about was to make a profit from our state parks,” said Jeff Gow a City Council member in Dunedin, which is connected by a causeway to Honeymoon Island. “It's just misguided.”

Opposition to what the governor calls the “Great Outdoors Initiative” has spanned party lines, with top Republican legislative leaders and GOP U.S. Sens. Rick Scott and Marco Rubio raising questions along with Democrats and environmental groups such as the Sierra Club and Cleo Institute.

Florida boasts 175 state parks that cover some 800,000 acres (320,000 hectares) in all regions of the state. Some are recognized as have some of the nation's best beaches and have resisted past efforts to develop them.

“We must remain vigilant and we will not stop,” said Kim Begay, vice president and conservation advocate at the Clearwater Audubon Society.

Emails seeking comment from DeSantis' office and the DEP were not immediately answered Tuesday. The governor's office has defended the plan as a way to attract more people to the parks by featuring golf, pickleball, disc golf, even a couple of 350-room hotels.

Yet the overall plan remains on the table. One proposal for golf courses at Jonathan Dickinson State Park in southeast Florida was scrapped after the main proponent, a nonprofit called Tuskegee Dunes Foundation, backed out amid the growing objections to the proposal.

Tuskegee Dunes, which planned to honor the famed World War II Tuskegee Airmen all-Black unit, had promised to steer clear of environmentally sensitive areas at the park and funnel proceeds to another nonprofit, Folds of Honor, that provides scholarships for the military and to first responders.

Dunedin resident Michelle Birnbaum said it's wrong to consider wild lands to be wasted space.

“Green space is an economic value,” she said at the Honeymoon Island rally. “Our parks are in the business of being parks.”

Helena Lourenco, center, 8, speaks out during 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, Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024, in North Miami Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Protesters chant 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, Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024, in North Miami Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Henry Cedroni, center, 6, climbs a tree as Dylan Wickham, left, 6, looks on as they help put up yarn as demonstrators outline the area a pickleball court would occupy, during 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, Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024, in North Miami Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Demonstrators chant during a protest against Gov. Ron DeSantis' plan to develop state parks with business ventures such as golf courses, pickleball courts and large hotels, at Oleta River State Park, Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024, in North Miami Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

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, Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024, in North Miami Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Children hold hands as they use yarn to outline the area a pickleball court would occupy, during 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, Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024, in North Miami Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Protestors against development at Florida's state parks gather for a rally at the entrance to Honeymoon Island State Park Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024, in Dunedin, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Democratic Florida State Rep. Lindsay Cross speaks to supporters against development at Florida state parks outside the entrance to Honeymoon Island State Park Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024, in Dunedin, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Sam Darnold enjoyed a valuable reset last season of a sputtering NFL career painted by the unfulfilled expectations of a quarterback from a prestigious college program drafted third overall.

It was a burden-free year with the San Francisco 49ers to be the backup while continuing to learn the league, his position and himself. The Minnesota Vikings enjoyed an immediate benefit from this new version of Darnold in a dominant season-opening performance.

He's aiming to use those off-the-field gains against the 49ers this week. Darnold's home debut for the Vikings will come on Sunday afternoon, with his former team paying a visit.

“I learned so much last year,” Darnold said. “Just being able to learn every single game plan and study throughout the week, I think that was the biggest takeaway that I had, with all the different things that we had to know as quarterbacks going into a game."

After going 13-25 as the starter for the New York Jets over his first three NFL seasons, Darnold was traded to the Carolina Panthers in 2021. He only found further instability around him, leading to more injuries and more interceptions.

Last year, he put his starting aspiration on hold to join the well-oiled operation under 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan — and supported Brock Purdy all the way to the Super Bowl.

“He helped me tremendously with my prep and we all bounced ideas off each other and what we could get and what we need to be aware of,” Purdy said. “Sam contributed so much to our success as a team, man.”

Darnold had his own enlightenment about the pressure — both real and imagined — he experienced in New York when he entered the league in 2018 from USC.

“When you’re at quarterback, I feel like a lot of times you can feel everything kind of collapsing on you, not just in the game, but theoretically, like, as a whole,” Darnold said. “If things aren’t going your way, you can feel the weight of the world a little bit. At the end of the day, it’s your job to just put the ball in your playmakers' hands and let them go run and make a play.

"I think it’s as simple as that sometimes.”

With the Vikings, Darnold's bridge assignment was cemented as a full-season gig when J.J. McCarthy suffered a season-ending knee injury last month.

“I was hoping he’d find no good spots and come back here,” Shanahan said. "But I was happy for him he got this opportunity because Sam more than deserves it. Sam is a starting quarterback in this league and he should run with it.”

The arm strength and processing speed were never in question, but coach Kevin O'Connell and the rest of the coaches and players have been impressed by how naturally Darnold has taken to the complex scheme, improved his footwork and fit in with a new team.

“If you give Sam some time in the drop-back game, just throwing the ball, he’s going to make the right read and throw a nice ball,” Vikings running back Aaron Jones said. “He’s really slept on, so we’re glad to have him. At the end of the season, we’ll look up and there’ll be a lot people talking about him.”

Darnold was 19 of 24 for 208 yards, two touchdowns, one sack and one interception against the New York Giants. The 44-yard pass to Justin Jefferson he threaded along the sideline during a 99-yard drive was a prime example of the confidence he has in his new surroundings.

“I was double-covered on that play,” Jefferson said. “Him throwing it to that spot and me going to get it, that is going to happen a majority of the time during the season. He has to understand that even when I am double-teamed, I’m still open and that I am going to make a play.”

The 49ers didn’t miss a beat with All-Pro running back Christian McCaffrey sidelined for the opener because of a sore calf muscle and Achilles tendon, with backup Jordan Mason rushing for 147 yards and a touchdown against the Jets.

His 28 carries were the most by a 49ers player since Frank Gore had 31 on Oct. 30, 2011, and he also broke a league-best 13 tackles, according to NFL Next Gen Stats.

McCaffrey is out again this week but the Niners are plenty confident that Mason can handle the load.

“He’s a dense, sturdy guy and he just runs downhill very physically,” All-Pro tight end George Kittle said. “Hopefully he can just keep doing that and there’ll be a very good substitute for Christian so we don’t have to play Christian for 100 snaps a game.”

Jones will also make his home debut for the Vikings after seven seasons with their fiercest rival the Green Bay Packers. He’s eager to join the U.S. Bank Stadium crowd in the ritual “Skol!” chant that’s accompanied by a rhythmic over-the-head clap that builds to a frenzy.

“When you’re on the other sideline, you’re trying not to clap, you’re trying not to get into it, because you see the whole stadium doing it and it’s contagious,” said Jones, who rushed 14 times for 94 yards last week. “I’m really amped to just come out there and play in front of the fans.”

San Francisco kicker Jake Moody enjoyed a superb start to his second season by tying a franchise record with six field goals made last week, including two from at least 50 yards.

The 2023 third-round draft pick had a spotty rookie year, including a potential winning field goal he missed against Cleveland and an extra point he had blocked in the Super Bowl against Kansas City.

“Every time that he got more eyes on him and people were waiting for him to fail, he always rebounded and got through that,” Shanahan said. “When you do that, you build true confidence and you get stronger through adversity.”

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan speaks at a news conference after an NFL football game against the New York Jets in Santa Clara, Calif., Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy looks to pass the ball against the New York Jets during the first half of an NFL football game in Santa Clara, Calif., Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Jed Jacobsohn)

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy, center, gestures toward fans after an NFL football game against the New York Jets in Santa Clara, Calif., Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Jed Jacobsohn)

Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold (14) celebrates after a 21-yard touchdown catch by teammate wide receiver Jalen Nailor (83) during the second half of an NFL football game against the New York Giants, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold answers questions during a press conference after an NFL football game against the New York Giants, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)