In Trayvon Martin case, what is not on trial: suburban sprawl ... by gimleteye

It is called "The Retreat at Twin Lakes": the platted subdivision where Trayvon Martin was shot to death by George Zimmerman. The story has captured the nation's attention, but what about the place itself?

"The building of the Retreat at Twin Lakes is a classic Florida story," begins the St. Pete Times. "Developers saw potential in the sandy acres east of Orlando and determined to turn them into an oasis. They planned a gated subdivision just 10 minutes from downtown — a cloistered community near the interstate, close to good schools, outlet malls and the magic of Disney World."

What kind of an oasis is a gated community, really? Subdivisions are places where getting lost is crystallized. "The idea, as always, was that people could live peacefully in a paradise where nobody could park a car on the street or paint the house an odd color."

George Zimmerman was virtually a self-appointed, law enforcer in a soulless place dragged down by the real estate crash. He had the law on his side in a place that wasn't much of a place at all the night Trayvon Martin died. "In 2004, Engle Homes began construction on 263 two-story townhouses, with upstairs porches and covered back patios and plenty of green space. Inside, the townhomes boasted granite countertops, hardwood floors, master suites and walk-in closets. Outside, there was a pond, a clubhouse and a community pool. Everything was walled in, to keep out the unknown."

The Wikipedia entry on the shooting of Trayvon Martin: As the only person to volunteer when the homeowners association wanted to organize a community watch, Zimmerman was appointed coordinator by his neighbors, according to Wendy Dorival, Neighborhood Watch organizer for the Sanford Police Department."

Yes there was a "community pool" at The Retreat, but it was probably like 1,000,000 half-hearted attempts at builder-created civic life in gated subdivisions in Florida. The chief point of interest: a soda machine.

Police had been called to The Retreat at Twin Lakes 402 times from January 1, 2011, to February 26, 2012, according to Wikipedia. The St. Pete Times notes that the initial average price of the Retreat homes had dropped from $250,000 to less than $100,000 today. "The developers had envisioned a stable neighborhood with home­owners planting long-term roots, but now townhouses were turning over all the time. Insiders moved out. Outsiders moved in."

The place where Trayvon Martin lost his life is not on trial. Places don't shoot people, but the Retreat at Twin Lakes never had twin lakes and it wasn't a real place and is scarcely alone in that summation. In a real estate market driven off the rails by oversupply, mortgage fraud, and greed, why would builders be held to account? They only build what the market wants, right? Their legal rights to build sprawl are as solid as George Zimmerman's right to carry a weapon and to stand his ground. Right?

Sanford Police volunteer program coordinator Wendy Dorival, told the Miami Herald that she met Zimmerman in September, 2011 at a community neighborhood watch presentation. “I said, ‘If it’s someone you don’t recognize, call us. We’ll figure it out."

In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.