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O'Steen Staked Her Claim And Will Keep Fighting For It

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 17, 2007

BALM - In a modest country home, tucked down a dirt lane far from the city bustle, Marcella O'Steen harbors a morgue of county documents, zoning maps and speech drafts.

Life in this rural burg has been far from dull since O'Steen and her husband, Kermit, moved in seven years ago.

Two weeks after they moved into their home, a sign went up across their dirt path. Plans were in the works to expand a borrow pit that could soon become their neighbor, along with heavy truck traffic, dust and noise.

The 58-year-old, seventh-generation Floridian wants to save a slice of what she considers "real Florida" for future generations. So she alerted her neighbors, and together they kept the borrow pit from encroaching on their land.

These days, O'Steen typically spends several days a week at the County Center in Tampa, often butting heads with county commissioners over what should and should not be allowed in the county's rural service area.

"You have to stake a claim and draw the line," O'Steen said.

Since those early days, she has fought against plans for a suburban village in Balm, other borrow pits, a paintball field and a construction debris landfill. O'Steen has also fought to preserve the county Environmental Protection Commission's wetlands oversight.

Two years ago, she became president of the Balm Civic Association and is a charter member of U-CAN.

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