Top Florida environmental official leaving after state park development plan flopped
The head of Florida’s environmental agency is stepping down to “transition to the private sector” after more than three years in the role, according to an email sent to agency employees and obtained by the Tampa Bay Times.
Shawn Hamilton will be replaced by Alexis Lambert, chief of staff of the state’s Division of Bond Finance since 2018, according to a news release by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office.
In the email to staff, Hamilton said that serving as the Florida Department of Environmental Protection secretary was “truly one of the greatest honors of my career” and that he’s working closely with DeSantis’ office to transition his successor.
Hamilton’s departure comes after the agency came under fire in August about plans to develop nine state parks with golf courses, 350-room hotels and pickleball courts. It faced blowback again that same month when the Tampa Bay Times revealed a deal for the state to trade protected state forest land to a golf course developer. Hamilton presented the trade to the Florida Cabinet, which authorized the environmental agency to move toward making the swap a reality.
It’s unclear if the leadership change was related to the scandal. Hamilton did not immediately respond to emails requesting further comment and an attempt to reach him by phone was unsuccessful.
According to the governor’s office and her LinkedIn page, Lambert is a graduate of Mercer University in Georgia, where she studied communications, media studies, sociology and art. She’s worked for the state since 2006, largely in communications offices for various agencies, including the Department of Children and Families and for former Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater. More recently, she was the chief of staff at the Department of Health and the Florida Division of Bond Finance.
In her role at the health agency, she served as the liaison to the environmental agency she will now lead, according to the Thursday news release.
Lambert is also the daughter of the late Pete Antonacci, a longtime Florida political insider who led DeSantis’ election security unit until he died of a sudden heart attack in 2022.
Hamilton had more than a decade of experience working within the Department of Environmental Protection before he was chosen as secretary in 2021, according to his state bio, including serving as the agency’s environmental justice coordinator.
Some lawmakers were quick to question Lambert’s credentials.
“It’s concerning that the new head of Florida’s environmental agency doesn’t have any notable environmental background,” said Rep. Lindsay Cross, a St. Petersburg Democrat and an environmental scientist.
With the potential for environmental rollbacks under a new Donald Trump administration, Cross said “it’s even more important that states stand strong” with environmental policy.
“We need to make sure we’re providing clean water and clean air for people while maintaining conservation areas and supporting the health of our communities.”
DeSantis met with Hamilton at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday, according to the governor’s schedule, just over 24 hours before his office announced Hamilton’s replacement. A spokesperson for DeSantis has not responded about what the meeting was about.