2006-03-21 (meeting minutes) vMinutes of March 21, 2006, Community Development Board Meeting
MINUTES OF THE
REGULAR MEETING OF
THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BOARD
March 21, 2006
A regular meeting of the Community Development Board was held on Tuesday, March 21, 2006, in the
City Hall Commission Chambers. Present were Chairman Sam Jacobson, Steve Jenkins, Craig
Burkhart, Dave MacInnes, Carolyn Woods, Chris Lambertson, Community Development Director
Sonya Doerr, City Attorney Alan Jensen, and Recording Secretary Jeanne Shaw. Lynn Drysdale was
absent.
1. Call to Order and Pledge of Allegiance.
The meeting was called to order at 7:03 p.m.
2. Approval of Minutes from the regular meeting of January 17, 2006.
Mr. Burkhart made a motion, seconded by Mr. Lambertson to approve the minutes of the regular
meeting of January 17, 2006. The motion carried unanimously.
3. Recognition of Visitors
No persons spoke at this time.
4. Old Business.
There was no Old Business to discuss.
5. New Business.
a. UBE-2006-02. Request from Tropic Heating and Air, Inc. for aUse-by-Exception to allow a
heating and air conditioning contractor (with no outside storage) to be located within the
Commercial General (CG) Zoning District at a developed site located at 750 Mayport Road.
James F Jackson, 4560 Glen Kernan Parkway East, Jacksonville, introduced himself as representing
applicant Charlie Marks for UBE-2006-02. Mr. Jackson introduced Mr. Marks as the owner of Tropic
Heating and Air, Inc. and described the site for his Use-by-Exception request. He noted that Mr. Marks
had been in the air conditioning business for 28 years and in 1988, established his own business, Tropic
Heating and Air, Inc. Mr. Marks stated he has been in Atlantic Beach for two years and is currently
located at 1651 Mayport Road. He stated he would like to continue his business at the property he
bought at 750 Mayport Road.
Mr. Jackson oriented the Board to the site of the request as seen in Exhibit B and noted that they expect
minimal traffic and low impact to adjoining properties. He indicated that there would be no
manufacturing at the site and that the location would serve mainly as an administrative office for the
business.
Minutes of March 21, 2006, Community Development Board Meeting
Mr. Jackson reviewed the information in Exhibit A of the application. He stated that the business
would have the appearance of a professional upscale office park and believed that it would help
promote the property values in the area.
Jonathan Lyon, 1837 Sea Oats Drive, the financial and insurance advisor to Mr. Marks, stated he owns
two properties in the Section H area of Atlantic Beach on Begonia and 14th Street. He spoke in favor
of Mr. Marks' request for aUse-by-Exception and believed it would be a beneficial addition to Atlantic
Beach.
Ms. Woods inquired if the property will be brought up to meet current landscape code for commercial
development. Ms. Doerr stated that currently there is no new construction or building permit request
from the applicant that would require him to meet those landscape standards. Mr. Jackson responded
that the applicant intends to make landscape enhancements to the property. Ms. Woods asked if the
Board could require the landscape improvements as a condition to approving the request. Ms. Doerr
responded, yes, Use-by-Exceptions allow for special conditions to be requested. Chairman Jacobson
asked the applicant to describe his plans for the landscape. Mr. Marks responded that he intends to
clean up the property, remove the pits in the yard by leveling the area, and then create a nice lawn by
sod or seed, followed with irrigation.
Chairman Jacobson questioned how many employees would be at the business. Mr. Marks replied that
one employee would be in the office all day and the others would come and go to work sites. He also
stated that the business has four trucks, which will be taken home by employees, with the exception of
"` one van, which will be backed up to the existing warehouse nightly. Ms. Doerr confirmed that the
applicant is allowed one business vehicle to remain parked at the business.
Ms. Woods discussed approving the request with the condition to bring landscaping up to the
commercial landscape requirements. Chairman Jacobson recognized that would require more than the
applicant intended to do with the landscape. Discussion ensued regarding the requirements of the
commercial landscape code and the inability of the applicant to comply with the all requirements
because this is a fully developed site. Mr. Jackson indicated that the applicant would be willing to
work with Ms. Doerr to meet reasonable landscaping requirements for the location.
A motion was made by Ms. Woods and seconded by Mr. Burkhart to recommend approval of
UBE-2006-02, subject to upgrading the landscape in coordination with Ms. Doerr in order to
accomplish a reasonable landscaping improvement.
Mr. Jenkins modified the motion to specifically include compliance with Section 24-177 and with
the limits imposed on the Use-by-Exception in paragraph (c)(5), and with reasonable
approximation to compliance with the landscape requirements of the code.
The modified motion was agreed upon by Ms. Woods and Mr. Burkhart and passed unanimously
by the Board.
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Minutes of March 21, 2006, Community Development Board Meeting
Sb. Recommendation to the City Commission related to the designation of a new Zoning District,
Residential, Large Lot (RS-L) establishing boundaries of the new District on the City of Atlantic
Beach Zoning Map.
Ms. Doerr provided the background information on this item and explained that this new zoning district
category had been approved by the Commission but has not yet been placed on the zoning map. She
asked the Board to consider a recommendation of establishing that district on the zoning map in the
area of the Selva Marina subdivision that is currently zoned as RS-1. She noted that about 240-2501ots
would be involved in the new RS-L zoning district and that the specifications of this district would
require a minimum 10,000 square foot lot with a minimum width and depth of 100 feet. Ms. Doerr
explained the additional notification process that would be implemented prior to making a decision
regarding the new zoning area. She indicated that the Community Development Board is required to
make a recommendation to the Commission in order for the Commission to take action on it.
Chairman Jacobson opened the floor to public comments on the issue.
George Bull, Jr., 1977 Sevilla Boulevard West, stated his opposition to the new zoning district. He
believed it to be cumbersome and unnecessary, stating that the land proposed for the new zoning
district is already subject to existing private covenants and restrictions that rollover every ten years
unless the majority of the homeowners decide to modify them.
Ms. Woods asked Ms. Doerr if the covenants are on record with the City. Ms. Doerr responded that
these are private deed restrictions and the City has no authority to enforce them, and asked Mr. Jensen
.. to comment. City Attorney Jensen noted that the covenants are recorded in the official records of the
County and if they are still in effect, they control the property purchased by any new owner, but that the
City cannot enforce these.
Ms. Woods asked Mr. Bull what limitations are placed on the properties governed by the covenants.
Mr. Bull responded each unit has specific requirements regarding many aspects of the lots. City
Attorney Jensen stated that the City can have copies of the covenants available for anyone to read. Ms.
Woods asked if the covenants prohibit subdivision of lots. Mr. Bull replied that some covenants for
certain units address lot divisions.
Mr. Jenkins asked if Mr. Bull's opposition to the zoning change was solely based on it being redundant
and unnecessary. Mr. Bull stated it was also an issue of property rights. He believed that the property
owners in each of those communities should be allowed to make their own decisions regarding whether
or not the lots can be subdivided.
Ms. Doerr pointed out that if this new RS-L zoning district is placed on the map, then City regulations
would prohibit those lots from being subdivided because they would not meet the minimum RS-L lot
size requirements.
Ms. Woods questioned how some lots are being subdivided without the majority of homeowners voting
to allow this. Mr. Bull informed the Board that it is not allowed in any of the Units except Units 1, 2,
and 3 where the covenants have expired and there were no rollovers. Discussion ensued regarding
differences among the various units' restrictions.
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Minutes of March 21, 2006, Community Development Board Meeting
Chairman Jacobson inquired if there is a current Selva Marina homeowner's association. Mr. Bull
responded that each unit was supposed to have their own homeowner's association. The Chairman
asked if there was any limitation to the renewal of the covenants. City Attorney Jensen responded that
if the covenants automatically renew every ten years indefinitely, they should be enforceable by the
individual property owners.
Chairman Jacobson noted that if the homeowners are receptive to the existing restrictions and
covenants in their neighborhoods, then adopting a City ordinance enforcing the same restrictions
should be consistent with the prevailing sentiment in the neighborhoods.
There were no other public comments and the Chairman closed the floor to the public and opened it up
to the Board for discussion.
Mr. Jenkins discussed the suggested findings of fact for recommending approval and asked if the Board
could also consider the broader spectrum of the general intent of the Code in making their decision. He
referenced Section 24-2, Purpose and Intent, and a number of the items listed there, including
protecting and preserving property values.
Mr. Jenkins addressed the number of lots that would be impacted by the 10,000 square foot limitation
of the new zoning district. Ms. Doerr clarified that the existing lots of record would not be impacted,
but that any new lot created would have to meet the size requirements of the new zoning district. She
also indicated that the exact number of potentially impacted lots is unknown because people may want
to combine lots in the future, thus creating more than the current dozen or so lots that are over 100 feet
wide.
Ms. Woods discussed the proposed boundaries of the new RS-L district and asked why Oceanwalk was
not being considered as part of it. Ms. Doerr explained that Oceanwalk has not been discussed related
to this new Zoning District, and that Oceanwalk has an active homeowner's association with its own
private deed restrictions and covenants. Any proposal to rezone Oceanwalk would be a separate
rezoning procedure with required notice and public hearings from that now being considered. Brief
discussion ensued regarding the size of lots within Oceanwalk.
Chairman Jacobson asked City Attorney Jensen's opinion as to whether or not the covenants and
restrictions in the Selva Marina neighborhoods are enforceable. Mr. Jensen stated it is uncertain. He
pointed out that a discussion with a real estate attorney brought up questions as to whether some of the
covenants and restrictions are still valid after the passage of the Marketable Record Title Act.
Chairman Jacobson confirmed with Ms. Doerr that the new RS-L zoning designation had been adopted
by the Commission. He questioned where the new zoning designation would be applied if the current
recommended area was not approved. Mr. Jensen responded that it could not be applied anywhere else
as part of this procedure, but Ms. Doerr noted it would be available for future use. Mr. Jensen noted
that the new designation would prevent the 150-foot lots in Selva Marina from being divided into
anything less than 100-foot lots if the neighborhood's covenants and restrictions turn out to be
unenforceable.
A motion was made by Mr. Burkhart and seconded by Ms. Woods to recommend approval of the
proposed boundaries to the City Commission for use as boundaries for the new Residential -
Large Lot (RS-L) Zoning District.
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Minutes of March 21, 2006, Community Development Board Meeting
Mr. Lambertson asked if any there is any case law that shows that the rollover of the covenants have
expired or are not enforceable. Mr. Jensen did not know. Mr. Jacobson asked if there had been any
violation of the covenants or restrictions that has gone unaddressed. Mr. Jensen acknowledged that
there might be but that he was not aware of any.
Mr. MacInnes pointed out that currently the proposed zoning district would effect only about a dozen
identifiable property owners whose lots are big enough to divide under the RS-1 rules, and those twelve
are already restricted by the covenants and restrictions of their neighborhood. He noted that tonight, no
one from the subdivisions spoke in favor of this proposal. Mr. MacInnes indicted that, therefore, he
would rather err in favor of supporting the current covenants and rules under which the property
owners purchased their property. Mr. Burkhart noted that this proposal would allow the City to back-
up those neighborhood covenants. He did not believe the burden of enforcing those rules and
restrictions should fall on the citizens of Atlantic Beach having to sue one another.
Mr. Jenkins stated he would like to support the motion through the suggested findings of fact. He
believed that the motion was consistent with the Comprehensive Plan and Future Land Use and that it
was consistent and compatible with the surrounding development. However, Mr. Jenkins had concerns
with whether the motion was consistent with the zoning and land development regulations, especially
when compared it to the Purpose and Intent as listed in Section 24-2. He believed there was not
enough information regarding the potentially impacted properties to determine if it would effect any of
the items listed in that section of the Code. He suggested that the motion be amended to recommend
approval to the City Commission subject to the thorough review of the issues of protecting and
preserving property values and promoting, protecting, and improving the health, safety, comfort, good
order, etc. as listed in Section 24-2, Purpose and Intent.
Ms. Doerr clarified that the intent of proposed finding of fact #2 was to include consistency specifically
with the new land development regulations that created the new RS-L Zoning District that was just
added as Section 24-104.
Mr. Jenkins commented that there is not enough information to understand the impact of the private
sector covenants and restrictions. He recommended that the City Commission evaluate those
thoroughly as well.
The motion was amended by Mr. Jenkins to recommend that the Commission approve the land
use rezoning designation subject to further review of the requirements of Section 24-2, Purpose
and Intent, with respect to protecting and conserving property values, and the responsibilities of
protecting and improving the health, safety, comfort, good order, appearance, convenience,
morals and general welfare of the public.
Mr. Burkhart and Ms. Woods both accepted the amendment to the motion.
Mr. MacInnes pointed out that Section 24-2 also states that it is not the intent of this chapter to interfere
with or abrogate or annul any easements, covenants or other private agreements between parties.
Mr. Lambertson discussed the lot sizes in the Oceanwalk community, noted the need for more
information in general, and questioned if this motion unnecessarily duplicates what is already
established by neighborhood covenants and restrictions.
Minutes of March 21, 2006, Community Development Board Meeting
Ms. Doerr informed the Board that one of the motivating factors for the Commission to establish this
new zoning district was to address concerns and objections residents had expressed over lot divisions in
this specific area of the City, which lead to the current moratorium on lot divisions anywhere in the
City. She reiterated that changing the zoning in other areas of the City would have to be considered
separately since they are not included in this rezoning process. Mr. Lambertson believed that the
current moratorium could be used to allow the City time to understand more about the covenants and
the effects of the proposed motion.
Chairman Jacobson reiterated that the Commission has passed the new zoning district category with the
idea of applying it to this area now being proposed. He called the vote.
The motion was approved by a 4:2 vote with Mr. MacInnes and Mr. Lambertson dissenting.
The meeting adjourned at 8:25 pm.
Signed
Attest
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