October 2006.pdfVOL.2 NO.10OCTOBER 2006
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I grew up hearing
my mother (para-
phrasing Abraham
Lincoln) tell me,
“You can please all
of the people
some of the time
and some of the people all the time,
but you can’t please all of the peo-
ple all the time.” I’m sorry Mom,
but you are wrong. You can never
please all of the people, not even
for a nanosecond.
As city commissioners, it is our
responsibility to listen to questions,
concerns, problems, and complaints
and strive for solutions, compro-
mise, and hopefully consensus.
When first elected I stumbled upon
an article in USA Weekend by
Jamie Malanowski about creative
complaining. He offers the follow-
ing guidelines:
1. Don’t make it personal. People
are more willing to see things
your way when you’re not on
the attack.
2. Do it sparingly. Complaining
is like garlic: It’s effective in
small doses, but too much
drives people away.
3. Have an authentic complaint.
Be specific.
4. Have proof. Summon all your
evidence and be accurate.
5. Complain to the right person.
(I’m amazed at misinformation
that comes to me third or forth
city of atlantic beach newsletter
SUMMARY OF ORDINANCE 90-06-195
SECTION 24-172 RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS
(continued on back)
The Residential Development Standards add
five new requirements to the existing zoning
regulations for certain new residential con-
struction in the area of the City known as Old
Atlantic Beach.The requirements apply to new
single and two-family homes and additions that
add 25% or more in size to existing homes
and are summarized as follows:
1.Floor Area Ratio (FAR)- The ratio of
certain areas of a house (generally the heated
and cooled interior space) compared to the
size of the lot.For example,on a 50-foot
wide,130-foot deep,6,500-square-foot lot,a
.54 FAR would permit the heated and cooled
portion of the house to be up to 3,510 square
feet.(Lot area x .54 = size of house permit-
ted,not including the first 500 square feet of
an interior garage,any open porches,balconies,
patios,breezeways,decks or carports.) In
summary,the larger the lot,the larger the
house allowed.
2.Side Walls - A common complaint about
large new residences on 50-foot wide lots has
been long,three-story exterior side walls built
right up to the side setback,which tower over
neighboring residences blocking sunlight and
breezes,resulting in a loss of privacy and
damage to trees,lawns and gardens that need
sunlight.The new provisions require that on
new two or three-story homes,where a side
wall is longer than 35-feet,elements must be
added so that next door homes are not faced
on the side by long,tall or stark two or three-
story walls.These may include offsets,bay
windows or other such features.
3.Wall Plate Height - Wall plate,in non-
technical terms,is where the side wall of a
house stops and the roof structure begins as
measured from the first floor.A 22-foot wall
plate height limit is included.A 35-foot over-
all building height is still permitted.
4.Third Floors - For three-story homes only,
the interior footprint of the third floor can
only be 50% of the size of the second floor.
5.Shade Trees - For new houses or additions
to existing homes,one 4-inch caliper shade
tree is required in the front yard and a second
in a location of the owner’s choosing.Credit is
given for existing trees,and no additional
trees are required in this case.
Other important provisions - No existing
legally built home is made nonconforming
by these new regulations.Any legally built sin-
gle or two-family home in this area could be
rebuilt in the same size and design if destroyed
by a hurricane,flood,fire,etc.subject to
meeting Florida Building Codes and other
regulations and coastal construction codes
that might apply.Existing homes are permit-
ted to be expanded in size by 25% before the
new regulations would apply,although other
current regulations such as setbacks,height,
Impervious Surface limits,drainage and
parking requirements might limit the size
of an addition to less than 25%.Full text
of the ordinance is on the City’s website
at www.coab.us
Eric Williams,while performing his duties as a General Maintenance Worker with
the Public Works Department,was recently named Employee of the Quarter.Eric
was selected for his outstanding work cleaning up litter,edging and mowing the
right-of-way in the Frances - Jordan area as well as along Mayport Road.Eric has
worked for the City since November 2005.In August he transferred to the Parks &
Recreation Dept.as a Park Ranger.
EMPLOYEE OF THE QUARTER
OctNews_fnl.qxp 9/18/06 12:36 PM Page 1
city of atlantic beach newsletter
CALENDAR
Meetings are held in the Commission Chambers unless otherwise indicated.
* These events will be held at Adele Grage Cultural Center,716 Ocean Blvd.
** These events will be held in the North Conference Room at City Hall,800 Seminole Road.
Donald Wolfson
MAYOR
Jamie Fletcher
COMMISSIONER
J. Dezmond Waters, III
MAYOR PRO TEM
Sylvia Simmons
COMMISSIONER
Mike Borno
COMMISSIONER
Jim Hanson
CITY MANAGER
Alan Jensen
CITY ATTORNEY
Donna Bussey
CITY CLERK
CITY OFFICIALS
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hand that could have been clari-fied with a simple first hand calldirectly to me.)6. Turn the negative into a positive.Make suggestions that mightlead to a solution.Add to these, the wisdom of ourcity manager, Jim Hanson, “If youinsult someone, that person stopslistening.” Let us all work together to makeAtlantic Beach the best communitythat it can be.
Sylvia Simmons
Commissioner
SHARE THE ROAD
All bicyclists would like to be able
to bicycle on public roads without
fear. Many are afraid to because
drivers sometimes squeeze past.
Though drivers rarely intend any
harm, this frightening and illegal
behavior has scared many bicyclists
and occasionally has caused colli-
sions. Please remember: the laws
in Florida require that “Drivers
shall pass at a safe distance.” (F.S.
# 316.083(1)). When there isn't
enough space for safe passing
within the lane, bicyclists should
be given use of the whole lane.
“Every person riding a bicycle shall
have all of the rights, and all of the
duties, applicable to other driv-
ers…” (F.S. #316.083(1)). So please
— don't squeeze. Keep a safe dis-
tance, at least three feet, when
passing a bicyclist. If you can’t pass
safely, please wait.
Information provided by:
Officer Tiffany Layson
Crime Prevention Officer
Atlantic Beach Police Department
(continued from front)
www.coab.us •(904) 247-5800
KEEP THE KIDS IN THE CONSERVATION LOOP
Nov 8 *Tree Conservation Board Mtg | 7 p.m.
Nov 9 Board Member Review Committee
Mtg | 5 p.m.
Nov 9 **Pension Board of Trustees Mtg | 6 p.m.
Nov 10 City Offices Closed (Holiday)
Nov 13 City Commission Mtg | 7:15 p.m.
Nov 14 Code Enforcement Board Mtg | 7 p.m.
Nov 19 *Songwriter’s Concert | 4 - 6 p.m.
Nov 21 Community Development Board Mtg |
7 p.m.
Nov 22 *Tree Conservation Board Mtg | 7 p.m.
Nov 23 City Offices Closed (Holiday)
Nov 24 City Offices Closed (Holiday)
Nov 27 City Commission Mtg | 7:15 p.m.
Nov 28 *Cultural Arts & Recreation Advisory
Committee| 7 p.m.
NOVEMBER 2006
Oct 7 & 8 Family Fun Day & Camp Out Under
the Stars at Jack Russell Park
Oct 9 City Commission Mtg | 7:15 p.m.
Oct 11 *Tree Conservation Board Mtg | 7 p.m.
Oct 12 Board Member Review Committee
Mtg | 5 p.m.
Oct 15 *Songwriter’s Concert | 6 - 8 p.m.
Oct 17 Community Development Board Mtg |
7 p.m.
Oct 23 City Commission Mtg | 7:15 p.m.
Oct 24 *Cultural Arts & Recreation Advisory
Committee | 7 p.m.
Oct 25 *Tree Conservation Board Mtg | 7 p.m.
Oct 29 *Acoustics Night at Bull Park | 4 - 6 p.m.
OCTOBER 2006
Our children benefit when we conserve water because this valuable resource will be
plentiful when they’re grown! Keeping kids involved helps them learn the importance of
saving water.
There’s a neat website called Water Use It Wisely that includes items kids can enjoy including:
Water Wisdom and Games,H2Ouse (a virtual water conserving house),Family Water Audit,
and a water conservation computer game called TipTank.This site also has lots of other educa-
tional material and links to water websites.Check it out at www.wateruseitwisely.com.
Remember, irrigate no more than two days per week, before 10 a.m. or after 4 p.m. For
more information on watering restrictions, visit the St. Johns River Water Management
District’s website at www.sjrwmd.com.
YARD WORK AND STORM WATERThese might appear to be separate topics,but how you maintain your lawn can have adirect impact on the City’s Storm WaterCollections and Treatment Systems.AtlanticBeach has a State issued Municipally SeparateStorm Sewer System (MS4) Permit,whichessentially requires that nothing but runofffrom rainfall be discharged into the collec-tion system. NOTHING BUT RAINDOWN THE DRAIN! There are a few exceptions (e.g., waterfrom individual residential car washing,discharge from air-water heat pumps,irrigation runoff, dechlorinated swimmingpool discharges, etc.), however grass clippings and other yard debris shouldnever be blown into a catch basin or curbinlet or dumped into a drainage ditch or swale. Should a homeowner (or yardservice working for the homeowner) befound doing this, the owner may bereferred to the Code Enforcement Boardfor violation of the City’s permit.OctNews_fnl.qxp 9/18/06 12:36 PM Page 2