Neighborhood Leaders Slam 'Fast-Track' Change

No plan is perfect, a fact city planners readily admit. But when an interpretation is required, the city of Sarasota gives weight to the opinions of its staff. But that could change soon.

The city commission on Aug. 15 pushed a proposal to shift the weight of opinion in favor of developers, not staffers. And they put it “on the fast track” to get it done ASAP.

It’s called zoning text amendment 11-ZTA-04, and it’s on the agenda Wednesday night before the city planning commission as Ordnance 11-49-86. On. Sept. 10, the Coalition of City Neighborhood Associations discussed it as a last-minute addition to the agenda.

“This is a single attempt to circumvent the code of the city,” said Robin Harrington of the Lessez Faire Neighborhood Association. ”It places opinion over the law.”

CCNA officer Kate Lowman said, “As I understand it, if there is a conflict, you must chose in favor of the applicant. Any difference of opinion between the applicant and staff, you must rule in favor of the applicant.”

She cited a recent request to build an 18-story hotel at Five Points. The head of the planning department ruled the proposal did not meet all the requirements of the downtown master plan and turned it down. “If this goes through, staff wouldn’t be able to make those kind of judgment calls,” said Lowman.

The idea came out of an appeal by newly elected city commissioners to accelerate economic development. Staff offered the concept among others. The commission seized on it, and rapidly accelerated its production.

Lowman cited a similar “fast-track proposal” two years ago, when a new commissioner urged abolition of a series of design guidelines from the zoning text. They were the result of a decade of neighborhood pressure, and disappeared virtually overnight. “It took more than a year to put them back,” she said.

Susan Chapman is another officer of the CCNA. She also sits on the planning board. She noted the agenda for Wednesday’s meeting does not contain any additional information beyond the mere text of the proposed ordinance. “This does not have any back-up materials,” she said. “I asked why? I was told, ‘This was fast-tracked by the city commission.’ Staff said, ‘Watch the August 15 meeting.’”

CCNA Member Andy Dror defended the idea. “This is a tool for economic development. Commissioners asked for ideas to expedite it, and staff suggested this. For example, if the [zoning] code in one place requires a 100-foot setback, and another requires 150, right now, you’d have to go with the more restrictive.”

When the matter shows up Wednesday night, the planning board may not hear the opinions of the planning staff on the proposal. Chapman said the zoning director told her “they don’t have the right to make a presentation.”

The CCNA voted 15-4 with one abstention to recommend the city commission remove the ordinance from the “fast-track process,” and demanded “a fuller, educated discussion about this.”