| The Future of Community Redevelopment Agencies |
As the 2018 Legislative session approaches, Community Redevelopment Agencies ("CRAs") are once again a hot topic of debate. Two bills are proceeding through legislative committees. One bill seeks to reform CRAs to achieve greater accountability, while the other proposes to sunset them altogether. Because these bills raise important policy issues that could affect the urban redevelopment boom we are seeing across the state, Stearns Weaver Miller has
developed a white paper to help landowners, developers, government staff, and elected officials understand:
- What are CRAs and what were they originally intended to do?
- Recent CRA developments and a summary of pending legislation
- The future of CRAs in Florida
We have also developed an extensive database regarding CRAs throughout Florida, including the
first comprehensive map tracking the boundaries of every CRA across the state.
We believe that changes are in store for CRAs in the coming years. Our Land Development, Zoning & Environmental team will continue to monitor pending legislative actions and inform you of any material developments. We have extensive experience working on CRA-related issues throughout Florida on projects ranging from focused infill and brownfield sites to larger, more complex, downtown redevelopment strategies. Please contact us if we can assist you with any CRA-related issues.
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MEET THE AUTHORS
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Christopher P. Smith*
GIS Director
Tallahassee
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Kenneth B. Metcalf, AICP*
Director of Planning
Tallahassee
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Special thanks to Kaley Witeck, who assisted in the drafting of this update. Kaley is a third-year Juris Doctor Candidate at Stetson University College of Law.
*non-lawyer
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Sewage Spill Case Continues After Court Strikes Most of City's Affirmative Defenses
After multiple environmental non-profit organizations filed suit against the City of Gulfport, the City filed its answer, which included nineteen affirmative defenses. The non-profit organizations moved to strike all nineteen of the City's affirmative defenses, and the court ultimately struck about half of those.
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District Adopts DOAH Recommended Order In Favor of Express Passenger Rail System In Its Entirety
An Administrative Law Judge ruled that permit challengers failed to prove that an Environmental Resource Permit ("ERP") applicant's proposed project did not comply with ERP issuance criteria, and recommended that the South Florida Water Management District (the "District") approve the applicant's ERP Modification and exemption. The District entered its Final Order, which adopted the ALJ's Recommended Order in its entirety.
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Florida District Courts Deny State's Request to Move Citrus Canker Litigation Proceedings to Leon County
After landowners initiated mandamus proceedings in circuit courts to recover judgments in their favor, the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services asked that the proceedings be transferred to Leon County. Florida District Courts of Appeal issued per curiam opinions and denied the Department's request.
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Second DCA Clarifies Meaning of "Vehicular Traffic" Under Coastal Zone Protection Act
The Second District Court of Appeal affirmed in part and reversed in part the trial court's ruling that vehicle activity on the City of Treasure Island's beach constitutes "vehicular traffic" under the Coastal Zone and Protection Act. The court was tasked with interpreting the meaning of "vehicular traffic" and concluded the term means "the movement of vehicles as though it were happening along a public street or highway."
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Second DCA Reverses Developer's $16.5 Million Award and Rules in Favor of County
The Second District Court of Appeal reversed a $16.5 million judgment awarded to the Richman Group of Florida, Inc., ruling that the trial court erred in concluding that Pinellas County had no rational basis to deny Richman's proposed amendment to the County's land use plan. The court held that the County Planning Authority did not violate the Constitution by considering "legitimate input from affected residents" in denying the amendment.
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Jake's Practice:
Jake counsels clients in their interactions with local, state, and federal governments on environmental, land use, and land development issues. He has extensive experience securing environmental and land use permits and protecting against challenges, defending government enforcement suits, and litigating property rights issues in multiple jurisdictions, including before the United States Supreme Court. Jake routinely assists large landowners on long-term strategic planning for their holdings. He also works with landowners to assess and remediate contaminated properties and helps them secure tax incentives to do so through the brownfields program.
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Recent Successes: Jake was the lead partner in resolving an annexation challenge and an administrative challenge to a comprehensive plan amendment for a coalition of developer clients with projects at risk due to a long-running dispute between Alachua County and the City of Gainesville. After securing an order from the Administrative Law Judge for an expedited hearing, Jake and his team successfully negotiated with the County and the City for a global settlement allowing clients to move forward with projects that had been stalled for over six months and which were at risk of being delayed for another year or more.
Community Involvement: Jake is on the Board of Directors for the Hillsborough County Farm Bureau and is a gubernatorial appointee to the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council. He is also a graduate of Leadership Tampa Bay and Leadership Florida Connect.
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EXECUTIVE ORDER PERMIT EXTENSION TRACKER
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