Re-zoning Downtown - Property Rights vs Land Use Regulation

This week the Planning Board will be deliberating on information they have recieved concerning the mass re-zoning of downtown Sarasota. The re-zoning is the result of our new Downtown Master Plan.

A number of complex issues have been brought up. Some property owners will see "down-zoning" (less density or height), others will see a gain in development rights. Another issue is some properties will have split zoning - a parcel owned by one owner will cross over zoning lines.

As explained in the 1000 Friends of Florida website:

"The protection of private property rights is assured in the U.S. and Florida Constitutions. If government regulations (including those from Florida’s Growth Management Act) restrict private property to such an extent that all reasonable use has been removed, the regulation may be deemed a "taking."

However, the state has always retained the ability to limit property use when that use comes into conflict with the public welfare or harms the property of others.

In 1995 the Florida Legislature passed the Bert J. Harris, Jr. Private Property Rights Protection Act, which states that the actions of government: may inordinately burden, restrict, or limit private property rights without amounting to a taking under the State Constitution or the United States Constitution. The Legislature determines that there is an important state interest in protecting the interests of private property owners from such inordinate burdens.

The courts have not had enough time to interpret its provisions and the words of the Act are not very clear on their face. The Act has made local governments more cautious when making changes to their local comprehensive plans or land development regulations. However, it is the best interpretation of the Act that, while it does provide some increment of additional protection to landowners beyond that afforded by the Constitution, it clearly does not preclude a local government’s ability to strengthen its land use regulations or even "down-plan" or "down-zone" land for a valid planning reason."

Taken from "A Citizen’s Guide to the Nuts and Bolts of Florida’s Growth Management Process" by the 1000 Friends of Florida.

The property rights issue is complex and will weigh in heavily as our community tries to balance interests of land owners and residents as we move forward with growth control planning. Sarasota’s struggle with growth will continue as these issues get resolved.