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Winter Park to developers: Wait, please

The city wants them to wait until after May 1 to ask for rezonings.

Christopher Sherman
Sentinel Staff Writer

January 10, 2006

Winter Park is asking developers interested in bringing major projects to the city to hold off -- "pretty please" -- on applying for rezonings and variances.

City commissioners approved a nonbinding resolution asking developers to delay their applications until May 1 so the city can complete a review of its development guidelines.

"This is not designed to stop development that meets our current codes," said Commissioner Barbara DeVane, who proposed the resolution after not receiving support for a moratorium.

The resolution will "provide wiggle room if something really wonderful came down the pipe," she said. Mayor Kenneth "Kip" Marchman and Commissioner Doug Storer supported the resolution. Commissioner Doug Metcalf voted against it.

In practice, the voluntary nature of the resolution will fall on developers. It expresses the City Commission's sentiment to wait, but if developers are resolved to move forward, they can file applications, City Planner Jeff Briggs said.

Most developers are expected to recognize that it will not be a good time to ask for exceptions, said Briggs, who called it a "pretty-please resolution."

The proposed delay targets rezonings and planned-development applications in downtown for major commercial and multifamily buildings.

The delay would not affect any proposed projects built within existing zoning guidelines.

While most commissioners objected to a moratorium, there is precedent for cities calling a timeout to catch up with planning demands.

In 1997, Coral Springs in Broward County passed a temporary moratorium on apartments and town houses while it reviewed its comprehensive plan. A developer took the city to court, arguing that the moratorium jeopardized its business. The trial court sided with the city, and in 2004, the 4th District Court of Appeal followed suit.

The court's opinion noted that the city was using the moratorium to review its building regulations.

"The city was entitled to enact the moratorium as a land-use tool to promote effective planning and preserve the status quo during this change," the opinion stated.

Winter Park resident Beth Dillaha, who cited the Coral Springs case, said, "It just seems to make sense to allow our city the time to plan properly."