FloridaAtFirstSight

Affordable Housing, BOCC, St. Johns County

Summary of the December 21 St. Johns County Board of County Commissioner’s Meeting

Posted on December 24, 2023 by Beth Tate

Tuesday was a surprisingly long day, largely because of Agenda Item 6, the Heritage Park PUD, that had a large number of residents in attendance.

Note: The next Board of County Commissioner’s Meeting will be January 16, 2024.

Tuesday’s meeting began with a Recognition of Vilano Beach Main Street Board for the work they have done revitalizing Vilano Beach.

A proclamation was presenting declaring January 2024 as Human Trafficking Awareness month.

Regular Agenda Items

Public Safety Update

SJSO Director Tara Wildes provided a PSA about staying safe during the Holidays, including don’t drink and drive. She also shared that a new class of K-9s for Warriors was graduating on Tuesday with 2 dogs graduating at the jail. Inmates have worked with the program providing a needed service training the dogs and learning a skill that they can use upon their release from jail.

Fire Rescue Chief McGhee provided a PSA on charging lithium-ion batteries and recommended that they not be left unattended when charging.

Service Delivery Update

There was a lengthy Service Delivery Update that you can watch here: Service Delivery Update

Highlights included:

Library Services – Food for Fines

Parks and Recreation – the Hastings Christmas Parade, Phone Calls from Santa, and the Treecycling Program

Veterans Services – Marine Corp Toys for Tots, Firefighters for Families

Health and Human Services – Christmas Party with Santa and Mrs. Claus, provided gifts for 160 children in care.

Emergency Management – Adopted a family from Firefighters for Families

Fire Rescue – Firefighters for Families served 295 families

Director Larson shared how the Office of Public Affairs is integrated marketing communications to tell the story of the county. He highlighted how they used the great story of the historic 2023 sea turtle nesting season. Check out the video for that alone!

The Director of Library Services shared St. Johns Reads and distributed copies of the new book for the program, “The Reading List” by Sara Nisha Adams.

Regular Agenda Items

Agenda Item 1 was a presentation from the Prevention Coalition of St. Johns County on their Hidden in Plain Sight Program. This is an adult education program begun this year. The target audience is parents, grandparents and any adult caregivers of teenagers.

Please watch the video here – very informative! Hidden in Plain Sight

They also shared about how they reach out to youth to educate about the dangers of substance abuse.

The mission of the organization is about loving, nurturing, educating, and encouraging people to make better choices.

“Susan Jackson, Executive Director of PACT, has requested the opportunity to do a brief presentation to the Commission on PACT initiatives and to discuss the Hidden in Plain Sight program. The Hidden in Plain Sight trailer will be on site in the County Administration Parking lot for Commissioners and the public to participate. The cargo trailer is staged as a youth’s bedroom designed to provide eye-opening education about dozens of things that could be indicators of risky behaviors or mental health concerns. There is also a slide presentation and backpack demonstration showing parents, grandparents, and adult family members problematic things that may be hidden in plain sight.”

Learn more about this organization here: Prevention Coalition of St. Johns County

Agenda Item 2 – Award of RFP 23-32 Residential Solid Waste, Recycling and Yard Waste Collection Services

This presentation was a recommendation for the awarding of an RFP for Waste Collection services.

There are currently 3 contracts for solid waste collection. Two will expire July 31 of 2024 and one will expire July 31 2029. They will consolidate these contracts into one contract. This agenda item is to approve the award to FCC Environmental Services Florida, LLC.

Materials are found here: Agenda Item 2

Key slides below:

During Public Comment, two of the competitors spoke. The Waste Management representative asked about the wisdom of changing service during hurricane season and opined that low cost does not always mean best value. The Meridian Waste Management representative asked that the county continue with 2 vendors and award the south part of the county to them.

The motion to award the bid to FCC was approved 4-1 with Commissioner Joseph being the No vote. Staff will return with a recommendation on the funding options.

Agenda Item 3 was a presentation on the Design-Build Services for a New SR 207 Water Reclamation Facility and Associated Improvements

This is to enter into a contract with Jacobs Project Management company to complete Scope 1 of Design-Build for the new 207 Water Reclamation Facility. Materials are here: Agenda Item 3

With no public comment, the motion to approve and the motion to transfer money from reserves was approved 5-0.

Agenda Item 4 – Summer Haven – Study of Summer Haven River and Surrounding Areas and Study of Summer House Erosion Findings, including potential FEMA Category B emergency protective measures.

500+ page presentation is here: Summer Haven Presentation

A motion was made to have staff continue researching and come back to the Board with recommendations on how to proceed with protecting this vital area of the county. It was approved 5-0

Agenda Item 5 – Heritage Park PUD

“MAJMOD 2023-10 Heritage Park PUD, a request for a Major Modification to the Heritage Park PUD (Ord. 2000-4, as amended) to divide Parcel B into two sections (B-1 and B-2); to add 12 multifamily residential units to the allowable uses for Parcel B-2; to remove the use of a 7,200 sq ft daycare facility from the list of allowable uses on Parcel B; to provide parking and design criteria to Parcel B-2 for the proposed 12 multi-family units; and to provide a revised MDP Text and Map, specifically located at 227 Hefferon Drive.”

Read the materials here: Heritage Park PUD

This item turned out to be the most contentious of the day, lasting about 2 hours with much public comment from residents of Heritage Park.

You can watch the video here: Heritage Park PUD Video

The request was denied 5-0.

Agenda Item 6 – the 2023 Affordable Housing Advisory Committee Annual Report

The Chair of the Affordable Housing Advisory Committee (AHAC) presented the report which is required by law to be presented by the end of each year.

Read the full report and recommendations here: AHAC Annual Report

The motion to approve the report was passed with a 4-1 vote, with Commissioner Joseph being the no vote.

Key slides are below:

Commissioner’s Reports

Commissioner Joseph shared her appreciation of the people who spoke in Public Comment supporting her. She wished everyone Happy Hanukkah and Merry Christmas; expressing hope for the New Year.

Commissioner Alaimo congratulated the St. Augustine High School Football team for making it to the finals. Even though they didn’t win, it was a great accomplishment to get there. He also congratulated Dylan Rumrell for being elected as St. Augustine Mayor for the coming year. He asked staff to research the concerns raised during Public Comment about dues paid to the Library Association. And he asked if the staff could be awarded an extra day off for the Holiday in appreciation for their hard work this year. By consensus, the staff will have that extra day off this coming week.

Commissioner Whitehurst wished everyone a Merry Christmas

Commissioner Dean expressed appreciation for the good dialog on Tuesday and the ability to focus on the important elements of the people’s business; the reclamation facility, the solid waste collection, and the eco-system.

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BOCC, St. Johns County

What’s on the Agenda for the November 21, St. Johns County Board of County Commissioner’s Meeting?

Posted on November 18, 2023November 18, 2023 by Beth Tate

All regular County Commissioner meetings are the first and third Tuesdays of the Month in the County Auditorium at 500 San Sebastian View.

The BOCC Agenda for November 21 is packed with 12 items, some of which may be lengthy discussion items.

The meeting Tuesday is posted as 2 separate meetings with the first one being the “Reorganizational Meeting” for the Board. This is the normal process of electing the Chair and Vice-Chair for the coming year.

Following the Re-organizational Meeting, they will begin the Board of County Commissioner’s Meeting.

Full Agenda is here: November 21 BOCC Agenda

Consent Agenda

There are 22 items on the consent Agenda. Here are a few of interest:

Consent Agenda item 7 is a lease agreement for additional space for the county to provide services at 16 and N. 5^th Street.

Consent Agenda Item 9 is to terminate a sales agreement for land recommended to be purchase through the LAMP program. Consent Agenda Item 9

The purchase and sale agreement was initiated September 8 for 30 acres of land off of 13 South. Within the agreement was a clause that within 90 days of the purchase the buyer could enter the property and assess suitability of the property for use by the County.

“The County has found through inspection of the property, including but not limited to staff visits, a title search and Phase I Environmental Site Assessment that the property is not suitable for the County’s intended use and purposes. It is in the interest of the citizens of St. Johns County to terminate the Purchase and Sale Agreement and request return of the Deposit monies prior to the Inspection Termination Date, as provided in Section 10 of the Purchase and Sale Agreement.”

There was some debate about approving this purchase initially so expect there may be some discussion about this Consent Agenda Item.

Regular Agenda

Agenda Item 1 is to approve a settlement agreement in a lawsuit brought against the County in March of 2020. This is related to an accident where a deputy in a marked car pulled in front of a motorcyclist on SR 16. The net amount, after the insurance coverage, is $6.3 Million.

Agenda Item 2 – Charting Performance: A Framework for Open Governance and Efficiency

“County Administrator Joy Andrews will introduce a framework aimed at enhancing open governance and operational efficiency within the County. A newly developed organizational chart, highlighted changes, and their intended purposes will be provided.”

Agenda Item 3 – Consultant Briefing on the County’s Comprehensive Plan Update

“The County’s Comprehensive Plan is in the process of being updated. The Board of County Commissioners directed that a consultant be hired to assist the county through process. The consultant, Inspire Placemaking Collective, will provide a briefing on the overall process including the schedule.”

Agenda Item 4 – a request to rezone approximately .84 acres of land at 5461 & 5467 A1A S. from Commercial General (CG) to Residential, Single Family (RS-3).

“The Planning and Zoning Agency heard this request at their regularly scheduled public hearing on Thursday, October 5th, 2023, voting to recommend approval of the request by a vote of 5-0. Members of the Agency had questions of the applicant about how the proposed homes would be accessing A1A South.”

Agenda Item 5

REZ 2023-02 St. Marks Industrial Presentation

This is a request to rezone approximately 13.26 acres of land, located south of International Golf Parkway, just west of US 1 North, from Open Rural (OR) to Industrial Warehousing (IW). This was recommended for approval by the Planning and Zoning Agency (PZA) at their Thursday, June 1, 2023 meeting. Since that time, the County learned that a portion of the property was the subject of pending private civil litigation. The applicant has revised their application to remove that portion of the property from the request, reducing the proposed acreage for the site from 15.98 acres to 13.26 acres.

location and compatibility map for St. Mark’s Industrial

Agenda Item 6

PLAT 2023-21 Orchard Park Phase 3

This is the final plat approval for Orchard Park Phase 3.

Materials are here: Orchard Park, Phase 3

Agenda Item 7 – FEMA Public Assistance Category G (Permanent Work) for Hurricanes Ian and Nicole, specifically South Ponte Vedra Beach.

This is an update on use of a FEMA grant to be used to address damage to South Ponte Vedra Beach by Hurricanes Ian and Nicole

See the materials here: South Ponte Vedra Beach FEMA

Agenda Item 8 – Fiscal Year 2023: End of Year Budget Compliance

This is the year end review of the budget and approval of required adjustment entries to ensure compliance with Section 200.6 [Budgetary Control Procedures] of the St. Johns County BCC Administrative Code. This is the process where reserves are transferred to appropriate accounts to cover expenditures or Intra-fund department transfers are approved.

“To accomplish these transfers, the BCC will need to approve the respective transfers for each Department as per the attached schedule. Under Florida Statutes, these adjustments may be made up to 60 days following the end of the Fiscal Year.”

The County CFO will review the items to be approved in the presentation at this link. Budget Reconciliation

Agenda Item 9

First Reading of Proposed Amendment to St. Johns County Ordinance No. 2018-42 regulating the operation of Golf Carts, Low Speed Vehicles, and Mini Trucks within St. Johns County.

At its August 1, 2023 meeting, the Board of County Commissioners authorized the Office of County Attorney to prepare a proposed amendment to Ordinance 2018-42 to conform to recent changes in state law addressing the operation of Golf Carts on all public roads in Florida. The proposed amendment requires anyone 18 years or younger who operates a golf cart to possess a valid learners or driver license and anyone 18 years or older to posses a valid form of identification.

The entire ordinance can be found here: County Golf Ordinance

Agenda Item 10

First Reading of Proposed Amendment to St. Johns County Ordinance 20028-29 regarding St. Johns County Affordable Housing Advisory Committee.

Details are here: AHAC revision

At its September 19, 2023 meeting, the Board of County Commissioners authorized the Office of County Attorney to prepare a proposed amendment to Ordinance 2008-29 to conform to recent changes in state law regarding the composition of the Affordable Housing Advisory Committee. The proposed amendment requires that the committee must consist of one member from the Board of County Commissioners and one representative from at least six of the categories identified in section 420.9076(2), Florida Statues.

The categories are:

a) One citizen who is actively engaged in the residential home building industry in connection with affordable housing.;

b) One citizen who is actively engaged in the banking or mortgage banking industry in connection with affordable housing.;

c) One citizen who is a representative of those areas of labor actively engaged in home building in connection with affordable housing.;

d) One citizen who is actively engaged as an advocate for low-income persons in connection with affordable housing.;

e) One citizen who is actively engaged as a for-profit provider of affordable housing.;

f) One citizen who is actively engaged as a not-for-profit provider of affordable housing.;

g) One citizen who is actively engaged as a real estate professional in connection with affordable housing.;

h) One citizen who actively serves on the local planning agency pursuant to Section 163.3174, Florida Statutes.;

i) One citizen who resides within the jurisdiction of the local governing bodymaking appointments.;

j) One citizen who represents employers within the jurisdiction.;

k) One citizen who represents essential services personnel, as defined in the local housing assistance plan.

Agenda Item 11 – This item is a “Proposed Settlement of Southeast Development Partners, LLC v. St. Johns County State Court Litigation”

“St. Johns County (“County”) is currently defendant in Case No. CA23-1265 in the Circuit Court in and for St. Johns County, filed by Southeast Development Partners, LLC (“Southeast”), relating to certain record requests. The County has defended, and continues to defend, its responses as consistent with Florida law. Pursuant to court order, the parties participated in mediation on October 30, 2023, and produced a tentative mediated settlement agreement, subject to approval of the Board of County Commissioners, to avoid the costs and uncertainty of further litigation of this matter. A copy of the mediated settlement agreement is attached to this agenda item for review and consideration. (This proposed settlement does not resolve the pending federal litigation regarding Southeast’s concurrency obligations.)”

This item is interesting, not only because of the litigation and proposed settlement, but a read of the presentation materials is educational in understanding the scrutiny of county employees’ communications. I often hear residents complain about the email responses they get from county representatives or the lack of written response. County officials and employees are subject to Florida Sunshine laws and must be careful how their communications are worded.

As an example, I have heard residents complain that a Commissioner would not commit in an email response that they would vote a certain way on an upcoming rezoning request. By law, they can’t decide on a quasi-judicial matter until it is presented to them at the public hearing. If they have committed to a resident that they will vote for or against a request, they have broken the law, and that email could become evidence if the applicant, or anyone, sues the county over the decision.

Read the details here: Proposed Settlement

Agenda Item 12 – Consider appointments to the Land Acquisition Management Program (LAMP) Conservation Board

“Currently, there are (4) vacancies on the LAMP Conservation Board due to expired terms. Members of the LAMP Conservation Board are required to be registered voters of St. Johns County and have experience or expertise in one or more of the following areas, with at least five of these areas represented at all times: Agriculture, Archaeology, Business/Finance, Eco-Tourism, Education, Engineering, Environmental, History, Parks, Planning, Real Estate, Recreation, Soil/Hydrologic, and Natural Sciences, such as Biology, Botany, Geology and Zoology. “

Included in the packet are (9) applications and a recommendation letter from LAMP: Robin Robbins Dist. 1, Dirk Lobenbruck Dist. 1, Wayne Flowers Dist. 1, Dist. 3, William Miller Dist. 3, Anila Lahiri Dist. 3, Nicole Crosby Dist. 4, Kate Beck Dist. 4, Garrett Colton Dist. 5, Benjamin Brandao Dist. 5.

The LAMP Board recommends the reappointment of Shorty Robbins, Wayne Flowers, and JB Miller. They recommend the new appointment of Nicole Crosby.

Packet details here: LAMP Board Nominations

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BOCC, St. Johns County

Summary of the September 5 St. Johns County Board of County Commissioner’s Meeting (Part 2)

Posted on September 13, 2023September 13, 2023 by Beth Tate

Board of County Commissioner Meetings are the first and third Tuesdays of the Month, 9:00 AM, at the County Auditorium, 500 San Sebastian View.

Image from St. Johns County Facebook Page

Link to the full agenda is here: BOCC Agenda 9-5-23

Picking up after the lunch recess, there was a long afternoon ahead conlucing with the special meeting to cover the 2024 Millage rates and budget.

Agenda Items 5 and 6 also impacts the Longleaf Pine Parkway/County Road 210 area. The Comprehensive Plan Amendment and PUD for the Mensforth Family Community Commercial are to change the zoning for approximately 4.25 acres of land from Rural/Silviculture to Community Commercial. The PUD will include about 25,000 sq. ft. of commercial activities. This was approved.

Agenda Item 9 is of interest to those who follow our Bald Eagle population.

Special Magistrate Recommendation in Day Late Enterprises, Inc. v. St. Johns County

“On June 9, 2022, the Board of County Commissioners (“Board”) rendered an order denying a nonzoning variance application by Day Late Enterprises, Inc. (“Day Late”) for a proposed alternative bald eagle management plan for certain property along State Road 16, the majority of which is undeveloped, but a portion of which is within the Grand Oaks PUD. Day Late filed a request for relief from the denial under the Florida Land Use and Environmental Dispute Resolution Act, section 70.51, Florida Statutes (“FLUEDRA”), which provides means to potentially resolve disputes pre-suit through a special magistrate mediation and hearing process. After the conclusion of the hearing, the special magistrate is required to issue a written recommendation, which the governmental entity must accept, modify, or reject within 45 days after receipt. Failure to act within 45 days is deemed a rejection. Thirty days after any rejection, the government entity must issue a written decision of the uses available to the subject property. The special magistrate in this matter issued a written recommendation on August 8, 2023, which is attached here for the Board’s review and consideration for possible action.”

Details here: Agenda Item 9

The recommendation to the Commissioners was that they take no action. The county code is stricter than the Federal guidelines and that is allowed. by taking no action, the Commissioners are standing by their previous denial.

Agenda Item 10 – Discussion and request for direction regarding funding options in connection with the Ponte Vedra Beach Restoration project

This project covers from the St. Johns County/Duval County Line down to Vilano Beach.

This was a lengthy discussion – you can watch the full discussion at this link: Ponte Vedra Beach Restoration Project

Millage proposal in the event of a shortfall

Commissioner Joseph raised concerns about the divisive nature of the separate MSTUs pitting neighbor against neighbor. She had a counter proposal with creating 1 taxing district and for the county to carry the cost of the construction.

Commissioner Dean spoke about his 5 years of working on this project and disagreed with Commissioner Joseph on how to cover the costs. He indicated that 80% of the cost is related to 6 miles of beach and he supports the staff analysis and breakdown of the millage between the 2 MSTUs.

There was further discussion between Commissioners Dean and Joseph about the discussions each have had with residents in the beaches area.

Public Comment included support for creating 1 MSTU with emphasis that this is for one Ponte Vedra Beach and one community.

During Commissioner discussion, there was clarification that the millage could be assessed only if there is a shortfall in funding. They do not yet have the final budget for the project.

Commissioner Dean proposed a motion on the 2 MSTUs. Commissioner Joseph raised a “point of order” that Commissioner Dean made the motion and this is in her District. Attorney Migut explained that it is the custom of the Board to defer to the Commissioner of the District but not a point of order.

Commissioner Joseph countered that this should be a single MSTU.

Commissioner Dean’s 3 part motion passed 4:1 with Commissioner Joseph being the no vote.

Interim County Administrator Joy Andrews clarified for the Board that there is no vote here on millage to be assessed, only on the split between the two MSTUs and that any proposed millage would be part of the budget discussions in 2024, for the 2024 assessments.

Commissioner Joseph made a motion to levy the MSTUs at one rate rather than two. The motion died for lack of a second

Regular Agenda Item 10 – Discussion on Local Preference in SJC Purchasing Policy

This item was a discussion to determine whether or not to remove the application of Local Preference as included in the SJC Purchasing Policy.

Presentation materials can be found here: Local Preference in Purchasing

Challenges of the Local Preference Policy

Staff Recommendations for Local Preference Policy

There was no motion made regarding this item. Commissioner Dean stated he is in favor of eliminating the local preference policy. Others mentioned the favorability of keeping purchasing dollars local and agreed there was further discussion needed. There was an ask for the Purchasing department to discuss this with the Chamber of Commerce and come back with recommendations at a future meeting.

Regular Agenda Item 11 – Project Krew Updated Economic Incentive Request

This is an updated request from a confidential business for economic incentives related to locating a new business in St. Johns County.

Residents spoke out against the incentives because the business is unknown to the public. It became clear in the Commissioner’s comments that they do know the project but are keeping it confidential and they are in favor of the project because of the jobs and revenue it will bring to the county.

At 5:01 was the Public Hearing on the Adoption of Tentative Millage Rates & Budget for FY 2024.

Certainly this has been a hot topic of discussion across the county with the mailing of the TRIM notices in August!

This is the first public hearing with the final public hearing recommendation date being September 19. This was the first opportunity for the public to comment and ask questions prior to the adoption of the final budget for FY 2024.

Presentation and millage rates are at this link: Trim Notice Presentation

You can watch the full presentation at this link: Budget Presentation

“In accordance with sections 129.03 and 200.065 of the Florida Statutes, the Board of County Commissioners (BCC) is required to hold public hearings to adopt its millage rates and budget for the next Fiscal Year (FY). Such hearings must be held after 5:00 PM if scheduled on a day other than Saturday. In the recently mailed Notices of Proposed Property Taxes (TRIM) by the County’s Property Appraiser, the date and time noticed for the required hearings is September 5, 2023, at 5:01 P.M. The Florida Statutes further prescribe the specific order for consideration of substantive issues to be discussed during the required public hearings. The first substantive issue of discussion must be the percentage increase in the County’s aggregate millage rate over the rolled-back rate necessary to fund the budget. The rolled-back rate is defined as the aggregate millage rate that would generate the same level of prior year tax revenues less certain defined allowances (such as new construction). During such discussion, the general public shall be allowed to speak and ask questions prior to the adoption of any measures by the BCC. The BCC shall adopt by resolution its tentative millage rates prior to adopting its tentative budget for FY 2024. Additionally, the BCC is required to establish a date, time, and place to conduct public hearings on the final millage and budget adoption for FY 2024. It is recommended that the BCC establish September 19, 2023, at 5:01 PM, in the County Auditorium to conduct such hearings. A copy of the FY 2024 Tentative Budget Workbook, including detail per line item, may be found on the County’s webpage at http://www.sjcfl.us/OMB/”

Public Comment

During Public Comment there were a couple of trends, one was concerns from people who’s home value has increased but their income has not. Taxes on the increased value of their home is not something their budgets can easily handle. There are people who own rental properties and try to maintain a lower rent for the people that live and work in this county but with the increase in property taxes AND insurance rates, it is difficult for them to continue to keep their rents low.

There was also comment that there are areas in the budget that could be reduced.

The Commissioners voted 5:0 to adopt the millage rates and budget for 2024.

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BOCC, St. Johns County

Summary of the September 5 St. Johns County Board of County Commissioner’s Meeting (Part 1)

Posted on September 12, 2023September 12, 2023 by Beth Tate

Board of County Commissioner Meetings are the first and third Tuesdays of the Month, 9:00 AM, at the County Auditorium, 500 San Sebastian View.

My update on last week’s meetings has been delayed as I have been traveling. Thanks for your patience!

Beause of the length of the meeting and importance of some of the topics, I will be posting the September 5 summary in two parts.

Link to the full agenda is here: BOCC Agenda 9-5-23

Commissioner Arnold participated in the meeting remotely.

There were 3 Proclamations presented at the September 5 BOCC meeting.

Hispanic Heritage Month
Constitution Week
Library Card Sign-up Month

During the Constitution Week Presentation it was noted there will be a special presentation for Constitution Week on September 17 at the Plaza in downtown St. Augustine. Commissioner Whitehurst will be one of the speakers and they will have all the bells in the downtown churches ringing for 2 minutes in recognition of the signing of the Constitution. All are invited to attend.

At the conclusion of the Library Card Sign-Up Month presentation, Commissioners who did not already have a card were presented with their own Library Card and challenged to use them!

Public Safety Update

Two SJSO Dispatchers were sent to Taylor County to help with hurricane recovery and have returned.

The Fire Chief reported that while Hurricane Idalia was minimal impact for the county, it did provide an opportunity for the teams to go through the exercise with a lot of new faes in the team. That was a success. Two fire personnel were sent to Citrus County to assist with hurricane recovery.

Clerk of the Court’s Report

Brandon Patty shared that one of the responsibilities under the Clerk fo the Court is the Value Adjustment Board. If a property owner objects to the Property Appraiser’s valuation of their property, they can file a petition that will be managed by the Value Adjustment Board. Here is a link to the Petition filing Process: Value Adjustment Board Petition

To honor Consitution Day, residents can pick up a free copy of the Constitution at the County Court House anytime during the month of September.

County Infrastructure Report

A new item on the Commissioner’s Agenda is the County Infrastructure Report. The Infrastructure team will provide updates on on-going capital projects

Graphic provided by the Infrastructure Team

Consent Agenda Items of interest

I requested that the 2 items on the Consent Agenda related to The Landings development in Greenbriar be moved to the Regular Agenda. Commissioner Joseph concurred with that request and the Commissioners agreed to move them to be voted on with the Regular Agenda items 1 – 4.

Here are the 2 Agenda items.

Consent Agenda Item 3 is the School Concurrency Proportionate Share Mitigation Agreement and Consent Agenda Item 4 is the Proportionate Fair Share Agreement. What is most interesting is that the Comprehensive Plan Amendments (CPA) and the Planned Unit Development (PUD) agreement for both The Landings at Greenbriar and The Landings at St. Johns are on the Regular Agenda for Sept. 5. This means that the Consent Agenda items could technically be approved before the CPA and PUD are even heard by the Commissioners at the September 5 meeting.

Consent Agenda Item 3 is the School Concurrency Proportionate Share Mitigation Agreement is an agreement that to mitigate for the lack of school capacity today, the proportionate share is $9,563,320 or $16,264 per dwelling unit. This will be satisfied by dedication of an off-site drainage easement to serve the existing elementary school site adjacent the proposed PUD. This is valued at $321,481. The balance of $9,241,845 will be a payment made prior to Construction Plan approval. The School Impact fee credits will be for the full amount of the $9,563,320. This was approved by the School Board on July 11, 2023.

Importantly, the School Distrct will apply this Proportionate Share Mitigation towards school capacity improvements to be added to the planned capital improvements in the next update of the Five Year District Facilities Work Plan.

Read the details here: Consent Agenda Item 3

Consent Agenda Item 4 is the Proportionate Fair Share Agreement to mitigate the transportation impacts to CR 210, Greenbriar Road, SR 13 and Longleaf Pine Parkway. The proportionate fair share (PFS) for this project (The Landings at Greenbriar and St. Johns) is calculated to be $8,148,710.00. This would fund widening a portion of Greenbriar Road from a point just east of the Greenbriar Rd/Longleaf Pine Pkwy intersection to approximately nine-tenths (0.9) of a mile west of the intersection from 2 to 4 lanes, including improvements to the Greenbriar Rd/Longleaf Pine Pkwy intersection (Greenbriar Road Improvements), at an estimated cost of $8,162,869.

Read the details here: Consent Agenda Item 4

Regular Agenda Items

Regular Agenda items 1 – 4 and Consent Agenda Items 3 – 4 were heard as one item. This was the Adoption Hearing for the Comprehensive Plan Amendment and PUD for The Landings at Greenbriar and The Landings at St. Johns (Active Adult.)

Because of the great interest in this development and subsequent news coverage, I’m providing a few more pictures from the presentation here. You can watch the full presentation at this link: BOCC Presentation – The Landings

Switzerland Point & Hickory Creek access improvements

Timeline of construction and improvements

Student Generation as presented by the developer

Letter from the School Board thanking the developer for improvements

Details can be found at the links below.

CPA (SS) 2022-01 The Landings at Greenbriar Comprehensive Plan – The Landings at Greenbriar

“Request for a Small-Scale Comprehensive Plan Amendment to change the Future Land Use designation of approximately 31.8 acres of land, located south of Greenbriar Road, approximately one (1) mile west of Longleaf Pine Parkway, from Rural/Silviculture (R/S) to Residential-B (Res-B) with site specific text amendment stating that in locations where the subject property is contiguous to The Landings at St. Johns site, no Development Edges will be required. This request was heard by the Planning and Zoning Agency at their regularly scheduled public hearing on Thursday, August 3, 2023, and was recommended for approval, 5-1.”

PUD 2022-03 The Landings at Greenbriar PUD – The Landings at Greenbriar

“Request to rezone approximately 382 acres of land from Open Rural (OR) to Planned Unit Development (PUD) to allow for a maximum 588 single family residential dwelling units. This request was heard by the Planning and Zoning Agency at their regularly scheduled public hearing on Thursday, August 3, 2023, and was recommended for approval, 5-1.”

COMPAMD 2022-06 The Landings at St. Johns (Active Adult) Comprehensive Plan – The Landings at St. Johns

“Adoption hearing for a Large-Scale Comprehensive Plan Amendment to change the Future Land Use Map designation of approximately 581 acres of land, located south of Greenbriar Road and west of Longleaf Pine Parkway, from Rural/Silviculture (R/S) to Residential-B (Res-B) with a site specific text amendment stating that in locations where the subject property is contiguous to The Landings at Greenbriar site, no Development Edges will be required. This request was heard by the Planning and Zoning Agency at their regularly scheduled public hearing on Thursday, August 3, 2023, and was recommended for approval, 5-1.”

PUD 2022-20 The Landings at St. Johns (Active Adult) PUD – The Landings at St. Johns

“Request to rezone approximately 581 acres of land from Open Rural (OR) and Residential, Single Family (RS-2) to Planned Unit Development (PUD) to allow for a maximum 761 age-restricted single family homes. This request is a companion application to COMPAMD 2022-06 The Landings at St. Johns. This request was heard by the Planning and Zoning Agency at their regularly scheduled public hearing on Thursday, August 3, 2023, and was recommended for approval, 5 – 1.”

Public Comment on The Landings

Public Comment began with a presentation by Christine Mullis, representing residents of the 8 existing Greenbriar communities. Ms. Mullis stressed that their largest concern is the small size of. the lots in The Landings and that they are not compatible with the surrounding communities. Additional concerns are that the high density impacts the schools and roadways. She highlighted the overcrowding in the schools today and emphasized that this development will just add to the existing overcrowding.

Communities represented by Ms. Mullis and the lot sizes in each

Additionally, Ms. Mullis raised concerns about the character of the developer, pointing out that the developer asked people to write letters of support and show up at meetings to share their support. She stated that these psople are employers of Pulte or EMT.

Several residents spoke both in favor of and against the development. Those speaking against the development were largely concerned about the impact on schools. Commissioner Joseph had a list of people who had spoken in favor previously who may work for the developer. When these people spoke in favor of the development, she asked them if they worked for the developer. At one point there was a sharp exchange between Commissioner Joseph and Commissioner Whitehurst about the questioning. Commissioner Whitehurst offered that they could stipulate that Commissioner Joseph suspected anyone speaking in favor of the project works for the developer. Commissioner Joseph stated that she only asked if they were on the list of names that had been provided to her.

Commissioner’s Comments

Commissioner Dean stated that he had two elements he considered for developments, compatibility and infrastructure. He liked that the developer has set aside almost 50% of the land for open space and indicated that is why the lot sizes are smaller. For Infrastructure concerns, he felt that the proportionate share was appropriate. He went on to say that one developer should not be held accountable to make up for all the past deficiencies and they were paying their fair share. As for schools, he took the opportunity to explain the limitations created by PECO, Public Education Capital Outlay. PECO is what the legislature appropriates every year for public school construction. This was passed 50 years ago and will only allow for new school construction funds to be released if the new school will be at or above 50% capacity when it opens. He stated that if we think we can deny a project and solve the overcrowding in schools, it is a “fool’s errand.” His comments concluded with the data that we have a 10 year inventory of homes that have been entitled and could be built. With the PECO limitations, we will continue to have portables added because new schools will not be built until the zone is 50% over capacity.

After the long presentations and comments, The Landings at Greenbriar and The Landings at St. Johns were approved 4:1, with Commissioner Joseph the No vote.

The afternoon topics will be shared in a separate post.

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BOCC, St. Johns County

What’s On the September 5 St. Johns County Board of County Commissioner’s Meeting Agenda

Posted on August 30, 2023 by Beth Tate

September 5 finds us back to a long Board of County Commissioner’s Meeting. Pack a lunch! We will be there awhile!

Board of County Commissioner Meetings are the first and third Tuesdays of the Month, 9:00 AM, at the County Auditorium, 500 San Sebastian View.

Link to the full agenda is here: BOCC Agenda 9-5-23

There are 3 Proclamations being presented at the September 5 BOCC meeting.

Hispanic Heritage Month
Constitution Week
Library Card Sign-up Month

Consent Agenda Items of interest

There are 2 items on the Consent Agenda that are of great interest to those following The Landings development in Greenbriar.

Read the details here: Consent Agenda Item 3

Read the details here: Consent Agenda Item 4

Consent Agenda item 5 is an Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the Bartram Park DRI (Race Track Road). This impacts a much needed widening of the only 2 lane portion of Race Track Road in the northern part of the county.

This MOU would be between Bartram Park, LTD, Bartram Park Associates, LLC and St. Johns County and details the obligations of the Bartram Park developer for the widening of Race Track Road from 2 to 4 lanes between Bartram park Blvd to Bartram Springs Pkway as required by the Bartram Park DRI Developoment Order. This MOU provides for the construction and partial funding of the design in conjunction with the City of Jacksonville and the Florida Department of Transportation.

Details are here: Consent Agenda Item 5

Consent Agenda Item 6 is a Resolution approving the terms and authorizing the County Administrator, or designee, to execute a Purchase and Sale Agreement for acquisition of approximately 30 acres of land located off County Road 13 South for conservation and approving a transfer of LAMP reserves up to $735,000 for the purchase of the property. The purchase negotiations were previously approved by the Board and this the approval of the execution for the purchase of the property. There is no indication how the County will utilize the property in the future.

Details are here: Consent Agenda item 6

Consent Agenda Item 26 is an item that may bring criticism from the audience. The Cultural Events Division is requesting incremental future funding of $3,705,806 for renovation costs for the Ponte Vedra Concert Hall. Prices have been adjusted for construction inflation and other pricing increases. This will bring the total to $9,135,806 and would be part of the St. Johns County Capital Improvement Plan. This would be allocated for the Year 2025 budget cycle.

Details here: Consent Agenda Item 26

Regular Agenda Items

Moving into the Regular Agenda items, 1 – 4 will most likely be heard as one presentation. This is the Adoption Hearing for the Comprehensive Plan Amendment and PUD for The Landings at Greenbriar and The Landings at St. Johns (Active Adult.) These were previously approved for transmittal and now comes the Adoption Hearing. As this will be the last opportunity for public comment on these projects, I anticipate a large audience for this item. Concerns raised by residents have included school capacity (mitigation in the Consent Agenda items above,) increased traffic on over-crowded roads, and incompatibility with surrounding developments.

Regular readers may recall the builder is committing to road improvements in front of the schools as part of the application. The School Board has endorsed these improvements.

Details can be found at the links below.

CPA (SS) 2022-01 The Landings at Greenbriar Comprehensive Plan – The Landings at Greenbriar

PUD 2022-03 The Landings at Greenbriar PUD – The Landings at Greenbriar

COMPAMD 2022-06 The Landings at St. Johns (Active Adult) Comprehensive Plan – The Landings at St. Johns

PUD 2022-20 The Landings at St. Johns (Active Adult) PUD – The Landings at St. Johns

Agenda Items 5 and 6 also impact the Longleaf Pine Parkway/County Road 210 area. The Comprehensive Plan Amendment and PUD for the Mensforth Family Community Commercial are to change the zoning for approximately 4.25 acres of land from Rural/Silviculture to Community Commercial. The PUD will include about 25,000 sq. ft. of commercial activities.

Agenda Item 9 will be of interest to those who follow our Bald Eagle population.

Special Magistrate Recommendation in Day Late Enterprises, Inc. v. St. Johns County

Details here: Agenda Item 9

At 5:01, time certain, will be an item of interest to all Property Owners in St. Johns County, the Public Hearing on the Adoption of Tentative Millage Rates & Budget for FY 2024.

With the receipt of TRIM notices last week, there has been much discussion and many questions about the increase in Property Tax bills across the county.

This will be the first public hearing with the final public hearing recommendation date being September 19. This is the first opportunity for the public to comment and ask questions prior to the adoption of the final budget for FY 2024.

Presentation and millage rates are at this link: Trim Notice Presentation

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