Anyone planning to attend the Anna Maria special commission meeting Wednesday, Oct. 22, might want to head to city hall early to ensure a seat.
Builders and developers who have projects planned for Anna Maria, along with attorneys representing various property owners in the city, are expected to attend in numbers.
That’s because city attorney Jim Dye is to present a draft ordinance of a building permit moratorium enacted Sept. 22 by commissioners. The draft ordinance is the lone agenda item.
The moratorium blocked the building department from accepting or issuing any building applications or permits.
The moratorium addressed commission concerns that some new residential projects in the city had too many bedrooms for a single-family home, and may have a greater-than-expected impact on a residential neighborhood.
Commissioners enacted the moratorium, but did not include an end date. The draft from Dye is expected to have a time frame of 45-60 days, while commissioners take up action to determine if vacation rentals can be defined and regulated.
City regulations prevent commercial activities in residential zones but, said city planner Alan Garrett, if someone states the plans are for a residence, not a commercial enterprise, the city has no choice but to issue a permit.
Commissioners are seeking a declaratory judgment from a court regarding the residential zone. If a judge rules vacation rentals are a commercial activity — prohibited by ordinance — the city can enact codes to license and control such activities, according to Commission Chair Chuck Webb.
Concerns were growing that the city — if it gets a favorable ruling — will prohibit vacation rentals in the residential zone.
Commissioners are allowing property owners with building plans to sign a deed restriction stating the house will be a residence for themselves or family members and will not be used as a vacation rental.
Builders such as Greg Ross have called the moratorium a “knee-jerk reaction” by commissioners that takes away property rights.
The Oct. 22 meeting is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. at Anna Maria City Hall, 10005 Gulf Drive.
This is a property rights issue.I own a very small1 story house on AMI and I want to expand a little to be comfortable.Some commisioner with a 4 BR house is going to tell me I cant.BS.If you want to ban 6-8 BR house ban them but dont mess average folks that just want to upgrade.I am sick of the elitist people trying to have everything their way.It isnt a private beach or a private club.
Sir, you have no property rights. You only have the right to pay taxes or sell you property. The municipality you live in controls all.
Agreed! If you want restrictive covenants go to Lakewood Ranch. We live here with our small children, and yes, we added a pool. We have 3 – 5 bedroom rental houses across the street and a 4 bdrm next to us, we haven’t had problems – yes, they all have pools.
For almost all of my 57 years on Anna Maria, people came to the beach for the beach. Until five years ago, there were no pools in our residentially-zoned neighborhood. Then the realtors discovered to really turn your home into a mini-hotel, garnering nearly double the rent, you need to add a pool. Just prior to our leaving our retirement haven on the island, there were six pools within shouting distance, all of them full most of the time. Rather than live our remaining years in “distraction agony,” we surrendered. Not bitterly at all: It was inevitable our island within the island would go the way of the rest of Florida’s barrier islands, never again to be the same. Adieu Anna Maria, we knew you when.
Property values in Anna Maria are high and will only go higher if the moratorium remains (or is tweaked to allow remodeling, but not expansion). The desire to live/vacation here will only grow if Anna Maria maintains its character. Do not let attorneys and developers — who only care about making money for themselves, not property owners — try to twist this into a property rights issue.
Of course building a hotel in the middle of a residentially zoned district is illegal. Try dealing with a hotel pool next to your home. Especially when they don’t bother to register with the state DBPR, fail to pay tourist taxes and fail to be inspected. Do they get a license? Wonder who is doing this? Ever bother to run FLORIDA BIZ and corporation checks? Who is getting the grease?