A six-month moratorium on submitting preliminary plats for new subdivisions was rejected by the Lake County Planning and Zoning Board on March 1 in favor of recommending that the county staff finish updating the residential zoning regulations.
According to Sarah Lux, the county's public information officer, an ordinance imposing the moratorium will be brought to the Lake County Board of Commissioners on March 28. Board members recommended rejection in a 3-2 vote. In January, the Lake BOCC approved guidelines for new rural conservation zones. This month, staff passed an ordinance covering residential zoning and new home plans, which is anticipated to be heard by the board in February. The rule was, however, challenged by the county's PandZ board in January because it was too ambiguous in some places and unenforceable in others.
This was slated to return to PandZ in February but was delayed. According to the paper, staff now estimates that rewriting the ordinance will take six months. The county would have time to "perform a complete study of its residential zoning rules," which would include requirements for buffers, parks and open spaces, and architectural standards, according to the statement.
The moratorium was opposed by three members of the Planning & Zoning board. And other people from the construction sector spoke against it.
“To me, it sends the wrong message to anybody moving into this area,” said Board Chair Gary Santoro. “It says we are closing shop.”
He suggested outsourcing some of the work if the county staff is overburdened and unable to work on the new subdivision guidelines.
Bruce Peterman, a board member, sought to recommend against the moratorium, claiming that he has dealt with them before and has never been a fan.
Tina Lee of Ashton Woods, one of the developers urging the board to recommend against the moratorium, claimed that delaying the approval of new subdivision plans delays development and places a burden on developers.
“The cost of new homes to accommodate a lot of these design criteria adds $599 a month to the mortgage, or over $3,000 a month.”
The largest homebuilder in the country, D.R. Horton, employs Peter Chichetto as its land manager. He expressed sympathy for the county's objectives.
“I understand the need for some guidelines… but it is not a moratorium that gets you there. Just adding a front porch to a house is $10,000. It takes the affordability factor out for a lot of buyers.
Builders and board members agree that some of the staff's recommendations would turn Lake County into a cookie-cutter neighborhood by requiring rear-loading garages that take up space that could be used for pools, dictating architectural choices that should be left to the developer, and including extras that drive up the price of homes, like the front porches Chichetto mentioned.
As of March 1, the county will not accept preliminary plats for new subdivisions unless they are situated within a rural conservation subdivision or if they are a part of a planned unit development that has already established design principles, assuming the moratorium is approved by the county commission. Many of the county's major projects would be exempt from this rule.
“A preliminary plat is the first official submission of a Subdivision plan to the County, which consists of an application, a draft copy of any restrictive covenants, and the Subdivision design drawings,” a county spokesperson told GrowthSpotter. “The application moratorium is being considered to ensure new subdivisions are in line with updated design guidelines.”
The county office made it clear that in order to submit a preliminary plat, a builder or developer must also sign a separate development agreement with the county outlining the requirements for the new subdivision's design.
The Lake-Sumter Home Builders Association's executive director Lisa Rayborn stated that neither her board nor the discussions surrounding the new subdivision guidelines had taken a position on the moratorium.
The architectural criteria for new home development have recently been revised by many local governments, including Lake County. Homebuilders and developers have developed strong feelings about the subject, especially since the sector wasn't engaged before the modifications were proposed.
After the City Council's approval of a set of temporary design requirements for all new house building, representatives of the Greater Orlando Builders Association have started meeting with representatives in St. Cloud. Many Orlando-based builders and developers with ongoing projects in Lake County are also represented by GOBA.
“These guidelines for design standards are kind of a new hurdle that we need to overcome if we’re going to address affordability,” GOBA CEO Chassity Vega said. “A lot of what we’re seeing is adding $80,000 to the cost of a house.”
Moratoria often cause more harm than good and convey a negative message to business, according to GOBA government affairs liaison Lee Steinhaugher. He insisted, "What's the reason to cease development? There's no reason to impose an embargo until your standards are fixed.
Greg Clark with Loma Land Co. said the moratorium will create short-term pain for the development community.
“But if they get a good set of rules and standards that everyone can follow, it’s better for everyone in the long run,” he said.
Source: Growth Spotter
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