MEMORANDUM

TO: Fort Myers Beach Town Council

FROM: Bill Spikowski

DATE: May 11, 1998

SUBJECT: Comprehensive Plan Public Hearing (May 18, 1998, at 6:30 P.M.)

You have received a separate memorandum that explains final changes made by the Local Planning Agency at their April 21 public hearing on the comprehensive plan. Those changes should be considered as a supplement to the bound plan (whose pages are dated March 31.)

Since the LPA public hearing, a few additional issues have surfaced that merit your attention on May 18:

• Representatives for Fishtale Marina are concerned that its inclusion in the "Pedestrian Commercial" category on the Future Land Use Map might interfere with their continued marina operations. To resolve this concern, a new sentence should be added to Policy 4-B-6 as follows:

POLICY 4-B-6 "PEDESTRIAN COMMERCIAL": a primarily commercial district applied to the intense activity centers of Times Square (including Old San Carlos Drive and nearby portions of Estero Boulevard) and the area around the Villa Santini Plaza. For new development, the maximum density is 6 dwelling units per acre (except where a Future Land Use Map overlay indicates a density of 10 units to fulfill the adopted redevelopment plan). Commercial activities must contribute to the pedestrian-oriented public realm as described in this comprehensive plan and must meet the design concepts of this plan and the Land Development Code. All "Marina" uses in Policy 4-B-7 are also allowed on parcels that were zoned for marinas prior to adoption of this plan.

• Several parties have questioned the relationship between the height limit in Policy 4-C-4 and other parts of the plan (see, for example, the attached letter from Bill Van Duzer). The following double-underlined changes to this policy would clarify this relationship. (The other changes shown with single underlining and strike-throughs have been recommended by the LPA in response to other public comments.)

POLICY 4-C-4 BUILDING HEIGHTS: The Land Development Code shall limit the height of new buildings under most conditions to two stories above flood elevation (exceptions may include the buildback situations (see Policies 4-D-1 and 4-E-1), and different heights may be applied to officially designated redevelopment areas such as Times Square, Red Coconut/Gulf View, and Villa Santini Plaza). In those few cases where individual parcels of land are so surrounded by tall buildings on adjoining lots that are contiguous (or directly across a street) that this two-story height limit would be unreasonable grossly unfair, landowners may seek relief through the planned development rezoning process, which requires a public hearing and notification of adjacent property owners. The town will approve, modify, or deny such requests after evaluating the level of unfairness that would result from the specific circumstances and the degree the specific proposal conforms with all aspects of this comprehensive plan, including its land-use and design policies, pedestrian orientation, and natural resource criteria. Particular attention would be paid to any permanent view corridors to Gulf or Bay waters that could be provided in exchange for allowing a building to be taller than two stories. In each case, the town shall balance the public benefits of the height limit against other public benefits that would result.

• On-going discussions with owners of the Red Coconut may result in an improved solution to the "pre-approved redevelopment option" proposed in Policy 3-A-5. Additional language or drawings will be forwarded to you if they become available.
  
• The approval of the Publix rezoning may necessitate a change to the proposed Future Land Use Map. On the map as currently drawn, the entire Mid-Island Marina parcel is shown in the "Marina" category. By virtue of having rezoned the land prior to the new plan's effective date, the Publix store can be built regardless of the category shown (provided the rezoning doesn't expire before construction takes place). However, it would probably be better to change the Publix portion of the site to a category that more clearly reflects a grocery store, such as the new "Boulevard" category.

After receiving public input at the May 18 public hearing, the Town Council should decide on any additional changes to the comprehensive plan. If additional time is needed, that hearing can be continued to a date and time announced that evening. Your final action will be a vote to "transmit" to reviewing agencies the proposed comprehensive plan for the Town of Fort Myers Beach.

After the review period has ended, a final public hearing will be scheduled to formally adopt this comprehensive plan (with any additional changes) using a town ordinance. That final hearing is anticipated for late summer or early fall.

cc: Local Planning Agency