Pay as you grow vs. Pay now
Keeping Florida growing and free from unnecessary and burdensome regulation has been the mantra of our state’s political leaders for years. Now the Florida Legislature has passed a bill awaiting the Governor’s signature that would prevent local governments from charging impact fees on developers until the impact actually occurs. Another bill is being teed-up that would eliminate mandatory affordable housing fees as well.
HB 207 championed by Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Naples) and Senator Joe Gruters (R-Sarasota), among other things exempts water and sewer connection fees from the Florida Impact Fee Act and overall reduces the upfront costs developers have faced in getting building permits.
Another bill still making its way through the legislature, would further ease the permitting process by imposing reasonable time limits on municipalities in reviewing permit applications. HB 7103 by Rep. Jason Fischer (R-Jacksonville) would also eliminate the mandatory affordable housing impact fee assessed on developers. The bill passed its final committee last week and is ready to go before the full House. A similar Senate measure is on its last committee stop.
The bill would restrict municipalities from adopting or imposing mandatory affordable housing requirements in any form, including in comprehensive plan amendments, land development regulation, or as conditions of a development order or permit.
Proponents point out that while eliminating the mandate, local governments could still negotiate affordable housing incentives with developers. These include incentives imposed now by local governments to create affordable housing below market rates in “inclusionary zoning” districts. Opponents insist that without current mandates, Florida would have less affordable housing than it has now.
These bills, if made into law, would remove disincentives that developers say exist in a growing number of Florida communities, especially Naples and Sarasota.
Sarasota itself has another reason to be popular among those developers, whom we hope will keep home prices low should the laws pass. The new U.S. News & World Report ranking shows Sarasota as the best place to live in Florida and 18th best in the United States.
The report ranked the 125 largest metropolitan areas on a ten-point scale with five main indexes: desirability, value, job market, quality of life and net migration. Sarasota earned an overall 7.0 score, coming in higher on quality of life (7.4) and value (5.7) scores. The report noted Sarasota “offers a sizeable job market for those working in health care, small business and tourism.” It recently ranked 3rd in the U.S. on the list of best places to retire.
Other Florida cities that made the list of best places to live are Melbourne (25th); Fort Myers (35th); Pensacola (37th); Jacksonville (42nd); Tampa (56th); Lakeland (59th); Orlando (63rd); Port St. Lucie (78th); Daytona Beach (99th); and Miami (113th).
LMA Newsletter of 4-15-19
