- December 27, 2024
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The Palm Coast City Council will rehear the Cascades development land use application after a neighboring property was included in the development's application due to a miscommunication.
At the council's second hearing about the development, on Nov. 7, the council limited the residential land use to a maximum of 416 units, down from the 850 originally requested by the applicant, Byrndog PCP.
But a legal description of the 44 acres of the neighboring property owned by JTL Grand Landings was included in the ordinance, limiting the development of that land, too, without the owner's permission, according to attorney Michael Chiumento.
"When the ordinance was approved by City Council, [the council] did not have the authority to change the comprehensive plan designation for JTL Grand Landings," Chiumento told the council.
The City Council voted 3-1 to rehear the original application for a maximum 850 units, with council member Theresa Carli Pontieri dissenting and council member Cathy Heighter absent. The rehearing resets the Nov. 7 decision that limited the development to 416 units.
Deputy Chief Development Officer Ray Tyner told the Observer the city has not had a rehearing on a development decision "in the last several years."
In an interview with the Observer following the council meeting, Chiumento said he is working with the developer to come up with a number lower than the originally proposed 850-unit maximum. The developer had initially planned to include multifamily housing at the development, but eliminated the multifamily portion of the proposal at the Nov. 7 meeting.
Tyner said a "lack of communication" caused the problem. Chiumento said the error was missed on both sides.
Pontieri disagreed, pointing out that the documentation was reviewed by both the developer and city staff as well as the City Planning Board once and the City Council twice. She also said the city staff report specifically references the JTL property when it says the 44 acres "will be subject to the site-specific policy limiting the development to 850 dwelling units."
“My issue with the rehearing is that this provides a slippery slope for people to come before this council ... and ask for a rehearing because things were not buttoned up in the application," Pontieri said.
Chiumento said he became aware of the problem immediately after the Nov. 7 meeting.
The 330.8 acres owned by Byrndog were annexed into Palm Coast in August. JTL owns a 44.8-acre "hook"-shaped piece of land in the center of the Cascades. That land was previously annexed into Palm Coast and already had its own residential land use designation from the city.
This provides a slippery slope for people to come before this council ... and ask for a rehearing because things were not buttoned up in the application."
—THERESA CARLI PONTIERI, council member
City documents from Sept. 19 and Nov. 7 City Council meetings and the Aug.16 Palm Coast Planning Board meeting all refer to the Cascades as being 375 acres, including the 44-acred hook piece.
Chiumento said the JTL property was not supposed to be included in the land use applications, and sent several emails stating that to city staff.
He said the confusion was the result of emails between city staff and the property developers about adjustments to the land use application and including the JTL property in the zoning application. Chiumento said the root of the problem is that the city did not have signed paperwork from the JTL land owner agreeing to the change in land use and limiting the development on his property.
Because of the 416-unit limitation and the Cascades developer's plans to develop almost 400 units, JTL is no longer able to develop the 98 homes it was previously approved for as part of the Grand Landings development, Chiumento said.
Chiumento said changing the land use without the owner's signed permission is a violation of the owner's property rights.
The rehearing will be scheduled at the "earliest possible" City Council meeting, according to Palm Coast Mayor David Alfin's motion to approve the rehearing request.
