Board of Adjustment is up to
its old tricks
A
couple of weeks ago an advertisement placed in The Citizen
peaked our curiosity. The purpose of the ad, as we read it, is
to protest a decision that would allow transient-rental licenses
to be sold and transferred to existing single-family homes in
Key West's historic district. The city's planning board had OK'd
the transfers on the basis of an affirmative resolution by the
Key West Board of Adjustment.
Litigation already is under way seeking intervention and review
of the board's decision. An appeal to the Circuit Court has been
filed by Last Stand, a nonprofit activist organization, and is
scheduled to be heard June 15. Also, neighbors whose home is
next door to one of the proposed license transfers are appealing
directly to the City Commission.
As
our readers may recall, we have more than once referred to the
Board of Adjustment as the evil twin of the City Commission
because it is, in fact, the City Commission acting as judge and
jury in disputes involving city codes and ordinances. In this
case, the facts suggest the board chose to ignore city land-use
regulations to provide loopholes for a developer,
notwithstanding explicit restraints — as well as passionate
expressions of public opinion — aimed at preserving historic
neighborhoods. Accordingly, we hope the Circuit Court will toss
out this plainly wrong-headed decision.
This fuss began late last year. Parrot Bay Associates, the
redeveloper of what used to be the Hampton Inn on North
Roosevelt Boulevard that is now being transformed from a hotel
to pricey condos, sought the concurrence of the city's Planning
Department to sell 50 unneeded transient licenses. The city's
planning director, in a written response, flatly turned down
Parrot Bay's request, citing a prohibition against reducing
permanent housing and a comprehensive plan requirement that
limits transient rentals to no more than 25 percent of
single-family units — a cap that already has been exceeded.
Undeterred, Parrot Bay took its request to a sympathetic Board
of Adjustment and got exactly what it wanted. Bingo: Next door
neighbors protested. Last Stand goes to court.
Frankly, it doesn't take a mathematics whiz to figure out that
if 50 new transient rental licenses can be sold and transferred
to Old Town neighborhoods, the families who live there would be
potentially impacted by the comings and goings of nonresident
visitors, many of whom are inclined to enjoy partying into the
wee hours.
One
reason this page chooses to comment on this issue are findings
revealed by pollster Lou Harris in his survey of public opinion
in Key West.
--
89 percent of respondents said they want the City Commission to
give equal consideration to the concerns of residents and
businesses alike, and to strike a reasonable balance between the
two when conflicts arise.
--
62
percent of respondents think the city usually or always favors
business interests.
Why
in the world would respondents to the Harris survey ever get
these silly ideas in their heads?
Perhaps it's because citizens have to file lawsuits to remind
the City Commission (and its evil twin) to respect its own
rules.
—
The Citizen |
