Sarasota City Board of Rules and Appeals adopts appeals procedures, sets 2026 meeting date

The Sarasota City Board of Rules and Appeals on Oct. 15 unanimously adopted rules of procedure that set a formal process for appeals of decisions by the building official, including an amendment to cite the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure and a clarification that the board will schedule appeal hearings within 60 calendar days unless the parties agree otherwise.

The rules establish a court-like sequence for hearings: opening statements by the appellant and the building official, presentation of evidence and witnesses, rebuttal, closing arguments and then board deliberation and action. The adopted text also allows the board to postpone a decision to request more information and enables the board to reverse, affirm or modify the building official’s decision. The board added language directing appellants to the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure for certain post-decision time frames and specified that appeal scheduling deadlines in the board’s rules refer to calendar days.

City legal counsel told the board the ordinance requires the board to adopt rules of procedure and that adopting them in advance would allow staff to give appellants a clear roadmap if an appeal is filed. Counsel described the procedures as broadly modeled on court practice and said the rules may be modified by majority vote of the board in the interest of due process.

Board members discussed whether to embed specific time limits in the rules or to reference state appellate rules; one member said referencing state rules avoids repeated updates when statewide rules change, while another argued the board should include explicit local deadlines to avoid confusion for lay appellants. The board reached consensus on a compromise: include a reference to the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure and explicitly state the board’s 60-day calendar-day hearing target in its rules. Members also discussed the board’s twice-per-year meeting schedule and the ability to call special meetings to meet due-process timeframes.

In related administrative action, the board approved two housekeeping items: minutes from the April 30, 2025, meeting as amended (removing an incorrect note about a missing quorum and adding a member who had been present), and the board excused absences for Michael Walker, Cordell Van Nordstrom and William Craig. The board also agreed to hold its next meeting at 3 p.m. on April 15, 2026, and noted that the chair and a board representative will present a status item to the City Commission on Nov. 17, 2025.

Votes at a glance • Motion to excuse the absences of Michael Walker and Cordell Van Nordstrom — passed unanimously (motion moved and seconded; recorded as passed by voice vote). Note: the transcript records the motion and a unanimous “aye” but does not record a roll-call tally. • Motion to excuse the absence of William Craig — passed unanimously (voice vote). • Motion to amend and approve minutes of the April 30, 2025, meeting (delete incorrect "no quorum" note; add missing member) — passed unanimously (voice vote). • Motion to adopt the Board of Rules and Appeals rules of procedure with two amendments (1) add reference to the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure for post-decision time frames and (2) specify that the board will aim to hear appeals within 60 calendar days unless the parties agree otherwise — passed unanimously (voice vote). • Motion to set the next regular meeting for April 15, 2026, at 3 p.m. — agreed. • Motion to adjourn — passed.

No appeals of building code decisions were on the agenda at this meeting; the rules will be provided to any future appellant and posted as required by the ordinance.

The chair indicated the board will present a status update to the Sarasota City Commission on Nov. 17, 2025, and will provide a more specific time closer to that date.