Stuart commission declines to rescind zoning changes tied to SB 180; legal challenge and 14‑day notice remain

City of Stuart officials spent more than two hours on Aug. 11 debating whether to rescind recent land‑development amendments after Florida’s Senate Bill 180 became law. The commission ultimately declined to rescind the amendments at second reading and staff were directed to resume implementing the zoning‑in‑progress (ZIP) changes while the legal picture plays out.

City Attorney Lee Baggett told the commission that Section 28 of Senate Bill 180, effective July 1, 2025, prohibits a municipality from adopting land‑development changes that are “more restrictive or burdensome” than prior rules and that the statute was written to be retroactive to the period before the city’s moratorium. Baggett said the statute includes a 14‑day notice and cure provision: once a resident or business provides notice of intent to sue over a city’s land‑use changes, the city has 14 days to indicate it will repeal the ordinance and another 14 days thereafter to act.

Baggett reported the city had received two…