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Stuart commission declines to rescind zoning changes tied to SB 180; legal challenge and 14‑day notice remain
Summary
City attorneys told the commission they have 14 days to act after receipt of challenges to land‑use changes tied to Florida Senate Bill 180; the commission did not rescind its earlier zoning amendments and directed staff to implement the zoning-in-progress changes, leaving legal risk and possible lawsuits in place.
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 notices from residents or businesses objecting to ordinance 25‑39 — the ZIP amendments — and that the clock was therefore running on the 14‑day triggers. He recommended rescission to avoid immediate risk of litigation and attorneys’ fees; at the same time, he said that rescinding would not prevent the city or others from joining litigation challenging SB 180 at the state level and that the city could readopt the local rules if courts later struck down the state law.
The motion to approve Ordinance 25‑43 (which would rescind ordinance 25‑39) failed at second reading for lack of a second and then failed again when a subsequent motion did not receive sufficient support. Vice Mayor Collins and several commissioners urged caution about rescinding because they said rescission could leave the city without the local protections achieved through the ZIP process; Collins said the city should “submit our comp plan changes to the state and let the state deny them” rather than preemptively repeal local rules.
Commissioner Clark and others argued the ZIP process had included extensive public workshops and changes that respondents relied upon; Clark said rescinding would reopen questions about East Stewart and other neighborhood changes the commission had deliberated at length. Several residents urged the commission to resist the state’s restrictions; resident Robin Cartwright called SB 180 “an assault on home rule” and asked the commission to join the broader legal challenge.
Outcome: The commission did not rescind ordinance 25‑39. Following the failed rescission motions, staff reported that the existing ZIP amendments remain adopted and the commission directed staff to resume applying the ZIP changes to development reviews. Baggett warned that if the city does not rescind, a resident or business could sue and seek attorney fees and costs under the state statute; he said the city could defend and, if the state law is later overturned, readopt its local amendments.
What’s next: Baggett and staff said the city has little time to respond to the notice letters and that commissioners can still decide at the next meeting whether to join a multi‑jurisdiction lawsuit challenging SB 180. The commission asked staff to arrange additional legal briefings and to provide written options for the next meeting within the 14‑day window.
Context: Commissioners repeatedly emphasized the stakes — local control, future development patterns in East Stewart and other neighborhoods, and the risk that developers may use the state law to pursue projects under the less‑restrictive pre‑ZIP rules. City Manager Mike Mortel and commissioners noted that in the absence of local limits some developers may pursue “live local” administrative pathways that bypass city review.
Public comment: Multiple residents urged the commission to defend home rule and join a broader legal challenge; others asked for clear guidance about how pending or proposed development applications would be handled while litigation remains possible.
