City revises subdivision rules to comply with state law, shifts plat approvals to administrative review

Flagler Beach commissioners adopted Ordinance 2025‑16 Sept. 9 to revise the city’s land development regulations and separate the platting (recording) step from the public subdivision review process. The change implements a recent state law that took effect July 1 making plat approvals administrative acts.

City Attorney Fernandez explained that state law treats plat recording as an administrative, check‑the‑box function and the ordinance pulls platting out of the public subdivision review so the municipal code conforms to the statutory change. The commission preserved public review for the broader subdivision approval step (site plan, design and conditions) while allowing the final plat recordation to be handled administratively once conditions are met.

Several residents asked whether public input would be reduced; Fernandez and planning staff said the subdivision review remains public and the final plat step is administrative only after the public‑facing subdivision approvals and technical conditions are resolved. PAR Board comments and a suggested checklist from resident RJ Santore were noted in the discussion; commissioners directed staff to prepare a formal checklist and public posting process to document conformance steps and retain transparency.

The ordinance passed on first reading with an amendment to incorporate the conformance checklist and public posting steps; second reading will occur at the next scheduled meeting.