Board approves text change to allow 50‑foot infill lots, narrower setbacks and wider driveways with conditions

The Planning Board recommended on July 15 that the City Commission approve a text amendment to the SF‑7 and SF‑14 zoning districts to enable infill redevelopment on older platted lots east of Broadway between 40th Street and 45th Street. The recommendation included limits and conditions after the board raised concerns about side setbacks, driveway widths, mechanical equipment and stormwater. Applicant representatives said the amendment is tailored to a neighborhood that was originally platted in 1916 as 25‑foot lots and now contains many nonconforming houses. Ken Tummo of Urban Design Studio said the change would allow typical 50‑foot‑wide homes to redevelop by lowering minimum lot widths and areas (the applicant requested a minimum width of 49 feet to allow small lot‑line adjustments), reducing front and side setbacks and modifying front‑yard landscape requirements to accommodate modern single‑family models. Tummo said a concurrent subdivision/plat application would combine original 25‑foot lots into 50‑foot lots where redevelopment occurs. The proposal, as presented, would: reduce the minimum lot width from 60 feet to 49–50 feet for qualifying parcels; set an 18‑foot front setback for the principal building with a 20‑foot garage setback; reduce side setbacks to 5 feet on each side for 50‑foot lots (current code for typical 60‑foot lots requires a 10/5 split and a total of 15 feet); reduce the rear setback to 10 feet from 15; reduce corner setbacks along Spruce Street to 5 feet from 12.5 feet; and allow a larger aggregate driveway curb cut (applicant asked for up to about 26 feet, arranged as a double‑bay plus a single‑bay with a narrow landscaped strip between drives). The applicant also proposed lowering the front‑yard required pervious landscaping from current thresholds (75% or a 60% option with pavers) to 45% with permeable pavers for a specific three‑car model the builder may use. GL Homes vice president Kevin Rattery addressed concerns about tight side yards and equipment servicing, saying the 5‑foot side setbacks meet Florida Building Code depending on construction type. He said the builder typically requires buyers to flip identical adjacent units so mechanical equipment (air‑conditioning condensers) are not placed back‑to‑back, and that landscape screening would be planted around the ground‑mounted condensers. Rattery also said GL intends to use compact Daikin condensers and design sales and layouts to avoid service conflicts. City planning staff recommended approval but flagged follow‑up items: staff requested the applicant provide a pre‑ and post‑build stormwater study to confirm that reduced front‑yard permeability and bigger building footprints do not reduce stormwater storage capacity. Staff also removed an earlier sentence about dedicating the 20‑foot visibility triangle in favor of the city but retained a requirement that driveways not be located within the required triangle. After extended discussion about the practical effects of 5‑foot side setbacks, driveway scale and neighborhood character, the board amended the motion to add a condition prohibiting mechanical equipment within the corner side setback. The main motion then passed 5–2. The board later approved, unanimously, an additional recommendation asking City Commission to require a pre‑ versus post‑build stormwater study as part of project review. The applicant said the change would facilitate a planned redevelopment block and a model row the builder hopes to permit in time for next season; the board’s actions were framed as a code change that would apply to the defined area east of Broadway rather than to a single builder. The planning board’s recommendation, the plat application and any specific site plans will be considered by the City Commission and by the city’s technical review process in later hearings.