Planning and Zoning Board sustains appeal allowing 112,510‑square‑foot storage project at 2530 Tamiami Trail

The Punta Gorda City Planning and Zoning Board voted 5–1 on June 23 to sustain an appeal of an administrative determination and allow up to 112,510 square feet of indoor self‑storage at 2530 Tamiami Trail, conditioned on the developer obtaining possessory interest in the property.

The vote overturns a Development Review Committee (DRC) administrative interpretation that the Highway Commercial district caps many commercial developments at 30,000 square feet. Zoning official Rachel Berry told the board she had determined that the special‑exception approval covered the use but that a 30,000‑square‑foot cap in one LDR section applied to some commercial categories; the applicant appealed Berry’s interpretation.

The dispute centered on how the Land Development Regulations (LDRs) are read. Berry said her “determination was made based off of…