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Planning board grants front-setback and frontage variances for 709 Tenth Court
Summary
The Planning Board approved a variance request for property at 709 Tenth Court, authorizing departures from the downtown neighborhood standards (maximum 10-foot front setback, 80% minimum frontage occupancy and 25-foot minimum parking setback) after the applicant said rear parking was not feasible on the 40-foot lot.
The Panama City Planning Board voted 5-0 on May 12 to approve variances for property at 709 Tenth Court (case numbers CPC-PLN-2025-0595 and CPC-PLN-2025-0596) that requested relief from downtown neighborhood standards for front setback, frontage occupancy and parking setback.
Staff identified the owner in the file as Jonathan Brooks and described the request as relief from the downtown district standards: a 10-foot maximum front setback, an 80% minimum frontage occupancy, and a 25-foot minimum parking setback (cited in staff materials as Table 104-306.108). Staff explained the new zoning district encourages buildings to be pulled closer to the street with parking at the rear; the applicant said rear parking was not feasible for this lot.
An individual who identified himself at the podium as Jonathan Simmons and gave an address in Lynn Haven testified that the lot is 40 feet wide and that meeting the 80% frontage-occupancy requirement would leave insufficient width for rear parking once side setbacks and utilities are considered. Simmons said neighboring development under older code requirements would impose a 20-foot side setback, leaving only limited buildable width. "You would have to try to build a house at 80% wide on a 20-foot lot," he said, describing practical constraints for meeting the new downtown frontage standards. He also said there is no alley access behind the lot within 25 feet.
Board members discussed the new neighborhood setback rules and whether the parcel could reasonably accommodate the required rear parking; staff reiterated the intent of the district and the physical constraints on the lot.
The board moved to approve the requested variances; the motion passed 5-0.
The variance approval allows the owner/applicant flexibility from the downtown setback and frontage rules for the property at 709 Tenth Court. The record contains an internal discrepancy in names: staff listed the owner as Jonathan Brooks while the person who testified identified himself as Jonathan Simmons; the article reflects both as they appear in the meeting record.
