Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Floodplain Substantial Improvement topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Oldsmar planning board backs change to floodplain ‘substantial improvement’ rule to exclude certain storm repairs
Summary
The Oldsmar Planning Board voted to recommend a City Council ordinance that would exclude wind- and flood-related repair costs (under 49% of pre-damage market value) from the five-year cumulative substantial-improvement calculation for properties in the special flood hazard area.
The Oldsmar Planning Board on Jan. 8 recommended that the City Council amend the city’s land development code so certain storm-related repair costs would not count toward the five-year cumulative “substantial improvement” threshold used in floodplain administration.
Planning and Redevelopment Director Tatiana Childress told the board the amendment would “allow the property owners to restore wind or flood damaged structures to pre damaged condition without being penalized under the substantial improvement, provided that the property is not substantially damaged and the cost to repair is below the 49% of the market value of the structure.”
Nut graf: The change would exclude from the five-year cumulative calculation repairs meant to restore pre-damage condition after wind or flood events — as long as the structure is not substantially damaged and repair costs remain below 49% of the structure’s pre-damage market value. Staff says the amendment aims to balance timely disaster recovery with floodplain-management goals and applies only within the special flood hazard area.
Board discussion focused on scope and implementation. Members asked whether the amendment covers detached features such as pool cages (it does not if the pool cage is an independent structure), how “like kind and quality” should be interpreted when historic materials are no longer available, and how back-to-back storms are treated. Childress and city staff said repairs must meet the Florida Building Code for construction, but materials should be replaced with the closest available “like kind” when originals are obsolete. Staff said Pinellas County inspectors and a substantial-damage team perform post-storm assessments; permit records and appraisals will be used to calculate the pre-damage market value for the 49% test at the time of permit issuance.
Resident Dionne Shepherd, who identified her address as 400 Country Club Drive, said she is considering selling a gutted home and asked whether repairs made now would be counted against a future buyer. Childress answered that, if the ordinance is adopted and the repair permit is issued under the new rule, those repairs would be excluded from the five-year accumulation and the permit record would remain visible in the city’s files.
No written comments were received by staff. After the public hearing, a board member moved to recommend approval to City Council. The board approved the recommendation on a roll call vote; the board recorded the motion as passing 6–0.
The amendment text will be refined (staff noted a numbering typo in the agenda reference) before the Council hearing and staff submitted the staff report into the record for the planning board hearing. Childress said legal review verified the approach and staff will update the section references for the council packet.
Ending: With the planning board’s recommendation, the proposed code change will advance to the City Council for formal ordinance consideration; the board and staff said records of permits and appraisals will remain available for future audits and property-history checks.
