Sarasota commissioners uphold denial of Nokomis scrap-yard business-use permit after months of complaints

The Sarasota County Commission unanimously upheld a staff decision on June 3 to deny a business-use permit for AllScrap, a metal-collection operation at 492 Riverview Drive South in Nokomis, concluding the activity functions as a waste-transfer/recycling operation that requires a special exception rather than a routine outdoor-storage permit.

The vote affirms the UDC (Unified Development Code) administrator’s March 10 determination after multiple code-enforcement inspections and special-magistrate hearings. Planning director Matthew Osterhout told commissioners staff found the facility receives and compacts scrap on site, transfers material into shipping containers and moves it off site — activities the county says comport with a waste-related service that should be processed through a special-exception review. The board also instructed the county attorney to seek injunctive relief to stop the operation while legal remedies proceed.

Residents who live near the site testified at length during a public hearing, describing repeated loud crushing noises, heavy truck traffic on residential streets, loose fasteners left in roadways and what they called persistent public-safety and environmental risks. Several residents described clouds of dust and noise that they said disrupted sleep and medical care. Andrew Palmer, chief operating officer of AllScrap, told the board the company bought the property after receiving a zoning interpretation letter in February 2024 that staff later characterized as permitting limited outdoor storage. The company’s lawyer, Scott Hertz, asked the board to approve the business-use permit on the grounds AllScrap had taken steps to come into compliance and that the company relied on the earlier zoning guidance when it purchased the parcel.

Osterhout and code-enforcement staff said the site’s actual operations differ from the narrow outdoor-storage use described in the earlier letter. The county documented large stockpiles, the use of heavy equipment, compaction and routine transfer of material off site. Those characteristics, staff said, align with a use that requires a special exception so the board can impose conditions—such as limits on hours, buffers, permitted materials and routing—that would address neighborhood compatibility.

Commissioner Mark Smith made the motion to adopt the resolution affirming the UDC administrator’s denial of the business-use permit; the motion was seconded and passed unanimously. After the vote commissioners directed county attorneys to pursue injunctive relief to stop further noncompliant activity while legal and permitting steps proceed.

The county will continue enforcement actions under standard procedures if the owner pursues a special-exception application or otherwise proposes a revised business model. Staff said the special-exception route allows the board to consider detailed conditions and a binding development concept plan in order to mitigate neighborhood impacts. Residents asked the board to pursue fines previously levied by the magistrate and to speed up any legal steps needed to halt operations, citing ongoing community harm.

The commission’s decision does not prohibit the property owner from applying for a special exception or changing operations; it confirms staff’s interpretation that the current scope of activity is not a simple outdoor-storage business use and requires the higher-level review that the UDC sets out for potentially impactful uses.

Residents and business representatives asked the county to provide status updates during the enforcement and any litigation process; commissioners said staff and the county attorney should return to the board with recommendations and updates as the injunction process and any permit applications unfold.