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Council denies 85‑foot height exception for Airport Avenue property; applicant sought 79 feet
Summary
The Venice City Council voted to deny a text‑amendment request that would have allowed a height exception up to 85 feet (applicant reduced request to 79 feet) on a single large privately owned parcel east of Avenida Del Circo. Councilors said the change would undercut recent voter-driven limits and benefit one private owner.
The Venice City Council rejected a proposed change to the Land Development Code that would have allowed a height exception up to 85 feet, later revised by the applicant to 79 feet, on one privately owned parcel in the Airport Avenue mixed‑use zoning district.
The ordinance, introduced as Ordinance 2025‑08 and considered on first reading, would have added an 85‑foot (later 79‑foot) exception to existing Airport Avenue development standards limited to a hatched set of parcels east of Avenida Del Circo. Nicole Trumbly, senior planner, said the code change would be processed as a text amendment; any individual project would still require a subsequent planning review and a binding plan.
The applicant's attorney, Jeffrey Boone, told council the request was limited to a single large undeveloped parcel and that any height exception would require a binding site plan and additional approvals. "This request applies to only one piece of property," Boone said, adding the proposed taller caps would be a small portion of the overall building footprint.
Public opposition was large and sustained. More than a dozen residents said the island’s 35‑foot height limit was adopted by voters and should be preserved; speakers raised concerns about compatibility, traffic, development precedent, and neighborhood character. "Precedent would be set," said resident Dennis Johnson, adding that increased height and density would harm the area's character. Several speakers noted traffic and parking pressures near Harbor Drive and Venetian amenities.
Council members cited hundreds of constituent emails and a recent petition drive in which residents backed the 35‑foot limit. Councilmember Smith moved to deny the text amendment on first reading; the motion ultimately passed by unanimous vote. Council members said the change would primarily benefit a single owner and risk creating a precedent in a district where voters had recently affirmed local height controls.
Outcome: Ordinance 2025‑08 (text amendment petition 24‑32a.M) was denied on first reading; no additional approvals for taller building height in the Airport Avenue district were authorized.
