Hernando County special magistrate to rule on 9.1-acre timberland classification after contested hearing

A special magistrate for the Hernando County Value Adjustment Board heard competing testimony on Nov. 3 about whether a 9.1-acre parcel on Cortez Boulevard should receive agricultural (timberland) classification under Florida Statute 193.461.

Joseph Haines Davis, the special magistrate presiding over the hearing, opened the record for petition 25-020, key number 1354466, and swore both sides. The petitioner, A and A Realty LLC, was represented by attorney Sonny Siya; the Hernando County Property AppraiserOffice was represented by staff members including Nicholas Cisick.

The property appraiser told the magistrate that site reviews on Feb. 13 and April 28, 2025, found only limited evidence of timber management. "There was no timber stand improvement done," the appraiser said, describing mulching limited to a path along the property edge and herbicide applied only to an outer edge. The appraiser also said the mulching observed "is not considered what could be a fire break or a fire line" and expressed concern that mulching can spread invasive cogon grass rather than eradicate it.

Petitioner testimony and exhibits disputed that portrayal. "This 9.1-acre parcel has been actively managed as commercial timberland," attorney Sonny Siya said, describing a forestry management plan prepared by Jessica Clark of the Florida Forest Service and invoices for mulching and herbicide work the petitioner says were performed before the April 28 inspection. Siya told the magistrate the parcel was purchased in November 2023 for $250,000 with intent to continue timberland use and cited a prior value-board decision that reduced assessed value as evidence of nondevelopmental use.

The parties focused on statutory factors in FS 193.461 used to evaluate agricultural classification, including continuity of use, size, and whether "an indicated effort has been made to care sufficiently and adequately" for the land. The property appraiser said that, while Florida statute sets no strict minimum acreage, a 9.1-acre tract can make marketing timber difficult and that staff informally looks to larger tracts (roughly 20 acres) as more marketable.

Magistrate Davis asked whether improvements noted on the second site visit could overcome the Jan. 1 statutory timing rule; the appraiser said there is a "gray area" and that evidence of later-site work does not necessarily establish the bona fide agricultural purpose existed on Jan. 1. The petitioner acknowledged some work was limited to property edges and said the owner and contractor would take the appraiser's on-site advice to increase interior management efforts.

Davis closed the testimony, saying he would prepare a written recommended decision, submit it to the clerk and VAB legal counsel for legal sufficiency review, and transmit it to the parties. The clerk told the magistrate the review process typically takes two to four weeks; Davis said he would draft his recommendation within 14 days.

Because the magistrate's report is only a recommendation to the Value Adjustment Board and not a final adjudication, the petition's ultimate outcome remains pending.