The Punta Gorda Planning & Zoning Board voted unanimously to recommend recognition of vested rights for an applicant seeking to build row houses on parcels at 297 East Virginia Avenue and 407 Wood Street, moving the matter to the City Council for final action.

Rachel Berry, zoning official, introduced application VR012025 and outlined the three eligibility criteria for an initial vested-rights determination: a governmental action that burdened development, substantial good-faith investments by the owner, and lawful entitlements at the time of the regulatory change. Berry also corrected a staff-report description of abutting uses, saying the parcels sit across from Sunshine Learning Academy and abut Saint Mark’s Missionary Baptist Church.

Attorney Jerry Waxler, of counsel with the McCrory Law Firm, represented the property owner and told the board the owner met with city staff in 2024 and proceeded with surveying, engineering, architectural and site-planning work after staff encouraged a row-house form of development. Waxler said the buyer closed on the property for ‘‘over $112,000’’ and that, to date, the applicant has spent $294,510.81 on engineering, planning surveys, permits and related costs, which he characterized as substantial good-faith investments and reliance on the then-proposed comprehensive-plan policies and land development regulations.

Waxler and staff noted that the Development Review Committee had unanimously found that the applicant established a claim of vested rights. Staff recommended approval with five conditions, including a proposed five-year window for the applicant to obtain permits and commence construction.

Board members questioned the five-year vesting period during deliberations, noting local practices that often use shorter time frames. After discussion, a board member moved to approve the vested-rights determination with the staff conditions but to amend the fifth condition to reduce the permit/commence window from five years to three years. The motion was seconded and approved by voice vote with no recorded dissents.

The board’s recommendation will be forwarded to the Punta Gorda City Council; staff indicated the council’s first public hearing on the matter is tentatively scheduled for Jan. 14. The board also noted that the vested-rights application had already been considered by DRC and was unanimously recommended there.

Next steps: City Council will consider the board’s recommendation during its public hearings. If the council affirms vested rights, the applicant may proceed under the entitlements recognized at the time of the regulatory change.