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Council accepts several AHEC housing incentives, pledges data and staff drafts amid split vote
Summary
After a lengthy public hearing, Council acknowledged Affordable Housing Advisory Committee recommendations on AHEC review policy, public‑land disposition, inclusionary incentives, local incentives and ADU exploration and directed staff to return with implementation options and data; two council members opposed parts of the package.
The City of Palm Coast accepted a set of recommendations from the joint Affordable Housing Advisory Committee (AHEC) after a multi‑hour public hearing that drew broad participation from residents, committee members and council.
AHEC presented seven incentives recommended under state law (Florida Statute 420.9076 and the William E. Sadowski Affordable Housing Act) that include: institutionalizing ongoing AHEC review of policies that affect housing costs; establishing a public‑land review and disposition policy to identify parcels suitable for affordable housing; recognizing and supporting community land trusts; evaluating voluntary inclusionary zoning with incentives; expanding local incentives such as density bonuses or parking reductions; developing an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) ordinance; and creating a local affordable housing trust fund to leverage public and private resources.
The committee’s vice chair, Sandra Schenck, described workforce pressures and provided examples of successful programs elsewhere. "Essential workers are priced out of local housing," she said, and urged the council to adopt procedures that preserve long‑term affordability and expand options such as ADUs and community land trusts.
Council members debated each recommendation at length. Concerns focused on density, infrastructure costs and whether subsidy mechanisms or trust funds would shift costs to current residents. Vice Mayor Pontieri and Council member Sullivan said they could not support some recommendations as broad policy and asked for highly targeted approaches and strong guardrails. Other council members supported acknowledgment of the recommendations and directed staff to return with data‑driven implementation proposals and draft code language where appropriate.
After debate, council voted to carry forward recommendations Nos. 1 (AHEC review policy), 2 (public‑land review), 4 (evaluate inclusionary zoning with incentives), 5 (expand local incentives) and 6 (explore ADUs), and to have staff prepare implementation options and findings for future council review. The motion passed 3–2 (Yes: Gambarro, Miller, Mayor Norris; No: Vice Mayor Pontieri, Sullivan).
The AHEC report and recommended incentives will be transmitted to Flagler County as required; staff said further drafts (an implementation schedule, project inventories and data analysis) would be returned to council for specific policy or code change actions.
