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Planning board approves fencing amendment allowing coated chain-link except on street-front frontage (6-1)
Summary
After extended debate about aesthetics, cost and property rights, the Dade City Planning Board voted 6-1 to recommend an amendment to Article 6 that permits coated chain-link fencing in certain non-street-facing or commercial contexts while prohibiting chain-link visible from the public right-of-way.
The Dade City Planning Board voted 6-1 to recommend an amendment to Article 6 of the Land Development Regulations that narrows the existing citywide prohibition on chain-link fencing, permitting coated/vinyl-coated chain-link in limited circumstances but continuing to prohibit chain-link that is visible from a street frontage.
Staff opened the discussion by noting the current ordinance outright prohibits chain-link and that the city receives frequent requests to repair or extend existing chain-link fences and to allow chain-link in commercial areas. "Currently, it prohibits chain link fence," staff said when introducing the amendment.
Board and members of the public debated competing concerns: several speakers said coated chain-link can be a lower-cost, serviceable option for commercial properties or interior side yards, while others said chain-link visible from the street harms neighborhood character and should remain prohibited on frontages and corner lots. One board member noted the financial burden of requiring an opaque wood fence around an entire commercial parcel adjacent to a roadway.
Staff reminded the board that variance requests carry a $300 application fee; members discussed whether variances or code changes were the better remedy. "That is a $300 per minute," staff said when describing the variance fee (transcript phrasing). The board considered language limiting chain-link near street frontages and preserving prohibitions for street-visible perimeter fences.
An initial motion to approve the fencing amendment resulted in a 3-3 tie and failed. After additional discussion and a revised motion that limited chain-link allowances to non-street-facing yards and commercial/industrial areas and clarified corner-lot/frontage rules, the board approved the revised amendment by roll call, 6-1.
The board directed staff to forward the recommended amendment to the city commission for its consideration and noted staff could refine packet language before commission review. The action is a recommendation to the commission; final adoption would be decided by the city commission.
What's next: The planning board's recommendation will be included in the packet to the city commission; staff said they would incorporate the board's clarified frontage language before the commission hearing.
