by SC Reporter Emilie Alfino
At a second reading and public hearing – the 10th public meeting on the topic – an ordinance was finally passed clarifying how open bodies of water are defined and determined. The vote was 4-1, with Vice Mayor Holly Smith voting against. She said the ordinance makes it more ambiguous.
“This is a tough topic,” said Mayor Mike Miller. “Every time I look at it, a new question pops in my mind.”
The proposed amendments to the Sanibel Code will achieve the following benefits:
• Reduce ambiguity, improve clarity, and remove subjectivity in the determination and delineation of an open body of water, particularly in interior areas of the island.
• Provide staff, rather than the Planning Commission, with the option to request an environmental assessment report for properties that are exceptionally low or wet, to address potential open bodies of water sooner in the review process, to the benefit of the property owner.
• Create a “de minimis” (too minor to merit consideration) impact standard for small and isolated open bodies of water, or those unintentionally caused by demolition of a structure, to permit impacts and not require setbacks to these open bodies of water.
• Create an administrative waiver process, without a permit fee, to allow reduced setbacks to open bodies of water where criteria have been met.
• Enumerate accessory buildings and structures that are not subject to an open body of water setback, such as docks, boardwalks in conservation lands, or driveways crossing an open body of water to access a single-family home.