by SC Publisher Shannen Hayes
The Sanibel Planning Commission unanimously approved an application for an elevated swimming pool at a home under construction at the end of Bayview Drive. The application came before the commissioners on Tuesday, Sept. 22, due to the applicant proposing the height of the pool be at 16.75 feet.
The development permit had been previously approved by city staff, but the applicant DeCorte Four Custom Home Builders revised the plans to elevate the swimming pool to 16.75 feet or the same height as the lowest habitable level of the home. That requires approval from the planning commission.
The Land Development Code section dealing with height states that any swimming pool “elevated higher than three feet, six inches above the ground cannot be higher than the lowest floor of the associated structure.” And city staff found the proposed plans are in compliance with that section.
City staff also found the proposed plans met the LDC requirements on interpretive design guidelines that ensure the appearance, size and mass of an elevated pool are in harmony with the neighborhood. City Planner Craig Chandler told the commissioners staff found this pool to be consistent with the properties in the neighborhood, which have elevated and non-elevated pools.
In addition, the city staff report showed the proposed landscaping plans around the pool met the LDC requirements on reducing visual impact, complimenting the architectural design of the structure and providing continuity with existing vegetation.
Commissioners approved the application with 15 conditions, most notably the height of the deck is not to exceed 16.75 feet NAVD or the North American Vertical Datum, used as the basis for relating ground and flood elevations; screen enclosure not to exceed a height of 32 feet NAVD; and the installation of a vegetation buffer.
In other agenda items:
Director of Community Services Keith Williams gave an update to commissioners on the newly adopted irrigation requirements and elimination of plastic bags for yard waste.
The city adopted the water conservation ordinance, which went into effect Sept. 18, to limit irrigation year-round. Homeowners with odd addresses are allowed to irrigate on Mondays and Thursdays, and even addresses can irrigate on Tuesdays and Fridays. Irrigation is not permitted from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Learn more at mysanibel.com
Plastic bags for yard waste will no longer be permitted as of Oct. 1. The city is donating 3,200 biodegradable horticulture waste bags to homeowners. The complimentary bags can be picked up at the front door of the Public Works Office, 750 Dunlop Rd., while supplies last.
Williams briefed commissioners on the significant rainfall in September, which included 12.11 inches on Sunday, Sept. 13, from Tropical Storm Sally. Williams noted that one week prior to Sally, on Sept. 5, the island received 3.78 inches of rain followed by rainfalls ranging from 1.27 inches to 0.5 inches the rest of that week.
“We had already received more rain in the first week and a half of September than all of August,” said Williams. “Our ground was already saturated. Our water table was already high. We had already been using the city’s weir system to release water from the interior wetlands and the Sanibel River.”
He added that the 12.11 inches of rain on Sept. 13, based on the South Florida Water Management rain curves, qualifies as a 100 year rain event for Sanibel. He also reported the city had been notified of enclosed lower levels of elevated homes, such as garages, storage and crawl spaces, receiving standing water.
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