by SC Reporter Emilie Alfino
The Land Development Code Review Subcommittee of the Sanibel Planning Commission met on August 13 to review a number of sections of the Code, including determination of impermeable coverage, filing procedures, angle of light measurements, and the definition of an open body of water.
Impermeable Coverage
In December 2023, the Planning Commission approved a priority list for Land Development Code review in 2024, including determination of impermeable coverage for elevated beach dune walkovers. Also provided on the matrix is determination of impermeable coverage as it relates to permeable pavers and required conditions that were never administered or enforced due to an “administrative stay” placed by then-City Manager Judie Zimomra. In all residential and commercial districts, coverage by impermeable surfaces is strictly regulated by a maximum percentage of lot area.
Planning Commissioners requested City staff to provide more thorough background as to the conditions that were subject to an administrative stay “to give us a good idea whether we should keep or remove them,” said Commissioner Lyman Welch.
A motion to approve language that beach dune walkovers of a specified height will not be considered impermeable, thereby facilitating use of elevated beach dune walkovers for the protection of the dunes was carried 6-0, with Commissioner Paul Nichols absent.
Filing Procedures
Following a Joint Workshop with Planning Commission and City Council on June 11, 2024, some filing procedures were elevated to a first- level priority for discussion of what constitutes a complete development permit application.
City staff made recommendations that would “clean-up” some extraneous or outdated references and requirements – some of which result from the City of Sanibel’s permit process changes from in-person filing of paper hard copy applications to submittal of digital applications online via Energov starting in 2020. At the joint workshop, there was some discussion specific to traffic-statement and parking-study requirements associated with conditional use permits.
As a result, the staff recommended eliminating outdated references and requirements from past in-person submittal and permit processing of development permits and consolidating and simplifying several areas of filing procedure consistent with updated forms.
This was passed 6-0, with Commissioner Paul Nichols absent.
Angle of Light
At the Planning Commission meeting of October 24, 2023, commissioners requested that City Council direct them to further investigate two issues related to building height. One was to review architectural standards for resort housing, specifically, standards prohibiting a flat roof unless the building
incorporates rooftop recreational open space. That issue was reviewed at the Planning Commission meeting of July 9, 2024.
The second was related to angle-of-light requirements and whether it should be measured only at side yard setbacks (not front or rear). The request was moved forward to City Council for confirmation by a vote of 4-3.
The angle of light requirement seems to have been enacted as a reaction to single-family homes being constructed to maximize building square footage, up to minimum setbacks and maximum height restrictions, creating box-like structures. The title for the ordinance included a reference to “maximum size of principal structures; pertaining to compatibility of structures.”
The discussion included quotes such as:
• “problem is a bulky house too close to setbacks”
• “trying to reduce mass, size, and bulk”
• “the trend toward larger homes on smaller lots must be stopped”
• “big houses are built by speculators, whereas smaller homes by people who want to live and work here”
• “Council has a general problem it will never solve, by which he meant the ground- level homes and the fact that anything replaced would have to be elevated … the danger of the elevated houses overwhelming their neighbors could be addressed … with the angle of light”
• “if a large house is required, a piece of property large enough to accommodate it will have to be found”
Single-family homes, duplexes, multifamily that are not resort housing, and institutional uses are subject to a secondary limitation on height referred to as the “angle of light.” The measurement was changed from 20 feet above predevelopment grade to either 20 feet above predevelopment grade or 30 feet NAVD, whichever is more restrictive.
A motion to reaffirm passed 6-0, with Commissioner Paul Nichols absent.
Open Body of Water
In 2022, City Council directed the Planning Commission and City staff to review and provide recommendations for the definition of an open body of water. The intent of the review is to ensure definitions are clear and the references to these definitions in the Land Development Code are also understandable.
The definition of open body of water was included in the original 1985 adopted Sanibel Code. The original definition is, basically, open body of water means any natural or artificial area that is inundated with water at least three months of an average calendar year.
Defining “open body of water” is an important aspect of land development on Sanibel because the presence and size of an open body of water within a parcel may affect the development intensity (i.e., number of allowed dwelling units) and site design (i.e., setbacks and developed area).
For a detailed discussion, click here to visit the city’s website.
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