The city’s planning and development department is taking a closer look at how zoning overlays are created following a public meeting held by At Large Group 4 City Councilmember Matt Carlucci last month.
Held July 18 at City Hall, the meeting was spurred by legislation Carlucci introduced in May following the approval of the controversial Lofts at Southbank project. Carlucci’s legislation would require a two-thirds vote to approve planned unit development rezoning applications that would supersede zoning overlays.
Following a brief history on the origin and evolution of overlays within Jacksonville, the conversation veered into issues some meeting participants saw in a “flawed” zoning code. Rather than creating “stringent” regulations where zoning overlays are concerned, City Councilmember Rahman Johnson suggested the focus be placed on the zoning code itself.
“The overlay is simply an amendment to try to fix something that’s broken and we know the zoning code is broken,” Johnson said.
While she didn’t disagree with the challenges that come with a “one size fits all” zoning, Downtown Investment Authority (DIA) CEO Lori Boyer argued that overlays make sense in “diverse” areas like the north or west sides of Jacksonville that are just now seeing development for the first time, or historic and well-developed areas.
“If Council were careful about when they allowed an overlay and when they didn’t allow an overlay, it may be not just a Band-Aid, it may be a solution,” she said.
Councilmember Michael Boylan voiced his own concern over the emergence of “frivolous” overlays, particularly, he said, when there is no legal or municipal procedure in place to create one. He suggested a two-thirds vote also be required to approve an overlay if a two-thirds vote were required to supersede one.
At the meeting’s conclusion, the planning and development department was tasked with the directive of creating a procedure through which zoning overlays should be created before Carlucci’s legislation advances.
“I appreciate planning department’s support, the planning commission’s support and I appreciate the input that will make it a better product,” Carlucci said.
Following the meeting, city Planning and Development Director Brett James said this is an opportunity to create “overarching guidance” for overlays where none currently exists in the zoning code.
“As I researched the topic in preparation for today, there’s no section that says ‘Overlays: This is where they’re appropriate; this is how I use them; these are the criteria. Nothing like that,” he said. “There’s just the overlays that have been created. I think this is actually really good.”
