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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03252010LPA Wkshp AgendaQIY OF HOME OF PELICAN ISLAND 1225 MAIN STREET is SEBASTIAN, FLORIDA 32958 TELEPHONE (772) 589 -5518 FAX (772) 388 -8248 AGENDA LOCAL PLANNING AGENCY (PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION) 7:00 P.M. THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010 WORKSHOP 1. CALL TO ORDER: 2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: 3. ROLL CALL: 4. EVALUATION 8s APPRAISAL REPORT (EAR) A. Overview of EAR Process B. Develop preliminary listing of Major Issues 5. PUBLIC INPUT: 6. ADJOURNMENT: IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT (ADA), ANYONE WHO NEEDS SPECIAL ACCOMMODATIONS FOR THE MEETING SHOULD CONTACT THE CITY'S ADA COORDINATOR AT (772)- 589 -5330 AT LEAST 48 HOURS PRIOR TO THE MEETING. TWO OR MORE ELECTED OFFICIALS MAY BE IN ATTENDANCE. HOME OF PELICAN ISLAND City of Sebastian Growth Management Department 1225 MAIN STREET SEBASTIAN, FLORIDA 32958 TELEPHONE (772) 589 -5518 FAX (772) 388 -8248 MEMORANDUM DATE: March 19, 2010 TO: Local Planning Agency/ Planning and Zoning Commission FROM: Rebecca Grohall, Directo SUBJECT: EAR Workshop (3/25/10) and EAR Scoping Meeting (4/1/10) Every seven years, the Department of Community Affairs (DCA) requires the City to evaluate the effectiveness of the City's Comprehensive Plan. This evaluation is known as the "EAR" the Evaluation and Appraisal Report. The first step in the process is to hold meetings and invite public input to determine local issues that will be utilized in evaluating the Comp Plan elements. Local issues in the EAR process are referred to as "Major Issues Major issues are to be tailored to our local community and relate to current and future growth of the City. For example a broad based concern like "transportation" is not an issue per se, but narrowing that to "congestion on Barber Street" or "creating more pedestrian amenities" could be potentially defined as a major issue. DCA recommends that communities select approximately four to six major issues for use in evaluating the comp plan, although DCA does not mandate a set number of issues and some communities only select two or three issues. The City is inviting residents, business owners and property owners to participate in the EAR process. The Local Planning Agency (Planning and Zoning Commission) will be holding an EAR workshop in the City Council Chambers on March 25, 2010, at 7:00 PM to gather input. The City's consultant is compiling a draft list of potential major issues from discussions with City Staff and elected officials. There will be a follow -up meeting on April 1, 2010, at 6:00 PM to conduct the Scoping meeting. At the Scoping meeting the list of major issues will be narrowed and it will also be determined to what extent each Comp Plan element is evaluated. For example, the City recently updated the Future Land Use Element, the Transportation Element, and the Housing Element. These elements will probably need Tess evaluation and more consideration may be given to the elements that were not updated a year ago. The City Council will then review the identified issues and make any final adjustments to the list. Its anticipated that the City Council will make this determination at its regular meeting of April 14, 2010. City Staff has invited other committees, as well as staff from neighboring jurisdictions. Please feel free to invite residents to attend these meetings. If anyone is unable to attend, they are welcome to submit written comments pertinent to the Comprehensive Plan. PART I THE PROCESS 1. OVERVIEW OF THE PROCESS The process for preparing an evaluation and appraisal of the local government com- prehensive plan is the same basic planning process used for many local government programs and projects. First, identify the expected result, in this case an assess- ment of the local government comprehensive plan. Next, collect the information necessary to conduct an evaluation, and analyze the data. Finally, prepare a report to document findings and recommendations. This guide is designed to assist smaller municipalities and counties in preparing the evaluation and appraisal report (EAR), so that staff or volunteers not specifically trained in planning may never- theless conduct the evaluation and prepare the report. However, when a volunteer, staff of the regional planning council, or a consultant prepares the EAR, a member of the elected body, the planning commission, or the staff should be responsible for overseeing the work. This will ensure that all steps are taken and that all re- quired information is included. a. Purpose of the EAR A local government comprehensive plan is a living document. While it is designed to provide certainty in the development of a city or county, in part through limitations on amendments and requirements for financial feasibility, it is also designed to re- spond to changes in a local jurisdiction. Response to changes comes in part through amendments to the plan, through revisions to methods of implementation, and in large part through a periodic evaluation of the plan. We all know that Florida is changing and growing rapidly. Local communities are changing as well. Growth management is all about how local communities plan for that change. Because periodic evaluation of growth and change is part of good planning, state law includes a requirement for the preparation of an evaluation and appraisal report every seven years'. The EAR is the first step in updating a plan, and is intended to accomplish several important purposes: 1 163.3191(1), F.S. I -1 EAR Guide March 2004 Identify major issues for the community Review past actions of the local government in implementing the plan since the last EAR Assess the degree to which plan objectives have been achieved Assess both successes and shortcomings of the plan Identify ways that the plan should be changed Respond to changing conditions and trends affecting the local commu- nity Respond to the need for new data Respond to changes in state requirements regarding growth manage- ment and development Respond to changes in regional plans Ensure effective intergovernmental coordination b. Who should be involved The people who should be concerned with and involved in the preparation of the EAR are the people who are responsible for maintaining and implementing the plan, and the citizens of the jurisdiction. The first group includes elected officials, ap- pointed officials, and staff of the local government. The second group includes those people who live or own property in the local jurisdiction. Generally, the fol- lowing groups should be invited to participate, either through assisting in the preparation of the EAR, or in reviewing and commenting on the EAR. Your local ju- risdiction may not have all of these groups. Elected body (City, Town, or Village Council, City Commission, or County Commission Planning Commission or Planning Board and /or Local Planning Agency Development Review Board or Committee Local government staff, such as the manager or administrator, clerk, and those responsible for planning, zoning, engineering, utilities, public safety, affordable housing, and finance School Board Chamber of Commerce Homeowners' Associations Builders' Association Civic groups Representatives of adjacent local governments I -2 EAR Guide March 2004 c. How much information is needed At a minimum, the local government will need up -to -date information on the popula- tion of the jurisdiction. The rest of the information (data) will be determined by the subject matter (list of issues) to be included in the EAR. For each issue, it will be necessary to collect enough information to explain the issue, discuss the ef- fects on the jurisdiction, and support any recommendations. Often, there are re- ports or studies from state and regional agencies that meet this need. For cities, the county may have such reports or studies prepared for the entire county. In such cases, the only thing needed in the EAR itself is an identification of the re- port or study, and a summary of how it applies to the local community's issue. When making reference to existing reports and studies, it is not necessary to copy information into the EAR, unless it is easier to refer to the information this way. It is sufficient to make reference to the reports and studies that contain the in- formation and to write a summary statement within the EAR itself. For example, Crystal River needed to update conservation information in its EAR. Citrus County had prepared a thorough inventory and analysis of conservation issues on a county- wide basis. Crystal River adopted the county's inventory and analysis report (by reference) as city data and analysis, and wrote a brief explanation in the EAR on how the county data applied to Crystal River. d. What are sources of information State and county agencies, universities, regional planning councils, water manage- ment districts, and others prepare studies and reports that may be helpful in pre- paring the EAR. A list of potential sources of information is provided in Part V. e. How long the EAR should be There is no specific size requirement for an evaluation and appraisal report. If there are no local issues to address, and the issues identified and required in the Florida Statutes do not apply to the local jurisdiction, a complete evaluation may be only a few pages. Refer to the checklist contained in Part II for EAR contents. At a minimum, the report should have the following components: a table of contents, a brief description of the process used to ensure public participation, updated population estimates, I -3 EAR Guide March 2004 changes in land area, a list of changes needed in the plan due to changes in state law, the re- gional plan, or the administrative rule, and a statement committing the local government to updating the comprehen- sive plan to address the changes in state law and rule. Even where there are issues that the local government wishes to address or that apply to the local community, the document still may be fairly short. The contents of the EAR could include only an identification of the issue, an explanation of the information (data and analysis) used to evaluate the issue, and recommendations on changes to the plan to address the findings on the issue. As an example, Sumter County identified flooding as an important countywide issue, and relied on data and analysis from the water management district to explain the issue. The discussion in the EAR on the flooding issue is three pages, enough to describe the problem, the current status, and recommendations. Even where there are many issues included in the local government EAR, the report itself should be concise and make reference to other supporting documents. A lo- cal government should not feel that an EAR must be bulky in order to be adequate for local purposes or to be found sufficient by the Department of Community Af- fairs (DCA). 2. LIMITING THE EAR TO LOCAL SUBJECT MATTER (LOCAL ISSUES) Prior to 1998, the requirements for the EAR were uniform. That meant that every local government, regardless of size or circumstance, had similar reports in terms of the type of contents. The effect of the legislation adopted in 1998 is to allow the local government to evaluate only those issues that pertain to and affect the local jurisdiction This means that not every portion of your comprehensive plan needs to be thoroughly evaluated in the EAR, but only those major issues that af- fect your community's ability to achieve its goals. However, each element as a whole must be briefly evaluated as to its successes or shortcomings in addition to any evaluation related to the local issues. 2 163.3191(1)(c), F.S. I -4 EAR Guide March 2004 a. What is an issue Throughout this guide the terms "subject matter" and "issue" are used inter- changeably. With only a few exceptions, the local government chooses the subject matter of the evaluation report. In the legislation, this subject matter is called an issue. An issue is usually a very narrow matter of concern to the existing and fu- ture growth and development of the local community. For example, "transportation" is not an issue. The term "transportation" includes all the roads, sidewalks, bike routes, and the like in the jurisdiction. However, within the broad area of "transportation a local community may have a particular concern for the impacts of a road project, or congestion on a road segment, side- walks in bad repair, or some other specific concern. This specific concern is the issue. Another example is the environment. "Environment" or "environmentally sensitive lands" is not the issue. For a local community, the specific concern may be one par- ticular source of pollution, or one particular kind area that should be preserved, or shoreline development, to name a few examples. It is more likely that even "shore- line development" is not the specific issue, but that the issue is something more specific and of direct concern in the local community. Examples might include lack of public access, or development that could be damaged by coastal flooding. The local government should take great care at this step in the process to identify as clearly and specifically as possible the subject matter that is important locally. (Two examples of local issues are shown in Part IV, Section 4). This will make the EAR a useful document and not an exercise in compliance with a checklist of mini- mum criteria. The EAR becomes customized for the local community. b. Who identifies the issues As explained in the checklist of steps in the process (see Part II), the local gov- ernment determines the subject matter of its EAR in two ways. It is important to note that it is the local government that identifies the issues, not a state or re- gional agency. However, the state and regional agencies have input as do adjacent local governments, and the public. It is not intended that the local government overlook any real issues, nor is it intended that other agencies force the local gov- ernment to consider issues that do not affect or pertain to the jurisdiction. I -5 EAR Guide March 2004 One step in deciding the subject matter for the EAR is to hold a meeting with ad- jacent local governments and representatives of state and regional agencies. When cities are holding this meeting, the county should be invited. The Florida Statutes refers to this as a "scoping" meeting This means that the purpose of the meeting is to establish the scope or extent of the EAR through determining what subject matter, or issues, will be included. This is also the time to determine the extent of the effort required to adequately address the issues and meet the minimum re- quirements of the statutes. The schedule for adopting an EAR provides that a county's deadline is 18 months prior to the municipalities within the county. There- fore, it is especially helpful if the scoping meeting held by the county includes all municipalities so that there is plenty of communication on issues of common inter- est and on shared needs for data and analysis. As shown in the checklist for preparing an EAR (Part II), first the local govern- ment develops a list of issues. Next, a meeting with the agencies is held to agree on those issues, or modify the list of issues. The local government then prepares a final list of issues to be included in the EAR. c. Letter of Understanding with DCA The list of major issues should be summarized and sent to DCA with a request for a letter expressing DCA's agreement with the topics selected. Receiving this Let- ter of Understanding from the Department will help avoid any misunderstandings when the Department reviews the adopted EAR for sufficiency. 3. GATHERING INFORMATION FROM STATE AGENCIES AND OTHER SOURCES Another purpose of the meeting with agencies is to determine what data the agen- cies can provide to the local government to explain and analyze each issue. At the meeting, agency representatives should be able to identify reports, studies, or other documents that can provide information to the local government. It is im- portant to make a list of these documents and who will provide them. This way the person overseeing the preparation of the EAR can follow up to make sure the in- formation is received. 3 163.3191(3), F.S. I -6 EAR Guide March 2004 Agencies may have a bibliography of documents. This bibliography, or reference list, can be useful to the local government in identifying reports, studies, and other documents that contain data useful for the evaluation of the plan. More informa- tion on sources of data is contained in Part V. 4. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION IN THE EAR PROCESS It is important that the general public have plenty of opportunity to be involved in evaluating the local plan since adoption or since the most recent EAR. Throughout this discussion of the process, there is mention of workshops, public hearings, and procedures for adopting the EAR. When the comprehensive plan was originally adopted, each local government should have adopted procedures for public partici- pation. These same procedures should be used in the preparation and adoption of the EAR including at least the participation described in this guide. In particular, see Part II, Section I. 5. ADOPTING THE EAR The Local Planning Agency (LPA) is often the planning commission or the elected body and is responsible for preparing the EAR and recommending it for adoption by the elected body As the responsible group, the LPA may delegate the actual re- search and preparation of the EAR. The report may be prepared by someone on the staff of the local government. It may be prepared by a volunteer, such as a member of the LPA. In some regions of the state, the regional planning council is active in providing this service to- local governments. A local government may de- cide to hire a consultant to prepare the report. Whoever is chosen, it is the re- sponsibility of the LPA to ensure that an EAR is prepared and to recommend the EAR to the elected body for adoption. There are several important steps leading to adoption and subsequent review by DCA of the EAR for sufficiency (see Section 10 for an explanation of "suffi- ciency"): 163.3191(6), F.S. 5 163.3191(4), F.S. I -7 EAR Guide March 2004 The LPA holds at least one public hearing on the proposed, or draft EAR, before making a recommendation to the elected body The elected body may submit a proposed EAR to DCA and other reviewing agencies for comments 90 days before the scheduled due date. If this is done, DCA will send comments on the proposed report within 30 days after the report is received. This is not a required step, but it is very useful to have early comments from DCA. Therefore, it is recommended that the proposed EAR be submitted. The elected body holds a public hearing for adoption of the EAR by reso- lution or ordinance At this public hearing, the elected body will con- sider the proposed EAR, as revised, based on comments at the LPA hear- ing as well as comments received from DCA. (See Part II for a checklist on procedures for adoption.) The EAR may be adopted no earlier than 90 days prior to the scheduled adoption due date After adoption, the EAR is sent to DCA where it is reviewed to deter- mine whether it is sufficient. 6. SUBMITTAL REQUIREMENTS If the draft, or proposed, EAR is sent to DCA for review (90 days before the due date), one copy is sent to DCA, and one copy is sent to each state and regional agency that will review the EAR, as well as adjacent local governments, and any citizens that have requested a copy (Refer to Section 10 below for a list of re- view agencies.) After adoption, the following are the requirements for submitting the EAR": Three copies of the EAR to DCA 6 163.3191(4), F.S. 163.3191(5), F.S. 6 163.3191(6), F.S. 9 163.3191(9), F.S. 10 163.3191(5), F.S. 11 163.3191(6), F.S., and 9J -11, F.A.C. I -8 EAR Guide March 2004 A transmittal letter to DCA (a sample is provided in Part IV) A copy of the adoption resolution or ordinance to DCA (a sample is pro- vided in Part IV) One copy of the EAR to each reviewing agency One copy of the EAR to each adjacent local government After DCA and the agencies have received the adopted EAR, DCA will provide pre- liminary comments within 60 days. This provides an opportunity for the local gov- ernment to clarify information in the report. Within 90 days after the EAR is received, DCA will make a final determination whether the report is sufficient (see Section 10). A determination of sufficiency is based on whether the EAR provides the information, as applicable, in 163.3191(2), F.S. 7. FLOW CHART FOR THE WORK PROGRAM The flow chart on the next page shows the steps in the process and the relation- ships among the steps. The flow chart should be used in conjunction with the time- line on the following page. The numbered boxes in the flow chart also correspond to the numbered steps in the checklist in Section 1 of Part II. I -9 EAR Guide March 2004 COLLECT DATA ANALYZE DATA 7. PUBLIC HEARING ON PROPOSED EAR ELECTED OFFICIALS PLANNING BOARD GENERAL PUBLIC 6. PREPARE 1ST DRAFT OF EAR 8. REVISE EAR STATE AND REGIONAL AGENCIES AND ADJACENT LOCAL GOV'TS EAR Guide 3. PREPARE LIST OF ISSUES 4. AGENCIES 1 MEETING 1. IDENTIFY WHO WILL PREPARE EAR 2 WORKSHOP ON SUBJECT MATTER (identify and clarify issues) ELECTED OFFICIALS PLANNING BOARD GENERAL PUBLIC 5. FINAL LIST OF ISSUES FOR EAR zy 9. TRANSMIT PROPOSED EAR TO DCA 13.A. BEGIN PLAN AMENDMENTS 11. PUBLIC HEARING TO ADOPT EAR 12. TRANSMIT ADOPTED EAR ELECTED OFFICIALS PLANNING BOARD GENERAL PUBLIC PUBLIC HEARING SUFFICIENT 10. REVISE EAR NOT SUFFICIENT 13.B.AMEND EAR I -10 March 2004