North Port drops Live Local Act moratorium idea; approves 175 homes on office land

Earle Kimel, Sarasota Herald-Tribune
·2 min read
The North Port City Commission, at its Nov. 14 meeting, rescinded plans to draft an ordinance creating a moratorium on affordable housing approved under the Live Local Act.
The North Port City Commission, at its Nov. 14 meeting, rescinded plans to draft an ordinance creating a moratorium on affordable housing approved under the Live Local Act.

NORTH PORT – The North Port City Commission agreed at its Nov. 14 meeting to reconsider a decision to pursue a moratorium on accepting affordable housing applications made under the state's new Live Local Act.

Commissioner Phil Stokes wanted to rescind the direction the board gave city staff at its Oct. 24 meeting, saying the moratorium would adversely impact the city’s rewrite of its land development code, which ultimately would have a “sticks and carrots approach” to manage the number of applications for affordable housing under the act.

Stokes had been among a 3-2 majority at that Oct. 24 meeting who feared that the Live Local Act would promote development that would gobble up valuable acreage needed to grow the city’s non-residential tax base.

Commissioner Debbie McDowell noted that House Bill 1C, which bans such moratoriums while residents recover from the impact of hurricanes Ian and Nicole in 2022, made the issue moot anyway.

Vote allows apartments off Sumter Boulevard

On a 4-1 vote with McDowell dissenting, the commission approved a special exception to allow for the construction of 175 multi-family homes and 10,000 square feet of office space on 11.5 acres on the east side of Sumter Boulevard, between Pocatella Avenue and McKibben Drive.

In January, the board had denied a similar motion to allow the special exception for a 175-unit residential complex that did not contain any office space.

Board members did not want to see the land, which is zoned for office, professional and institutional development, become purely residential.

White tapped as mayor

Later in the meeting, District 2 Commissioner Alice White was elected mayor and District 5 Commissioner Stokes vice mayor.

The decision continues a collegial approach of rotating the mayor and vice mayor slots through the five seats.

District 2 Commissioner Alice Whice, center, was elected mayor by her fellow board members at the Nov. 14 meeting. She is flanked by new Vice Mayor Phil Stokes, former mayor Barbara Langon, City Commissioner Debbie McDowell and City Commissioner Pete Emrich.
District 2 Commissioner Alice Whice, center, was elected mayor by her fellow board members at the Nov. 14 meeting. She is flanked by new Vice Mayor Phil Stokes, former mayor Barbara Langon, City Commissioner Debbie McDowell and City Commissioner Pete Emrich.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: North Port commissioners agree to 175-home complex with office space