TO: Honorable Mayor & Members of the North Port Commission
FROM: Peter D. Lear, CPA, CGMA, City Manager
SUBJECT: Ordinance 2019-11, Amending the Unified Land Development Code to Allow for Urban Market Gardens in the Commercial General, Commercial General - Special, Neighborhood Commercial, and Industrial Zoning Districts and in the Panacea, Midway, Shire and Gardens Activity Centers
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Recommended Action
Ordinance 2019-11 as presented is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan and ULDC. However, there are some potentially complex interactions with Florida Statutes as it relates to the agricultural portion of the use. For that reason, staff recommends one or more of the following actions:
1. Remove urban market gardens in the draft ordinance as a permitted principal use in any zoning district. This would allow the use as a special exception based on the criteria set out in Sec. 53-240. A special exception would allow conditions to be placed on the use, including a reiteration of the regulations that the use must comply with. It also allows the City Commission to evaluate the potential fiscal impact on a case-by-case basis.
2. Allow urban market gardens (as a permitted principal use or as a special exception) through a pilot program. The guidelines set forth in the proposed Sec. 53-240 would serve as the program guidelines, and Commission could determine a starting zoning district to pilot the use and evaluate the success of the program on an annual basis.
Recommended action for second reading: Approve Ordinance 2019-11, Petition TXT-19-208
General Information
At the regularly scheduled May 8, 2018 Commission meeting a presentation was made by a local business owner regarding agriculture in the City. At this meeting, it was discussed that Commission had been interested in allowing community gardens, as well as commercial gardens. After staff research, the item was placed on the ...
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