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HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolution 2004-34 Municipal Home Rule RESOLUTION NO. 2004-34 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF WINTER SPRINGS, FLORIDA, STATING THE CITY'S POSITION OPPOSING THE PROPOSED SEMINOLE COUNTY CHARTER AMENDMENT TO PREMPT MUNICIPAL HOME RULE AUTHORITY ON LANDS DE:SIGNATED RURAL BY THE COUNTY COMMISSION WHICH ARE LOCATED WITHIN A MUNICIPALITY; SUPPORTING AN ALTERNATIVE JOINT PLANNING APPROACH WITH SEMINOLE COUNTY AND SEMINOLE COUNTY MUNICIPALITIES TO STUDY AND IMPLEMENT NECESSARY REGULATIONS AND JOINT PLANNING AGREEMENTS TO PROTECT RURAL LANDS AND TO PROVIDE FOR THE ORDERLY GROWTH OF URBAN AREAS WITHIN SEMINOLE COUNTY AS CONCEPTUALLY DISCUSSED AT THE AUGUST 5, 2004 MEETING OF THE CITY MAYORS AND MANAGERS; PROVIDING UNDER CERTAIN CONDITIONS TO MAINTAIN THE STATUS QUO ON LAND USE CHANGES FOR REAL PROPERTY EAST OF DELEON STREET AND IMMEDIATELY EAST OF THE BOUNDARIES OF THE CITY OF WINTER SPRINGS AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE. WHEREAS, the County Charter is the governing law of the County, and any amendments should be carefully considered, and not prepared or considered in a rush without proper public participation; and WHEREAS, when the County Charter was originally approved by the citizens of Seminole County, it was with an understanding that the County Charter would not supersede Winter Spring's 'home rule' authority; and WHEREAS, without the prior input of the cities, the Seminole County Commission will consider at a public hearing on August 10, 2004, a proposed amendment to their Charter which provides that the County Comprehensive Plan will control the density and intensity of all areas east of an urban/rural boundary previously established by the County, which are designated "rural," even where an area has been annexed into a city; and WHEREAS, in the Intergovernmental Planning Coordination Agreement of 1997 entered into between the County and the cities, the County pledged to provide timely notification of land use actions which may impact any of the parties to that agreement and promised to provide adequate review time for analysis and evaluation of land use matters, and the County chose to give no notice or justification prior to its consideration of the proposed Charter change; and City of Winter Springs Resolution No. 2004-34 Page 1 of5 WHEREAS, intergovernmental coordination is an integral part of Chapter 163, and the County's Comprehensive Plan, and the County is clearly not fostering intergovernmental coordination by pursuing a hasty adoption of this ordinance without city participation; and WHEREAS, no written notice whats~ever was given to the City of Winter Springs or any other city of the proposed charter amendment until the City became aware of the charter amendment through a news article and editorial in the Orlando Sentinel on July 14,2004; and WHEREAS, given the lack of notice to the cities, the County Commission will be unable to consider all the public policy ramifications of its actions, as none of the cities in the County has had sufficient opportunity to review all of the potential legal and public policy issues related to this Charter amendment, and the legal issues involved are constitutional issues of great complexity, such as infringement on the cities' home rule authority and property owners' rights; and WHEREAS, this Charter amendment provides that all existing and future city ordinances in conflict are superseded to the extent of the conflict; and WHEREAS, the County's lack of intergovernmental coordination is certain to create misunderstandings between the County and the cites when and if this amendment is implemented; and WHEREAS, only the east side of the County is currently considered "rural" pursuant to the map attached to the Charter amendment, but the proposed Charter amendment would allow the County Commission to change the urban/rural boundary by ordinance so that additional areas in the County could be designated "rural" and therefore made subject to the County Comprehensive Plan, extensive and far reaching governmental action related to land use decisions deserve comprehensive review and public input; and WHEREAS, the Charter amendment ignores many rural areas of the County such as the Wekiva River basin area in designating all areas in the west part of the County as "urban;" and WHEREAS, this discrepancy is just one example of the multitude of issues that could be created by adoption of this ordinance and enactment of a Charter amendment; and - WHEREAS, it appears that no consideration of the potential implication or litigation related to possible claims by property owners impacted by this ordinance and possible Charter change has taken place; and WHEREAS, the Mayor and City Managers of Seminole County ("Mayors/Managers") met on August 5, 2004 to discuss the County's proposed City of Winter Springs Resolution No. 2004-34 Page 2 of5 amendment, at which County Commissioner Daryl McLain and County Manager Kevin Grace and his staff were in attendance; and WHEREAS, the Mayors/Managers objected to the County proposal and offered to be one of the forums by which the County, cities, public and affected property owners could meet, provide meaningful input and determine mutually agreed to solutions to the protection and development of rural areas and the orderly growth of urban areas within Seminole County; and WHEREAS, the City Commission fully supports the offer made by the Mayors/Managers and desires a mutually agreed solution to the aforementioned issues in the spirit of intergovernmental cooperation and not a purported solution imposed unilaterally by the County Commission; and WHEREAS, the City Commission finds that a mutual solution determined by the County and cities through a deliberative and meaningful process in which the public and affected property owners have an ample opportunity to have their views and concerns heard and addressed is the only solution to the complex growth and development issues raised by the proposed Charter amendment. NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY OF WINTER SPRINGS, FLORIDA, AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Objecting to Charter Amendment. (a) The City Commission of the City of Winter Springs hereby objects to lack of notice of this proposed Charter amendment and respectfully requests that the County Commission defeat the Charter amendment ordinance or postpone consideration of the Charter amendment ordinance beyond the November 2004 general election so that the cities shall have all had adequate opportunity to consider its legal validity and its ramifications. (b) The City Commission of the City of Winter Springs also respectfully requests that the County Commission direct the County staff to immediately commence a joint planning exercise with the County municipalities as set forth in Section 2 herein. SECTION 2. Joint Planning Approach and Solution. (a) As an alternative to the proposed County Charter Amendment, the City Commission of the City of Winter Springs hereby desires and prefers to commence a joint planning exercise, on a county-wide basis, which will allow the County, cities, public and affected property owners an ample and adequate opportunity to thoroughly study and review the issues related to the protection and development of rural City of Winter Springs Resolution No. 2004-34 Page 3 of5 areas and the orderly growth of urban areas located within Seminole County. The City Commission also desires to implement solutions to the aforementioned issues which are well planned and mutually beneficial to all affected parties. (b) The joint planning e~ercise should be designed to study and implement necessary regulations and joint planning agreements which will address the protection and development of rural lands and the orderly growth of urban areas located within Seminole County, as conceptually discussed at the August 5, 2004 meeting of the city mayors and managers. SECTION 3. Status quo on land use changes east of Winter Springs. (a) If the County Commission agrees to defeat or postpone the charter amendment beyond the November 2004 general election and agrees to immediately commence and participate in a joint planning approach as discussed at the Mayors/Managers meeting, the City Commission hereby directs the City Manager and City Attorney to take such steps that are necessary for the City Commission to formally declare, for a reasonable period of time, the "status quo" on land use changes affecting real property east of Deleon Street. Said real property also located immediately to the east of the existing boundaries of the City of Winter Springs. (b) The City Commission desires that the City of Oviedo participate in the "status quo" since their northern boundary is adjacent to the affected area as well. As such, the City Manager and City Attorney shall work with Seminole County and the City of Oviedo to effectuate the same by written agreement and if necessary by ordinance of the respective government entities. SECTION 4. Effective Date This Resolution shall become effective immediately upon its passage and adoption. PASSED and ADOPTED this 9th day of August,2004. ATTEST: Andrea Lorenzo-Luaces, City Clerk John F. Bush, Mayor City of Winter Springs Resolution No. 2004-34 Page 4 of5 Approved as to form and legal sufficiency for th t of Winter Springs only. Anthony A. Garganese, City Attorney City of Winter Springs Resolution No. 2004-34 Page 5 of5