HomeMy WebLinkAbout2024-25 Ordinance Implementing the Live Local Act1 ! !, ! i i
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STANDARDS")TO IMPLEMENT THE PROVISIONSOF
THE LIVE LOCAL !N 166.04151 ET SEQ.,
FLORIDA STATUTES, INCLUDINGDEFINING
ESTABLISHING t DENSITY,
PROCESSFLOOR ARE A RATIO, AND HEIGHT, ESTABLISHING A
ADMINISTRATIVE APPR!
PROVIDING FOR DEED RE, STRICTIONS AND ANNUAL
CERTIFICATION, i i FOR 1 !
PARKING REQUIREMENTS, ! EQUAL
TREATMENT OF !'1•iLE HOUSING AND
MARKET RATE UNITS, PROVIDING!.
ENFORCEMENT,PROVIDING !CONFLICTS,
CODIFICATION, i, AN EFFECTIVE
DATE.
WHEREAS, on March 29, 2023, the Governor of the State of Florida signed Senate Bill
102, known as the "Live Local Act," codified as to municipalities at Section 166.04151 et seq.,
Florida Statutes, in an effort to increase the supply of affordable housing in the State of Florida;
and
WHEREAS, on May 16, 2024, the Governor of the State of Florida signed Senate Bill
328, which amended the Live Local Act to, among other things, preempt a local government's
floor area ratio for qualifying developments, requiring parking reductions when a qualifying
project is located in proximity to certain transportation facilities, and modifying height
entitlements when adjacent to certain single-family neighborhoods;
WHEREAS, the Live Local Act requires municipalities to allow multifamily rental and
mixed use residential development in any area zoned for "commercial, industrial, or mixed use" if
at least 40 percent of the residential units in a proposed multifamily development are rental units
that, for a period of at least 30 years, are "affordable" as defined in Section 420.0004, Florida
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Page 1 of 13
Statutes, and, in the case of a mixed use project, if at least 65 percent of the total square footage is
used for residential purposes, and the project otherwise "meets all other development regulations
and requirements" for multifamily rental development;
WHEREAS, the office of the Attorney General of the State of Florida advised in a letter
dated July 20, 2023 that, as used in the Live Local Act, "the phrase 'area zoned for commercial,
industrial, or mixed use' refers only to land located in districts having those specific zoning
classifications, rather than encompassing land in any zoning district where some commercial,
industrial, or mixed use land uses may be permitted";
WHEREAS, the Ocoee Land Development Code governs development within the
corporate limits of the City of Ocoee pursuant to the requirements of Section 163.3202 and Section
166.041, Florida Statutes; and
WHEREAS, Section 163.3174(4)(c), Florida Statutes, requires the Land Planning Agency
of the City of Ocoee (the "LPA") to review proposed land development regulations and
amendments thereto for consistency with the adopted Comprehensive Plan, as may be amended;
and
WHEREAS, the LPA held a public hearing on February 13, 2024, to consider an
amendment of the Ocoee Land Development Code to implement and enforce the Live Local Act
and made certain findings that the proposed changes set forth in this Ordinance are consistent with
the Comprehensive Plan and recommended that the City Commission enact the proposed
ordinance; and
WHEREAS, the Ocoee City Commission has determined that it is necessary for the
general welfare of the City to amend the Ocoee Land Development Code consistent with the City's
broad Home Rule powers under Article VIII, Section 2(b) of the Florida Constitution and Florida
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Statutes § 166.021 in order to provide certification standards and implementation criteria for
proposed development under the Live Local Act; and
WHEREAS, the City Commission finds that this Ordinance serves a legitimate
government purpose and is in the best interests of public health, safety, and welfare of the citizens
of Ocoee;
WHEREAS, the City Commission finds that the land development regulations adopted
herein are consistent with the City's Comprehensive Plan, including Section VI.A of the Housing
Element, which states, "It is the City's goal to provide housing with supporting infrastructure for
the anticipated population, with particular emphasis on very low, low, and moderate -income
households in Ocoee."
NOW, THEREFORE BE IT ENACTED by the City Commission of the City of Ocoee
that:
SECTION 1: AMENDMENT TO SECTION 5-15, ARTICLE V, OCOEE LAND
DEVELOPMENT CODE
Section 5-15 of the Ocoee Land Development Code ("Specific Use/Development
Standards") shall be amended as shown below. Words that are stricken of are deletions; words
that are underlined are additions; Articles, Sections, Subsections and Provisions not referenced in
this ordinance are not modified:
D. Affordable Hogsjn>?
Definitions
(a) Affordable Housing refers to housing that is affordable, as defined in Section
420.0004(3), Florida Statutes.
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(b) Affordable Housing Proiect refers to an affordable housing project that qualifies
under the Live Local Act, Section 166.04151 et serf, Florida Statutes.
(q) Commercial, as used in Section 166.04151, Florida Statutes, shall mean only the
commercial zoning districts of the 61y, which consist only of properties zoned C-1, C-2, and
C-3, and no other zoning district.
(d) Eligible Zoning District includes the Commercial and Industrial zoning districts
identified in this Section.
(e) Height within One Mile, as used in Section 166.0415 1, Florida Statutes, shall mean
one (1) mile as a human being can travel along the public streets of the city within the normal
permitted lanes of travel from the center point of the proposed Affordable Housing Project to
the center point of another property. Height within One Mile shall not mean a straight-line
distance as a bird might travel.
(f)HighAllowed Highest Currently as used in Section 166.04151, Florida Statutes,
shall mean the highest number of units per acre established by the "High Density Residential"
future land use map designation within the adopted City of Ocoee Comprehensive Plan,
Highest Currently Allowed Density does not include densities greater than that permitted in
the High Density Residential land use designation to which a development may be entitled or
the density of any building that has received any bonus, special exception, agreement to
resolve a claim, variance, or as otherwise provided as an incentive for development or
recognized as a non -conforming or grandfathered use.
(g) Highest Currently Alloived Floor Area Ratio, as used in Section 166.04151_,
Florida Statutes, shall mean the highest building square footage, calculated based on floor
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area ratio, established by the "Commercial" or "Industrial" future land use map designations
within the adopted City of Ocoee Comprehensive Plan. Highest Currently Allowed Floor
Area Ratio does not include the floor area ratio greater than any_ established by the
Commercial and Industrial ftiture land use designations or the building square footage or floor
area ratio of any building that has received any bonus, special exception, agreement to resolve
a claim, variance, or as otherwise provided as an incentive for development or recognized as
a non -conforming or grandfathered use.
(h)Highest Currentl)) Allowed Hei,,hl as used in Section 166.0415 1, Florida Statutes,
shall only mean the higher of either three (3) stories or an approved and currently allowed
commercial or residential building's Height Within One Mile of the proposed Affordable
Housing Project, as defined in this Section and as determined by reference to the maximum
height allowed by Table 5-2 in Article V of the Ocoee Land Development Code for a
commercial or residential development. Highest Currently Allowed Height shall not include
any height awarded to any development project as a bonus, special exception, agreement to
resolve a claim, variance, or allowed as a non -conforming or grandfathered use, or include
any projections not used for human occupancy under Section 5-5 of the Ocoee Land
Development Code. However, if the proposed development is adjacent to, on two or more
sides, a parcel zoned for single-family residential use that is within a single-family residential
development with at least 25 contiguous single-family homes, the Cijy mqy restrict the height
of the proposed development to 150 percent of the tallest building on any property adjacent
to the proposed development, the highest currently allowed height for the propey provided
in the municipality's land development regulations, or 3 stories, whichever is higher. For the
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purposes of this paragraph, the term "adjacent to" means those properties sharing more than
one point of a property line, but does not include properties separated by a public road.
(i) -InAstrial as used in Section 166.0415 1, Florida Statutes, shall mean only the I- I
and 1-2 industrial zoninja districts of the eity and no other zoning district.
(j) Live Local Act refers specifically to 2023 Senate Bill 102, signed by the Governor
of Florida on March 29, 2023, effective July 1, 2023, as modified by 2024 Senate Bill 328,
signed by the Governor of Florida on May 16, 2024, and codified as to municipalities at
Section 166.04151 et seq., Florida Statutes.
(k) Major Transportation Hub shall mean any transit station whether bus, train, o
light rail, which is served by public transit with a mix of other transportation options.
IVATII Im
(a) Zoning. Affordable housing projects under Live Local Act shall be
permitted only in the Commercial and Industrial zoning districts of the City.
(b) Parking. Affordable Housing Projects must meet all parking requirements
under the Ocoee Land Development Code, except that:
1. The City shall reduce required -parking by at least 20% if any of the
following conditions apply.
i. The proposed project is located within one-half (1/2) mile of
a Major Transportation Hub and is accessible to the Major
Transportation Hub by safe, pedestrian -friendly means, such as
sidewalks, crosswalks, elevated pedestrian or bike paths, or other
multimodal design features. A major transportation hub shall mean
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any transit station, whether bus, train, or light rail, which is served
by public transit with a mix of other transportation options.
ii. The proposed project has available parking within 600 feet
of the proposed development which may consist of options such as
on -street parking, parking lots, or parking garages available for use
by residents of the proposed development.
2. The City shall consider a reduction in required parking for
proposed development located within one -quarter (1/4) mile of a transit stop
accessible from the development, to the extent supported by appropriate
documentation.
(c) Allowed Density and Floor Area Ratio.
1. An Affordable Housing Project is entitled to the Highest Currently
Allowed Density and Floor Area Ratio in the City, as defined in this Section.
2. An Affordable Housing Project may be awarded a density bonus if
it meets the same architectural enhancement requirements for a density
bonus as a project that does not qualify as an Affordable Housing Project.
(d) Allowed Height. An Affordable Housing Project is entitled to the Highest
Currently Allowed Height, as defined in this Section. Building height shall
be measured from the average grade of the crown of a street or streets
abutting the property, measured from the centerline to the roof peak. Within
special flood hazard areas, building height shall be measured from the
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required Design Flood Elevation, as prescribed in Article VII, Part 11,
Floodplain Management, of the Land Development Code, to the roof peak.
(3) Compliance with Land Development Regulations. The proposed Affordable
Housing Project must comply with all land development regulations applicable to the zoning
district in which the project is proposed, except only to the extent the Live Local Act expressly
preempts local ordinances with respect to land use, zoning, height, density, floor area ratio, and
parking.
(4) Process for Administrative Approval
(a) Submission. An application for administrative approval of a qualifying
Affordable Housing Project located within an Eligible Zoning District, shall include:
1. Application Fee. Payment of an application fee according to the fee
schedule in effect at the time of the application,
2. Purchase and Sale Agreement, If the applicant is not the owner of record,
then the applicant shall submit a copy of a fully executed contract or agreement to
purchase the real property for the Affordable Housing Project, which shows the dates
of effectiveness and due diligence periods, though the purchase price and any
financing terms may be redacted;
3. Application Form. Any application form required by the city;
4. Project Narrative. The application shall contain a narrative which
demonstrates the Affordable Housing Project's compliance with Section
166.04151(7)(a) - (g), Florida Statutes.
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5. Site Development Plan. The application shall include a site development
plan complying with Section 4-3 of the Ocoee Land Development Code and shall
include a site data table identif ying:
(a) the number of total units;
(b) the number of Affordable Housing units,
(c) the number of dwelling units per acre;
(d) the height of all proposed buildings;
(e) a description of how the tallest building or buildings meet the Highest
Allowed Height;
(t) for any multifamily rental development, calculations demonstratingthatat
least fo!ly (40) percent of the residential units are affordable units as defined
by Section 420.0004, Florida Statutes, for a period of at least thirty (30)
years; and
(g) for any mixed -use project, calculations demonstrating that at least 65
percent of the total square footage is used for residential purposes.
6. Building Elevations and Materials. The application shall include
architectural renderings (labeled with compass orientation) and building materials for
all building elevations for each proposed building;
7. Afflidavit of Commitment. The application for an Affordable Housing
Project shall include an executed Affidavit of Commitment to City of Ocoee's
Affordable Housing standards, which shall attest to: (a) a 30-year commitment to
provide Affordable Housing as defined by Section 420.0004, Florida Statutes; b�qn
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acknowledgement of the City's right to monitor and audit records for a minimum of
30 years of operation; (c) an acknowledgement of the responsibility of the owner and
operator of the Affordable Housing Project to submit an annual Certification of
Compliance, attested to by a certified public accountant, that the tenants residing in
the designated Affordable Housing units meet the reported income eli �ibility
requirements for Affordable Housing and that the rent charged for at least 40% of the
units provide Affordable Housing under Section 420.0004, Florida Statutes; and (d)
further acknowledge the penalties for non-compliance as set forth in this Section.
8. Any other information reasonably required by the City that is consistent
with the intent and purpose of this Section and the Live Local Act.
(b)Sufficiency Review. Within ten (10) business days of receiving an application for
an Affordable Housing Project, the city shall complete a sufficiency review of the materials
submitted and respond to the applicant that the application is either complete or shall specify
what items are still required. The applicant shall then provide the items required to make the
application complete, which shall then begin another ten (10) business day sufficiency review
period, and so on until a complete application is received. An Application for Building
Permits shall be processed in accordance with Section 553.792, Florida Statutes. A contract
to purchase the real property for which the Affordable Housing Project is proposed must be
in full force and effect during the sufficiency review periods. If any contract expires within
such time periods, then the city shall not begin or complete the sufficiency review.
(e) Review Procedures. The application shall comply with the site plan review
procedures established in Section 4-3, Article IV, except that project applications shall not be
required to undergo public hearings before the Planning and Zoning Commission or the City
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Commission for approval of land use, zoning, density, floor area _ratio, _Q��
enumerated in the various subsections of Section 4-3 and in Section 166.04151(7)(a), Florida
Statutes.
(d) The City Manager shall maintain on the City's website a policy containing the
foregoing procedures for administrative approval.
(5) Recording of Deed Restrictions, Subordination of Liens, and Annual
Certification.
(a) Covenant ofDeed Restrictions. When the City approves an Affordable Housing
Project under this Section, the applicant must, prior to approval of a Preliminary Site
Plan, execute and record in the public records of Orange County a Covenant of Deed
Restrictions running with the land with terms acceptable to, and enforceable by the
City that:
1. Prohibits any Affordable Housing unit from being rented or sold at a
price exceeding the threshold for housing that is affordable for very low-income,
low-income, or moderate -income persons, or to a buyer who is not eligible due to
their reported income under Section 420.0004, Florida Statutes, or as subsequently
defined by Florida law,
2. Is binding on the applicant and all successors and assigns for at least 30
years from the date the City issues a Certificate of Occupancy, consistent with the
Live Local Act;
3. Acknowledges the city's enforcement remedies, including a daily code
enforcement fine for each unit that is in violation of the requirement to provide
Affordable Housing for at least 40 percent of all units forthirty years, and for failure
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to timely provide an annual Certification in which a certified public accountant
attests to compliance with the Live Local Act,
(b) Subordination of Liens. Any mortgage holders or holders of any other
encumbrance on the property proposed for the Affordable Housing Project must
execute and record a subordination of their lien interest to such deed restrictions
prior to, or simultaneously with the recording of the deed restrictions required by
this subsection.
(c) Annual Certification OLCompliance. By no later than March 30th of each
full year after a certificate of occupancy is issued, for a total of thirty years from the date
of the certificate of occupancy, the owner or operator of the Affordable Housing Project
shall submit to the City Clerk a Certification in which a certified public accountant attests
that the Affordable Housing Project meets the requirements of Section 166.04151, Florida
Statutes, insofar as•
i. At least 40 percent of the residential units are rented as Affordable
Housing as defined in s. 420.0004, Florida Statutes; and
H. The tenants living within the designated Affordable Housing units
are eligible to do so based on their reported household income, as defined in Section
420.0004, Florida Statutes.
(6) Equivalent Treatment of all Dwelling Units.
As a condition of approval of any Final Site Plan and prior to the issuance of any site o
building permits for construction of the proposed Affordable Housing Project, such project must
demonstrate and commit that:
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(a) All affordable dwelling units and market rate dwelling units shall be located within
the same structures, ; and
(b) The exterior of the Affordable Housing units shall be indistinguishable from market
rate dwelling units; and
(c) All common areas and amenities shall be accessible and available to all residents,
regardless of whether they reside in Affordable Housing or market rate dwelling units; and
(d) Access to the required Affordable Housing units shall be provided through the same
principal entrance(s) and driveways utilized by all other dwelling units in the project; and
(e) The sizes and number of bedrooms in the affordable dwelling units shall be
proportional to the square footage and number of bedrooms in the market rate dwelling units (e.g.,
if 25 percent of the market rate dwelling units consist of two bedroom units, then 25 percent of the
affordable dwelling units shall also have two bedrooms units).
(7) Enforcement.
(a) Violations of this Section and the commitment to provide Affordable Housing
shall be subject to a fine of no less than $250.00 per day for each unit in violation, either
because an ineligible person resides in the unit or the unit is rented at a level in excess of the
threshold for Affordable Housing, and for each day the Annual Certification of Compliance
is not received by the city by March 301h of every Year, as required by this Section. Any
violation must be cured within 30 days, which the City Commission finds is a reasonable
time. In addition to fines that may be assessed if the violation is not cured within 30 days,
the City shall treat the development as a nonconforming use.
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(b) The owner and operator shall be liable for and shall reimburse the City to
all costs and reasonable attorney's fees that the City incurs in the enforcement of these
provisions.
(c) The Special Magistrate of the City of Ocoee, and in the Special Magistrate's
absence the Code Enforcement Board, shall be authorized to enforce the provisions of this
Section. Any fines assessed shall become a lien on the real property in violation and on any
personal property of the violator if not paid to the City within 60 days of the Order imposing
fines.
(8) Repeal of the Live Local Act. Should the Live Local Act, or any specific portion
thereof, be repealed, the sections of this Ordinance that specifically reference the Live Local Act,
or the specific repealed portion thereof, shall be immediately nullified, except that the annual
Certification of Compliance, the Covenant of Deed Restrictions, and the Cily's right to enforce
such deed restrictions, shall continue for thirty (30) years after issuance of a Certificate of
Occupancy.
SECTION 2: SEVERABILITY AND CORRECTION OF ERRORS. The provisions of this
Ordinance are declared to be severable and if any section, paragraph, sentence or word of this
Ordinance or the application as to any person or circumstance is held invalid, that invalidity shall
not affect other sections or words or applications of this Ordinance. If any part of this Ordinance
is found to be preempted or otherwise superseded, the remainder of this Ordinance shall
nevertheless be given full force and effect to the extent permitted by the severance of such
preempted or superseded part. The City Clerk is given liberal authority to ensure proper
codification of this Ordinance, including the right to correct scrivener's errors.
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SECTION 3: CONFLICTS. In the event of a conflict between this Ordinance and any other
Ordinance of the City of Ocoee, this Ordinance shall control to the extent of any such conflict.
SECTION 4: EFFECTIVE DATE. This Ordinance shall take effect immediately upon its passage
and in accordance with Florida law.
PASSED AND ADOPTED this —A&day of 2024.
Melanie Sibbitt, City Clerk,
(SEAL)
"21 U1 I
01 W W K13 IN I 11.1-M.11111
day of
By:
Richard S., e r1111
City Attoey
Rusty�John ayor
LPA HEARING: A)1$ 2024
ADVERTISED 2024
READ FIRST TIME
2024.
JA REArSECOND TIME AND ADOPTED
kC � Q ,2024.
UNDER AGENDA ITEM NO. 19
Ordinance No. 24-
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