St Johns County has won a significant legal battle against a developer who defaulted on their agreement.
After a year of brutality where the St Johns County Commissioners were trashed, beat up on and called corrupt for being in the pocket of developers, we need to move forward.
Yet the misleading information about the current commissioners will linger in residents’ minds, probably for a long time. At least until it is proven that the David and Goliath approach of fighting developers has a slim chance of winning.
But just so we are clear, the current commissioners have, in fact, gone up against the developers. In 2018, Southeast Development Partners, LLC, then-commissioners approved the Grand Oaks PUD – a major development project in District 2. After the developer reneged on their agreement, the county didn’t take a “David and Goliath” approach; they waged a strong and decisive legal battle to which a Federal Court agreed with the Commissioners.
The History
The developer agreed to 4-lane widening of SR 16 from San Giacomo to the eastern (main) entrance to the Grand Oaks development, approximately 3.1 miles. The estimated cost of the widening at the time was approximately $15,000,000.
Apparently, the cost of materials escalated significantly between 2018 and 2023 because in February 2023, the agreed-to infrastructure improvements had yet to be built so the developer came back to the BoCC to ask for an amendment to revise the required transportation mitigation and road impact fee credit amount. The BoCC held to the original agreement, arguing that the agreement was to build the road and there was no cost associated with the agreement. They denied the request unanimously.
Southeast Development Partners, LLC sued the County. The County counter-sued. On September 13, 2024, the Federal Courts supported the Commissioners’ 2023 Decision.
The Future
As the County moves forward with a new Commission in 2025 where the majority have run on a “slow development” platform, it is important for residents to understand some simple truths about “slowing development.”
Denying developers’ proposals holds a risk. Developers spend millions on land with a specific intent – to develop the property and, oh right, to make money.
Florida is sympathetic to developers’ interests and profitability. Florida statute 70.001, also called the Bert Harris Act, was created in 1995 to protect the rights of property owners in using their property as intended and providing financial consequences if the owner is prohibited in that use.
This legalistic approach to property rights demonstrates that actions taken in favor of or against developers take time. The Grand Oaks development actually began back in 2016, and the PUD was approved in 2018. It took until 2024 for the lack of action on the part of the developer to be sufficiently evident for a court to act. In that time, half of the home sites were built, and half will remain unbuilt since the County has stopped development until the original agreement is met by the developer. That is certainly an “ouch” to the developer’s pocket.
For Residents to Ponder
The fantasy of slowing development is simply that – a fantasy. If the slow-development commissioners don’t understand that, the risk is significant.
Denials of development will be just as slow being legally resolved as the Grand Oaks debacle has been. Years of back-and-forth allegations that ultimately will probably favor the developers, given how friendly Florida law is to developers. In that time….
What will be the court costs for the County?
How will that impact the County’s budget in terms of spending on necessities like infrastructure?
How much time will county staff spend on legal issues that should really be spent on resident issues?
Here is what the court said:
“Therefore, the county has authority to act pursuant to the terms of Section 11 of the Agreement, in that it may (1) halt approval of additional plats and construction plans within the Grand Oaks PUD until and unless SELV complies with the terms and conditions of Sections 4 and 5 of the Agreement,” Kelly writes. “It is undisputed that the Agreement mitigates transportation impacts of the development, a legitimate state interest upon which a permit may be conditioned.”
The 2023-4 Board of County Commissioners did the right thing. They held the developer accountable for not holding up their end of the bargain, and, when sued by the developer, counter-sued and won.
The work of a county commissioner is hard work
Not only is it hard work, but it requires a modicum of self-awareness to be clear about what one knows AND what one doesn’t know.
To naively think that any commissioner can make decisions based on the simple platform on which they ran is silly.
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