BOCC to hear Planning & Zoning applications on Mondays
County officials have been so busy in the past three years reviewing development projects that a separate day for hearing applications is slated in the new year.
File photo: Kathy Bryant, the chair, speaks as the Marion County Commission meets in the McPherson Governmental Complex in Ocala, Fla. on Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2020. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette] 2020.
Development in Marion County has grown to the point that the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) has voted to hear development, zoning and land-use requests on Mondays in 2025, which will separate the regular board meetings from the monthly P&Z portion.
“The intent of this is so that we are not cramming everything into one day,” said BOCC Chair Kathy Bryant. “I don’t feel it’s in the best interest of the public, the applicant or this board to have that type of marathon. This will be better for our public process. These decisions need to have our full attention and our full ability to vet them clearly and completely.”
Board meetings typically start at 9 a.m. and the P&Z portions start at 2 p.m., usually after a lunch break for staff and board members. Starting in January, the development projects will be reviewed one Monday each month, starting at 1:30 p.m. – with one exception, the Jan. 13 meeting, which will begin at 9 a.m.
Numerous BOCC meetings with P&Z hearings over the past few years have extended beyond 8 p.m., which creates long workdays for county staff, board members and the public. Meetings have often extended late into the night, especially for large or controversial projects that generated a lot of public comment, such as the Jumbolair expansion and the proposed RaceTrac truck stop in Sparr.
Commissioner Carl Zalak mentioned concerns for the public who may not get to testify when they have to leave before their agenda item. “We’ve all been here and seen the public have to leave at 5, 6 o’clock, whatever, and we don’t get to hear their comments,” he said.
Bryant made it clear that the new schedule could be modified if needed later in the year. “Let’s try it for three months and see how it’s working,” she said.
The board also requested that staff ensure that applications are more complete to limit on-the-fly negotiations at the dais that Bryant thinks should be avoided.
Per the county staff report, “Based on caseload, additional meeting time is needed each month to hear the Planning & Zoning cases. Upon careful review of the commissioner’s calendars, considering other routine board and committee meetings, an additional meeting can be accommodated on Mondays, before the second board meeting of each month, with exceptions for January and July because of known conflicts.”
The board voted 5-0 to approve the new schedule.
The dates and times approved on Dec 17, are as follows for 2025:
Monday, Jan. 13 at 9 am1 Monday, July 21 at 1:30 pm2
Monday, Feb. 17 at 1:30 pm Monday, Aug. 18 at 1:30 pm
Monday, March 17 at 1:30 pm Monday, Sept. 15 at 1:30 pm
Monday, April 14 at 1:30 pm Monday, Oct. 20 at 1:30 pm
Monday, May 19 at 1:30 pm Monday, Nov. 17 at 1:30 pm
Monday, June 16 at 1:30 pm Monday, Dec. 15 at 1:30 pm
The meetings to be scheduled from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. because of known caseload.
The second board meeting in July is July 15th; Commissioners are anticipated to be at the National Association of Counties (NACo) Annual Conference July 11-14.
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