Osceola County Considers 90-Day Moratorium on Residential Development Rezoning Applications

The Osceola Board of County Commissioners is proposing a 90-day county-wide moratorium on applications that would allow residential development on land zoned for non-residential uses, among other restrictions. The proposed ordinance, originally considered at the Commission’s July 1^st meeting, has been continued to the July 15^th meeting.

The ordinance would impose a 90-day moratorium on the processing of the following applications in the County:

1. Comprehensive Plan amendments and Rezoning applications that would change a non-residential to residentially use; and
2. Rezoning applications within Mixed Use Land Use designations; and
3. Rezoning applications within Urban Infill Center Land Use designations.

Included within the proposed ordinance is sweeping language aimed to halt “issuing development permits, development orders, or taking any other official action of Osceola County permitting, or having the effect of permitting such zoning changes.”

The Planning Commission considered the ordinance at its June meeting and voted to add a condition that the moratorium only apply to cases that are submitted after the ordinance goes into effect. However, Staff is recommending that the moratorium apply to all active applications outlined in the ordinance.

Both the Planning Commission and Staff agreed to a separate condition that the moratorium would not apply to any cases where an applicant seeks to change the zoning from AC Agricultural/Conservation to Urban Settlement or Low-Density Residential.

At the July 1^st Commission Meeting, the County Manager requested the ordinance be continued to the July 15^th meeting noting that Staff is working on revised language to the ordinance. We will closely monitor the proposed ordinance and provide updates as they become available.

If you have additional questions on the proposed ordinance or have any land use matters you would like to discuss, please contact the Lowndes Land Use Team.