ANNA MARIA –The Anna Maria Charter Review Committee is proposing six potential charter amendments for city commission consideration.
The five-member volunteer committee completed its comprehensive review of the city charter on March 21 after the members voted unanimously in favor of each of the six proposed amendments to be included in a final report prepared by City Attorney Becky Vose.
The committee will meet for the final time on March 28 at 11 a.m. to review the final report compiled by Vose. At least one committee member will then present the recommended charter amendments to the city commission during its April 11 meeting. The commission will then accept, reject or modify any or all of the proposed amendments. Any proposed amendments supported by the commission, including those introduced by the commission, will be placed on the November ballot for Anna Maria’s registered voters to accept or reject.
HOME RULE
The committee spent much time debating a proposed charter amendment that would further establish the city’s desire to preserve its home rule rights. The proposed amendment is sought in response to state legislators Jim Boyd and Will Robinson Jr. requesting a study by the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability that could result in the Florida Legislature imposing the forced consolidation of the three Island cities.
When lobbying for the proposed amendment, committee member Chuck Wolfe said, “There’s no hiding from the fact that as residents on the Island the biggest question facing us is whether we’ll continue to be residents of a town. We like being self-managed and we’ve proven that by having the mayor manage the city. This is an extension of that.”
The committee members ultimately agreed to propose the insertion of the words “home rule” into existing language already contained in the city’s comprehensive plan.
With the insertion of the words “home rule,” the committee proposes adding the following language to the charter: “Ensure that the single-family detached residential character and home rule of the city of Anna Maria is maintained and protected while supporting commercial uses in the commercial and ROR land use categories, while maximizing the enjoyment of natural and man-made resources by the citizens and minimizing the threat to health, safety and welfare posed by hazards, nuisances, incompatible land uses and environmental degradation.”
Mayor Dan Murphy and City Attorney Becky Vose said they do not support placing such an amendment before the city’s voters. Vose questions the point of the proposed amendment and she and Murphy cautioned the committee that 73% of the residential properties in Anna Maria are used as short-term vacation rentals and some of those property owners who are currently registered to vote elsewhere might register to vote in Anna Maria instead to oppose the proposed home rule statement.
Murphy said that could potentially result in the proposed charter amendment being rejected by city voters or garnering enough support to further encourage state legislators’ consolidation efforts. Murphy noted the proposed charter amendment would be abolished with the rest of the charter if the state Legislature imposes the forced consolidation of the city.
BUILDING HEIGHTS
Unlike the Holmes Beach and Bradenton Beach charters, the Anna Maria charter does not restrict building heights. The city’s comprehensive plan and building code currently restrict building heights to 37 feet above the crown of the road, with no more than two habitable residential floors.
The height restrictions set forth in the comp plan can currently be eliminated or modified with the support of at least four city commissioners. The height restrictions set forth in the city code of ordinances can be modified or eliminated with the simple majority support of the commission, which could be as few as two votes.
The committee proposes a charter amendment that includes the following code language: “No building or structure or part thereof shall exceed 37 feet as measured from the crown of the road to the highest point of the roof.” The adoption of the proposed amendment would then require the future approval by the city’s registered voters to modify or eliminate the height restrictions established in the charter.
CITY PROPERTY
The charter currently requires a city commission-approved ordinance to sell, abandon ownership or lease city-owned land and real property. The adoption of a city ordinance requires the simple majority support of the commission.
The committee proposes a charter amendment language that would require 100% support of the sitting commissioners at that time to sell, abandon or enter into a long-term lease for the use of a city-owned property. The proposed amendment would allow the city commission to grant with simple majority support a short-term lease of less than five years.
RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS
The charter currently addresses the qualifications and the two-year residency requirement for candidates qualifying to run for the mayor’s seat or a city commission seat, but the charter is silent regarding those actually holding elected office. The committee proposes a charter amendment that would better define the residency requirements for the mayor and city commissioners once in office. The proposed amendment would provide that once in office if a mayor or city commissioner ceases to reside in the city, the commission shall remove that elected official.
ADDITIONAL AMENDMENTS
The charter currently allows a single city commissioner to call for a special city commission meeting. The committee proposes an amendment that would only allow the mayor, the commissioner chair or the commission majority to call for a special meeting.
The committee also proposes an amendment that would replace gender-specific pronouns such as “he” and “she” with proper nouns such as “mayor,” “commissioner” and “clerk.”
