The vote was unanimous. Increasingly, Commissioners are not taking their orders from developers. Now, neighbors have a fighting chance when they marshal the facts and speak out against injustice here in St. Johns County, a/k/a "God's Country."
From Action News Jax:
Fruit Cove neighbors win battle; Daily's Place will not move forward
Updated:
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - A unanimous decision made by St. Johns County commissioners well into the evening Tuesday led to cheers and applause from the audience.
Commissioners voted 5-0 to deny the proposal for rezoning that would've allowed a 24/7 Daily's Place convenience store and gas station to set up shop on Otoes Place.
Homeowners turned out in full force against the proposal for their Fruit Cove neighborhood.
They were a well-organized group of homeowners who even showed up color coordinated, wearing red, in a move that sent a clear message to commissioners.
Action News Jax showed you the area where the Daily's Place was being proposed.
The county's zoning board had already recommended that this project not move forward.
The county commissioners take that recommendation into consideration but it's ultimately their call.
Since that decision by the zoning board, the applicant for the rezoning is now the owner of the property.
A representative for Daily's Place gave commissioners a lengthy presentation detailing what would be built and the benefits to the community, in the company's view.
But neighbors pushed back. They were concerned about such issues as traffic, property values going down, noise, health concerns stemming from the fumes and possible petroleum leakage into their well water.
Action News Jax spoke to homeowners, who said the whole process has brought the residents of their Fruit Cove neighborhood closer together.
From The St. Augustine Record:
Residents of a Fruit Cove neighborhood are celebrating a win against a proposed Daily’s gas station.
County commissioners voted 5-0 Tuesday to deny a request for a future land use amendment that would have changed the designation of the land from Residential B to Community Commercial.
The 7.7-acre property is located on either side of Otoe’s Place and State Road 13 at the entrance to Fruit Cove Estates.
It used to be a plant nursery until First Coast energy bought it, hoping to build a 12-pump gas station with a 24-hour Daily’s convenience store and car wash on one side of the property and office buildings on the other side.
The property is currently zoned Community General to provide a buffer between residential and high-density commercial development, and the owners did not request a rezoning.
But residents of the surrounding neighborhood were concerned that a gas station would generate traffic, pollute their well water and disrupt their quiet neighborhood.
“People in our neighborhood will be breathing car exhaust and gas fumes anytime they are outside,” said resident Joann Leskanic. “At this time of the year, I like to open my windows and have some fresh air, and I don’t want to be polluted.”
A future land use amendment is needed to build the gas pumps, but everything else is currently allowed under the existing zoning. In a presentation to county commissioners, representatives for First Coast Energy explained that the alternative development could include a 75,000-square foot shopping center.
They argued that a shopping center would generate many more vehicle trips compared to a gas station, based on a computer model formula. But residents stated they would still prefer a shopping center over a gas station.
“When we bought our property, we looked at what commercial property could be behind us because we were concerned, and when we saw what could be there, we were satisfied that that was a place to make our home — our forever home,” resident Marion Edwards said. “Now with this proposed change, you wonder if you are ever going to be able to sell your property once you’re sitting next to a gas station.”
Commissioner Jimmy Johns questioned why the applicant was insisting on creating a driveway on Otoe’s Place, the only access point to the neighborhood and the route children take to get to their bus stops every morning.
“I can understand the office part because there’s only one access point, but to the constituents’ concerns, the traffic generated on Otoe’s Place by that driveway is substantial,” he said, adding that the vehicles would bring fuel contamination runoff into the neighborhood.
Last month, the Planning and Zoning Agency voted to deny recommendation to the board of county commissioners, citing incompatibility with the surrounding residential neighborhood. Commissioners seemed to agree.
“It is obvious that the community — that the citizens that are most impacted by this — do not want this,” Commissioner Jeremiah Blocker said. “I understand we want businesses in St. Johns County, we want economic growth and development, that’s important. I do have concerns about the storage tanks, I do have concerns about the water pollution.”
In the end, the Commission voted in favor of its constituents, who broke into applause.
“This comp plan amendment is totally incompatible with this neighborhood and residents who lived there for 20-25 years,” Commissioner Henry Dean said. “I cannot, in good conscious, support this comp plan [amendment].”
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