JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — St. Johns County residents are speaking out and calling on the county commission to fight back a new state law that could fast-track six major developments in the county totaling 5,400 acres.
“Our schools are overcapacity, our stormwater systems are straining, and paving over farmland means more water in our neighborhoods. And we just, I know I keep on saying it, we just don’t have the infrastructure in place to handle so many homes,” said St. Johns resident Suzanna Pavelle.
The new law made it easier for landowners to petition for their properties to be designated “agricultural enclaves”, which allows them to sidestep rezoning and the county’s comprehensive plan.
“There are six applications in St. Johns County and those are the only six applications that have been submitted statewide. So somehow, someway St. Johns County has been singled out as the guinea pig for all of this,” said St. Johns resident Joe McAnarney.
McAnarney argued, given the county commission has little power beyond determining whether a property meets the statutory requirements for designation as an agricultural enclave, the only option the county has is the courts.
“There could be 32,000 homes approved in less than 90 days with virtually no public comment or input and only a single meeting by the county commissioners to look at this,” said McAnarney.
Commissioner Ann Taylor (R-District 5) asked her fellow commissioners to consider retaining legal counsel and possibly seek an injunction to block the new law.
But she also indicated the county need to be prepared in the event it gets sued as a result of the law.
“Cause we know regardless of what happens I think we’re going to be sued regarding that and I would just rather be prepared and be proactive rather than reactive,” said Taylor.
The County Attorney agreed to meet with commissioners individually to discuss possible paths forward.
As of now, all six agricultural enclave applications are set to come before the board for approval on August 18th.
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