City of Tavares Planning and Zoning Advisory Board — April 17, 2025

Meeting Overview

Type: Regular Meeting Quorum: Yes (5 of 7 members present) Duration: 3:00 PM – 4:33 PM (93 minutes) Location: Tavares Council Chambers, 201 E. Main Street

Attendance

• Present: Gary Santoro (Chairman), Deborah Murphy (Vice-Chairperson), Bruce Peterman, James Sweezea, Dara Treadwell
• Absent: Dian Joy, Brooke Matthews (both notified staff by email)
• Staff Present: Antonio Fabre (Community Development Director), Anarquis Frias (City Planner), Amanda Boggus (City Attorney), Jillian Roberts (Deputy City Clerk), James Dillon (Public Works Director), Phillip Clark (Utility Director), Bob Tweedie (Economic Development Director)

Prior minutes: March 20, 2025 minutes approved without correction (moved Treadwell, seconded Sweezea), 5-0.

Note: Attorney Lindsay Holt is named in the body of the minutes for the swearing-in, the Section 2.9 removal analysis, and the Tab 2 discussion, while Amanda Boggus is listed in the staff-present block. See Raw Notes.

Agenda Items

Item 1: Approval of the March 20, 2025, Planning and Zoning Board Meeting Minutes

• Type: Other (administrative)
• Request: Approve the March 20, 2025 minutes
• Action: Approved
• Vote: 5-0 (moved Treadwell, seconded Sweezea)
• Notable Discussion: No corrections offered.

Item 2: Resolution 2025-05 — Variance, Reduced Side and Rear Yard Setbacks, 122 East Main Street

• Type: Variance
• Case Number: Resolution 2025-05
• Location: 122 East Main Street, Tavares — frontage on Ruby Street and S. Rockingham Avenue
• Applicant: Tavares Heritage Square LLC (Ted Wicks, Wicks Engineering, representing)
• Request: Reduce the required minimum 7.5-foot side yard setback and 10-foot rear yard setback to the historic zero (0') setbacks along Ruby Street and S. Rockingham Avenue, to permit construction of two multi-story mixed-use buildings (commercial ground floor, residential above)
• Current Zoning: Commercial Downtown (CD), within the Downtown Waterfront Entertainment District
• Proposed Zoning: No change
• Acreage: [not available]
• Staff Recommendation: Approve (Option 1)
• Action: Recommended for approval
• Vote: 5-0 (moved Peterman, seconded Treadwell)
• Conditions: None added
• Notable Discussion:
  • Fabre's report grounded the recommendation in existing conditions: both the CD district and the Downtown Waterfront Entertainment District promote zero setbacks under certain conditions, and named six buildings already at historic zero setbacks — Puddle Jumpers Restaurant, Citrus Sky Bar / Key West Resort, Lakeview Inn West, and Citrus on the Lake on Ruby Street; O'Keefe's Irish Pub and City Hall on Rockingham.
  • Peterman asked why the variance had not come sooner. Wicks said this was the project's first public hearing, that staff recommended a variance because of the project's design and densities, that the first floor would hold professional offices and possibly a coffee shop with no restaurants, and that the market was prime.
  • Treadwell said downtown Tavares did not have much retail and hoped for shops on the ground floor; Wicks said retail options were open and the goal was not to move toward food service. Treadwell also recalled citizens' concern that lake views would be blocked, from the earlier performing-arts-center referendum.
  • Sweezea asked whether building height would affect airport flight patterns. Tweedie, sworn in to testify, said no — current zoning allows up to 80 feet, within FAA and FDOT parameters for approaches to the lake, "which was a virtual runway."
  • The structural question came from Murphy and Sweezea: why does the City not make a broader change for the entire district instead of requiring each property to seek an individual variance? Fabre noted the code already provides zero setbacks in the entertainment district but caps height at 30 feet. Holt said any legislative change must go before the City Council and that staff would carry the question to the City Administrator and Council.
  • Santoro named the real constraint: it was not the building footprint that needed a variance, it was the height. Fabre confirmed.
  • Treadwell asked why the front building's rendering showed two residential stories while the lake-facing building showed four. Wicks: the Main Street building carries the retail-commercial component with residential above; Building 2 facing Ruby Street is four residential floors only.
  • Sweezea asked whether the buildings should be reversed given that thriving Ruby Street businesses are mostly food service. Wicks said that would not work from a marketing standpoint — Main Street is the main route through the City, Ruby Street a side street.

Item 3: Alfred Street / Old 441 Horizon Team Presentation

• Type: Other (staff presentation — corridor planning)
• Applicant: City of Tavares Community Development
• Location: Alfred Street / Old US 441 corridor, from the corridor start to Bay Street; utility extension planned to Bay Road (ISBA boundary)
• Request: Brief the Board on the Alfred Street / Old 441 "Horizon Team" corridor initiative
• Action: No action (presentation)
• Notable Discussion:
  • Fabre explained a Horizon Team typically comprises one Council Member, the City Administrator, and a Department Director. The Alfred Street / Old 441 kick-off was March 12, 2025, and the team was expanded to include the Planning and Zoning Board, Public Works, and Utilities.
  • Content: the 2007 Lake County PD&E Study of Alfred Street; lighting improvements at David Walker Road and Old 441 including trail connections; existing signage and active projects; coordination with FDOT on the approved Rails-to-Trails PD&E, Lake County Public Works, and the Lake-Sumter MPO; and plans to develop gateway entrance signage, a Complete Street Pre-Engineering Master Plan, and a pre-engineering utility extension plan to Bay Road at the ISBA boundary.
  • Santoro asked whether the railroad would relinquish the right-of-way. Dillon confirmed the City holds a letter of intent from CSX to sell, part of a grant application, with the Trust for Public Lands assisting on land acquisition. Dillon said the rail car operator, not the City, would be responsible for removing rail cars.
  • Peterman raised a sign obstructing sight lines on Alfred Street / Old 441; Fabre agreed to review it. Peterman asked what constitutes a safety crossing; Fabre distinguished high-emphasis crossings (lights and visible ground markings) from low-emphasis crossings (single lines on minor streets), and said trail crossings would be major-emphasis with blinking lights.
  • Sweezea asked about trail safety cameras (Dillon: could be discussed with Lake County's design team) and golf-cart access. Dillon: only non-motorized bicycles and pedestrians will be permitted on the trail; golf carts remain allowed on most City streets posted at 35 mph or lower.
  • Santoro asked about reclaimed water along Old 441. Clark said it is currently unavailable and would require crossing a canal and extensive excavation on Main and Alfred Streets; the Caroline Plant may eventually supply reclaimed water depending on future wastewater treatment expansion.
  • Santoro expressed support for converting Main Street to one-way traffic.

Item 4: SR 19 Horizon Team Presentation

• Type: Other (staff presentation — corridor planning)
• Applicant: City of Tavares Community Development
• Location: State Road 19 corridor
• Request: Brief the Board on the SR 19 Horizon Team
• Action: No action (presentation)
• Notable Discussion:
  • Working from the approved 2015 PD&E study. The objective is a second bridge to relieve bottlenecks when SR 19 is widened to four lanes.
  • A signal warrant study at the second Royal Harbor entrance began March 2025, expected to conclude by June 2025.
  • A signalized intersection at SR 19 and CR 561 was scheduled to begin construction October 2025 and finish by January 2026. (Later meetings push this to early 2026, then to approximately June 2026.)
  • Planning includes MPO 2050 CIP coordination, collaboration with FDOT District 5, future land use rezoning that encourages commercial along the frontage with compatible multifamily or residential behind, future Woodlea Road improvements as part of the Cresswind development, intergovernmental coordination with Lake County Public Works, budgeting for a Pre-Engineering Master Plan, and utility infrastructure plans within FDOT right-of-way.
  • Clark said new development behind Royal Harbor would have to install its own infrastructure and flagged conflicts with existing reuse, sewer, and lift stations; SR 19 improvements would loop from Howey Bridge toward CR 448. Santoro confirmed with Clark that the development in question is near Eichelberger Road.
  • Santoro raised traffic congestion from the Renaissance Fair and the future Lake County fairgrounds, citing insufficient parking and road capacity. Fabre acknowledged a parking demand study would be required and a parking structure may be necessary, and said he had not received site plans for the fairgrounds from Lake County. Dillon confirmed the fairground is a county project, that the City is in ongoing discussions because of its impact, and that the City would provide utilities for the area.
  • The Board discussed future traffic from a proposed Publix shopping center and a nearby apartment complex along SR 19. Clark said the SR 19 lift station would likely need to be relocated.

Item 5: Discussion on Board Attendance, Duties, and Responsibilities — Removal of Dian Joy

• Type: Other (board governance)
• Location: N/A
• Applicant: Chairman Santoro (added to the agenda by motion at the meeting)
• Request: Declare a Board seat vacant for non-attendance
• Action: Dian Joy removed from the Planning and Zoning Board; seat declared vacant
• Vote: 5-0 (moved Peterman, seconded Treadwell). The agenda addition itself passed 5-0 (moved Sweezea, seconded Treadwell).
• Notable Discussion:
  • Santoro reminded members that City Council appoints them to fulfill obligations in the City's regulations including attendance and conduct, said he wished to address an ongoing absenteeism issue, noted one member had missed three consecutive meetings, and separately raised concern about members attending briefly and then leaving.
  • Attorney Holt confirmed the legal basis: under Section 2.9 of the Land Development Regulations, a member may be removed for failing to attend two out of three meetings. She stated Joy had not been present for the past three meetings, and that although Joy had submitted a notice of absence, the notice "was not approved and did not constitute permission or consent under the regulations." The Board was therefore within its rights to declare the seat vacant, with the vacancy referred to City Council to appoint a replacement for the remainder of the term.
  • Holt advised that any removal motion must name the individual, after which Peterman's general motion was restated to name Dian Joy.
  • Peterman asked whether any medical issues had been communicated. Holt responded that Joy's February absence had been noted as due to illness.
  • Sweezea suggested adding a stipulation that members must be present for the full duration of each meeting. No motion followed.
  • Staff would notify the City Administrator and City Clerk; the Clerk would advertise the open position. Santoro asked Fabre to email Joy about the vacancy and copy himself and the City Administrator.

Public Hearings Summary

• Number of speakers: 2 — Ted Wicks (Wicks Engineering, for applicant Tavares Heritage Square LLC) and Bob Tweedie (Economic Development Director, sworn in to testify on airport approach impacts)
• General sentiment: No opposition recorded. No members of the public spoke under Audience to be Heard.
• Key concerns: None raised by the public. The concerns on the record came from the dais — ground-floor retail versus food service, lake-view obstruction from the earlier performing-arts-center referendum, and whether the district should be amended wholesale rather than parcel by parcel.

Key Signals

• The Board approved a downtown zero-setback variance 5-0 and immediately asked why the City makes every applicant come get one. Murphy and Sweezea pushed the structural question: the CD district already promotes zero setbacks, but the code caps height at 30 feet, so every taller mixed-use building needs an individual variance. Santoro isolated the real binding constraint — "it was not the building footprint that needed a variance; it was the height." Staff carried the question to Council, and it worked: on May 7, 2025 the City Council directed staff to write the text amendment, which returned to this Board as Ordinance 2025-05 on July 17, 2025. Three months from a board complaint to a code change is fast movement for Tavares.

• Tavares Heritage Square is the downtown's density test case. Two multi-story mixed-use buildings at 122 East Main Street — a Main Street building with commercial ground floor and residential above, and a four-story residential building facing Ruby Street. The Economic Development Director testified that current zoning permits up to 80 feet within FAA and FDOT parameters, because the lake functions as a "virtual runway" for the seaplane base. The height ceiling downtown is aviation-driven, not zoning-driven, and it is far above what the 30-foot code allows. By July 2025 the site plan was approved; construction was expected to begin within a year.

• The City holds a CSX letter of intent to sell the Alfred Street rail corridor. Dillon confirmed it on the record, tied to a grant application, with Trust for Public Lands assisting acquisition. This is the acquisition step that converts the Rails-to-Trails PD&E from a plan into a corridor. Property along Alfred Street / Old 441 sits on the path of a Complete Street master plan, gateway signage, and a utility extension to the ISBA boundary at Bay Road.

• Reclaimed water does not reach Old 441, and the fix depends on wastewater plant expansion. Clark said it plainly: unavailable today, requiring a canal crossing and extensive Main Street and Alfred Street excavation, with the Caroline Plant as the eventual source contingent on treatment expansion. For anyone modeling irrigation or landscape-intensive development on that corridor, potable water is the only near-term supply.

• The Board removed a member for absenteeism under LDR Section 2.9 — two of three meetings missed — and the City Attorney ruled that an unapproved notice of absence does not count. That reading is the operative precedent: submitting notice is not the same as being excused. The seat went back to Council for appointment; Jay Cunningham was seated by July 17, 2025. A Tavares P&Z seat is now demonstrably forfeitable.

• Lake County had not given Tavares the fairgrounds site plan, and the City is the utility provider. Fabre said he had not received site plans; Dillon confirmed the fairground is a county project the City is nonetheless in discussions about "due to its impact," and that the City would provide utilities for the area. Santoro's parking and capacity concerns went on the record with no site plan to test them against. The information asymmetry between the county seat and its county is a live condition in this record.

Raw Notes

• Source: April 17, 2025 minutes PDF, CivicClerk file ID 1624, published on event 448 (agendaId 366). Agenda is file ID 1499; agenda packet is file ID 1500 — the packet also carries the March 20, 2025 minutes as its Tab 1 attachment.
• Source discrepancy: the staff-present block lists Amanda Boggus as City Attorney while the body of the minutes attributes the swearing-in, the Section 2.9 analysis, and the Tab 2 exchange to Attorney Holt. Both attorneys appear across the coverage period; the body attributions are reproduced as written.
• The staff report and the Board's motion both reference "Resolution 2025-05," but the staff recommendation paragraph in the agenda summary contains a typo reading "Resolution 2020-05." The correct instrument is Resolution 2025-05.
• Attendance mechanics: Santoro asked whether Joy or Matthews had advised of their absence; Fabre said both had sent emails. The removal turned on the approval of notice, not its existence.
• Peterman closed the governance discussion by remarking that it was nice City employees would have Good Friday off. Board members wished Deputy City Clerk Jillian Roberts well in her future endeavors — she is replaced by Michelle Winegard from the July 2025 meeting forward.
• Minutes attested by Susie Novack, MMC, FCRM, City Clerk. Page count: 8.
• Downstream: the July 17, 2025 staff report states that on May 7, 2025 the City Council directed staff to implement the recommended text amendment, producing the revised Chapter 8, Table 8-3 CD entry permitting 0' setbacks without height conditions in the Downtown Waterfront Entertainment District.