Protections for customized zoning regulations known as overlay districts will be strengthened under action by the Jacksonville City Council.
By a 10-9 vote Nov. 12, Council approved compromise legislation establishing a minimum of 11 votes to create an overlay or rezone a property within one to Planned Unit Development.
The vote reflected division among Council members over the increased threshold for passage, with supporters saying it was needed to help prevent developers from lobbying a simple majority of the Council to pass projects that run counter to the specialized zoning regulations.
Opponents said a standard 10-vote majority of the 19-member Council was an adequate bar and that the bill was an overreaction to Council’s spring 2024 approval of the controversial Lofts at Southbank project.
That development was opposed by neighbors for including self-storage, which is not an approved land use within the Downtown overlay district.
“It’s a step in the right direction,” said at-large Council member Matt Carlucci of the ordinance’s passage. Carlucci, who introduced the legislation in May 2024 not long after the Lofts at Southbank, sought a two-thirds majority requirement in his original version of the bill, Ordinance 2024-0373.
“We didn’t get everything we wanted, but we got a solid 11 votes that will be needed,” he said. “It’s majority plus one, so it will be 11 votes regardless of how many Council members are in attendance. I’m happy for the people, because they put a lot of time into these overlays. It deserves a little extra vote to break one of these.”
The city has 11 overlay districts, which are designed to shield neighborhoods or districts from projects that are out of character with their surroundings or would be detrimental to the economy of those areas.
Member Rory Diamond sought to amend the ordinance to require a majority plus one of Council members present, meaning the 11-vote requirement would be reduced if Council members were absent.
Diamond said increasing the requirement from a standard 10-vote majority was undemocratic and would result in “housing being jammed and dumped into neighborhoods that don’t have these overlays.”
Member Ron Salem noted that a simple majority is adequate to pass the city’s budget, which for the general budget this year totaled $1.88 billion.
“Are we going to say that should take 12 votes? I just think we’re setting a bad precedent here,” he said.
Voting in favor of the ordinance requiring 11 votes were President Randy White and members Ken Amaro, Michael Boylan, Carlucci, Joe Carlucci, Tyrona Clark-Murray, Ju’Coby Pittman, Reggie Gaffney Jr., Mike Gay and Jimmy Peluso.
Voting no were Vice President Kevin Carrico and members Raul Arias, Diamond, Terrance Freeman, Nick Howland, Rahman Johnson, Will Lahnen, Chris Miller and Salem.
Matt Carlucci said that in bringing the ordinance forward, he was reacting not only to the Lofts at Southbank approval but to a need to protect Downtown and the city’s other 10 overlay districts from projects with nonconforming uses. He said the 11-vote requirement was in keeping with other Council legislation that requires a majority of the full Council plus one vote.
After the Land Use and Zoning Committee and Rules Committee voted against the version of the ordinance that contained the two-thirds requirement, Joe Carlucci suggested the 11-vote minimum when the bill went before the Neighborhoods Committee, which he chairs. The committee approved the compromise bill on a 4-2 vote.
Joe Carlucci’s District 5 includes the Lofts at Southbank site at Prudential Drive and Hendricks Avenue. He voted against the rezoning for the project.
Matt Carlucci, Joe Carlucci’s father, said he supported the compromise after it became evident that the three-quarters version would not have passed.
“I think we owe most of the credit for the bill passing to the younger Councilman Carlucci,” the elder Carlucci said. “He did a great job with his amendment.”
Joe Carlucci, whose district includes the Downtown and San Marco overlays, said he was happy with the vote.
“With two of the largest overlays being in District 5, I’m very pleased with the outcome,” he said. “A compromise was reached and ultimately made the bill better and more palatable for the Council to approve. This will only enhance new development projects in these parts of Jacksonville.”