Almost ready. So she's she's just so like, you know, she goes to all our hospitals and facilities. So, you know, like, you know, there's, you know, some rough times that our
employees. So yeah I just love her. The manager. For the office. Yeah. Would that be.
Yeah a lot, a lot of. Good evening. I want to call to order the Board of Adjustments for the City of Tarpon Springs here on
Wednesday, April 23rd, 2025. If we could please have roll call, miss Rich. Present. Miss Turner. Present. Mr. Wood. Present. Mr.
Fuchs. Present. Okay. Thank you so much. Our attorney, Mr. Evans, will do the quasi judicial announcement. Thank
you. Would help if the microphone was on. This is a quasi judicial proceeding where the Board of Adjustment acts in a quasi judicial, rather than a legislative capacity at a quasi
judicial hearing. It is not the board's function to make law, but rather to apply law that has already been established in a quasi judicial hearing. The board is required by law to make
findings of fact based upon the evidence presented at the hearing, and apply those findings of fact to previously established criteria contained in the Code of Ordinances, in order to make a legal decision
regarding the application before it. The board may only consider evidence at this hearing that the law considers competent, substantial, and relevant to the issues. If the competent, substantial, and relevant
evidence at the hearing demonstrates that the applicant has met the criteria established in the Code of Ordinance, then the board is required by law to find in favor of the applicant. By the same token, if the
competent, substantial and relevant evidence at the hearing demonstrates that the applicant has failed to meet the criteria established in the Code of Ordinance, then the board is required by law to find against
the applicant. And. Is anybody intending to speak tonight? If you could stand, please. And
I'll swear you in. You. Raise your right hand, please. Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth and your testimony in these proceedings this evening?
I do. Thank you. And the last thing would be, if there's been any what we call ex parte communications with any of the board members or any personal research, any other communications like that. We
would just ask that you disclose that when you come to the podium. Yes, sir. Thank you.
Okay. Tonight's application is number 25, Dash 22. It is at 825 Paradise Boulevard. Seeking a variance to allow a new home
that is smaller than the minimum dwelling size in the Mobile Home Park zoning district. I would now call our staff to make their
presentation. Miss Keane. Okay. Ali Keane, principal planner with the planning and Zoning department. The property is outlined in yellow. Here on the screen is located within the
Leisure Lake Mobile Home subdivision. This property, as well as all the surrounding properties, are in the Mobile Home Park zoning district. Again, the applicants are here
today requesting variance approval to reduce the minimum dwelling size in order to allow a new container home to be built on the property. There was a previous mobile home on the
property that has been demolished. There is an existing carport that still remains as well as two concrete driveways. That's what you see here on the aerial photograph. And those are proposed to remain on the
property. The Land Development Code establishes a minimum net floor area or the dwelling size, for the mobile Home Park district of 600ft■!S. The
applicants are proposing to construct an eight foot by 40 foot, 320 square foot container home on. The property will be adjacent to the existing carport, and it's shown here in blue on the screen. Also
included in the project is a proposed deck on the front of the structure, which is shown in orange on the screen and the front, or the structure is oriented even though it looks long ways towards Paradise
Boulevard. During the review of the application, staff did an analysis of the Leisure Lake subdivision using the Pinellas County Property Appraiser information and found that there
were 25 other units within the subdivision that were had living areas less than 600ft■!S in siz. Of those units, the smallest we found was 320ft■!S, and the
average of all of those units were approximately 500ft■!S. The Mobile Home Park District only allows mobile home dwellings as a permissible structure in that
zoning district. A mobile home falls under the definition of a manufactured home in the Florida Building Code. A container home also meets the definition of a manufactured home in the Florida Building Code. Therefore, it is
a permissible structure in the Mobile Home Park zoning district. In late 2020, the Florida Building Code formally recognized tiny homes as a building type, and it defined
those as dwellings less than 400ft■!S in size. So the proposd structure not only falls in the definition of a manufactured home, but also meets the definition of a tiny home.
Although at the state level, tiny homes have been recognized locally, the Land Development Code has not been updated to acknowledge these new building types. However, with the recent update to the comprehensive
Plan, the housing element does have a policy, which is policy 1.1.2 that does support the idea of no minimum housing sizes, and this is to increase the housing options and affordability within
the city. And right now, currently, with the exception of the R 60 zoning district, all of our residential zoning districts have a minimum dwelling size. So
therefore it's revisions to the minimum dwelling size will be considered or likely to be considered during the next Land Development Code update in order to support the policy that was put into place with the update
of our comprehensive plan. Lastly, with regard to the structure type, as we all know, mobile homes are more vulnerable to hurricanes and strong storms, and container homes and
structures are a more resilient building type. This is one of the reasons why the applicant is proposing to construct this type of structure on the property, as opposed to a traditional mobile
home. This is a look at the proposed floor plan of the structure. Again, it's eight feet by 40ft long. And then the proposed front deck facing Paradise Boulevard. This is a
look at the proposed elevation drawing. This is what would be facing Paradise Boulevard. There's a spiral staircase that leads up to a rooftop deck. And then these are the side
elevations, the south elevation facing Fern place, and then the north elevation facing the adjacent property. And here are your review criteria and I'm
happy to answer questions. Okay. Anybody have any questions for Miss Keen? Mr. Wood? Maybe you said I missed it. I know that there's other houses in that
area with the same square footage. Are there other tiny homes or other great homes in that development? Also, to your knowledge, there. So I only looked in the Leisure Lake
subdivision and just for clarity. We only found one unit that was at 320ft■!S. But there are 25 other units that were less than the minimum that's required. And those likely came
into place before the Land Development Code was in effect. But the average of those structures were about 500ft■!S. But but that's there's only one
that was at 320ft■!S. Okay. Thak you. Thank you, Miss Turner. And follow up on that. The assuming that's greater than sign should
be less than. Is that right? Yeah. I probably put the wrong size. That's okay. Yep. So. So
the ones who are under 600ft■!S, the 25, about roughly how many units are in the Leisure Lake subdivision? Oh. Oh I can't I'm
all the applicant if they can answer that for you. That's okay. I just didn't know if it was if that 25 was of any substantial. Yeah, I did a
percentage of the entire development, but I did not write that down. And of the tiny homes or, you know, things under the
size that are current land development code permits. Do we know citywide if this is something that's growing? We've
had inquiries about tiny homes. Definitely. We've had some people that have asked about it. The main reason why we don't see them is we have minimum dwelling size units. So most of our
zoning districts require at least 1000ft■!S living area. So, I think, like the R 100, requires 1200, I believe square
feet. This district is 600. There's another district that requires 600. So that's why you're not seeing any of them. But we have inquiries. Probably the closest that you'll see are accessory dwelling units. If
people are constructing those on their properties. Those are allowed to be up to 600ft■!S in size. So that's probably the closest that you'll see currently. But we're just kind
of in this limbo period right now with the land development code not catching up with the minimum square footage requirement that we currently
have. Right. We the land development code just doesn't recognize these new building types. Now for you know, when we go through the updated land
development code, it's not necessarily guaranteeing that, you know, we're going to say tiny homes are allowed. These are all these minimum dwelling sizes are going away. But I it
will be looked at because the policy in the comprehensive plan suggests looking at that. So I, I assume there will be some adjustments to it. So the comprehensive plan, it is a
recommendation. Suggestion. It's not. It's your policy guidance. And the code basically puts into regulation to support your comprehensive plan. And it should be in compliance. But thanks for the clarification,
Mr. Fuchs. Do you have anything? I do, and so you may have just answered it, but I'm not 100% sure. So I'll just ask. But so that policy H112 supports the
idea of no minimum house size. So that does not supersede the current land development code. Is that correct? Right. Would not supersede it. Correct. And so when it says it supports the
idea, that means in the future it left, no pun intended. Right. That basically gives us guidance. When we do an update. So once you when you go through a comprehensive plan update, the
next step is updating your regulatory documents, which is our land development code. And then our smart code is our other regulatory document for consistency with the comprehensive plan, because you
don't want to have this inconsistency between the two documents. So because it says it supports no minimum dwelling sizes, that basically is giving direction. Look at minimum
dwelling sizes in your zoning districts. Determine where maybe appropriate to not have them is appropriate to not have it everywhere. Is it appropriate to change them? Have it in some and not others? That's what the
policy is basically telling us to do. And but it won't supersede it as a logical inference then that if the state recognizes it, that it's likely more likely than not that the
city could as well in a future update. I think there's definitely a possibility. Yeah, I think there's possibility. I think that we'll definitely see more definitions added to our
code and different types of buildings. Definitely. And then the other that's the last question on number five of those review standards. Property value
of any concern to surrounding properties with a with a container home versus any of the other mobile homes that are in
that area. From staff's perspective, looking at property values, we're looking at, you know, for us the use of the property, it's essentially a single family lot. It's still going to allow for one unit on
the property. It's going to be one unit constructed. We don't necessarily get into esthetics of property. I will say that container homes are starting to be a popular choice for people
to look into replacement of mobile homes that we're seeing elsewhere in the county and in the state, mostly because of response to storms, not for everybody, but we've seen that
that's becoming more and more advantageous for them. But for our analysis, we look strictly at its replacing. You know, there was an existing unit on
the property, a new unit going on. It's not increasing the density. It's still going to be used for residential purposes. So we didn't feel that the property values would be
significantly affected. Perfect. I'm sorry. One second. Are you finished? Good. Okay. Go ahead. Question. Is this being built
ground up as a crate into a home, or is it being built off site and then brought on to the location? I'll defer to the applicant. How they they do
that? Okay. Miss keen on the policy that you say it's a 2045 comprehensive plan of the city of Tarpon Springs, right? Has that already been finalized?
Approved by the Commission and submitted to the state or county or. Yes. That is our that is our comprehensive plan when effective in September of last
year. Okay. Thank you. And the Leisure Lake subdivision. Is that a homeowners association as well? I I'll let the applicant
defer. Okay. Does anyone else have any questions for Miss Kate? Okay. Thank you so much. We'll now call upon the applicant if you would step
forward, please. And when you come to the podium, just say your name and address for the record. And the fact that you've
been sworn in. Thank you. Okay. You can go right to that one.
Hello. My name is Clinton Murchison. My address is 2925 12th Avenue North and Saint Petersburg, Florida. And I was
sworn in under oath. Thank you sir. Yep. So I am the general contractor. You know, working with the homeowner on this
project. And. If you'd like me to go into, you know, one of the questions that was brought up before, you know, everything is up to, you know, the current
Florida building codes, and they're actually they're all brand new shipping containers. Nothing is used. And it's they are done by steel specialists.
There's a containers is you know, who we're working with on this project. And they have a warehouse in Pinellas Park. So they've got steel specialists
and, you know, a big warehouse where they do the, you know, they get the containers delivered. They do, you know, basically I, you know, have like a small visual, but, you know,
they'll do the cut outs, you know, for the windows or everything there. Me as a general contractor, there's, you know, in the plans there's going to be concrete, you know, foundations and piers that we're
going to get installed with steel plates that will be welded and bolted to the container when it arrives. So essentially they, you know, will be having the
container, you know, delivered from their warehouse to the property after the after the foundation inspections and the rebar inspections have been, you
know, completed and had time to cure. So essentially, yes, we would be doing a lot of the build outs on site, such as the deck and, you know, electrical
rough in inspections, you know, anything that's required. So, yes, if there's any other questions to essentially, you
know, the main purpose of this is for, you know, a hurricane proofed home. So, you know, everything is going to be, you know, impact glass. And, you
know, the main point of this is to have a, you know, safe hurricane, you know, shelter for the homeowner and her mother.
Thank you. Yeah. Thank you. And the drawings that you submitted show like a rooftop area. Is that specifically to help
because of, like, the metal to help with heat and. Yeah. So that does provide, you know, an extra layer of insulation. And,
you know, it helps with, you know, heat and, you know, basically, you know, provides a little bit more, you know, space for them to utilize. But yeah,
at the same time it is, you know, framed and you know, gives us that, you know, extra area for, you know, drying and. You
know, insulation. So a little bit more thermal protection. And the question I had asked Ali about is this a part of a
homeowners association? No, this this is not. Okay. No. Thank you. Appreciate it. Yes. Does anyone else have any questions
for the applicant? I do, thank you. This is quite interesting. Are have you had projects like
this in other mobile home parks? So I have done shipping container homes. Not specifically. You know what?
What I would say, you know, not specifically in a mobile home park, but there is, you know, I've had a lot of interest in, you know, there's a lot of concerns with, you know, the
storms and the stability of the structures and in those areas. So, yeah. Interesting. How do you bring it in? Are you
bringing it in by a crane or are you bringing it in on a flatbed? Yes. So, you know, so we do have, you know, coordinations with that. So this is going to
be brought in on a chassis, you know, flatbed. And we do have a crane operator that, you know, we have helps, you know, set the containers. And it is in the set
of plans, actually, you know, the way that we strap and, you know, adjust or move the container. Okay. And the road system will support that
equipment coming in. Yes. Anybody else have any questions? No. Okay. Thank you so much.
Yes. Thank you. Okay. Does any of the board members have. Well, first want to open up the public comment, I guess. Is there anyone here in the public who
would like to speak for or against this project? I have questions mostly. Question? Yeah. If you come to the podium
and state your name and address and you'll need to be sworn in. Okay. Sorry, I should have. That's okay. No. No worries ma'am. Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and
nothing but the truth and your testimony this evening? Yes. Thank you. Hi. My name is Jerry Leslie. I live in 809 Francis Drive in Tarpon Springs,
Florida, within the mobile home community. We do have a homeowners association. This particular property is not included. We have a unique situation within our park where
some homes are not included in the association, and most are. So I think we have approximately
130 mobiles in the park. I I'm not opposed to this. It looks like it's going to be done well.
I have questions about well we were worried about property values for one. And if it's a special variance what what is that? Does that exactly mean is
once this happens, is it a free for all? Can anybody put a container home in the park? I can answer that. The variance is specific to that lot. Okay. And
it stays with that lot. Okay. So if she moves somewhere else two doors down, she would have to come before us. The variance. If the city didn't if we approved
the variance and the city doesn't change their code set the next time, then anybody else would have to come and apply for a new variant process. Okay.
Yeah. All right. So I think that's. Oh, does she have to particularly reside in it? No, it's the lot. It's just for the
lot. Okay. Yes, ma'am. So it would follow the next owner. The next owner. Okay, great. And if I may, as you know, chair to
clarification, when you're asking about, like, you know, what the heck is this variance that we're talking about? There are many, many different codes
and requirements that Miss Kean and her staff go through. And before us today is just one. And that is the minimum square
footage of the dwelling controlling. If it's painted purple, polka dotted, that's not before this board. If it is, you know, elevated or not, that that
is not so. The application before us today is purely on the square footage of the dwelling,
because it is less than what the code specifically states. Okay. All right. Thank you. Thank you so much. I just wanted to maybe put give a little clarification,
because I know you asked about residing in the home. So no, she does not require to live in the home. Just like any residential property you can, you can rent your home. But I wanted to give
clarification that in the mobile Home Park district, a short term rental is not permitted. So the minimum amount of time that a property can be rented is basically more than six weeks.
Just so you have clarification. Okay. So yeah. So what is considered a short term more than six weeks. More than six weeks. That's the distinction. So anything less than six weeks or six weeks and less is falls
under the definition of a short term rental or a tourist home. And that's not allowed. That's not allowed. So that's that's the distinction. All right. That was one of my questions. But I didn't know if it would pertain
to. Just to provide clarity I think that's kind of where you're you had some some questions. Yes I did. All right. Thank you so much. Thank you for being here. Any other public
comments tonight? Okay. Hearing none. Is there any discussion that the board would like to have? Hearing not. Would anyone like to make a motion? I'll make
a motion to approve. I'll second. Hearing a motion and second. Roll call please. Mr. Fuchs? Yes. Mr. Wood. Yes. Miss.
Turner? Yes. Miss Rich? Yes. Who was the second? I was Mr. Future. Okay. I'm sorry, I. Miss Turner made the motion, miss. Mr. Fuchs seconded. Thank you.
Thank you. The variance has been approved. Thank you. Thank you for being here. Thank you. Okay.
Do we have any? We have one set of minutes. And remember, last month the minutes were had a slight correction, but those have been corrected. We have
tonight before us the minutes from March 26th. Last meeting. Would anyone like to make a motion to approve those? I'll make a motion to approve. Second
of Mr. Wood. Seconded. Thank you. Roll call please. Mr. Fuchs. Yes, Mr. Wood. Yes, Miss Turner? Yes, miss Rich? Yes.
Okay. You're good. Congrats. Okay. No worries. Just touch base with Miss Keane and she'll help you with the rest of the process. Congrats. Have a
wonderful Wednesday. Thank you. Appreciate it. Ali, do you have any comments for us or Kim? I have one comment. Being that
it's Volunteer Appreciation Month, I just want to take a couple minutes just to express my appreciation to you all as board members. And you know how
you conduct yourselves at meetings. This is a perfect example of what I mean. I think that you guys really present yourselves well. I think that
you take the process seriously. You approach each application seriously. You also respect all the applicants. You respect the members of the public that come before you. You respect staff,
and you also really help what can be a very intimidating process to some less so, which is not always the case. So I just wanted to extend my appreciation to you all. It's a
pleasure to be your staff representative. So thank you. Thank you. Thank you. And I had the pleasure of coming to the Board of Commissioners meeting
last night, where they shared a proclamation that was done by the city of Tarpon Springs in honor of Volunteer Appreciation Month. And because I'm not doing
this alone, I wanted to read this so that you would all hear the mayor's words to us. It says whereas the month of April has been designated nationally as
Volunteer Appreciation Month to recognize the hard work, dedication and passion of volunteers and National Service members throughout our nation. And Whereas the Board of
Commissioners believe that government alone cannot meet all of our city's needs, so we partner with businesses, faith based organizations, nonprofit
organizations, foundations, and individuals who serve in city government and our community to make a difference. And Whereas volunteers enhance the quality
of life in Tarpon Springs by volunteering for city advisory boards, schools, places of worship, hospitals, youth groups, and with other
organizations that benefit our community. And whereas it is fitting to honor the many individuals who lend their time, skill and efforts to making our community a better place by
recognizing our valued volunteers. And Whereas the city is committed to encouraging volunteerism among its employees, citizens, partners,
businesses and organizations and thanks all volunteers for their dedicated service. Now, therefore, I, John Koulianos, by virtue of the authority vested
in me as mayor of the City of Tarpon Springs, Florida, do hereby proclaim the month of April 2025 as Volunteer Appreciation Month. So thank you
all for your service. Well, and the mayor thanks you and Ali and Kim, do you have an update on our two alternates? Are they
moving into our full time slot soon? I do not have an update. I know that the clerk's office receives applications from time to time, and they process those
when they get those. But I don't have any updates just because they're technically still listed as alternates, but because of our openings. I'm just so I
believe once they have new members that want to fill a position, they usually I think they kind of like kill two birds with one stone and move into
position. But I can contact them if our alternates are want to stick with us and become full time board members, I can contact the clerk's office and inform them that you guys would like to formally, you know, take
your positions. Absolutely. Even before we have. It would be nice if they're open to that. No, I want to be here for ten years. I forgot, I forgot that I actually
put a note on. I know you guys are always up here. Why are we still listed as alternates? Yeah, I mean, I just think it's smoother and would help someone who started as an alternate myself. I'm sensitive to that.
And you guys are certainly because we have the spots. But I know it needs the blessing of the city clerk. Yeah. Yep. I can
do that with that Citizen's Academy class. No, I was just echoing what Ali was saying, that normally when they select
new board members, they move the alternates to. The two members, or they ask if you'd like to. Yeah. You all have been acting
as full members for a long time. If you could ask on our behalf, just to see how we could speed that process along. That'd be great. Yes, we can do that.
Thank you. Anybody else have anything that was. Thank you for sharing the proclamation chair. And I think it's my fellow
members can say that y'all, as a city staff, do an amazing job. And, you know, we couldn't do the volunteer work without you. Thank you. Yes. Here, here. And
on that note, 7:01 a.m. Good job. Dinner time. Dinner time.
That house. I know, I was like, dude, I wanted him to stay.