1992-08-03 Pet/Formal Adm. Hrg. (FMH & Kelchner) AUG- 4-92 TUE 15 :21 Michael Wm. Morel ! 994 4258301
P. 11
FILING AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
FILED,on this date,with the designete',
Department Clerk, receipt of which
is • reby acknowledged.
FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF
COMMUNITY AFFAIRS 40/ X, 1 ; g 1,4
4e R. Bass Date
partment Clerk
FLORIDA MANUFACTURED HOUSING
ASSOCIATION, INC. , a not for profit
corporation in the state of Florida,
and,
TED KELCHNER,
Petitioners,
vs . CASE NO.
FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF
COMMUNITY AFFAIRS,
Respondent.
PETITIQN LOR FORMAL ADMINISTRATIVE HEARING
Petitioners , FLORIDA MANUFACTURED HOUSING ASSOCIATION, INC. ,
a not-for-profit corporation in the state of Florida and TED
KELCHNER, do hereby petition the Florida Department of Community
Affairs for formal administrative hearing on the Notice of Intent
to find that the comprehensive plan for Okeechobee County is in
compliance with the County and Municipal Planning and Land
Development Regulation Act. In support thereof the Petitioners
do state:
PARTIES
1. The FLORIDA MANUFACTURED HOUSING ASSOCIATION, INC.
(hereafter FMHA) is a not-for-profit Florida corporation whose
members are individuals who are engaged in the manufactured
housing industry in the State of Florida. A substantial number
of the members of the FMHA operate businesses in Okeechobee
County, Florida. The FMHA's purpose is to represent the interest
AUG- 4-92 TUE 15 :22 Michael Wm. Morel ! 904 4258301 P. 12
of its members before the various state and local governmental
agencies relating to the business of manufacturing and sales of
manufactured housing, and the development of mobile home parks ,
mobile home subdivisions and placement of manufactured homes on
individual lots as residential housing. The FMHA has its
principal place of business at 115 North Calhoun Street, Suite 5,
Tallahassee, Florida 32301.
2. Ted Kelchner is a person who resides in Okeechobee
County, owns property in Okeechobee County, and operates a
business in which he is engaged in the sales and service of
manufactured housing in Okeechobee County, Florida. Mr.
Kelchner's business address is Mr. Ted Kelchner, Family Homes,
145 Highway 441, S.E. , Okeechobee, Florida 34974.
STANDING
3. Okeechobee County has adopted a comprehensive plan
pursuant to Chapter 163 , Part II , Florida Statutes. That plan
was adopted after three public hearings and two workshop public
hearings in Okeechobee County. The FMHA, by and through its
representatives, did participate in public hearing on September
16, 1990. Ted Kelchner participated in the September 16 , 1992 ,
October 10, 1991, and April 2 , 1992 public hearings. The TKHA
submitted written comments to Okeechobee County and the
Department of Community Affairs objecting to certain provisions
of the plan during the adoption process. (A copy of these
comments are attached as Exhibit "A" to this Petition) . .As such
the Petitioners are "affected persons" , as that term is defined
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in section 163 . 3184 , Florida Statutes.
4 . The Department of Community Affairs published notice of
an intent to approve the local government comprehensive plan on
July 12, 1992 . The Petitioners have reviewed said notice of
intent and do hereby timely request a formal administrative
hearing pursuant to sections 120.57 , 163 . 3184(9) , Florida
Statutes.
MATERIAL FACTS AT ISSUE
The material facts which are at issue in this proceeding are as
follows:
5. In its adopted comprehensive plan Okeechobee County
states that the local government will require that:
New mobile home parks be located on sites no smaller
than 20 acres; mobile home subdivisions be located on
site no smaller than 40 acres; and to require that
developers of new mobile home parks or subdivisions
provided adequate hurricane shelter space for residents
of such parks or subdivisions. No existing mobile home
park or subdivision may be expanded unless adequate on-
site hurricane shelter space is provided for current
residents as well as new residents of the park or
subdivision.
Policy H1 .4
The Okeechobee comprehensive plan states further, as
follows :
Upon plan adoption, Okeechobee County will develop
standards for providing adequate hurricane shelter
space to mobile home residents, to be included in its
land developed regulations.
Policy H1.5
6. The Okeechobee County comprehensive plan establishes
boundaries for future land development. Those boundaries
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AUG- 4-92 TUE 15 :23 Michael Wm. Morell
904 4258301 P. 14
preclude, when coupled with the minimum land requirements for
mobile home parks and subdivisions , development of either of
these types of ,housing projects in the future.
7. No similar restrictions are applied to any other types
of residential housing development by the Okeechoobee County
comprehensive plan.
8. These comprehensive plan sections violate the terms of
section 163. 3177(6) (f)4. , Florida Statutes, section 187.201(5) ,
Florida Statutes , Rule 9J-5.010, Florida Administrative Code and
section 320. 8285, Florida Statutes, because the comprehensive
plan does not provide adequate sites for mobile homes; does not
provide meaningful principles and criteria guiding the location
of mobile homes; does not provide policies consistent with the
mandates of section 320 . 8285, Florida Statutes and Chapter 187,
Florida Statutes to prohibit discrimination in housing; and
violates the terms of section 320.8285, Florida Statutes by
discriminating against manufactured housing.
!MA - CTS , I .PPL . :LF LAW_gND RULE,.
9. Section 163 . 3177(6) (f)4. , Florida Statutes, states that
the local government shall include a housing element in the
comprehensive plan which establishes the provision of adequate
sites for . . . mobile homes . . . . Rule 9J-5.010(1) establishes
housing element data requirements including a census of the type
of homes within the community. Rule 9J-5.010(2) provides for a
housing analysis in which the housing need for the expanding
population of the county is estimated as well as the means for
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P. 15
accomplishing "adequate sites for housing for . . . mobile homes"
section 9J-5. 010( 2) (f) 3 . Finally, section 9J-5.010(3) (a) , (b)
provides that the housing element shall establish specific goal
statements for attaining the long term end toward which housing
programs and activities are ultimately directed, and specific
objectives to meet each goal statement. Section 9J-5.010( 3) (c)
provides that the element shall contain one or more policies for
each objective which address implementation activities and
establish principles and criteria guiding the location of mobile
homes as a housing stock in the local government jurisdiction.
10. The Okeechobee County comprehensive plan does not
provide adequate sites for mobile homes and violates the
requirements of the statute and rule by establishing policies
that are:
a. Discriminatory against mobile home parks and
subdivisions by establishing minimum acreage requirements not
imposed against other forms of housing;
b. Discriminatory against manufactured housing by
requiring hurricane shelters for mobile home residents but not
for any other category of housing resident;
c. An increase in governmental regulation for
manufactured housing, which is a significant form of affordable
housing in Okeechobee County, thereby having the effect of making
such housing more expensive;
d. Discriminatory against the development of mobile
home parks and subdivisions by effectively foreclosing or
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limiting development of such types of housing development; and
e. Discriminatory against mobile homes by requiring
specialized permitting and construction procedures for mobile
homes only, which violate federal and state prohibitions against
local government action regulating such matters. §320.8285, Fla.
Stat. , 42 USC §5401 et. seq.
11. The state comprehensive plan section 187.201( 5) (b)
establishes state housing goals and policies, as follows:
(5) HOUSING.-
(a) Goal .-The public and private sectors shall
increase the affordability and availability of housing
for low-income and moderate-income persons, including
citizens in rural areas, while at the same time
encouraging self-sufficiency of the individual and
assuring environmental and structural quality and cost-
effective operations.
(b) Policies.-
1 . Eliminate public policies which result in
housing discrimination, and develop policies which
encourage housing opportunities for all Florida's
citizens.
2 . . . . .
3 . Increase the supply of safe, affordable , and
sanitary housing for low-income and moderate-income
persons and elderly persons by alleviating housing
shortages, recycling older houses and redeveloping
residential neighborhoods, identifying housing needs,
providing incentives to the private sector to build
affordable housing, encouraging public-private
partnerships to maximize the creation of affordable
housing, and encouraging research into low-cost housing
construction techniques, considering life-cycle
operating costs.
4. Reduce the costs of housing construction by
eliminating unnecessary regulatory practices which add
to the cost of housing.
12. Chapter 320, Florida Statutes, provides in relevant
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part as follows:
320 .01 Definitions, general .--As used in the Florida
Statutes, except as otherwise provided, the term:
( 37) "Manufactured home" means a mobile home that was
fabricated on or after June 15, 1976, in an offsite
manufacturing facility for installation or assembly at
the building site, and each section of which bears a
seal that certifies that it is built in compliance with
the federal Manufactured Home Construction and Safety
Standards Act (Pub. L. No. 93-383) .
320.8285 Onsite inspection.
(5) The Department of Highway Safety and Motor
Vehicles shall enforce every provision of this section
and the regulations adopted pursuant hereto, except
that local land use and zoning requirements, fire
zones, building setback and side and year yard
requirements, site development and property line
requirements, subdivision control , and onsite
installation requirements, as well as review and
regulation of architectural and aesthetic requirements ,
are hereby specifically and entirely reserved to local
jurisdictions . However, any architectural or aesthetic
requirement imposed on the mobile home structure itself
may pertain only to roofing and siding materials. Such
local re uir nd re do ers
manufactured homes mkt be reasonable, un orly
' - . and - . • -d wi , • t dist . 'ons as •
wee . - . . •usin• uanu . . -d or • . i a
conventional _manner. located in a mobile home park or a
mobi a home subdiyiion, or.,buf It in conventional
manner.,
13. Section 320.8285 prohibits discriminatory local
government land use practices that favor site-built and other
types of housing over manufactured homes. The Okeechobee County
comprehensive plan violates the statute by establishing minimum
acreage requirements for mobile home parks and subdivisions,
requiring hurricane shelters for mobile home parks and
subdivisions and for individual mobile home residents , requiring
specialized permitting of mobile homes and regulatory
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requirements which are not otherwise required of site-built and
other forms of housing.
WHEREFORE, the Petitioners do hereby request that:
1 . The Department of Community Affairs forward this
request for formal administrative hearing to the- Division of
Administrative Hearings for a formal administrative proceeding
pursuant to section 120.57(1) , Florida Statutes .
2. The Petitioners do hereby request that the Division of
Administrative Hearings take jurisdiction of this matter, hold a
formal administrative hearing pursuant to section 120 .57(1) ,
Florida Statutes and determine that the Okeechobee County
comprehensive plan is not consistent with the requirements of
Chapter 163, Part II, Chapter 187 and Chapter 320, Florida
Statutes, pursuant to the authority cited above.
Respectfully submitted,
JACK M. SKELDING, JR.
DAVID D. EASTMAN
PATRICK J. PHELAN, JR.
Parker, Skelding, Labasky & Corry
Post Office Box 669
Tallahassee, Florida 32302
(904) 222-3730
Fla. Bar Nos. 0134704
0454559
0784818
BURTON C. CONNOR
Burton C. Connor, P.A. 11
301 Northwest Fifth Street :
Okeechobee, Florida 34972
(813) 467-6316
Fla. Bar No. 0254551
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