Collier County’s Workshop Focused on Smart Growth
Collier County’s Board of County Commissioners hosted a workshop on March 5th regarding “Future Land Use and Build Out” for Collier County. The Conservancy was pleased that the workshop’s focus was on smart growth.
County staff began the workshop with a presentation of key planning initiatives that were created to help guide the county’s growth and development. Among those planning initiatives is Collier County’s Community Character Plan, which provides the community’s vision for the preferred type of development. The Community Character Plan recommends that all new development should model traditional neighborhood design, similar to downtown Naples. Traditional neighborhoods are compact, walkable to retail, offer greater housing choices, and preserve open space and natural resources.
During the public comment period, April Olson, senior environmental planning specialist for the Conservancy, stated that even though the Community Character Plan encourages traditional neighborhood design, Collier County has often taken an opposite approach toward development.
Hundreds of low-density gated and isolated subdivisions have been approved which have created traffic congestion and have gobbled up wetlands, agricultural lands and wildlife habitat. Ms. Olson mentioned to the Board of County Commissioners that they have a great opportunity during the current review of the Rural Lands Stewardship Area program (RLSA) to change the direction the county has taken toward development. Going forward the commissioners can ensure that new development in eastern Collier County is truly sustainable. Otherwise, if the growth plan for the RLSA is not modified, the plan will lead to traffic congestion, severe fiscal impacts to the county, and significant impacts to wildlife. As a solutions-based organization, the Conservancy continues to advocate for policies that would fix the fundamental flaws of the RLSA (Link to handout).
Several other comments were made by the public, including support for infill development before encouraging new development, the need to better protect natural resources and critical wildlife habitats, and concern over impacts to water resources. Also, there seemed to be overarching support for requiring new developments to implement design standards from the Community Character Plan. Others provided comments in support of the county’s Master Mobility Plan, which is a plan aimed to reduce vehicle miles traveled, congestion, and greenhouse gasses, and to increase mobility options.
Following public comment, an encouraging discussion by the County Commissioners ensued regarding solutions for attaining smarter growth. Commissioners McDaniel suggested the idea of amending the growth management plan (GMP) to allow density rights to be transferred from rural planning areas to urban areas; thereby increasing preservation of rural areas. Commissioner Taylor stated that the county should consider changing the language of the GMP so that new developments are “required” to adhere to smart growth design principles, rather than being merely “encouraged” doing so. Commissioner Fiala pointed out that in the past the Board has granted too many deviations for development projects and that this practice should be reconsidered. Finally, County Manager, Leo Ochs, suggested that the County could add a Smart Growth checklist to be used during the staff’s review of development projects. The checklist could include elements of smart growth principles as embodied in the Community Character Plan and the land development code.
The Conservancy is encouraged by the county staff and Commissioners’ overall acknowledgment that more needs to be done toward achieving smarter growth and for implementing design principles from the Community Character Plan. Smarter and more sustainable design standards, in addition to advocating for the removal of new development in habitat essential for the endangered Florida panther remains the Conservancy’s focus, especially as the RLSA review continues.
The final Rural Lands Stewardship workshop is scheduled for March 28 at 6:00 pm at North Regional Community Park, 15000 Livingston Road. We hope to see you there!
