Council Retracts Parking Review Changes

Those in attendance at the December 4 Marco Island City Council Meeting found the atmosphere within the council chambers to be uncomfortable to say the least, and it had nothing to do with whether or not the HVAC system was in the proper working order. It instead had to do with the level of irritation regarding a potential change in the city’s Land Development Code (LDC) which some believed would threaten their property values.

The issue began a few months ago when the chairman of a condo board at the south end of the island and across from the Marriott inquired of council whether an amendment could be made to the city’s LDC which would potentially allow condominiums to rent out parking for access to the public beach. The council would refer that inquiry to the Planning Board for their review.

City Staff drafted a potential ordinance which was to be discussed by the Planning Board at their December meeting. However, that hearing on such an “overlay district” and change to the LDC was not advertised with adequate notice and the meeting to discuss that matter was canceled, which saw a firestorm of controversy throughout social media and resulted in hundreds of emails opposing those changes.

That outrage by residents mutated into various other scenarios which caused representatives of churches to come forward to clear the air regarding rumors which were not based on facts. MICA’s Executive Director Ruth McCann also came forward to assure nervous residents that they were not considering any changes to their parking configurations.

Numerous condo officers and other owners of beach front residences came forward to oppose the changes. They cited quality of life issues due to overcrowding, lack of public facilities and the impact of property values.

The council retracted their request to have the Planning Board review the proposal and the issue found no support from council to continue the discussion on their part.

Read more about this issue and other actions taken by council in the December 14 issue of the Coastal Breeze News.