Subject:
Title
Ordinance amending the Transportation, Capital Improvements, and Intergovernmental Coordination Elements, and the Concurrency Management Section of the Pinellas County Comprehensive Plan (first hearing).
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Recommended Action:
Recommended Action
Conduct a public hearing on the proposed Ordinance amending the Transportation, Capital Improvements and Intergovernmental Coordination Elements, and the Concurrency Management Section of the Pinellas County Comprehensive Plan, authorize transmittal to the State Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) for review, and following receipt of DEO comments schedule a second hearing by the Board of County Commissioners (Board) on the proposed Ordinance.
Body
Strategic Plan:
Foster Continual Economic Growth and Vitality
4.3 catalyze redevelopment through planning and regulatory programs
4.4 invest in infrastructure to meet current and future needs
4.5 provide safe and effective transportation systems to support the efficient flow of motorists, commerce, and regional connectivity
Summary:
The application of transportation concurrency requirements and the assessment of transportation impact fees through the site plan review process are the primary tools utilized by Pinellas County and other local governments to manage the traffic impacts of development projects. Concurrency requirements are traditionally imposed to ensure that development is not permitted without assurance that the public facilities and services necessary to handle the development impact are available. Under the 2011 Community Planning Act, which amended Chapter 163, F.S., the requirement to implement transportation concurrency, including adopted level of service standards for transportation facilities, was repealed. The intent of this change was to enable implementation of more livable community and mobility-oriented solutions to manage transportation impacts.
The Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) subsequently facilitated coordination among the County's local governments to develop a consistent countywide transportation mobility management approach, and multimodal impact fee, as a replacement to transportation concurrency and traditional transportation impact fees.
If the proposed amendments are approved, development projects would be required to pay an impact fee commensurate with the number of new trips they generate on the transportation system. The proposed policy changes also include a tiered review of development projects adding more than 50 new trips during the peak hour on deficient roads. For a development project on a deficient road, its multimodal impact fee may be applied as credit toward the cost of the transportation management strategies that are required to address that project’s impacts on the surrounding transportation system. These strategies could include, for example, trail, sidewalk, bus stop and intersection improvements or trip reduction programs such as vanpooling or telecommuting.
The primary purpose of this Ordinance amending the Comprehensive Plan is to eliminate transportation concurrency and associated level of service standards, and set up the policy framework necessary to implement a more flexible mobility management system and mobility fee in its place. This requires amending the Transportation, Capital Improvements and Intergovernmental Coordination Elements of the Comprehensive Plan as well as the Concurrency Management section of the Plan.
In addition to the mobility management-related amendments, there are also several minor clean-up/corrections proposed. Those revisions include the following:
In the Transportation Element, minor changes recognize current site plan and right-of-way utilization review procedures and practices related to transportation, update the truck route planning policy and correctly recognize the change in the name of the St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport.
Additionally, policy language has been added to recognize the purpose and efficiencies of a Complete Streets approach to transportation planning, which incorporates design and infrastructure to encourage diverse modes of transportation, including bicycle, pedestrian, vehicular, and public transit.
In the Capital Improvements Element, references to a Six-Year Schedule of Improvements have been revised to reflect that the County currently maintains a Ten-Year Capital Improvements Schedule.
In the Intergovernmental Coordination Element, minor changes have been made to reflect the coordination of local governments and partner agencies required to implement the Pinellas County Mobility Management System, MPO corridor plans, and transportation system monitoring.
Finally, the Concurrency Management Section is being revised to eliminate transportation concurrency management and to reflect the current concurrency review process for other facilities and services.
In order to implement the mobility-related policy changes, related amendments are also required to Chapters 134 and 150 of the Pinellas County Land Development Code, which currently implement the County’s concurrency management system and countywide impact fee respectively. The amendments to these chapters of the Land Development Code were originally heard by the Local Planning Agency (LPA) and the Board in late 2014. They are anticipated to be adopted along with these Comprehensive Plan amendments in early 2016, after the State and State-review agencies complete their review of the Comprehensive Plan amendments. While the review process is underway, staff will continue to work on the details and processes required to implement the new mobility management system and fee.
Background Information:
This amendment package was originally heard by the LPA and the Board in late 2014; however, it became evident after the amendments were transmitted for review to the State Department of Economic Opportunity, that the all of the municipalities were not quite ready to take action on their corresponding amendment packages. This was important as the mobility fee, similar to the existing countywide impact fee, is a countywide fee and approach, requiring countywide agreement on both the policy and regulatory approach. Consequently, adoption of the County’s original amendment package was postponed until each of the municipalities was ready to adopt their related amendment packages. At this time, with the municipalities now on a similar timeline, the County is ready to proceed with its amendment package.
The LPA voted 5-0 to recommend approval of the proposed Comprehensive Plan amendments at a public hearing on September 10, 2015.
Fiscal Impact:
No additional costs will be incurred by Pinellas County in the implementation of the Mobility Management System.
Staff Member Responsible:
Gordon Beardslee, Director, Planning
Partners:
Municipalities
Metropolitan Planning Organization