JAMES A. SPORL, KEN CARMICHAEL, MARG HENLEY, JULIUS LEVINE, OTTO PROCHASKA, BRITTON STAMPS, AND HENRY WILLETT, AS AND CONSTITUTING THE BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT OF THE CITY OF GULF BREEZE, PETITIONERS,
v.
HONORABLE GEORGE E. LOWREY, AS ONE OF THE JUDGES OF THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIRST JUDICIAL CIRCUIT, IN AND FOR SANTA ROSA COUNTY, FLORIDA, RESPONDENT

Fla. 1st DCA | 1983-05-06
No. AR-87
ROBERT P. SMITH, Jr., C.J., and LARRY G. SMITH, J., concur.
431 So. 2d 245 Florida District Court of Appeal, First District (1983) Positive Treatment
Cited by 2 cases

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Synopsis

The Board of Adjustment of the City of Gulf Breeze sought a writ of prohibition to prevent the circuit court from exercising jurisdiction over a certiorari petition challenging the Board's grant of variances to Exxon Corporation. The court denied the Board's petition, holding that local municipal boards of adjustment are not state agencies under Florida's Administrative Procedure Act and therefore remain subject to judicial review under the local land use statute.


Holding

The Board is not a state agency within the purview of chapter 120 because it is only a local municipal board, not a regional or statewide agency. Therefore, appellate review of the Board's decisions remains controlled by § 163.250, which permits judicial review either by trial de novo or by petition for writ of certiorari in the circuit court.


Headnotes

[1] A municipal board of adjustment is not an "agency" as defined by Chapter 120, Florida Statutes, for purposes of appellate review.

[2] Review of decisions by a municipal board of adjustment is governed by Section 163.250, Florida Statutes, which was not repealed by the enactment of Chapter 120.

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Key Quotes

“Any person or persons, jointly or severally, aggrieved by any decision of the board of adjustment, or any officer, department, board, commission, or bureau of the governing body, may apply to the circuit court in the judicial circuit where the board of adjustment is located for judicial relief within 30 days after rendition of the decision by the board of adjustment.”

Establishes the statutory basis for judicial review of board of adjustment decisions under § 163.250.

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Facts & Procedural History

The Board of Adjustment granted variances to Exxon Corporation. Raymond L. Williams, a member of the City Council and citizen of Gulf Breeze, filed a …

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Opinion of the Court
THOMPSON, Judge.

THOMPSON, Judge.

In this petition for writ of prohibition the Board of Adjustment of the City of Gulf Breeze (the Board), seeks to prohibit the lower court from exercising jurisdiction over a petition for writ of certiorari. We deny the relief requested.

After the Board granted Exxon Corporation certain variances, Raymond L. Williams, a member of the City Council of the City of Gulf Breeze and a citizen, resident, property owner, elector, and taxpayer of the City of Gulf Breeze, filed a petition for writ of certiorari in the Santa Rosa County Circuit Court. Williams argued that the Board’s grant of the variances was improper for various reasons which are not germane to the disposition of this petition. The Board argued that the circuit court was without jurisdiction to hear the petition for writ of certiorari because the Board was an agency as defined in § 120.52(l)(b), Fla. Stat., and ultimately requested that the cause be transferred to this court. The circuit court found that the Board is not an agency as defined by § 120.52(1), nor within the purview of §§ 120.68(1), .68(2), Fla. Stat., that § 120.72(l)(a), Fla.Stat. did not repeal § 163.250, Fla.Stat., and concluded that review of the Board’s decisions was controlled by § 163.250, which states:

Any person or persons, jointly or severally, aggrieved by any decision of the board of adjustment, or any officer, department, board, commission, or bureau of the governing body, may apply to the circuit court in the judicial circuit where the board of adjustment is located for judicial relief within 30 days after rendition of the decision by the board of adjustment. Review in the circuit court shall be either by a trial de novo, which shall be governed by the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure, or by petition for writ of certiorari, which shall be governed by the Florida Appellate Rules. The election of remedies shall lie with the appellant.

We agree with the finding of the trial judge that the Board is not an agency with in the purview of chapter 120. Section 120.52(l)(b) defines an agency as:

Each other state officer and each state department, departmental unit described in s. 20.04, commission, regional planning agency, board, district, and authority, including, but not limited to, those described in chapters 160, 163, 298, 373, 380, and 582, except any legal entity or agency created in whole or in part pursuant to chapter 361, part II. (emphasis added).

Under this definition, the only agencies within the purview of chapter 120 are state officers, departments or units and regional agencies, boards, districts, and authorities. The only regional or statewide agencies authorized by chapter 163 are regional transportation authorities, §§ 163.565-.572, Fla. Stat., and the advisory council on intergovernmental relations, §§ 163.701-.708, Fla. Stat. Although the Board was created pursuant to chapter 163, it is only a local municipal board and is not a regional or statewide agency. It therefore is not a chapter 120 agency and appellate review of the Board’s decisions is controlled by § 163.-250 as this section was not repealed by the enactment of chapter 120.

The petition for writ of prohibition is DENIED.

ROBERT P. SMITH, Jr., C.J., and LARRY G. SMITH, J., concur.


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Citator

Cited By

  • Thompson v. Planning Comm'n OF the City OF Jacksonville, 464 So. 2d 1231 (Fla. 1st DCA 1985)
    …ission’s final action would be by direct appeal to the district court. Regrettably that course of action is not available. The Planning Commission is not an agency as defined by Section 120.52(l)(b) or (c), Florida Statutes. Accord, Sporl v. Lowrey, 431 So. 2d 245 (Fla. 1st DCA 1983). . Section 708.101(vvw) of the Jacksonville Municipal Code provides: "A variance is a relaxation of the terms of this Zoning Code which will not be contrary to the public interest and where, owing to conditions peculiar to the p…

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