ARPC January '09 Report

At the Apalachee Regional Planning Council meeting held in Tallahassee on January 29, there were two items of interest discussed that pertained to the City of Apalachicola and could have an impact of future development.

*Council members reviewed and commented on the City of Apalachicola’s recently submitted Evaluation and Appraisal Report (EAR), which included recommended changes to the following major elements of the Comprehensive Plan:

1) Affordable Housing;
2) Riverfront Land Use Conflicts;
3) Traffic Congestion on U.S. 98 and;
4) Storm and Waste Water Management

The council voted unanimously to send the EAR on to the Department of Community Affairs (DCA) and recommended that the city work with Franklin County on the implementation of the four issues listed above.

*There was also a discussion on a new requirement for local governments as it relates to their comprehensive plans. In the State of Florida, the transportation sector produces over 40% of greenhouse gas emissions. Out of the 40 percent, 80 percent comes from vehicular travel, which makes the transportation sector a major source of greenhouse gas pollution. In order to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases produced by transportation, there has to be a reduction in the miles vehicles travel.

To accomplish this, the Florida Legislature enacted HB 697 in the 2008 session, which requires local governments to implement with new land use changes and EAR based amendments, new or enhanced land use planning strategies, including planning for alternative modes of travel, more compact mixed-use development, greater jobs-housing balance, and higher densities in appropriate places.

These new requirements became effective on July 1, 2008 and the DCA is planning on posting on their website at http://www.dca.state.fl.us/ additional documents with guidance on the implementation of HB 697.