OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Local Planning Agency Meeting - September 9, 2026

City Commission & Boards — Wednesday, September 9, 2026
BodyDunedin, Florida
SessionCity Commission & Boards
DateWednesday, September 9, 2026
StatusNEW · FILED
Video Record
0:00 / 48:12

Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

All right.

0:00

Good evening, everyone.

0:02

We're going to start the September 9th 2026 meeting of the local planning agency for the City of Dunedin.

0:08

And I'd like to welcome our distinguished Citizens Academy guests.

0:12

Congratulations to all of you.

0:14

I hope you're enjoying that program.

0:16

It's great.

0:17

You too.

0:18

It's how it starts, and you may be up here someday.

0:20

So good luck to all of you, and I hope you really enjoy that program.

0:24

It's wonderful.

0:25

Good.

0:26

Okay.

0:27

The local planning agency is an advisory board of citizens appointed by the City Commission.

0:32

This board is comprised of volunteers who represent the thoughts and concerns of the community.

0:37

The purpose of tonight's meeting is to make recommendations to the City Commission regarding each item on the agenda.

0:43

Tonight's format will be as follows.

0:45

I will introduce each item on the agenda, after which the city representative will present information about it.

0:52

Thereafter, members of the local planning agency will have the opportunity to ask questions of the city representative.

0:58

Finally, anyone from the public may come forward.

1:01

Those from the public wishing to provide comment will need to please approach the lectern.

1:06

And for the court comments to be recorded.

1:08

Individual public speakers will be limited to three minutes of speaking time, and we kindly request that speakers are respectful of the clock countdown.

1:16

Citizens speaking on an agenda item or during citizen comment shall not engage in loud, boisterous and/or disruptive speech or conduct.

1:25

Any speaker that has continued inappropriate or relevant comments will be requested to relinquish the podium.

1:31

Okay.

1:33

Our first item, will anybody be giving testimony this evening?

1:38

Okay.

1:39

So it doesn't look like we have to swear anybody in.

1:41

Okay.

1:41

The first item on our agenda tonight is to approve the August 12th, 2026 uh LPA minutes.

1:47

Are there any corrections, additions, or deletions to the minutes?

1:52

No.

1:53

Okay.

1:54

Hearing none, do I hear a motion to accept the minutes as submitted?

1:57

Aye.

1:58

Second.

2:00

Sally made the motion.

2:02

Deborah seconded.

2:04

All in favor, please say aye.

2:05

Aye.

2:06

Any opposed?

2:08

Okay.

2:08

Motion passed unanimously.

2:11

Okay.

2:12

All right.

2:13

Item one B: information and educational discussion with the local planning agency regarding the application of city compatibility standards.

2:21

So, George, we will kick it over to you.

2:24

What should we know?

2:25

Thank you, Chair Benjamin, members of the LPA, George Kinney on behalf of the community development department.

2:29

So I know that when we do orientation with you all, you kind of get a brief feel for what compatibility is and how we apply it, but we wanted to take kind of take a little bit of a deeper dive with you all and just kind of talk to you about the history of it, uh, how we use it, how we apply it, and how we how we uh uh uh uh use it when we're reviewing, particularly design review projects, which is primarily what you all see.

2:53

So uh I'm just gonna walk through these slides very quickly.

2:56

I want to this should be very informal.

2:58

Feel free to cut me off with questions uh at any time, or you can wait to the end, however you want to do it.

3:03

I you know, we're I'm just here to walk through the slides and then answer any questions you have on it.

3:07

I think it'll probably be easiest just to do questions as each slide goes through versus back and forth.

3:12

Sure.

3:12

That sounds good.

3:14

So um very quickly, I just want to kind of lay out the history of our compatibility policy.

3:19

So our compatibility policy has been in play, believe it or not, since 1997.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Zoning Enforcement█████████████████████████████████████████████53%
Economic Development████████████14%
Procedural████████10%
Affordable Housing████████10%
Community Engagement█████6%
Engineering And Infrastructure███4%
Environmental Protection███3%
Summary of Proceedings

Local Planning Agency Meeting - September 9, 2026

The Local Planning Agency (LPA) met on September 9, 2026, at 6:00 PM to approve the previous meeting's minutes and receive an educational presentation on the application of city compatibility standards. The meeting was chaired by Chair Benjamin, and no public testimony was offered.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of August 12, 2026 LPA Meeting Minutes: The minutes were reviewed and approved unanimously via a motion by Sally, seconded by Deborah, with no corrections or objections.

Discussion Items

  • Presentation on City Compatibility Standards: George Kinney from the Community Development Department delivered a detailed presentation on the history, purpose, and application of compatibility standards. Key points included:
    • The compatibility policy has been in place since 1997, originating in the 2015 Comprehensive Plan and carried through to the current Stride for 2035 plan (Objective 2.9).
    • The policy is a "shall" statement: development deemed not compatible will be denied.
    • Compatibility analysis considers nearby development patterns, future planning documents (e.g., corridor plans, CRA master plan), and context such as setbacks, height, massing, and architectural style.
    • Staff considers compatibility provisions to carry as much or more weight than other design standards; approved heights may be substantially less than zoning allows.
    • The state's Live Local affordable housing initiative preempts local compatibility rules on height, density, floor area ratio, and parking for qualifying projects. An example was given of a four-acre site near the bowling alley that could see up to 30 units per acre under Live Local, with administrative approval only.
    • The distinction between "catalyst projects" (spurring new development patterns, like the Azul apartments in the FXM zoning district) and "entitlements" (development rights contingent on meeting all code provisions) was discussed.
    • The 444 Skinner Street project was used as an example where staff recommended denial of a four-story proposal deemed incompatible with surrounding two-story homes, despite the project meeting dimensional standards. A three-story version was ultimately approved.
    • Matt Jackson from the Economic Development Department joined to discuss the upcoming CRA master plan update and the role of incentives (e.g., $610,000 for the Flats on Maine affordable housing project).
    • Comparisons to other municipalities: Clearwater and Oldsmar have weaker compatibility standards, making Dunedin's approach more prescriptive and requiring early developer engagement.
    • A compatibility bill passed by the state now requires cities to codify mitigation strategies in the land development code; the city is working on this as part of a larger code rewrite expected to start by end of 2026 and be implementable after October 2027.
  • Commissioner and Member Questions: Members raised concerns about the Live Local project's public perception, the need for additional architectural styles in the Cooper Johnson guidelines, the subjectivity of catalyst projects, density challenges on transitional corridors, and the balance between maintaining charm and encouraging growth. Staff responded that the code rewrite, corridor studies, and long-term tax base planning aim to address these issues.

Key Outcomes

  • The LPA unanimously approved the August 12, 2026 meeting minutes.
  • No formal action or vote was taken on the compatibility presentation; it was an informational item.
  • Staff committed to:
    • Providing updates on the Live Local project as it progresses.
    • Considering an evaluation of the Cooper Johnson architectural styles for potential additions.
    • Continuing the code rewrite process and bringing a draft to the LPA before the end of 2026.
  • Upcoming LPA business: A design review for the townhomes at 2650 Sunrise (across from the wastewater treatment plant) is scheduled for the next meeting.

Meeting Transcript

All right. Good evening, everyone. We're going to start the September 9th 2026 meeting of the local planning agency for the City of Dunedin. And I'd like to welcome our distinguished Citizens Academy guests. Congratulations to all of you. I hope you're enjoying that program. It's great. You too. It's how it starts, and you may be up here someday. So good luck to all of you, and I hope you really enjoy that program. It's wonderful. Good. Okay. The local planning agency is an advisory board of citizens appointed by the City Commission. This board is comprised of volunteers who represent the thoughts and concerns of the community. The purpose of tonight's meeting is to make recommendations to the City Commission regarding each item on the agenda. Tonight's format will be as follows. I will introduce each item on the agenda, after which the city representative will present information about it. Thereafter, members of the local planning agency will have the opportunity to ask questions of the city representative. Finally, anyone from the public may come forward. Those from the public wishing to provide comment will need to please approach the lectern. And for the court comments to be recorded. Individual public speakers will be limited to three minutes of speaking time, and we kindly request that speakers are respectful of the clock countdown. Citizens speaking on an agenda item or during citizen comment shall not engage in loud, boisterous and/or disruptive speech or conduct. Any speaker that has continued inappropriate or relevant comments will be requested to relinquish the podium. Okay. Our first item, will anybody be giving testimony this evening? Okay. So it doesn't look like we have to swear anybody in. Okay. The first item on our agenda tonight is to approve the August 12th, 2026 uh LPA minutes. Are there any corrections, additions, or deletions to the minutes? No. Okay. Hearing none, do I hear a motion to accept the minutes as submitted? Aye. Second. Sally made the motion. Deborah seconded. All in favor, please say aye. Aye. Any opposed? Okay. Motion passed unanimously. Okay. All right. Item one B: information and educational discussion with the local planning agency regarding the application of city compatibility standards. So, George, we will kick it over to you. What should we know? Thank you, Chair Benjamin, members of the LPA, George Kinney on behalf of the community development department.

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