City Council Workshop on Free to Garden Act and Pathways for Urban Agriculture – August 20, 2026
City Council Workshop on Free to Garden Act and Pathways for Urban Agriculture – August 20, 2026
This workshop, held on August 20, 2026 at City Hall, was convened by Council Vice President Joe Carlucci and District 7 Councilmember Jimmy Peluso, along with representatives from the Mayor's Office and city planning departments. The purpose was to discuss the proposed "Free to Garden Act" and the administration's alternative "Pathways for Urban Agriculture Act," focusing on clarifying regulations for urban gardening, community gardens, and market gardens in Jacksonville. Public testimony was heard, and detailed discussions covered definitions, sales limits, variance fees, HOA conflicts, and next steps for companion legislation on home occupations.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Jennifer Lincoln, a small business owner and chair of the digital county agricultural place, stated that Jacksonville lacks a land use category for urban gardens, forcing many to operate in a gray area. She expressed strong support for clear rules that define market gardens, protect neighbors, and allow on-site sales, noting that current code can lead to citations for lack of a Certificate of Use even when no appropriate category exists. She emphasized the need for reasonable standards on hours, noise, lighting, composting, and parking.
- Nathan, another community member, thanked the council and city staff for the workshop and expressed appreciation for the collaborative effort to develop a workable policy, noting that the community has long desired to be in the room to workshop solutions.
Discussion Items
- Home Occupation Bill Update: Councilmember Peluso reported that the Home Occupation Bill (phase one) aligns city code with recent Florida state law, allowing homesteaded properties to sell home-produced goods. The bill was delayed due to special overlay requirements in areas like Riverside Avondale and Springfield. It is now scheduled for committee hearings on August 31, 2026 (Neighborhoods, Rules, and Land Use & Zoning committees) and a final city council vote on September 8, 2026. The bill applies citywide.
- Pathways for Urban Agriculture Act Proposal: The administration, led by Britney Norris (Mayor's Office) and Planning Director Parola, presented this alternative to the Free to Garden Act. Key provisions include:
- Defining "urban agriculture," "community garden," and "market garden" in the zoning code.
- Allowing community and market gardens in all residential and commercial districts.
- Market gardens may conduct on-site sales of goods grown on site up to 12 times per year, from sunrise to sunset.
- Gardens cannot exceed 2.5 acres.
- Structures over 30 inches must comply with building codes.
- Prohibits heavy equipment except during active work; requires compliance with fertilizer and runoff regulations.
- A variance process is available through the Planning Commission for exceeding those limits or modifying standards, with base fees of $1,161 plus $7 per property notification fee (typically totaling $1,300–$1,400).
- Concerns About Variance Fees: Councilmembers Pittman and Chair expressed concerns that the fees are too burdensome for small-scale urban farmers and proposed a one-year pilot with waived or reduced fees. The Chair suggested using up to $10,000–$15,000 from the Northwest Trust Fund for food deserts to cover first-year costs. Councilmember Carlucci opposed general fee waivers, arguing it would set a precedent unfair to other small businesses (e.g., food cart operators) who must pay similar fees. Planning Director noted that notification costs are typically $350 or less.
- Variance Jurisdiction: The Chair asked if variance reviews could be moved from the Planning Commission to the Land Use & Zoning (LUZ) committee to give council members more input. The administration agreed to consider a code amendment for that purpose.
- Existing Rights Clarification: Officials clarified that current code already allows anyone to grow food on their property; the issue is sales. Community gardens have been allowed by the comprehensive plan but not clearly defined in zoning, which this bill remedies.
- HOA Regulations: City staff explained that private HOAs are governed by separate contracts and city code cannot override them, though state law may limit HOA restrictions on certain gardening activities.
- No Revenue Cap: Unlike the original Free to Garden Act, the Pathways bill does not place a cap on dollar sales, only on sale days.
Key Outcomes
- The Home Occupation Bill timeline was confirmed: committees on August 31, full council on September 8.
- The Pathways for Urban Agriculture Act will be revised to address concerns about variance fees and potentially include a fee waiver pilot or reduced fees for the first year. The Chair committed to bringing the revised proposal back for further public discussion before committee hearings.
- Additional meetings may be scheduled to vet the Home Occupation Bill with impacted communities.
- No formal votes were taken; the workshop served as a collaborative working session.
Meeting Transcript
Jimmy Peluso, City Council District 7. Joe Carlucci, District 5. Britney Norris, Mayor's Office. All right. Thank you, everybody, for joining us today. We obviously have a packed room, so thank you all for coming here today, taking time out of your Wednesday morning to be here. This is very important to you all, but to us as well. And um, thank you. I'm grateful to have uh Council Vice President Joe Carlucci here, and obviously uh district council member seven Jimmy Peluso. Uh so today's purpose obviously we're gonna talk about the Free to Garden Act, which is the first rendition of what you guys proposed to us. Uh since then, we've had a conversations with the administration to kind of go over the uh the changes that we're gonna be able to implement and um realistically what is already allowable, what's not allowable, and then what's gonna be the changes. So um I'm gonna open up the floor to um to first of all. I want to see if there's before we because I'm gonna go to public comments at the end, but what I would like to hear from at least two individuals from the public right now to kind of set the tone as to where we're at. And Ms. Pittman, thank you for joining us as well, too. Thank you. All right. Would you rather sit here? I can move them out of the way if you want. Uh okay. I would rather all right. Um, so two people raise your hands to set the tone to kind of talk about what you guys are are wanting and uh kind of let people that not are not familiar with what you guys want. All right, so raise your hands very quick. There you go. One and one more person. All right, perfect. Nathan, there you go. All right, I don't know why it wouldn't be. Let's go. All right, so we'll have uh two minutes just kind of just tell us a brief about what we spoke last time we met. And yeah, go ahead. Okay, good morning, everyone. My name is Jennifer Lincoln. I'm right here in Jacksonville. I'm probably calling this microphone. A long time small business, chair of the digital county agricultural place. I'm here for this Jacksonville has a problem with an opportunity to see that it's simple. Jacksonville does not thank you. Does not currently have a land use category for an urban garden. People throughout our city are growing food for themselves, their neighbors, and their communities, but many are operating in a gray area. In fact, even the IFAS community garden is not street legal. It isn't a gardening problem, it's a rules problem. Suppose I could suppose I buy a vacant lot, I clean it up, I plant vegetables, and I want to sell some that I grow to my neighbors. You would think there's a category that says market garden. Here are the rules. There isn't. Instead, I may have to spend around $5,000 pursuing a PUD before I've sold my first tomato. That is a very expensive tomato. Because there isn't a clear path, many of our urban gardeners, and love that they're here today, operate in this gray area. Usually nobody has a problem until somebody does.
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