Public Comment Open on Manatee County Land Development Code Rewrite

BRADENTON – Manatee County is moving forward with major changes to its Land Development Code and citizens can comment on proposed changes to the LDC through December 23. The public comment period quietly opened on October 22. The county did not issue a press release, though the process is mentioned on the county website.

The 60-day public comment period runs through the Thanksgiving holiday and closes the day before Christmas Eve, creating what might be considered a less-than-opportune timeline for public involvement in the process. The county says that the changes will move forward in two phases.

The first phase revisions primarily serve to "reorganize and clean up inconsistencies within the LDC" and a second that will be presented at a later date, will incorporate changes consistent with the county's “How Will We Grow” plan.

Click here to download the county's presentation on LDC changes. Citizens may direct their comments to robert.schmitt@mymanatee.org until December 23, 2013.

County staff will meet with interested parties after the review period to answer questions that a particular person or group may have. After public comments are collected, the county says revisions will be made where deficiencies are discovered.