Contact Information
Frequently Asked Questions
Home Rule Charter Amendment Referendum
- Will not take away any property rights from property owners in the County or its seven cities.
- Will not restrict the rights of any property owner to annex into any city.
- Will provide additional opportunity for public participation.
- Will establish the Rural Boundary and Rural Area in the Home Rule Charter, providing additional strength to the current regulations in the Seminole County Comprehensive Plan.
- Will provide that the current land use designations of the Seminole County Comprehensive Plan shall control the density and intensity of development on all Rural Lands regardless of whether some of the Rural Area is located within a city in the future.
- Will provide a "check and balance" system on growth management decisions in the Rural Area.
- Will maintain the current process for amending the Rural Boundary - a majority vote of your County-wide elected Board of County Commissioners at a public hearing, where you may voice any concerns.
- Will provide an additional level of review for development of incorporated (in a city) lands in the Rural Area.
- Will provide an opportunity for Seminole County, the seven cities and the Seminole County School Board to work together to manage growth in this important area of Seminole County.
The County Charter is amended through a voter referendum. Citizens vote on whether to approve or disapprove the referendum.
Amendments to the County's urban/rural boundary, as depicted on Exhibit FLU: Special Area Boundaries, may be considered only if all of the following standards are affirmatively met.
A. Demonstration of Need:
1. Are additional urban lands needed to accommodate population, housing or employment projected for the horizon year of this Plan?; or
2. Are additional lands required to support affordable housing or redevelopment goals of the County?; or
3. Are additional lands required to support economic development goals of the County?
B. Locational Analysis of Amendments:
1. Availability of facilities and services, and the orderly, efficient and cost effective provision of service; and
2. Fiscal capacity to provide adopted levels of service; and
3. Protection of environmental and natural resourcesa. Analysis that the amendment would not negatively impact the interconnected system of wetlands/uplands that exist in the Rural area and provide a high quality mosaic of regional significance. This analysis must describe how the amendment protects the wetlands/uplands systems, including:
o Retaining the connectivity of wetlands;
o Retaining/Improving the ecological quality of wetlands; and
o Retaining the functional and structure values of the types of wetlands in the Rural Areab. If amendment to the urban rural boundary is approved, developments shall avoid impact to wetlands to the maximum extent possible by utilization of clustering and other special techniques.
4. Contiguity to existing boundary and urban development patterns so as to discourage urban sprawl; and
5. Adequate transitions to maintain compatibility with adjacent, existing communities.
C. Mandatory Consistency with the Goals, Objectives and Policies of the Plan:
Any proposed amendment to the urban/rural boundary must undergo an assessment of consistency with applicable goals, objectives and policies of this Plan.
The above standards shall be evaluated by means of the preparation of needs analysis statements, economic impact statements, environmental impact statements, and land use compatibility analyses. If an amendment to the urban/rural boundary is adopted, the above referenced documentation shall be submitted as support documents relating to rural/urban area amendments.
In 1988 the citizens of Seminole County voted to create a County charter; a charter establishes the power and authority of the County - it's like a constitution for the County. If the Charter is amended, that means you the voter, decide that additional power or authority is added or taken away from the County.
In 1991, the Board of County Commissioners adopted a Rural Boundary that established a Rural Area in the Comprehensive Plan. The Rural Area is the eastern portion of Seminole County. This area provides for a natural, relaxed lifestyle with large residential lots, light traffic, limited commercial/industrial development, minimal impacts on schools and services and environmental resources. In recent years, this area has been experiencing increasing development pressures.
Why is the Rural Area Important?
Seminole County is the 3rd most densely populated County in the State of Florida. This means we have increased impacts on public services like police and fire protection, roads and schools. Development trends in the Rural Area produce minimal impacts on our school system, roads and public services. Maintaining the Rural Area is also vital to preserving existing natural and recreational lands and environmentally significant resources such as: the Aquifer, Geneva Freshwater Lens, the Econlockhatchee River, the St. Johns River (an American Heritage River), scenic corridors and agricultural uses.
It is a document that guides the way a county or a city develops. Each county and city has their own comprehensive plan with land use designations.