Chapter 1.1: Land Use
The Principal Land Use Regulatory Elements (Zoning Code/FLUM/BBIO)
On this page, there are three key elements:
- Summary
- Full text for this section of the Neighborhood Plan
- Short survey
Summary:
Charlotte County currently has three main types of regulations that help protect Palm Island from overdevelopment including zoning, the Future Land Use Map and the Bridgeless Barrier Island Overlay. These regulations control what types of buildings are allowed and limit density to single family homes.
However, these rules can be changed at any time. This means there is no guarantee that these protections will remain in place in the future.
To help ensure long term protection, we want the County to:
- support the creation of the Bocilla Islands Chain Conservation District via the 2025 House Bill 4077
- ensure there are no conflicts between this Neighborhood Plan, House Bill 4077, and the County’s Comprehensive Plan
Full Version:
We encourage everyone to read the full version. While we did our best to summarize above, this full version offers much more nuance.
1. The Principal Land Use Regulatory Elements
Charlotte County has specific land use regulations to protect its valuable waterfront properties and barrier islands from overdevelopment. These regulations are designed to align with the Comprehensive Plan. They include zoning codes, future land use designations, and special overlays that control density and development.
- Zoning Code protects property consistency: The Zoning Code assigns districts such as Residential and Commercial. Within our Residential district, we are designated “BBI” (Bridgeless Barrier Island), ensuring land uses are consistent with the Comprehensive Plan. Environmentally Sensitive areas and Planned Development districts like Palm Island Resort have additional protections.
- Future Land Use Map defines density categories: The FLUM divides the land into many categories, corresponding closely to zoning designations on the islands. Our area is mostly “Coastal Residential” which is a low-density residential category (1-5 units/acre).
- Bridgeless Barrier Island Overlay limits densities: Adopted in 1991, this overlay restricts residential density on bridgeless barrier islands to one unit per un-platted acre or platted lot, except where vested rights exist, to address evacuation challenges and exclude these areas from urban service expansion.
Consistent with our present zoning, land use and the Bridgeless Barrier Island Overlay, the vast majority of Islanders continue to want single family residential development at build-out.
Issues regarding the Principal Land Use Regulatory Elements
- The existing regulations were written to protect the Island from high-density development, but they are subject to change at any time by governmental authorities.
- While property owners enjoy this protection now, in the future changes could be enacted that might threaten these safeguards.
Recommendations regarding the Principal Land Use Regulatory Elements
- Encourage the County to support the creation of the Bocilla Islands Chain Conservation District, via the 2025 House Bill 4077, which provides additional protection for the future of Island development, in addition to adopting our Neighborhood Plan.
- Ensure that there are no conflicts between the neighborhood plan, HB 4077 and the County’s Comprehensive Plan.
Survey
Each head of household (up to two per household) may submit the form once. If you submit it more than once, only your most recent submission will count. This also means you can update your response later if you change your mind.
