Scott E. Rudacille, Esq., Board Certified in City, County and Local Government Law
The City of Anna Maria adopted a comprehensive Vacation Rental Ordinance (“VRO”) in April of 2015. This VRO was challenged in court, and was subsequently amended a number of times by the City prior to the final version being adopted on November 19, 2015. Amongst other regulations, the VRO places a limit on the maximum number of occupants that a vacation rental may contain. The occupancy limitation applicable to a particular house is calculated based upon the number and sizes of bedrooms, but also contains an absolute maximum occupancy of eight people.
Due to the multiple revisions to the VRO and various notices sent out by the City, there was some confusion as to the timeframe within which a property owner could file a claim to seek relief under the Bert J. Harris Jr. Private Property Rights Protection Act, Section 70.001, Florida Statutes. In order to address these concerns, on November 30, 2016, the City Commission for the City of Anna Maria voted to extend the Harris Act filing deadline to January 15, 2017. After this date, property owners will likely be forever barred from pursuing a claim for relief from the VRO under the Harris Act.
If you have questions about the impact of these regulations or your ability to seek relief under the Harris Act, please contact real estate, land use and local government law attorney Scott Rudacille at 941.748.0100 or srudacille@blalockwalters.com.
