The Pensacola City Council waded into the neighborhood dispute that I reported last month during a quasi-judicial hearing on Oct. 22. The special meeting focused on reviewing an Architectural Review Board (ARB) decision concerning a new multi-family residential project at 627 East Government St., which once was the site of attorney Bob Kerrigan’s office.
- The variances granted reduced the front setback on Government Street from the code-required 15 feet to zero and the rear setback on Bayfront Parkway from 20 feet to 9 feet, to build a 34-foot-tall structure with 10 residential units above ground-floor parking. The ARB had initially approved the request in a 4-1 vote.
Process Errors
However, the appeal brought by neighboring homeowners and local HOAs hinged on whether the ARB had met the three required legal standards for a land-use decision. Assistant City Attorney Kia Goldsmith quickly conceded a significant error. ”The architectural review board did not swear in any of the witnesses that testified,” she stated, noting this could be “considered a reversible error”5.
Attorney Meredith Bush, who represented the residents, argued that none of the three criteria for a lawful decision were met. The most glaring was failing to swear in the witnesses, which Assistant City Attorney Kia Goldsmith quickly conceded, noting it could be “considered a reversible error.”
- Beyond the unsworn testimony, Bush alleged a denial of due process, including residents being “denied the opportunity to cross-examine the applicant and any witnesses.” She claimed the ARB “chilled public comment” by restricting citizens to speaking only on evidentiary issues without proper explanation.
On the core decision itself, she asserted the variances were not the “minimum variance necessary” for reasonable use of the land. She called the ARB’s decision “at best an unsupported conclusion,” and “at worst, arbitrary or favoritism.”
Defending ARB Vote
Spencer defended the ARB chair for having “rightfully corrected and tried to manage the speakers to say you have to speak to the variance.” He also pointed out that the current building on the site already has a “zero-foot setback” and that the new proposal “moves back four feet at the ground floor.”
- He questioned the procedural attack on the swearing-in, asking, “What does that do for the past decades of other variances that have been heard by the ARB and have been passed without any swearing in, just open the floodgates?”
Neighbor Kevin Stephens complained about a “perception… of favoritism” given the applicant’s prior board service. Brian Spencer served on the Pensacola City Council from 2011 to 2018.
He highlighted the stark contrast in enforcement, noting a neighbor was “literally having to take brick off the side of his house because he was two inches over or three inches over.”
- Ultimately, the Pensacola City Council, tasked with deciding whether to confirm, reverse, or remand the decision, voted 4-1 to vacate the decision and remand the variance back to the ARB for rehearing.