02/14/1984
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STATE OF FLORIDA
DIVISION OF ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS
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ANN KELLER,
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Petit.ioner,
VB.
CASE NO.
83-3703
CITY OF CLEARWATER,
Respondent., )
and )
WILLIAM A. BORJA, ) ,
Intervenor.
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ORDER
Pursuant to notice, the Division of Administrative
Hearings, by it.s duly designated Hearing Officer, K. N. Ayers,'
held a public hearing in the above-styled case on January 26,
1984, at Glearwater, Florida.
APPEARANCES
For Petitioner:
william J. Kimpton, Esq.
487 Mandalay Avenue
Clearwater, Florida 33515
For Respondent:
Frank A. Kowalski, Esq.
Post Office Box 4748
Clearwater, Florida 33518
William A. Borja, Esq.
201 South Fort Harrison Avenue
Suite 204
Clearwater, Florida 33516
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For Intervenor:
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By letter dated November 21, 1983, received in the
office of the City Clerk, Clearwater, on November 22, 1983,
William A. Borja, Esquire, appeals the decision of the Board
" '. . ,of:i\.d:)ustment .and Appeal on Zoning granting a variance in
ii~!t:",:::~::::r ~e:::::d:~n:O f:nl::i~::~ted at 601 Oberlin Drive.
~;:r~::< .,;;;.> <'~', '.. ..,' At the ,commencement of the hearing, Petitioner. filed"
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filed, in that it was not filed within ten days of the decision
of the Board of Adjustment and Appeal on zoning. Ruling on
that motion was reserved at the hearing and the Intervenor was
allowed to present evidence. Three witnesses were called and
two exhibits were admitted into evidence. In view of the rul-
ing on the Motion to oismiss, the facts become immaterial.
However, th~ evidence submitted by appellant consists primarily,
if not solely, of testimony that the area is subject to flooding
and photographs of the lot and adjacent residences.
Proposed findings submitted by the parties insofar
as they'are included herein are adopted; otherwise, they are
rejected as unsupported by the evidence, immaterial, or
unnecessary to the results reached.
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FINDINGS OF FACT
1. Ann Keller was granted a variance to construct,
a. dwelling ten feet from the front property line at 601 '
Oberlin Drive, Clearwater, Florida, and these proceedings
follow an appeal from that decision of the Board of Adjust-
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ment and Appeal on Zoning.
2. The area is zoned RF-75 (single family) and the
proposed construction conforms to this zoning.
3. This lot has a drainage easement over the back
one-half (away from Oberlin Drive) which leaves a minimum
depth .of approximately 30 feat from the drainage easement to
the front of the lot. Without the requested variance of 15 feet ~
from the 25-foot setback, there would be little more than
five feet on which to build. With the requested variance,
Petitioner proposes to construct a residence 65 feet wide and
,20 feet deep.
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4.
Appellant contends that the area is subject to
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~r,'., . ,', '.~~m~n:~~. .cu~~ert 21. 5 feet wide, the cree,k' flOW~~~, ~hrOUgh , ., . .>:.::
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flooding, the drainage easement on this lot includes a
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this culvert frequently overflows and floods Oberlin Drive
and yardB acroaB Oberlin" from this lot, yet no evidence was
submitted to show how or why the construction of a residence
on this lot would affect the flooding of Oberlin Drive or
the adjacent lots. Protestants contend the area is in a
flood plain and homes should not be built in a flood plain.
The extent of this flood plain was not shown so it cannot be
said that protestants' homes are not also located in this
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flood plain.'
5. The setback variance is the only variance
. requested and here involved.
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CONCLUSIONS OF LAW
. The Division of Administrative Hearings has juris-
diction over the parties to, and the subject matter of; these
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proceedings.
This appeal was instituted by letter dated November 21,.
1983, from William A. Borja, attorney at law. Nowhere in this
letter does Mr. Borja state that the appeal is being made by
adjoining property owners or that he represents parties having
standing to protest the action of the Board of Adjustment and
Appeal on Zoning. Mr. Borja does not have standing to
prosecute this appeal and the appeal could be dismissed upon
that ground. At the hearing several of the owners of adjacent
properties appeared and Mr. Borja stated that they were his.
clients.
Petitioner moved to dismiss this appeal as being
untimely filed. There was no dispute that the decision of
. ,t~e Board' Of.Adjustment and.Appeal on zoning was rendered
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(2) Appeals to the zoning appeal hearing
officer shall be commenced through '
the filing of a notice of appeal with
the city clerk within ten (10) days .
of the decision of the board of
adjustment and appeal on zoning.
Appellant contends that his client's letter dated'
November 14, 1983, addressed to the Mayor. of Clearwater, with
a copy to the City Attorney, satisfied the timeliness
requirement of the code. That seven-page, hand-written letter
,
goes to great length to explain the flooding problems existing
at Oberlin Drive and, while the letter comnences with the
author's attendance at the Zoning Board hearing at which the
,inst.ant variance was granted, nowhere in this letter does the
author request a reversal of that decision. Even if that
letter could be interpreted as an appeal from.that decision
of the Board, it was not filed with the City Clerk as required
by the regulation above-quoted.
Where rules and regulations specify. a particular
time for appealing actions of courts or agencies, the courts
(t..:
generally consider those time restrictions jurisdictional and
not subject to waiver by courts or agencies. .In holding that
the Public Employees Relations Commission (PERC) had the power
to enact rules which authorize motions to reconsider, but
they do not have authority to grant extensions of time for
filing such a motion, the court stated in City of Hollywood'v.
PERC, 432 So.2d 79 (Fla. 4th DCA 1983) at p. 01:
fa)
By analogizing an agency's inherent power
to that of a court of general jurisdiction,
we conclude that if a circuit court cannot
,extend the time for filing a motion for a
new trial in a criminal case, then it would
seem to follow that an agency cannot extend
the time for fiJi.nn a motiol'l. for reconsidera-
tion in an administrative proceeding.
; ,
Since the appeal in this case was filed more than ten
(10), days following the rendering of the decision of the Board
t . .
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~;t,,\,':i!r;~;~:".:':juriBdi'ction to consider the appeal. It is therefore'
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CASE NO.
83-3703
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ORDERED that the appeal of Wil1iam A. Borja b~
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dismissed.
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DONE AND ORDERED this
I f./1L/day of February, 1984,
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at Tallahassee, Florida.
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, Hear~ng Officer
Administrative. Hearings
Department of Administration
Oakland Building ,
2009 Apalachee Parkway
Tallahassee, Florida 32301
'904/488-9675
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FILED with the Clerk of the Division d '
of Administrative Hearings this llt,IIt",,-,
day of February r 1984 ~ '", ,.,
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:copies' furnished
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to:
WilliamJ. Kimpton, Esq.
487 Mandalay Avenue
Clearwater, Florida 33515
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Frank A. Kowalski, Esq.
Post. Office Box 4748
Clearwater, Florida 33518
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William. A. Borja, Esq. '
201 South Fort Har~ison Avenue
Suite 204
Clearwate~, Florida 33516
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Ms. Lucille
City. Clerk
Post Office
Clearwater,
W'illiams
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Box 4748
Florida 33518
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