IPOC and the appeal not to appeal

‘It is likely that an appeal will be filed by 30th of July.’

MELISSA REID
Staff Writer
mreid@lbknews.com

Since the Town Commission’s decision June 30 to grant approval for the Longboat Key Club’s redevelopment plan, Islandside Property Owner’s Coalition (IPOC) President Bob White has stated he will file an appeal to the commission’s decision.

In a recent letter to Islandside residents, White wrote, “This action would involve a de-novo (new trial) action challenging the approval’s consistency with the town’s Comprehensive Plan.”

In the letter, White also wrote that the cost of the appeal would be in excess of $250,000 and would therefore require financial contributions from Islandside residents who wanted to support the appeal. He also stated that any contributions would be returned pro-rata if they are no longer required or if further opposition was determined to be inadvisable by attorneys.

While several supporters have privately responded to White’s request, two notable public responses to White’s letter have also been received, one from the Longboat Key, Lido Key and St. Armands Key Chamber of Commerce President Tom Aposporos and the other from Lighthouse Point resident B.R. Schaberg.

In a letter to White dated July 14, Aposporos suggested that White should not spend money on an appeal against the Ttown’s decision regarding the Key Club redevelopment plan, but should instead use the money to help support a foundation for the town that Aposporos is forming.

“I realize the division between you and the Longboat Key Club and Resort may linger, but I hope that it has been significantly reduced over the months, even years, of discussion and revision. Your effort on behalf of your constituency has been tireless. I believe you have accomplished a great deal. The newspaper accounts since the Town Commission cast their vote in favor of the last plan submitted by the club indicate that you will mount a legal challenge and that you are raising funds for that purpose,” Aposporos wrote.

“It will not surprise you that I am writing to express a hope that you will not challenge the decision of the commission. I believe there is a better place for your time, expertise and the funds you can raise. Several months ago, I began suggesting to Longboaters that I hoped to see a foundation created for the benefit of our residents and visitors. I envisioned a handful of projects, cultural and physical, that would not change the life here but would compliment and contribute to the goodness of it. Toward the end of the hearings by the Town Commission, there was a little mention of this but not the whole of it. I would like to speak with you about my thoughts and urge your participation in building this foundation for Longboat Key.”

White told Longboat Key News that now would not be a good time to support such a foundation.

“I think from my standpoint, at this point it is not good timing for us to be considering supporting a foundation for the town, given the town’s decision regarding the Key Club’s development and the lack of consideration for the Islandside residents,” said White.

A Lighthouse Point perspective
Also responding to White’s letter was Lighthouse Point resident B.R. Schaberg. Schaberg declares that although he opposed the Key Club’s redevelopment plan, he also does not support IPOC’s current appeal.

“Your request for financial support for a legal appeal is an insult to the intelligence of every individual that witnessed your actions, and are consequentially affected by the massive over development of the south parcel,” wrote Schaberg, who also continued on to write that perhaps IPOC should be sued for misrepresentation.

White responded to Schaberg with a letter of his own, correcting Schaberg on his misunderstanding of the Key Club hearings.

“Your allegation that IPOC suggested moving significant density from the north parcel to the south parcel is patently false. During the Planning and Zoning Board hearings, we proposed eliminating the residential towers from the north parcel, with an increase of one story to the hotel on the south, as the public record reflects. The additional density that was ultimately approved (four stories on the hotel and an eight-story condo on the south parcel, spa and five villas on the north) was due to Loeb’s and the town’s doing, as the record reflects. The information that you received alleging that the hotel was moved from the north to the south parcel is also absolutely untrue; it was proposed for its current location since day one. The original proposal also included five villas on the south parcel, not the three that were approved. All proposals of the coalition were approved by the voting members, including Lighthouse Point,” White wrote.

The appeals
White has stated that there are two appeals. The administrative appeal, which was filed July 14, challenges the town’s decision to grant the Key Club’s plan and is filed with the Department of Community Affairs at the state level. IPOC maintains that the Key Club’s redevelopment plan is not in compliance with the town’s Comprehensive Plan.

The second appeal is the one in which White requested funding from Islandside residents and would enter the circuit court. It would also challenge the consistency of the Key Club’s redevelopment plan with the town’s Comprehensive Plan.

“That appeal is likely. Based upon all the information that I have right now, it is likely that an appeal will be filed by the 30th of July. We have 30 days from the approval of the plan, which was June 30,” White said.