§ 16A-15. Appeals.

(1)

Procedure for Appeal to County Commission. Any party aggrieved by a final quasi-judicial decision of the Historic Preservation Board may appeal that decision to the Board of County Commissioners. Appeals to the Board of County Commissioners shall adhere to the following procedure:

(a)

Appeal by Aggrieved Party. Within 30 days of the public hearing at which the Historic Preservation Board takes final action as to an individual site, property district, or archaeological or paleontological zone, an aggrieved party may appeal the decision to the Board of County Commissioners by filing, with the Office of Historic Preservation, a notice of appeal on a form prescribed by the Historic Preservation Chief. The form shall provide for a brief written statement specifying, in concise language, the grounds for appeal and the reasons that the Board of County Commissioners should reverse the decision of the Historic Preservation Board. No attachments or additional written statements, outside of the space provided on the form, shall be accepted. Upon the timely filing of a notice of appeal, the Historic Preservation Chief shall transmit the notice to the Clerk of the Board, along with the record on appeal.

(b)

Appeal by Historic Preservation Chief. If the decision of the Historic Preservation Board has not been appealed to the County Commission by an aggrieved party within the 30-day period specified in subsection (1)(a) above, the Historic Preservation Chief may, in his or her discretion, appeal such decision within 5 additional days in the manner aforestated.

(2)

Stay Pending Appeal. Upon the filing of an appeal to the County Commission, all Historic Preservation Board orders and conditions of approvals pertaining to the property or district in question shall be stayed until final action has been taken on the appeal by the Board of County Commissioners. Any moratorium on the individual site, property, district, or archaeological or paleontological zone shall remain in effect during the appeal period.

(3)

Fees for Appeal to County Commission. The appealing party shall be required to pay to the Clerk of the Board a fee for processing the appeal and to defray the costs associated with preparing the record on appeal. In addition, the appealing party shall pay the cost of preparing any transcripts of the proceedings below. The amount of the appeal fee, excluding transcription costs, shall be prescribed by Implementing Order approved by the Board of County Commissioners. There shall be no refunds, even where an appeal is subsequently withdrawn. The fees and costs specified herein shall not apply to an appeal initiated by the Historic Preservation Chief.

(4)

Record on Appeal. The record on appeal shall consist of the Historic Preservation Board's resolution as to the property or district in question, the Historic Preservation Chiefs recommendation to the Historic Preservation Board, all documents and materials made part of the file and record before the Historic Preservation Board, and all minutes and transcripts, if any, of the proceedings below. The Historic Preservation Chief may also, in his or her discretion, include in the record a recommendation to the Board of County Commissioners regarding whether the appeal should be approved or denied. Except as provided herein, documents or materials not made part of the file and record before the Historic Preservation Board shall not be distributed to the County Commissioners prior to the public hearing on the appeal; such materials may be presented to the Board of County Commissioners at the time of the public hearing.

(5)

Scheduling the Appeal for Public Hearing. Within 60 days of the date on which the notice of appeal and record are transmitted to the Clerk of the Board, the appeal shall be placed on an agenda of the County Commission. The Clerk of the Board shall be responsible for placing the appeal on an agenda of the County Commission and for all matters related to scheduling of the public hearing.

(6)

Notice to Affected Parties. At least 20 days prior to the date of the public hearing, the Office of Historic Preservation shall provide written notification by U.S. mail to all affected parties of the date of the public hearing on the appeal. Where the property or district in question lies within a municipality, the Office of Historic Preservation shall additionally provide written notice of the appeal to the municipality's mayor or manager and to its attorney. At least 10 days prior to the date of the public hearing, the Clerk of the Board shall provide notice by advertisement, in a newspaper of general circulation, of the date of the public hearing before the County Commission.

(7)

Decision by the Board of County Commissioners. The Board of County Commissioners shall conduct a quasi-judicial public hearing on the appeal, and the County Commission's review shall be de novo. At the conclusion of the public hearing, the Board of County Commissioners shall approve or deny the appeal and may affirm, modify, or reverse the decision of the Historic Preservation Board below. The decision of the County Commission shall be by majority vote of members present and shall be set forth in a written resolution, a copy of which shall be forwarded to the Historic Preservation Board, the property owner, and, if applicable, the appellant.

(8)

Exhaustion of remedies. No person aggrieved by any decision or determination of an administrative official or by any decision of the Historic Preservation Board may apply to any court for relief unless such person has first exhausted the remedies provided for in this Chapter and taken all available steps provided in subsections (1) through (8) above. Furthermore, no application shall be made to any court for relief except from a resolution adopted by the Board of County Commissioners.

(9)

Judicial Review. Once the Board of County Commissioners has rendered a decision on the appeal, an aggrieved party may appeal that decision to a state court of competent jurisdiction, in accordance with the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure governing the review of quasi-judicial rulings of a local government commission or board. Such time for appeal shall commence to run from the date the resolution sought to be reviewed is rendered by the Clerk of the Board. The appealing party shall be required to pay to the Clerk of the Board a fee to defray the costs associated with processing the appeal, the amount of which shall be prescribed by Implementing Order, as may be amended from time to time, as approved by the Board of County Commissioners. Such fee shall be in addition to any costs or fees that the appealing party may be required to pay to the Clerk of the Court, pursuant to applicable court rules and procedures. Any moratorium on the property or district shall remain in effect during the pendency of all appeals in court.

(Ord. No. 81-13, § 14, 2-17-81; Ord. No. 82-99, § 1, 10-19-82; Ord. No. 16-125, § 2, 11-1-16)