St. Johns County Commissioners say community support for the project was “unprecedented.” But review board members ruled the project violated county code.
ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla — This week, two people on a development review board in Ponte Vedra turned in their resignation letters to the St. Johns County government.
This, after St. Johns County Commissioners approved a major expansion project for the Ponte Vedra Inn and Club, although the review board recommend the commissioners deny it.
Jane Rollinson was excited to start volunteering on the Ponte Vedra Zoning and Adjustment Board (PVZAB) when she was appointed in 2021.
“I felt like local citizens needed to get more involved in our building code,” she told First Coast News.
This week, she chose to resign, feeling like the county commission did not value the work of the board.
The PVZAB studies applications for construction projects to see if they meet the county code requirements. Then the PVZAB votes to approve or deny the projects. And often, the county commission will take the PVZAB’s decision into account when making the final vote on a project.
The latest project before the PVZAB was Gate Hospitality Group’s (part of Gate Petroleum) request to expand the Ponte Vedra Inn and Club and Lodge.
The PVZAB voted it down. Most of the members agreed the buildings need to be renovated. However, the big sticking point for some of the board members: the height of the proposed project exceeded county code.
But Tuesday, the St. Johns County Commission approved the project.
So Rollinson, resigned from the Ponte Vedra Zoning and Adjustment Board, almost immediately. A second person serving on the board did as well.
Why the resignation letters? Rollinson points to two other recent projects the board denied… but the county commission approved.
One is a self storage building on Highway A1A, just south of the Target shopping center in Ponte Vedra.
“It’s an egregious violation of our zoning code,” Rollinson told First Coast News.
The second project is a soon-to-come Sleiman Enterprises hotel on Highway A1A. Rollinson said it violated code in length by being “almost a football field long.”
So, this week, when the St. Johns County Commission approved the Ponte Vedra Inn and Club expansion, which the PVZAB denied, “This was kind of three strikes and you’re out,” Rollinson said. “I’m spending so much time and I don’t’ feel like our zoning board for the local community is being listened to.”
Certainly, there was a lot of support for the resort expansion. Many people donned big yellow buttons at the county commissioner meeting Tuesday, championing the development. Yard signs dotted neighborhoods, supporting the project. The chamber of commerce supported it.
During the meeting, Commission Chair Christian Whitehurst said, “It would be, in my view, unrealistic to expect the Ponte Vedra Inn and Club to remain the same as it has been in the last 100 years. It has to grow. It has to expand and improve to remain with the times.”
Regarding the resignations of the review board, Whitehurst wrote to First Coast News stating in part, “These two members of the PVZAB are certainly entitled to their individual opinions, but they certainly do not represent the opinions of the entire PVZAB.” He added, “Given the outpouring of support from the community, the members of the PVZAB who resigned may want to consider whether or not they have their finger on the pulse of this community.”
County Commissioner Sarah Arnold wrote First Coast news: “I am disappointed to hear that. The applicant made 90% of the changes recommended to the PVZAB. These two members can express their individual opinions, but in this capacity they do not represent the will of the entire PVZAB, an advisory board with members appointed by the BCC.”
Commissioner Henry Dean wrote to First Coast News: “In my humble opinion I side with the facts and the law. I will stand by my record over the past 7 years.”
Rollinson said, “I think my time can be used better. I think I’m spending a lot of time doing these reviews on these big major projects. And it’s a tin ear or a blind eye that’s being turned to it. They don’t respect or value the zoning board’s opinion on local issues, and that is actually what we’re supposed to do.”
