The Nassau County Commission will vote Monday on a proposed settlement to allow Riverstone to build 11 high-rise condominium towers, each 85 feet tall.
In a Facebook post, officials with the Amelia Tree Conservancy and the Sanctuary Property Owners Association, published a legal opinion on the proposed settlement before the county commission.
“The Proposed Agreement with Riverstone is premature, deeply flawed and does not represent a good deal for the taxpayers and citizens of Nassau County. It rewards the efforts of a developer to rollover the County and its citizens by awarding development and other rights without following applicable laws,” stated attorneys from Gray Robinson.
The project dates to 2019 when Riverstone announced plans to develop a 50-acre parcel situated between The Sanctuary community and Amelia Island State Park.
In 2021, the county commissioners passed an ordinance restricting building heights to 45 feet in unincorporated areas of Amelia Island. In response to the height limiting ordinance, Riverstone then filed a lawsuit represented by Rogers Towers, on June 25, 2021. The developer argued that under the Bert Harris Property Rights Act, which protects property owners if they believe their land is inordinately burdened, the project was losing value. The developer said the height ordinance reduced the number of oceanfront properties while also eliminating units with “premium oceanfront views.”
A settlement came before the county commission in 2022 that would allow the condo towers but it lost by a 3-2 vote.
In that instance, Gray Robinson put its views in writing, in a form that we could circulate to the Commissioners. At that time their conclusion was clear, according to Lyn Pannone, president of ATC.
Pannone reported the attorneys said: “In our opinion, Riverstone’s Notice of Claim should be viewed as a “Hail Mary” attempt by a property owner looking to cash in on hypothetical development possibilities at Nassau County’s expense.”
Pannone said on Facebook: "It should be noted that Gray Robinson has not been permitted to speak directly with the (county) Commissioners concerning this matter. They have not had access to discovery, if any, that has been produced in the early stages of this case.
"Their advice has been very informative to us, as citizens, in forming a response to the very unfavorable proposed settlement now before us. We share their work with you in the hope that it will be helpful to all citizens and the Commissioners before any settlement is entered."
The County Commission meeting is 6 p.m. Monday at James S. Page Governmental Complex, 96135 Nassau Place
Yulee. It is Item F on the agenda Consider a Settlement Agreement regarding the Bert J. Harris, Jr., Private Property Rights Protection Act as filed in the Riverstone Properties, LLC v Nassau County, Florida, Case No.: 2022-CA-247 and Declaratory Action, Case No.: 2021-CA-190.
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