Local Government Comprehensive Plan Review

An important part of the South Florida Regional Planning Council's work program is the Local Government Comprehensive Plan Review Process.  Activities involve review of newly adopted comp plans, plan amendments, and Evaluation and Appraisal Reports on comp plan performance.  The activities of the Local Comprehensive Planning Program are governed by the conditions of the agreement between SFRPC and the Florida Department of Community Affairs (DCA) which establishes the scope of work and the base funding for the SFRPC.  These activities include provision of all reports and correspondence related to review and amendments to local comprehensive plans to assess their consistency with the Strategic Regional Policy Plan for South Florida (SRPP) which was adopted in August, 1995. The specific criteria and time frames allowed for the various types of review are called out in the SFRPC/DCA agreement.
Responsibilities

Review of local plan amendments by SFRPC is limited to an assessment of the following:
  • Effects of the amendment on the regional resources or facilities identified in the SRPP
  • Extra-jurisdictional impacts which would be inconsistent with the comprehensive plan of the affected local government or SRPP.

In addition to reviewing for general consistency with the SRPP, SFRPC also reviews issues which by their nature should be regionally unique. This includes a review of the following:

  • The adequacy of Intergovernmental Coordination Elements;
  • Compatibility among local plans;
  • Impact to significant regional resources and facilities;
  • Adequate treatment of affordable housing issues and designation of adequate sites for affordable housing;
  • Protection of natural resources of regional significance;
  • Effectiveness and enhancement of economic development within the region;
  • Compatibility with regional transportation corridors ;
  • Adequacy and compatibility with emergency preparedness plans.

Review for consistency with the SRPP is done pursuant to Section 163.3177(10)(a), Florida Statutes. The relevant portion of the statute is included below.

". . . for the purpose of determining whether local comprehensive plans are consistent with the state comprehensive plan and the appropriate regional policy plan, a local plan shall be consistent with such plans if the local plan is 'compatible with', and 'furthers' such plans. The term 'compatible with' means that the local plan is not in conflict with the state comprehensive plan or appropriate regional policy plan. The term 'furthers' means to take action in the direction of realizing goals or policies of the state or regional plan. For the purposes of determining consistency of the local plan with the state comprehensive plan or the appropriate regional policy plan, the state or regional plan shall be construed as a whole and no specific goal and policy shall be construed or applied in isolation from the other goals and policies of the plans."

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