Amendment to further protect natural lands heads to ballot 

The Seminole County Commission has unanimously approved giving voters a chance to make it tougher for developers to build on rural lands. 

Buried in a 53-item-long consent agenda in the County Commission’s regular meeting Tuesday was item 6, unassumingly named “Approve and authorize the Chairman to execute a resolution authorizing the placement of two proposed charter amendments submitted by the Seminole County Charter Review Commission on the general election ballot.” It passed without discussion as part of the consent agenda, putting the power to strengthen the county’s rural protection laws into the hands of the voters. 

If that sounds familiar, it’s because in 2021 the county approved a similar amendment that applied to the Parks and Recreation chapter (chapter 190) of the county code. 

“When taxpayer money goes to buy lands, it’s bought for the perpetual enjoyment of future generations,” then Commissioner (now Commission Chair) Jay Zembower said in 2021.

One of the two proposed amendments would change Article V of the Seminole County Home Rule Charter to also require a supermajority (defined as a majority plus one) vote by the County Commission to “transfer or materially change the use or purpose of properties that are owned or manage by the County and that it has designated as ‘Natural Lands.’” 

The second proposed amendment would revise the Charter to require a supermajority vote by the County Commission to “remove property from that portion of the County that is designated as ‘Rural Area.’” 

Both would raise the bar that developers would need to clear in order to develop in land set aside as “Natural Lands” or in the “Rural Area”. 

The questions posed to voters will be on the Nov. 5 general election ballot as “Question 1” and “Question 2”.