Jumbolair Update

Jumbolair Update

Jumbolair Hangar Update

The Horse Farms Forever watchdogs have been alerted to a change in the status of the County’s moratorium on building new hangars at private airports, specifically at the Jumbolair airport.  The County Attorney has issued an opinion that the right to construct hangars on the historical Jumbolair Greystone Airport parcel 14105-000-00 was “grandfathered in” and not subject to the moratorium.

Horse Farms Forever constantly monitors development activity in the County. As part of that monitoring, we made multiple public records requests from the County to get facts ahead of any application to allow time to review and better understand any plan. Here’s a chronology of what we learned.

The Recent Updates

On March 1, 2024, County Growth Services Director Chuck Varadin informed the engineering company representing Jumbolair of the following determination regarding the request to build more hangars at the Jumbolair airport. “Therefore, for the reasons previously noted, these hangars are not a permitted use on the suggested property at this time.

On May 22, 2024, Jumbolair attorney Robert Batsel wrote a lengthy response that contained the following paragraph. “Following our voluntary withdrawal of pending applications and in preparation for resubmittal, the Bulls plan to construct hangars adjacent to the Airport. Prior to our meeting in March, we submitted a draft site plan proposing 94 new hangars with specifications including sixty 60’ x 60’ hangars, thirty 70’ x 70’ hangars, and five 100’ x 120’ hangars (to complement the existing five 100’ x 120’ hangars that were previously permitted and constructed). Eventually, the hangar complex will constitute a portion of the forthcoming PUD and serve the community. Following our meeting and in response to your feedback, we have significantly reduced the size and scope of the initial site plan, which we will submit shortly. The plan will be limited to 22 hangars located on Marion County Parcel ID No. 14105-000-00, which is within the original licensed Airport adjacent to the original grass runway.

On August 12, 2024, County Growth Services Director Chuck Varadin informed Mr. Batsel of the following determination regarding the request to build more hangars at the Jumbolair airport. “Therefore, the proposed hangars may be developed on the noted property subject to pursuing either Option 1 by obtaining a policy 1.20 letter (i.e., a “letter of conformity” under Policy 10.1.5) that clearly delineates what was previously approved by the FDOT and the commercial use(s) as of April 7, 1994, or pursuing Option 2 by seeking a new SUP. (Note that Sec. 4.3.14(B) of the LDC outlines the additional materials2 needed for Growth Services to determine the eligibility to obtain an approved policy 1.20 letter.) Subject to obtaining an affirmative outcome under option one or option two, the development of the hangars will still be subject to Development Review approval for an applicable Major Site Plan.”

On December 12, 2024, County Attorney Matthew G. Minter reached the following conclusion after a legal analysis. “In consideration of the foregoing, I conclude that the Site Approval and Registration by FDOT of the Airport includes the right of the Airport owner to construct hangars within the Airport site. No other zoning or land use approvals from the County are necessary for the construction of these hangars. The Airport Registration does not exempt airport development from all County regulations, including those related to the building code; fire code, stormwater regulations, set-backs and building height restrictions. Therefore, I conclude that the application for site plan approval and building permits will go through the DRC review in the same manner as the five replacement hangars referenced above, in 2023.”

On December 12, 2024, County Growth Services Director Chuck Varadin informed Mr. Batsel and additional legal counsel for Jumbolair of the County Attorney’s conclusion as follows. “This letter revises my prior letter dated August 12, 2024 (hereafter, “prior letter”). The revision is based on the County Attorney’s memo (dated December 12, 2024) regarding the application (AR #32136) to construct 22 new hangars at Jumbolair-Greystone Airport (hereafter, “Airport”), further research, and revisiting the historical documents of the Airport (enclosures 3 and 4). Therefore, I agree with the County Attorney’s conclusion “that the Site Approval and Registration by the FDOT of the Airport includes the right of the Airport to construct hangars within the Airport site.” It should be noted that this interpretation only applies to this airport based on its original development and its unique circumstances. It should not be interpreted as applying to all private airports in the County.”

Don’t Piggyback the RAC!

Don’t Piggyback the RAC!

A landowner abutting the Rural Activity Center (RAC) at the intersection of NW Hwy 225A & NW Hwy 326 (Gilbert’s Hardware) has applied to change the land use and zoning on 24 acres from Rural/Agriculture to commercial RAC.

The landowner proposes a landscape contractor yard and plant nursery. Don’t be fooled by this attempt to Piggyback the RAC by changing the 24 acres from agricultural to commercial.

If approved, this change would allow this landowner, or any potential new owner, over 35 commercial uses, including many intense uses like large-scale storage facilities and fuel plants, and over 350,000 sq. ft of buildings. These commercial uses threaten the rural character and agricultural integrity of the surrounding farms and the Farmland Preservation Area.

RACs in the Farmland Preservation Area are there to provide needed goods and services that make sense in a rural area. They are limited in size and scope to prevent needless sprawl from eating away at the Farmland Preservation Area. But that doesn’t stop some landowners from trying…

At the January Planning & Zoning Commission hearing, with a denial recommendation from the professionals at Growth Services and strong opposition from Horse Farms Forever and neighbors, the applicant requested a continuance for further review and a date certain for the Planning and Zoning meeting has been set for April 28, 2025.

 

Join our efforts to protect the Farmland Preservation Area!

Photo of the current Notice on the property.

Always Watching

We work hard to keep you informed, and to represent our members' interests in preserving our horse farms, farmland and the unique character and culture of Marion County's 193,000 acre Farmland Preservation Area.

Join the herd. Every voice matters.

Applications Withdrawn for 500-Vehicle Storage Lot Abutting the Greenway

Applications Withdrawn for 500-Vehicle Storage Lot Abutting the Greenway

Site Plan from the applications. The proposed parking lot had more vehicle storage capacity than the Gainesville Airport. 

On Tuesday, May 21, just about an hour before the start of the Marion County Commission zoning hearing, the applicant, 1415 Brothers Holdings, LLC withdrew all three applications to allow for storage of 500 vehicles on a 15-acre parcel located directly north of the Cross Florida Greenway. This announcement, made as people were arriving to the hearing, did not deter residents and concerned citizens as they filled the County Commission Auditorium. 

All the seats were full on May 21 for the County Commission Hearing.

County Attorney Guy Minter said that by withdrawing the applications, the applicant could re-apply at any time. While the applications were withdrawn, Horse Farms Forever will continue to monitor this property for any potential future applications.

The three applications from 1415 Brothers Holdings, LLC on a 15-acre parcel located on SW Highway 484 adjacent to the Cross Florida Greenway requested to: 1) amend the Future Land Use from Rural Land to Commercial, 2) change the Zoning from General Agriculture (A-1) to Neighborhood Business (B-1) and 3) request a Special Use Permit to allow for outside storage of up to 500 boats, recreational vehicles, and trailers.

Marion County’s Growth Services Staff recommended denial, with their report stating: “The Urban Growth Boundary is approximately a mile east of this property and this is not a designated Planned Service Area. This application does not meet any of the requirements provided above and is, by definition, sprawl.”

The Growth Services Staff report also stated that the applications were not compatible with the surrounding properties, inconsistent with nine provisions of the Comprehensive Plan, and adverse to the public interest.

In addition, the Marion County Planning & Zoning Commission voted unanimously at their April 29 meeting to recommend denial of all three applications. HFF attended the P & Z Commission meeting and spoke in support of the Growth Services Staff recommendation of denial.

Horse Farms Forever’s Pave Paradise campaign to oppose the applications, was based on our position that the Growth Services Staff Report accurately identified the issues with the applications and correctly recommended that they should be denied. To quote one of our members, “These applications should have never seen the light of day. And when they were exposed to it, they quickly moved back into the shadows.”

The campaign also addressed the reality that in rural areas, the County’s policy to only notify neighbors within 300 feet of a parcel is ineffective.  In addition, the placement of a small paper sign in front of a parcel on a busy roadway is not conducive to widespread notification of significant land use and zoning changes. Perhaps this is a matter the County will consider reviewing.

HFF Watchdog Role

Part of the Horse Farms Forever mission is to be watchful of government and others to preserve and protect horse farms and farmland for future generations, especially in the Farmland Preservation Area.  Thus, we regularly review all applications for land use and zoning change, and special use permits. 

It was during our regular review that the applications from 1415 Brothers Holdings, LLC were flagged for further investigation.  As we have many members and supporters in the general vicinity of this parcel, we studied the aerial maps and put “boots on the ground” driving the area and surrounding neighborhoods. 

While this parcel was not in the Farmland Preservation Area, it was also not in the Urban Growth Boundary; instead, it was in the Rural Area surrounded by rural land with extensive equestrian and agricultural activity.  And as our mission statement makes clear, while we are especially focused on the Farmland Preservation Area, we are not exclusively focused on it. 

Upon further review of the applications, we deemed these changes would set a precedent for urbanization and commercial development of this rural area. The Horse Farms Forever Board of Directors deemed these applications to be firmly in the strike zone of our mission and authorized a campaign to notify the surrounding property owners and our members and supporters of the applications and advocate in support of the Growth Services recommendations of denial. 

We believe that horses create the character and culture that make Marion County unique and special. For there to be horses, there must be horse farms. In Marion County, there is about one horse for every four people. The equine industry contributes about one-fifth of the economy and one-fifth of the jobs. In addition, rural farmland creates open spaces that act as filtration for the Floridian aquifer which is at the source of all life in Florida. Further, the Farmland Preservation Area acts as a protective umbrella for the primary and secondary protection zones for Rainbow Springs and Silver Springs.

Always Watching

We work hard to keep you informed, and to represent our members' interests in preserving our horse farms, farmland and the unique character and culture of Marion County's 193,000 acre Farmland Preservation Area.

Join the herd. Every voice matters.

Greenway Trojan Horse – Updated

Greenway Trojan Horse – Updated

Tillman and Associates should have played Joni Mitchell’s Big Yellow Taxi while they rode their Trojan Horse into the Planning and Zoning meeting this week. Not only are they applying to pave 15-acres of paradise with a 500-vehicle parking lot, but it turns out that companies apparently affiliated with On Top of the World have recently bought two adjacent parcels: the 122-acre pasture across the street and the 12-acre horse farm next door to this subject parcel.

Smoke & Mirrors?

Why would companies apparently affiliated with OTOW want to buy a 122-acre pasture on the north side of Highway 484 under the name of SAGE AMICUS LLC and a 12-acre horse farm across the street on the south side of Highway 484 under the name of HORSING AROUND OCALA LLC? Perhaps they are going to become Horse Farms Forever’s newest member? Probably not.

On Top of the World already owns the 5,454-acres of land to the north and west with a flag-access to Highway 484. This massive parcel is part of a legacy Development of Regional Impact approval (“DRI”) with vested development rights. The 122-acre Sage Amicus parcel has a much larger presence on Highway 484 and a Rural Land use and Agricultural zoning, like the surrounding properties. It is not part of the legacy DRI. The 12-acre horse farm, which adjoins the Cross Florida Greenway, also has a Rural Land use and Agricultural zoning.

Is it a coincidence that Tillman & Associates has applied to change the land use on the 15-acre parcel from Rural to Commercial and the zoning from Agricultural to Business on a parcel next door to the 12-acre horse farm? Maybe. Tillman & Associates represents the Brothers Holdings on this application and OTOW on other applications. At the Planning and Zoning public hearing, the Tillman representative stated:

“Also, what we are asking for is the accessibility to the Greenway, an opportunity for citizens through OTOW to be able to come down and utilize the Greenway, the resources that we have that is always being spoken of and encouraged to utilize and what better way to access it through a golf cart, or walking trail, or multimodal trail down to that particular location. So that way we can get the full effect of what the Greenway trails was meant to be for.”

The Application calls for 502 paved stalls for boat and RV storage covering the 15 acre site. That’s more parking than Gainesville Airport. Source: Application for Rezoning.

Westward, Ho!

What would be the implications of changing the land use on the 15-acre parcel to commercial? HUGE! It would set a precedent for all future applications on adjoining parcels to change Rural Land use to Commercial. With a quick look at the map, you don’t need a crystal ball to wonder if there will be a Westward, Ho expansion creating a commercial hub on Highway 484. 

Don’t Know What You’ve Got ’til It’s Gone

The neighbors and the community need to answer the questions:

  • Is this application to change the land use on the 15-acre Brothers Holdings parcel from Rural Land to Commercial part of a Trojan Horse strategy?  
  • Is this application a strategy for a westward commercial expansion on 484? 

The location of this proposed 500-vehicle parking lot is adjacent to the Cross Florida Greenway, a treasured public resource. The parcel is in a FEMA flood zone and in the Secondary Springs Protection Zone.

The professionals at Marion County Growth Services Staff have reviewed the application and recommended denial as it is not compatible with the surrounding properties, is inconsistent with 9 provisions of the comprehensive plan, and is adverse to the public interest.  In addition, the Marion County Planning & Zoning Commission unanimously voted to recommend denial.

Hearing May 21

Horse Farms Forever agrees with the recommendations from Growth Services and the Planning & Zoning Commission that this application should be denied. 

That decision will be made on Tuesday, May 21, at 2:00 pm when the County Commission meets to consider the application. 

If this subject is of interest to you, please join us.  There’s no closer form of democratic governance that attending a public hearing.

Always Watching

We work hard to keep you informed, and to represent our members' interests in preserving our horse farms, farmland and the unique character and culture of Marion County's 193,000 acre Farmland Preservation Area.

Join the herd. Every voice matters.

Watchdog Alert! RaceTrac Plans Farmland Preservation Area Invasion

Watchdog Alert! RaceTrac Plans Farmland Preservation Area Invasion

RaceTrac has targeted land and begun discussions with the County to build a truck stop in the Farmland Preservation Area. RaceTrac is a great family business story, and their facilities are first class.  There’s nothing wrong with them or what they want to build.

What’s wrong is where they want to build it, deep inside the Farmland Preservation Area on rural land with agricultural zoning. It’s just not a compatible land use.

Wrong Location

The site is at the intersection of 329 where it meets 301/441 just before the “Y” where 301/441 split in northwest Ocala. It is right near both the North Marion High and Middle schools. You can see that the area is predominantly large, open pastures.

Incompatible Zoning

In order to approve this use, the County would have to:

  • Amend the Comprehensive Plan to change the Future Land Use from Rural to Commercial.

  • Change the zoning from Agricultural to Business.

  • Contradict the unanimously passed HFF Amendment.

Sprawl-Inducing

Truck stops depend on traffic to make a profit. Look at what grew up around a similar RaceTrac in Lithia Springs, Georgia:

  • SPRAWL!
  • Big Box Stores
  • Distribution Centers

Better Alternatives Exist

Locations with compatible zoning are plentiful

This is Horse Country

Ocala is the Horse Capital of the World®. There is one horse for every four people. The equine industry accounts for one-fifth of the county’s workforce, land use and economy. For Ocala, the equine industry is the bedrock of our economic strength, infrastructure, and identity; it’s like vineyards are to Napa Valley, like corn is to Iowa.

Respect and Protect 

The foundation for this equestrian mecca is the simple fact that for there to be horses, there must be horse farms. Ocala is home to thousands of horse farms and training centers, mostly concentrated in the Farmland Preservation Area. What makes the Farmland Preservation Area so special and worthy of protection?  Why was it established and what makes it unique?

Valuable Natural Resources

The answer is simple, it’s the soil and the water. The boundaries of the Farmland Preservation Area were drawn around one of the richest concentrations of number 8 soil in the country. Number 8 soil is special because it is a thin layer of nutrient rich dirt sitting atop a massive lime rock formation known as the Ocala Ridge. This almost pure limestone is full of calcium carbonate, a key ingredient in building strong bones and muscles in horses.  

Silver Springs is the largest artesian spring in the world. The Farmland Preservation Area cradles both the primary and secondary protection zones for Silver Springs and Rainbow Springs within its boundaries.

The People Have Spoken

The majority of the community agrees.  We support that statement with the results of the Quality-of-Life Survey in 2021.  The community spoke loudly when asked, “What do you think is the most important issue facing Marion County today?”

The number one answer was Preservation of Land and Natural Resources.

When asked, “Is it crucial to maintain the Marion County area and its resources to ensure that the legacy as the Horse Capital of the World™ will remain for future generations?”

90% agreed, the highest score on the survey.

The County Agrees

In addition, the majority of the commissioners agree.  We support that statement with the unanimous passage of the Horse Farms Forever Amendment in 2022.

Policy 3.3.1: Elements of Rural Character

The County shall preserve and protect rural and equestrian/agricultural character within the Rural Lands, specifically the Farmland Preservation Area, by requiring that all appropriate future development activities within this Area preserve, support, and enhance the fundamental elements of rural character set forth below, and further requiring that all Zoning Changes and Special Use Permits within the Farmland Preservation Area be consistent with and preserve, protect, support, and enhance the rural, equestrian, and farmland character of the Farmland Preservation Area.

We ask RaceTrac to recognize the role that horses, horse farms and the Farmland Preservation Area play in the character and culture of this community, and to respect the integrity of the rural land in the Farmland Preservation Area.

Contact the County about the EAR:

For any additional questions regarding the EAR process, please email Planning@MarionFL.org with your subject line including 'EAR' or call us at 352-438-2675 & ask for a planner.

https://www.marionfl.org/agencies-departments/departments-facilities-offices/growth-services/planning-zoning/ear

The workshops will be livestreamed. Check the County’s agenda webpage for the link: https://marionfl.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx