The city’s Land Development Code is one of those items that seldom comes to your attention, until the builder clear-cuts the property next door or plugs the drainage from your property or decides that things like setbacks, tree ordinances and marsh and beach protections are inconvenient.
I will vigorously enforce our land development code and enforce existing city codes and development standards.
I will maintain and enforce the 35 ft height limit on all construction. This is essential to maintaining the character of Tybee Island. This, along with the fact that we don’t have room for any golf courses, is all that has saved Tybee from the fate of Myrtle Beach SC, Destin FL and many other overdeveloped coastal communities.
I will scrutinize requests for variances from our land development code. There certainly are instances where variances are justified. However, they should be infrequent. The Land Development Code states that variances may be granted ONLY (emphasis mine) if there are UNIQUE physical circumstances or conditions present, and that the property CANNOT be developed in conformity with the Land Development Code without undue hardship to the property. This is a pretty high standard to meet, considering that the dictionary definition of hardship is “EXTREME privation; suffering.”
Accordingly, variances should be granted only if there are unique circumstances, not present in surrounding properties, which would result in extreme privation or suffering if the code were strictly enforced in the situation under consideration.
Perhaps more importantly, the Land Development Code is currently under review and will likely be revised by the next council. If elected, I will be vigilant in protecting our residential neighborhoods.