Opponents of Cox Chevrolet car lot near Lakewood Ranch plan appeal

Opposition to a car lot at 117th Street and SR 64 have until Nov. 21 to appeal the approved rezone.

By Brendan Lavell
| 10:00 a.m. October 28, 2020

Opposed residents who live near the site of the proposed dealership protest in front of the site Oct. 17 on State Road 64. Some residents plan to file an appeal after a county commission vote paved the way for a car dealership.

East County
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East County residents who don’t want Cox Chevrolet to build a dealership in their community aren’t letting a decision made by the Manatee County commissioners stop them.

Although the commission voted 4-3 to rezone property at the corner of 117th Street East and State Road 64 near Lakewood Ranch on Thursday, GreyHawk Landing resident Walter Wulczak said opposed nearby residents will hire an attorney and appeal the decision that would allow Cox Chevrolet to build a dealership at the intersection.

“We’ve already spent quite a bit of money on our attorney, lots of pro bono work by our entire team and a lot of other people who are taking off from work,” Wulczak said. “Residents are contributing thousands of dollars, some individually.”

The appeal, which would be heard in court, must be filed by Nov. 21, 30 days after the rezone was approved. It must include a petition that claims the county’s decision was illegal and/or improper.

If successful, the case would go back to the county to resolve any issues determined inconsistent with the land development code, according to county spokesperson Nick Azzara. If unsuccessful, Cox Chevrolet and Giddens Commercial Development, which currently owns the property, could proceed.

What opposed residents say

Reasons why some residents in the area surrounding the proposed dealership say they are opposed to the project include:

Incompatibility: They say noise and light a dealership brings are not compatible for land surrounded almost entirely by residential area, despite plans from Cox to mitigate those factors. They disagree with the ruling that the area is a commercial node, saying the land should be used for a business that specifically serves the local community rather than a broader region. Lastly, they say it will depreciate the value of their homes.

Flooding: They are not convinced that Cox’s plan to build a retention pond and redirect a Gates Creek tributary will mitigate the effect of paving over much of the site’s floodplain.

Traffic: They do not think the intersection, in particular 117th Street, which they argue is a small, community road, can handle the traffic a dealership could bring. Cox argued that dealerships do not increase traffic as much as many other commercial uses.

One of the main points the appeal team plans to argue, according to Wulczak, is that the intersection is not a commercial node because 117th Street is not a collector roadway, which connects local roads with arterial roads. As of Monday, the Florida Department of Transportation’s classification map did not show 117th Street as a collector road.

Wulczak said the state’s classification takes precedent, even if the county calls it a collector, though the classification map on the county’s website also fails to show 117th Street as a collector.

Some residents, such as Scott Jacuk, who lives in GreyHawk Landing, expressed concern about commissioner Carol Whitmore’s role in the hearing. Her son-in-law, Scott Rudacille, was the applicant’s attorney. Whitmore disclosed her relationships with Rudacille and the Cox family at length as the meeting started.

“This board can affirm just because Mr. Rudacille is my son-in-law doesn’t mean that I haven’t voted against him, as we all know,” Whitmore said Thursday. “You take that chance, if you’re coming before me, that I’m going to vote on something on its merits.”

Jacuk will consider filing an ethics complaint. The meeting was quasi-judiciary, and as such, Jacuk said he believes Whitmore should be considered a judge. According to Canon 3E(1)(d) in the Florida Code of Judicial Conduct, “A judge shall disqualify himself or herself where … a person within the third degree of relationship to ... the judge … [is] a lawyer in the proceeding.” Sons-in-law fall under this category.

However, Manatee County Attorney Mitchell Palmer said the Florida Code of Judicial Conduct does not apply to commissioners. Furthermore, Whitmore’s relationship with Rudacille was addressed in 2011 by the Florida Commission on Ethics in Opinion 11-04, which stated there is no conflict of interest because Rudacille is a non-equity partner, which means he is a salaried employee who does not receive direct compensation for work performed before the commissioners.

Kris Cox, the president and CEO of Cox Chevrolet, said he understands some residents are concerned about the dealership but declined to comment on their plan to appeal.

“We are looking forward to serving east Manatee County in the same way we’ve been serving and will continue to serve west Manatee County,” Cox said.

Vanessa Baugh, one of three commissioners who voted against the decision, said she doesn’t think a dealership is a realistic fit with the surrounding residential area.

“I don’t feel like we had enough information to make an informed decision about the compatibility of a heavy-impact commercial site with that area and piece of land,” Baugh said. “I’d like to take a closer look at it once the new board members are elected.”