§ 2.205. Request for Hearing and Petition in Opposition to Board Decision or Recommendation.

(1)

Any decision or recommendation rendered by a board in a quasi-judicial matter may be considered by a Hearing Officer when a hearing request is filed with the board recording secretary by an applicant, the Director on behalf of the City, or an adversely-affected person, within five (5) working days of the public announcement of the board's decision or recommendation, regardless of when such decision or recommendation is reduced to writing. Hearing request forms may be obtained from the board recording secretary. Persons, other than the City, requesting a hearing shall pay to the recording secretary the fee prescribed therefor as set from time to time by resolution of the City Council. City employees, in their capacity as such, shall be deemed to be parties solely for the purposes of participating in the hearing, and communication between City employees and elected officials, or between City employees and the Hearing Officer regarding scheduling or other such matters unrelated to the subject matter of the hearing, shall not be deemed to be ex parte communication. Any person who could have filed a hearing request and who fails to timely do so, and any person who could have filed a response to a Petition in Opposition to Board Decision or Recommendation and fails to do so in a timely manner, shall be deemed to have waived his or her rights to a quasi-judicial hearing.

(2)

Any person who has filed a hearing request shall, within twenty (20) days of filing such request, file an original and two copies of a Petition in Opposition to the Board's Decision or Recommendation with the Hearing Administrator. In addition, if the Petition is filed by someone other than the applicant, the petitioner shall serve a copy of the petition on the applicant by hand delivery or by first class mail, postage prepaid, and addressed to the applicant at the address stated on the application the applicant filed with the board. The petition shall contain:

(a)

the name and address of the petitioner or petitioners, and an explanation of how his/her substantial interests will be affected by the board's recommendation;

(b)

a statement of all disputed issues of material fact. If there are none, the petition must so indicate;

(c)

a concise statement of the ultimate facts alleged, as well as the City Code sections, Growth Management Plan policies, goals and objectives, or other authorities implicated, or upon which petitioner relies in support of his/her petition; and,

(d)

other information which the petitioner contends is material.

(3)

Failure to file the petition in a timely manner shall result in an automatic denial of the appeal with prejudice with no hearing being necessary. A petitioner may only amend a timely filed petition by order of the Hearing Officer upon good cause shown.

(4)

Within five (5) working days of the receipt of a Petition, the Hearing Administrator shall notify the applicant and all members of the public who entered an appearance at the board meeting or who submitted written objections, recommendations or comments, that a Petition in Opposition to Board's Decision or Recommendation has been filed. The Hearing Administrator need not notify the applicant if the applicant is the person who has filed the Petition in Opposition. The notice shall indicate who filed the Petition and when it was filed. The notice shall state that the applicant, the City, and adversely-affected persons may file a Response to the Petition in Opposition with the Hearing Administrator, with a copy to the petitioner, within thirty (30) days from the date the Petition was filed. The notice shall also advise where copies of the petition may be obtained under the Florida Public Records Law. The Hearing Administrator shall automatically forward a copy of the petition to the Hearing Officer, along with a copy of the board's minutes reflecting the board's action.

(5)

The Hearing Administrator shall forward a copy of all responses to the Hearing Officer.

(6)

All subsequent pleadings, including, but not limited to, motions, shall be originally filed with the Hearing Administrator with copies to all other parties of record with a certificate of service reflecting the same.

(Ord. of 9-12-1994, Doc. #27833; Ord. of 7-24-1995, Doc. #28649)