St. Johns Law GroupLand Use & Development
Land Use & Development
Growth in Northeast Florida: Legal Tips for Investors & Developers
Zoning, planning and due-diligence considerations for development property.
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Land Use Due Diligence • Entitlements • Development Strategy
St. Augustine Land Use, Development & Entitlement Due Diligence Attorneys
Before buying, financing or developing property, understand what the land can actually be used for—and what approvals, vested rights, restrictions and development obligations come with it. St. Johns Law Group helps developers, investors, lenders, businesses and property owners evaluate zoning, future land use, entitlements, vesting, grandfathered rights, development approvals and permitting strategy throughout Northeast Florida.
Zoning & Entitlement ConfirmationVesting & Grandfathered RightsPreapplication / DRC StrategyLender Opinion Letters
St. Johns Law Group
St. Augustine Area’s Largest Law Firm
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Combined Legal Experience
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Know Before You Close
Land Use Due Diligence Goes Beyond Checking the Zoning Map
A meaningful development review should identify the property's zoning, future land use, existing entitlements, prior approvals, development obligations, vested or grandfathered rights and the approvals still required for the intended project.
Zoning & Future Land Use
Confirm zoning, comprehensive-plan designation, overlays, special districts and applicable use and development standards.
Existing Entitlements
Review PUDs, PRDs, development orders, rezonings, special uses, variances, site plans, plats and development agreements.
Vesting & Grandfathered Rights
Evaluate prior approvals, permits, reliance, development agreements and other circumstances that may preserve development rights.
Development Feasibility
Identify likely approvals, hearings, agency reviews, infrastructure obligations and potential obstacles before acquisition or major design expense.
Government Confirmation
Request and evaluate zoning verification letters, written interpretations, vesting determinations and other local-government confirmation.
Transaction & Financing Support
Coordinate land-use findings with purchase agreements, inspection periods, lender requirements, estoppels and closing conditions.
Zoning & Entitlement Confirmation
Zoning Confirmation & Entitlement Verification Letters
A meaningful zoning confirmation can do far more than identify a property's zoning district. For development acquisitions, financing and major investment decisions, SJLG can prepare detailed confirmation requests asking local government to address existing uses, remaining development capacity, applicable development orders, permitted uses, development standards, infrastructure obligations, credits, deadlines and other matters material to the project.
Project-Specific Questions—Not Just a Form Letter
SJLG's confirmation requests can be tailored to the actual property and transaction. A recent St. Johns County confirmation obtained in response to an SJLG request addressed four commercial parcels and answered detailed questions concerning existing uses, additional building rights, subdivision, remaining square footage, future land use, zoning, development orders, permitted uses, dimensional standards, development agreements, utilities, concurrency, access, impact-fee credits, deadlines and remaining conditions.
The objective is to create a written governmental record addressing issues that matter to the buyer, developer, lender or owner before substantial capital is committed.
What We May Ask Government to Confirm
Build the Confirmation Around the Development
Existing Development Rights
Current uses, remaining building square footage, density or intensity, permitted uses and additional development capacity.
Entitlement History
DRIs, PUDs, PRDs, rezonings, major/minor modifications, development orders, site plans, plats and approved construction plans.
Development Standards
FAR, ISR, building footprint, setbacks, height, parking and other site-development standards.
Infrastructure & Concurrency
Utilities, access, transportation or concurrency requirements, roadway improvements and remaining infrastructure obligations.
Credits & Financial Rights
Impact-fee, road, mobility or other development credits and conditions affecting their use.
Deadlines & Conditions
Phasing, buildout dates, permit deadlines, development-order conditions and outstanding requirements.
Vesting & Future Development
Vested or grandfathered rights, nonconforming status, subdivision potential and future development rights.
Development Agreements
Applicable agreements, amendments, continuing obligations, performance requirements and estoppel issues.
Supporting Government Records
Operative ordinances, development orders, approved plans, agreements and other records supporting the response.
Vested Rights
Vesting Determinations, Grandfathered Rights & Nonconforming Uses
Changes in zoning codes and comprehensive plans do not always erase previously established rights. The analysis can depend on prior permits and approvals, development agreements, plats, reliance and expenditures, equitable-estoppel principles, statutory protections and local vesting or nonconformity provisions.
Vesting Determinations
Evaluate the factual and legal basis for a determination that development rights survived later regulatory changes.
Grandfathered Development
Review older approvals, plats, permits, development orders and code provisions that may preserve rights.
Nonconforming Uses & Structures
Determine whether an existing use, lot, building or site condition may continue and what changes could jeopardize that status.
Development Agreements
Analyze contractual entitlements and the laws and policies governing development under an existing agreement.
Preapplication Strategy
Development Preapplications & DRC Review Before You File
A preapplication meeting can expose design, access, utility, fire, public-works, planning and code issues before a developer commits to a formal application. The City of St. Augustine's Development Review Committee—also known as Friday Review—brings Planning, Building, Public Works and Fire staff together for preliminary review of proposed development.
SJLG can prepare for and participate in City DRC meetings and comparable County preapplication or development-review meetings, coordinate with engineers, planners and architects, identify legal issues raised by staff, and help convert preliminary comments into an entitlement strategy.
Preapplication meeting preparation
DRC / staff review strategy
Site-plan and use questions
Access, utilities & infrastructure
Code interpretation issues
Next-step entitlement roadmap
Acquisition & Development
Entitlement Due Diligence for Buyers, Developers & Investors
Land-use due diligence should be tied to the actual business plan for the property. SJLG can test the intended project against the existing legal framework and identify what must happen between contract execution and a buildable, financeable project.
Define the Intended Use
Identify the proposed use, density, intensity, building program, phasing and transaction objectives.
Audit Existing Rights
Review zoning, future land use, approvals, development agreements, plats, permits, conditions and recorded obligations.
Test the Project
Compare the proposed development to applicable regulations and obtain staff feedback where appropriate.
Build the Approval Roadmap
Identify required applications, hearings, studies, agreements, conditions and timing for entitlement and closing decisions.
Lenders, Buyers & Transaction Counsel
Land Use Opinion Letters, Zoning Opinions & Estoppels
A governmental confirmation letter is often only one part of the legal due-diligence package. Planning staff may not address private recorded restrictions, utility agreements, title matters or obligations administered by another department or entity. SJLG can identify those gaps and coordinate the additional review needed for the transaction.
When appropriate and supportable by the governmental and property record, SJLG can also provide transaction-specific attorney zoning or land-use opinion letters.
Government ConfirmationDetailed questions to planning or growth-management staff
Attorney Zoning / Land Use OpinionLegal analysis based on the governmental and property record
Development EstoppelsObligations, payments, defaults, credits and continuing rights
Closing & Financing IntegrationCoordinate findings with purchase, loan, title and closing requirements
What We Review
A Development Due Diligence Checklist Built Around the Property
The scope should match the transaction and proposed project.
Planning & Zoning
Zoning, future land use, overlays, density, intensity, setbacks, height, parking and permitted or conditional uses.
Prior Approvals
PUD/PRD documents, development orders, variances, special uses, site plans, plats, permits and conditions.
Infrastructure
Access, transportation, concurrency or mobility, utilities, drainage, easements, dedications and public-facility obligations.
Rights & Restrictions
Vesting, nonconformities, grandfathering, development agreements, expiration dates, phasing and recorded obligations.
Development Agreements
Existing Agreements Can Be Valuable Entitlements—or Significant Obligations
Florida's Local Government Development Agreement Act permits local governments to enter agreements addressing permitted uses, densities and intensities, public facilities, required permits, conditions and other development obligations. A recorded agreement can bind successors and may establish the laws and policies governing development for its duration, subject to statutory exceptions.
Due diligence should determine whether an agreement remains effective, what approvals and obligations it preserves, whether amendments have occurred, whether performance requirements remain outstanding, and whether an estoppel or governmental confirmation should be obtained before closing.
Meet the Due Diligence Team
Land Use, Real Estate & Local Government Attorneys
SJLG combines land-use counsel with real-estate and local-government experience so entitlement findings can be integrated into acquisition, financing and development strategy.
Land Use • Development • Real Estate • Local Government
Douglas N. Burnett
Founder and land-use attorney assisting developers, investors and property owners with entitlements, development strategy, real-estate transactions and government approvals.
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Real Estate • Contracts • Land Use • Development
Megan Burnett Drysdale
Real-estate and land-use attorney assisting with contracts, acquisitions, development matters and transaction due diligence.
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Board Certified • Local Government • Land Use
James G. Whitehouse
Board Certified in City, County and Local Government Law, with extensive experience involving local-government development approvals.
View ProfileNortheast Florida
Land Use Due Diligence Areas We Serve
SJLG assists with land-use, entitlement and development due diligence throughout St. Johns County and surrounding Northeast Florida communities.
St. Johns County
St. Augustine, St. Augustine Beach, Ponte Vedra, Nocatee, Palm Valley, Vilano Beach, World Golf Village, SilverLeaf, Beachwalk, Fruit Cove, Julington Creek, Hastings and Elkton.
Flagler County
Palm Coast, Flagler Beach, Bunnell, Marineland and surrounding communities.
Duval County
Jacksonville, Jacksonville Beach, Neptune Beach, Atlantic Beach, Mandarin and Southside.
Clay, Putnam & Nearby Counties
Green Cove Springs, Fleming Island, Middleburg, Palatka, East Palatka and other Northeast Florida communities when appropriate.
Related Practices
From Due Diligence to Entitlement and Closing
Land Development & Zoning
Entitlements, rezonings, PUDs, comprehensive-plan amendments and government approvals.
Land Use Hub →Real Estate Law
Acquisitions, contracts, title, financing and closing issues connected to development property.
Real Estate Hub →Land Use Appeals
Judicial review and property-rights litigation when a development decision is disputed.
Appeals & Litigation →Land Use Due Diligence FAQs
Common Questions About Zoning, Entitlements & Development Rights
What is land-use due diligence?
It is a project-specific review of zoning, future land use, existing approvals, development rights, restrictions, government records and the additional approvals needed for an intended use or development.
What is a zoning verification or confirmation letter?
It is written information from a local government concerning matters such as zoning, land-use designation and other available zoning records. The scope varies by jurisdiction and by what is requested.
What is a vesting determination?
A vesting determination addresses whether development rights may be protected from later regulatory changes based on applicable approvals, reliance, common-law principles, statutes, development agreements or local code provisions.
What does “grandfathered” mean in land development?
The term is commonly used for uses, lots, structures or development rights that may continue under older approvals or regulations despite later code changes. Whether a particular right is preserved requires review of the facts and governing law.
What is a nonconforming use?
Generally, it is a lawful use that does not conform to a later-adopted zoning regulation. Local codes govern continuation, expansion, abandonment and loss of nonconforming status.
Why attend a development preapplication or DRC meeting?
Preapplication review can identify staff concerns, applicable codes, infrastructure issues and required approvals before a developer incurs substantial application, engineering or design expense.
Can SJLG provide a zoning or land-use opinion letter for a lender?
Yes, when appropriate. The scope depends on the lender's request, the available governmental records, the property and the legal conclusions that can responsibly be supported.
What is a development estoppel?
An estoppel is a written confirmation concerning specified rights, obligations, payments, defaults or status under an agreement or approval. The form and issuing party depend on the project and transaction.
Should land-use due diligence be completed before the inspection period expires?
Usually, the land-use review should begin early enough to inform contractual due-diligence, financing and closing decisions before applicable deadlines expire.
Can due diligence tell me whether my project will be approved?
No attorney can guarantee a discretionary government approval. Due diligence can identify existing rights, applicable standards, required processes, likely issues and a strategy for pursuing the needed entitlements.
Recent Legal Insights
Recent Florida Land Use & Development Articles
Recent SJLG resources addressing land use, zoning, development, entitlements and property rights.
Land Use Due Diligence
Talk With a St. Augustine Land Use & Development Attorney
If you are evaluating an acquisition, financing a development property, testing a proposed use, seeking a zoning or vesting confirmation, or preparing for a preapplication meeting, tell us about the property and your objective.
Phone
(904) 495-0400
Email
info@sjlawgroup.com
St. Augustine Office
104 Sea Grove Main Street
St. Augustine, Florida 32080
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