Big PDC Day!

Today is the biggest PDC hearing in a while. It is the Deltona Rezoning and Holder Industrial Park comprehensive plan amendment that will allow a potential data center at the Holder Industrial Park.

Back in May, the county commissioners voted on a 12 month moratorium on data centers. This includes applications that involve them. The day of that meeting, Deltona added a data center to the site plan, presumably to beat the moratorium. This was to allow more time for staff to build a LDC amendment that will "regulate" data centers if one were to come.

In another twist, around 4:45pm yesterday, Deltona's attorney Sidney Ansbacher sent an email/letter to the county asking for them to continue the BOCC hearing. This does not affect the PDC hearing this morning.

Remember, this has already come to the PDC. Back in March, Deltona brought this project. The PDC then decided to continue it, despite Deltona not wanting that. The idea there was that the county did not have many safeguards in place, so the PDC voted to delay its decision until those safeguards got put in place.

Deltona issued a letter to the county insisting that this get put back on the PDC agenda ASAP and move forward. They said they did not want the continuance and said the county has to move this forward within 180 days of the initial application.

Here we are today. Deltona wants the PDC hearing but wants to delay the BOCC hearing until the 2nd meeting in November, after the election. They claim it is due to property taxes and this will allow them to see if the project is feasible if the property tax amendment is approved.

But I question the timing of the request. Why wait until 4:45pm the day before the PDC hearing? They have known the property tax amendment was going to the ballot weeks ago. Why not ask for the continuance then? All of a sudden, the day before the PDC, it is an issue? Why?

Remember, there are intervenors in this case. These are people/groups that get the same process as the applicant. They also limit the applicant to 30 mins (each party gets 30 mins). They also can contest things like continuances.

So why at the last minute? No clue. Maybe they thought staff could approve it before the PDC hearing without it getting to the intervenors. But both of them were notified and both of them wrote emails to the county expressing their desire not to continue the application.

So today will be interesting.

There are a few outcomes to this. Let's take a look.

#1 - The PDC hearing happens as scheduled... they make a recommendation (approval or denial)... and then the question of the continuance is addressed. Generally, staff sets the hearing dates for these to come to the BOCC. However, once the PDC makes a recommendation, it is then transmitted to the BOCC, who controls their own schedule.

A commissioner can bring a motion to deny the continuance request and bring this to the BOCC before November. That will force the commissioners to make a vote on whether they want to hear this sooner than November.

Or they can accept the continuance without bringing it to the board for a vote by just letting staff do it.

I expect to see this brought before the BOCC for discussion on the continuance.

#2 - Deltona asks the PDC for a continuance before the hearing begins. At this point, only the PDC can continue a project. Anyone can ask for a continuance, but the PDC has to approve the request. Most of the time they do, which allows the developer to go back, make changes and bring it back to the PDC.

If Deltona asks for it now, not sure the PDC gives it to them. This would be before the PDC hearing starts, so I am sure there would be some objections.

#3 - PDC hearing happens, Deltona asks for a continuance. Similar to the above, but this time they wait until the hearing is almost over and before the vote. This is what happens most often. Developers see that the PDC will recommend denial, so they ask for a continuance before the vote to allow them to address the comments they received. The PDC often grants these and the project comes back at a later date.

#4 - Deltona withdraws the application to avoid the BOCC hearing before November. This is possible, especially if the PDC recommends denial. However, this has never been about the PDC. It has always been about the BOCC. Even if the PDC recommends denial, the BOCC can vote to approve. Cabot Farms recently was denied at the PDC and withdrew the application following that.

Withdrawing the application at any point will remove the "protections" they have by having an application pending before the state made its changes to data centers and before the moratorium on them here in the county. If they withdraw, they will not be allowed to re-apply until the moratorium is over.

However, that puts them past the November date, so if it is about property taxes, well this would satisfy that. But then they have to follow everything else that is implemented, whereas now they can argue they were in before all that took place.

So we will see what happens today. I expect the intervenors to push back on any talks of a continuance, either today or at the BOCC. If there is a vote today at the PDC, I expect to see this come up fairly quickly at the BOCC to discuss the continuance. That will be a fun meeting.

In any case, it appears Deltona wants to push back until after the election. Maybe it is due to the property taxes... but maybe it is to avoid contentious votes before an election. The risk they run with waiting is the board makeup. The 2nd meeting in November, the one they are asking to go to, is when the commissioners elected in August will take office.

I presume that Deltona would prefer Bays over Herndon, who has been very vocally against data centers, but in fairness, Bays cannot really comment due to pending application. I would presume they would prefer Worthington over Finegan as well... but if both lose, then they risk coming to a board that is very anti-data center.

Will be interesting. I will be watching.