By Jared Austin, AICP, and Emma Wennick
Forward Pinellas has developed the “Live Local” Affordable Housing Dashboard in order to allow the public to track affordable housing projects that have used the preemptions of HB 1339, SB 962, or the Live Local Act. It is an online tool that will display each project, as well as associated metrics and data. This dashboard will be able to be used to compare projects across the county, view associated data, and track projects through their development process.
The Live Local Dashboard
This tool will be beneficial in objectively measuring the effectiveness of these legislative preemptions ability to bring more affordable housing to Pinellas County.
What is the “Live Local Act”?
The Live Local Act (Senate Bill 102) was signed into law on March 29, 2023 and took effect on July 1, 2023. The Live Local Act is designed to encourage affordable housing. Unlike previous similar legislation, the requirements of the Live Local Act are mandatory for local governments. Among its other provisions, this overrules some local zoning and land use regulations for residential and mixed-use developments on industrial or commercial land if at least 40% of the units are affordable for at least 30 years.
Preemptions of the Live Local Act
- The number of housing units proposed by the developer may not be restricted below the maximum permitted allowable number of housing units per acre within the jurisdiction.
- Building heights for developments utilizing the Live Local Act may not be restricted below the tallest permitted building height within one mile of the proposed development, or three stories, whichever of the two options is greater.
- The local government may not require a zoning or land use change, special exception, conditional use approval, variance, or comprehensive plan amendment for height and density. Essentially, anything that would typically require a public hearing process for the approval of these Live Local developments, cannot be required of the developer if they meet the requirements of the Live Local Act outlined above. They must be administratively approved by local government staff.
- Any development that applies to use the Live Local Act for their development must be administratively approved by local government staff if it meets the requirements for multifamily developments established by the impacted local government other than their requirements related to building height or the number of units per acre allowed within their jurisdiction.
What does the “Live Local” Affordable Housing Dashboard do?
Forward Pinellas has developed the “Live Local” Affordable Housing Dashboard to track development activity that uses the preemptions of HB 1339, SB 962, or the Live Local Act. Forward Pinellas has established a process to track development activity in collaboration with the various local governments in Pinellas County. These local governments will provide monthly data for any Live Local, HB 1339, or SB 962 projects that have been submitted for review. If such a project has been submitted, Forward Pinellas will provide a data form to be completed with specific information related to said project.
The data received is then incorporated into the online Live Local Dashboard that can be found here. Examples of the data that is included in the dashboard includes:
- Percent of land use categories impacted
- Number of projects by jurisdiction
- Acreage impacted
- Project status
- Total vs. affordable units proposed
- Affordable units by Area Median Income (AMI) percentages
Additionally, the user can narrow down their search by jurisdiction, project status, impacted land use type, and project completion date. This provides a user-friendly approach and ensures that the tool can be used to search projects efficiently and effectively, allowing data and information to be easily obtained by the user.
How will this Dashboard be helpful?
This Live Local Dashboard is a way for the public, planners, and elected officials to track and easily compare affordable housing projects that have used one of the available legislative preemptions, as well as review project metrics in a clear and simplified way. It is a step forward in project monitoring and tracking of affordable housing developments that are using HB 1339, SB 962, or the Live Local Act. Furthermore, it will allow Forward Pinellas to keep a record of all developments throughout Pinellas County that have used recently passed legislation to build affordable housing projects. We are confident this tool will be beneficial in objectively measuring the effectiveness of these legislative preemptions ability to bring more affordable housing to Pinellas County.
Interested in this topic? Learn about Homes for Pinellas.
