Belair v. City of Treasure Island

611 So. 2d 1285, 1992 WL 371544
CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida
DecidedDecember 18, 1992
Docket91-02402, 91-02413
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 611 So. 2d 1285 (Belair v. City of Treasure Island) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court of Appeal of Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Belair v. City of Treasure Island, 611 So. 2d 1285, 1992 WL 371544 (Fla. Ct. App. 1992).

Opinion

611 So.2d 1285 (1992)

Laurence N. BELAIR and Provident Management Corporation, Appellants,
v.
CITY OF TREASURE ISLAND, a Florida municipal corporation, Appellee.

Nos. 91-02402, 91-02413.

District Court of Appeal of Florida, Second District.

December 18, 1992.
Rehearing Denied February 4, 1993.

*1286 Brian P. Battaglia of Battaglia, Ross, Hastings & Dicus, P.A., St. Petersburg, for appellant Laurence N. Belair.

Steven L. Brannock and Stacy D. Blank of Holland & Knight, Tampa, for appellant Provident Management Corp.

Edward Foreman, St. Petersburg and W. Douglas Berry of Butler, Burnette & Pappas, Tampa, for appellee.

RYDER, Judge.

We have for review three issues raised by the parties to this appeal in which Laurence N. Belair and Provident Management Corporation (Provident) seek review of the trial court's entry of a permanent injunction enjoining Mr. Belair from renting his condominium unit more than six times per year, and enjoining Provident from acting as a rental agent on condominium property. We reverse.

The trial court's order was based on an interpretation of the City of Treasure Island's zoning code. The definitions contained in the zoning code relevant to our consideration of the issues raised on appeal are as follows:

Sec. 29-2. Definitions.
* * * * * *
Dwelling, residential shall mean a single or two-family dwelling which is not a tourist dwelling.
*1287 Dwelling, unit (d.u.) shall mean a single unit consisting of not less than five hundred (500) square feet of living area providing complete, independent living facilities for one (1) family, including permanent provisions for living, sleeping, eating, cooking and sanitation, but not including recreation vehicles, tents, hotels, motels or boarding houses.
Dwelling — Single family shall mean a building designed for and/or containing only one (1) dwelling unit.
Dwelling, tourist shall mean a single or two-family dwelling which is used as a tourist dwelling. A single or two-family dwelling shall be considered a tourist dwelling according to the following criteria:
(1) If the single or two-family dwelling is subject to or operates under an arrangement plan or design whereby the use of the dwelling or unit in the dwelling has been segmented over time so that owners, lessees or holders (regardless of the form of ownership or the form in which the right to use is expressed) of such unit has a recurring exclusive right to use either that dwelling or unit or another unit in the same dwelling according to a predetermined fixed schedule and only if the schedule would permit in any one (1) year a change or turnover of occupancy six (6) or more times, shall it be considered a tourist dwelling.
(2) If the single or two-family dwelling operates under or is subject to an arrangement plan or design whereby sleeping accommodations and sanitary facilities in the dwelling or in a unit in the dwelling are offered to the public or reserved to private parties and the use thereof by members of the public is primarily on a daily, weekly, monthly or seasonal basis, it shall be considered a tourist dwelling. Provided that when the dwelling or a unit in the dwelling is the sole residence of the guest, a rebuttable presumption arises that the dwelling or a unit is not being used as a tourist home. Provided further that if the occupancy of such dwelling or unit does not change more frequently than six (6) times in one (1) year, then a rebuttable presumption shall arise that the dwelling or unit is not being used as a tourist dwelling.
Dwelling, two family (duplex) shall mean a building designed for and/or containing two (2) dwelling units.
Dwelling, multiple family (apartment building) shall mean a building designed for and/or containing three (3) or more dwelling units.

Treasure Island Code, Ch. 29, Art. 1, § 29-2.

Land's End is a 177-unit condominium consisting of ten buildings located at 7500 Bayshore Drive, Treasure Island. Land's End is zoned RM-15 which permits multiple family dwellings pursuant to the zoning code of the City of Treasure Island. In 1984, Mr. Belair purchased a condominium at Land's End. At the time of the final hearing, Mr. Belair owned three condominium units at Land's End. In some instances, Mr. Belair's units are leased out to third parties more than six times per year. The Land's End Declaration of Condominium approves rentals of no less than seven days duration, but places no restriction on the maximum number of times a unit may be rented during a calendar year.

Sales and rentals of Land's End condominium units were conducted with the assistance of a number of local real estate brokers. Provident is a Pinellas County real estate broker and management company with its headquarters in Clearwater. In 1984, Provident began to assist in the rental of Land's End units.

Very few of the Land's End purchasers bought units with the expectation of living there full-time. Most of the owners purchased their units as a vacation home or future retirement home. In 1984 when Provident came on the scene full-time, 54 units had already been sold of which only two were owner occupied. That pattern of absentee ownership continued through subsequent sales.

*1288 Many Land's End absentee owners chose to rent out their units during periods when they were living elsewhere. It was contemplated in the condominium plans and documents that a real estate brokerage firm would be hired to assist in the management of the condominium and rentals of the units. Provident, being the most successful of the various brokers who were renting out units for the owners, was selected by the community association to manage the rental office.

Eventually, Provident signed contracts with just over 100 of the 177 unit owners to act as their rental agent. Each unit owner always remained free to contract with Provident or any other broker of their choosing. If the unit owner chose to contract with Provident, the owner was required to enter a contract which contained restrictions on the owners' use of their own condominium unit. The contract also set forth a detailed list of provisions required to be furnished in each condominium unit, from kitchenware to linens and furnishings.

Provident advertised Land's End aggressively. Signs were prominently displayed in the Chamber of Commerce building adjacent to City Hall and visitors were occasionally referred to Land's End by the Chamber. Provident also embarked upon a national and international marketing campaign, produced and distributed multicolored brochures, and placed advertisements in travel industry publications.

In May 1988, the City of Treasure Island (the City) issued an official cease and desist letter to Provident, U.S. Lend Lease the developer of Land's End, and the Land's End Owner's Association of which Mr. Belair is a member. The cease and desist letter in relevant part stated that the rental of condominium units on a short-term basis was prohibited as a tourist dwelling or hotel/motel within the RM-15 zoning district, according to section 29-182 of the Treasure Island Code (the Code).

In October 1988, the City filed a complaint for injunctive relief against Mr. Belair, individually, and Provident. Mr. Belair responded with a suit of his own seeking declaratory judgment and damages.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
611 So. 2d 1285, 1992 WL 371544, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/belair-v-city-of-treasure-island-fladistctapp-1992.