d) Babcock Ranch DRI - Southwest Florida Regional Planning Council

BABCOCK RANCH MASTER DRI NOTICE OF PROPOSED CHANGE (NOPC)REVIEW OF THE CHARLOTTE COUNTY DEVELOPMENT ORDER AMENDMENTCouncil Recommendations (Attachment I)On October 20, 2011, the Southwest Florida Regional Planning Council (SWFRPC)recommended approval of the Babcock Ranch Master Development Order Notice of ProposedChange. The change is to revise the office entitlement from 2,064,175 to 3,500,000 square feetand retail entitlement from 2,925,943 to 1,400,000 square feet and to revise Exhibit "F" to reflectthe results of the required Master Traffic Study Update. Also, proposed is an extension to thebuildout date from December 31, 2030 to July 5, 2040. This includes a 4 year 364 day extensiongranted by Chapter 380.06(19)(c)1.F.S., a 4 year extension granted to DRIs by HB 7207, and a187 day appeal tolling period from the time the original MDO was adopted on December 13,2007 to June 17, 2008. This extension is also made to conform to the recently adopted 2035MPO/County Long-Range Transportation Plan Updates which were relied on for purposes of thisMaster Traffic Study Update.Charlotte County Development Order Amendments (Attachment II)On December 13, 2011, the Charlotte County Board of County Commissioners approved theBabcock Ranch Master Development Order Amendment. A copy of the development order (seeAttachment II) was rendered to the SWFRPC on January 6, 2012. Based on the rendered date,the 45-day appeal period for the development order expires on February 20, 2012. Staff reviewof the attached development order amendment finds that they are consistent with the Council’sOfficial Recommendations for this NOPC. However, there is one change to Exhibit F theFlorida Department of Transportation has recommended (see Attachment III) that could be madein a future MDO amendment. Exhibit F can be amended to state in each row under the“Recommended Improvement # of Lanes” column that the listed improvement is either in the“MPO LRTP Needs Assessment” or “MPO LRTP Cost Feasible Plan”.RECOMMENDED ACTION:Accept the development order as rendered.

RICK SCOTTGOVERNORFlorida Department of Transportation605 Suwannee StreetTallahassee, FL 32399-0450January 27, 2012ANANTH PRASAD, P.E.SECRETARYMr. Ray EubanksRegional Planning AdministratorDepartment of Economic Opportunity107 E. Madison StreetTallahassee, FL 32399-4120RE: Babcock Ranch Master Development of Regional Impact Notice of Proposed Change Adopted DevelopmentOrder Amendment (ADA-09-2007-023) - FDOT Agency CommentsDear Mr. Eubanks,The Florida Department of Transportation has reviewed the above referenced Master Development of Regional Impact(DRI) amendment adopted by the Charlotte County Board of County Commissioners on Dec. 13 th , 2011 and offers theDepartment of Economic Opportunity the following comments for consideration in your review of the adoptedamendment:Based upon our review, the department has determined that the change in land uses presented in the amendment will notsignificantly change the originally projected impacts to important state transportation resources or facilities as analyzed inthe Babcock Ranch Master Traffic Study Update of July 21 st , 2011. However, the department is concerned about thefollowing:FDOT Comment #1 Exhibit F of the adopted Master Development Order amendment presents the BabcockRanch Community development significantly impacted roadways in Lee and Charlotte County and providesrecommendations for needed improvements. The overwhelming majority of improvements listed in the tablescontain a reference for each improvement stating “Refer to MPO LRTP”.The department recommends that some clarification be provided in Exhibit F. While these improvements mayindeed be in the Lee and Charlotte MPO Long Range Transportation Plans (LRTP), it should be specified in theexhibit whether or not each listed improvement is in the LRTPs’ Cost Feasible Plan (CFP), or simply stated in theplans as a future need. MPO LRTPs are generally recognized by the federally required Cost Feasible Plancontained therein and, therefore, simply stating that an improvement is in the MPO LRTP can be misleading as tothe cost feasibility of said improvement.If you have any questions or need additional information, please contact me at (239) 461-4300 orlawrence.massey@dot.state.fl.us.Respectfully,District Growth Management CoordinatorFDOT District Onewww.dot.state.fl.us