Punta Gorda historic preservation board forwards seller-disclosure draft and adopts 2024 LDR sections as working document

The Punta Gorda Historic Preservation Advisory Board voted unanimously at a special session to forward a draft seller-disclosure ordinance to the city paralegal for legal formatting and to adopt portions of the 2024 Land Development Regulations (LDRs) as a working document for future ordinance drafting and public hearings.

Board member Terry Ziggler introduced the draft ordinance, saying it was intended to prevent situations in which buyers of contributing structures in a historic district are unaware that a certificate of appropriateness is required before demolition or major alteration. The draft includes a disclosure form the board would ask listing agents or (for-sale-by-owner sellers) owners to present to potential buyers prior to contract. Adrien Gerky confirmed she produced the document and said it was prepared “with the help of AI.”

The board moved and seconded a recommendation that the draft be submitted to the city paralegal to ensure it is in proper legal form, then returned to the board before any recommendation to city council; the motion passed unanimously.

Separately, members voted unanimously to use sections 8.1, 15.4 and 16.3 of the 2024 LDRs as an initial working document for revising Punta Gorda’s historic preservation regulations. Members framed that decision as a practical starting point while acknowledging the city is rewriting Chapter 26 and that staff and legal review will still be required. Several board members emphasized the work must proceed in parallel with the inventory and other certified-local-government requirements.

Throughout the meeting members discussed related issues, including:
- certified local government obligations and the need to document an inventory of historic properties;
- concerns about demolition-by-neglect and whether code enforcement and the building department are adequately monitoring at-risk structures;
- the absence of an on-staff structural engineer to provide independent assessments of demolition requests and the possibility of identifying volunteer or contract engineers for voluntary inspections; and
- the need for written clarification from City Manager Melissa Reichart about the process and staff responsibilities (members requested that clarification be provided in writing and on the public record).

The board agreed that staff would be asked to provide Word-format versions of the 2024 LDRs so members can mark edits ahead of the next meeting; the chair said he will forward the editable documents to the city clerk’s office for distribution. Members also flagged intermittent email delivery issues for alternate members and asked staff to verify contact information.

Next steps: the board will prepare specific edits and motions on the cited LDR sections for the next meeting, request written clarification from the city manager about the staff/attorney role in drafting, and return the seller-disclosure draft after paralegal review before considering a recommendation to city council.