Florida/Georgia Personal Injury & Workers Compensation

...rtaining to the adjustment of municipal boundaries and established a uniform legislative standard for use throughout the state. See Municipal Annexation or Contraction Act, 1974 Fla. Laws ch. 74-190, § 1 (codified as amended at Fla. Stat. Ann. §§ 171.021-.022 (West 1987))....

...om settled on this question. Since 1974, Florida law has provided that an owner of reasonably compact14 property that is contiguous15 to a municipality may petition for annexation. See Fla. Stat. Ann. § 171.044(1) (West 13 Section 171.021 provides: The purposes of this act are to set forth procedures for adjusting the boundaries of municipalities through annexations or contractions or corporate limits and to set forth...

...sion of urban services to areas that become urban in character. (4) Insure that areas are not annexed unless municipal services can be provided to those areas. Fla. Stat. Ann. § 171.021. 14 " 'Compactness' means concentration of a piece of property in a single area and precludes any action which would create enclaves, pockets, or finger areas in serpentine patterns....

...rtaining to the adjustment of municipal boundaries and established a uniform legislative standard for use throughout the state. See Municipal Annexation or Contraction Act, 1974 Fla. Laws ch. 74-190, § 1 (codified as amended at Fla. Stat. Ann. §§ 171.021-.022 (West 5 1987))....

...Okeechobee center does not raise an inference of race discrimination. The parties do not dispute that the Okeechobee Center could only be annexed if contiguous to the City, and that its contiguity would arise only from its proximity to State Road Number 13 Section 171.021 provides: The purposes of this act are to set forth procedures for adjusting the boundaries of municipalities through annexations or contractions or corporate limits and to set forth c...

...(3) Insure the efficient provision of urban services to areas that become urban in character. (4) Insure that areas are not annexed unless municipal services can be provided to those areas. Fla. Stat. Ann. § 171.021. 26 80, which the City annexed in 1965....

...es focuses upon Chapter 171. By its own terms, "The purposes of this act [Chapter 171] are to set forth procedures for adjusting the boundaries of municipalities ... and to set forth criteria for determining when annexations ... may take place... ." § 171.021, Fla....

...n annexation ordinance passed by the City of Deltona ("City"). [1] At issue in this case is the proper procedure for property owners seeking voluntary annexation. The County contends that the circuit court applied the incorrect law when it held that section 171.021, Florida Statutes (2003), did not apply to voluntary annexations and that the criteria set forth in sections 171.0413, 171.042, and 171.043 apply only to involuntary annexations....

...de pursuant to uniform legislative statewide standards, (3) ensure the efficient provision of urban services to areas that become urban in character, and (4) ensure that areas are not annexed unless municipal services can be provided to those areas. § 171.021; see also § 171.022 (stating that the purpose of the Act is to provide viable and usable general law standards and procedures for adjusting the boundaries of municipalities; repealing *850 provisions of any special act or municipal charte...

...s withholding from charter counties any authority over annexation matters. Relying principally on SCA Services of Florida, Inc. v. City of Tallahassee, 418 So.2d 1148, 1150 (Fla. 1st DCA 1982), the Cities posit that the purposes of the Act listed in section 171.021, read in conjunction with section 171.022, prohibit charter counties from adopting an exclusive method of voluntary municipal annexation....

...Ctr., Inc., 681 So.2d 826 (Fla. 1st DCA 1996)). "When courts create preemption by implication, the preempted field is usually a narrowly defined field, limited to the specific area where the Legislature has expressed their will to be the sole regulator.'" Id. Reading sections 171.021, 171.022(1), and 171.044(4) together, we discern no implied preemption in the field of voluntary annexation in charter counties....

...For example, any annexation "shall be designed in such a manner as to ensure that the area will be reasonably compact." § 171.031(12). And, of course, a charter county's method of voluntary municipal annexation must be consistent with the Act's purposes as expressed in section 171.021....

RAB/tgk 1 Section 171.011, Fla. Stat. (1995). 2 Section 171.021, Fla. Stat. (1995). And see, SCA Services of

General BM/tals 1 Section 171.011, Fla. Stat. 2 Section 171.021, Fla. Stat. And see, SCA Services of Florida

...ompliance with the provisions of Ch. 171 , F.S. (1990 Supp.). 1 See , City of Auburndale v. Adams Packing Association, 171 So.2d 161 (Fla. 1965). 2 See , Ch. 65-563, Laws of Florida. 3 Section 171.011 , F.S., designates the short title of the act. 4 Section 171.021 , F.S....

...xed during the calendar year does not exceed five percent of the total land area of the municipality and the population of the area does not exceed five percent of the municipal population. Sincerely, Robert A. Butterworth Attorney General RAB/tjw 1 Section 171.021 (2), Fla....

...exed must be owned by those who are not registered electors in order to utilize the procedures set forth in this subsection. Sincerely, Charlie Crist Attorney General CC/tgh 1 See s. 171.011 , Fla. Stat., providing the short title for the chapter. 2 Section 171.021 , Fla....

...Rather, the determination of whether to include such property in the calculation of 70 percent is based on the statutory language, which requires a determination of the ownership of property and the voting status of the property's owners. Sincerely, Bill McCollum, Attorney General 1 Section 171.011 , Fla. Stat. 2 Section 171.021 , Fla....

...hroughout the state for adjustment of municipal boundaries, insure the efficient provision of urban services to areas that have become urban in character, and insure that areas are not annexed unless municipal services can be provided to such areas. Section 171.021 , F.S....

...e date on which the municipal governing body passes the annexation ordinance for an affected party to challenge compliance with annexation procedures. The purpose of Chapter 171 is to provide a uniform method of effecting annexation by municipality. Section 171.021, Fla.Stat....

...The circuit court agreed and declared Ordinance Number 2247 invalid. Specifically, the court found that the property annexed was not contiguous to the existing city limits, as required by section 171.044, Florida Statutes (1983), and that the land was not sufficiently urban in character, as defined by section 171.021, Florida Statutes (1983)....

...We agree with May that the circuit court’s order constitutes a departure from the essential requirements of law, and grant the petition. We first address the propriety of the circuit court’s determination that May’s property was not “urban.” We find no bar in section 171.021, Florida Statutes (1983) to the annexation of land located adjacent to existing city limits that is not presently used for, but is slated for, development for “urban purposes.” On the contrary, such land is “urban in character” as that phrase is employed in section 171.021 and defined in section 171.031(8)....

Fla. Stat., provides the title of the act. 2 Section 171.021, Fla. Stat. 3 See, s. 171.022, Fla. Stat.,

...3 The courts and this office have stated that the power to extend municipal boundaries must be exercised in strict accordance with the statutes conferring such authority. For example, in SCA Services of Florida, Inc. v. City of Tallahassee 4 the court construed sections 171.021 and 171.022 , Florida Statutes, in concluding that "it is apparent that the legislature intended to provide a clearly defined and exclusive method by which an annexation could be accomplished." (e.s.) In Attorney General Opinion 77-133 this o...

...on its own volition hold a referendum on the issue of contraction. Sincerely, Charlie Crist Attorney General CC/tjw 1 But see Art. VIII , s. 11( 1 )(c), ( 5 ) and ( 6 ), Fla. Const., giving Dade County jurisdiction over its municipal annexations. 2 Section 171.021 (2), Fla....

...palities in counties with charters which provide an exclusive method of municipal annexation. Flagler County, however, is not a charter county and you have not advised this office of any special law relating to Flagler Beach addressing annexation. 7 Section 171.021 , Fla....