Once a Florida city council has appointed itself as the governing board of its community redevelopment agency, can it later transfer that authority to a separate independent board?
Subject
Community redevelopment agency -- transfer of authority
Plain-English summary
Florida's Community Redevelopment Act of 1969 lets cities and counties create community redevelopment agencies (CRAs) to address slum and blighted areas. When a CRA is formed, the local government picks one of two governance structures: appoint a separate board of commissioners, or have the local governing body itself serve as the CRA's board. The City of Avon Park initially chose the second option; its city council declared itself the CRA. Years later, the council asked whether it could hand off that role to an independent board.
The AG concluded the answer was no. Section 163.357(1)(a) explicitly allows the move in one direction (a separate board can later be replaced by the governing body declaring itself the CRA), but Chapter 163 does not authorize the reverse. The City Council was stuck with the role it had chosen, unless the Legislature amended Chapter 163.
Currency note
This opinion was issued in 2019. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.
Common questions
What is a community redevelopment agency?
A separate "public body corporate and politic" that a city or county creates under the Community Redevelopment Act of 1969 (Chapter 163, Florida Statutes) to redevelop slum and blighted areas. The local government creates the CRA by adopting a resolution making a finding of need.
What are the two governance options for a CRA?
Under Chapter 163, the local government can (1) appoint a separate board of commissioners under § 163.356(2), or (2) declare its own governing body to be the CRA board under § 163.357(1)(a).
Can the local governing body switch governance structures later?
Only one direction is statutorily authorized. Section 163.357(1)(a) lets a local government with an appointed board "at any time thereafter by adoption of a resolution, declare itself to be an agency." The reverse move (governing body to independent board) is not authorized.
Why did the AG read Chapter 163 so narrowly?
The AG followed standard statutory construction. § 163.356(2) says a board of commissioners is appointed "[w]hen the governing body adopts a resolution declaring the need for a community redevelopment agency." That language pins the appointment to creation, not later. § 163.357(1)(a) explicitly authorizes the governing body to declare itself the CRA "at the time of the adoption of a resolution under s. 163.355, or at any time thereafter." The asymmetric "at any time thereafter" language demonstrated legislative awareness; if the same flexibility had been intended for the reverse direction, the Legislature would have said so.
What if the city's prior code of ordinances locked in the council-as-CRA choice?
Avon Park's ordinance (Ch. 74, § 74-76) provided "[t]he city council shall, by resolution, declare themselves to be the commissioners of the community redevelopment agency." Even if the city had wanted to amend that ordinance, Chapter 163 did not authorize the underlying transfer.
Could a future legislature change this?
Yes, the Legislature could amend § 163.357 to authorize the reverse move. As of 2019, no such authorization existed.
What does this opinion mean for a CRA in trouble?
If the council had become an obstacle to good CRA governance, the available paths under Chapter 163 (as it stood in 2019) were limited. The council could have dissolved the CRA and started over (subject to all the legal and financial implications) or worked through reform measures within the existing council-as-CRA structure.
Background and statutory framework
The Community Redevelopment Act of 1969 (Chapter 163, Florida Statutes) authorized counties and municipalities to create CRAs to address slum and blighted areas through redevelopment. Key provisions:
- § 163.355: a local government adopts a resolution making a finding of need.
- § 163.356(1): once created, a CRA is a separate "public body corporate and politic."
- § 163.356(2): when a need resolution is adopted, the governing body "shall" appoint a board of commissioners (between five and nine members under current law).
- § 163.357(1)(a): "[a]s an alternative to the appointment of not fewer than five or more than seven members of the agency, the governing body may, at the time of the adoption of a resolution under s. 163.355, or at any time thereafter by adoption of a resolution, declare itself to be an agency, in which case all the rights, powers, duties, privileges, and immunities vested by this part in an agency will be vested in the governing body of the county or municipality."
- § 163.40(3): defines "governing body" as "the council, commission, or other legislative body charged with governing the county or municipality."
Avon Park initially chose the second option, with its City Council declaring itself the CRA. The city's Code of Ordinances (Ch. 74, § 74-76) memorialized that choice.
The AG read § 163.357(1)(a)'s "at any time thereafter" language as creating one-directional flexibility: from independent board to governing body, but not back. The opinion did not invoke an "anti-abdication" principle but relied on the statute's silence on the reverse path.
Citations
- Ch. 163, Fla. Stat. (Community Redevelopment Act of 1969)
- § 163.355, Fla. Stat. (finding of need)
- § 163.356(1), Fla. Stat. (CRA as public body corporate and politic)
- § 163.356(2), Fla. Stat. (board of commissioners)
- § 163.357(1)(a), Fla. Stat. (governing body declaring itself the CRA)
- § 163.40(3), Fla. Stat. (governing body definition)
- Ch. 83-231, Laws of Fla. (1983 amendment)
- Avon Park, Fla., Code of Ordinances Ch. 74, § 74-76
Source
- Landing page: https://www.myfloridalegal.com/ag-opinions/community-redevelopment-agency-transfer-of-authority
- Original PDF: https://www.myfloridalegal.com/print/pdf/node/1472
Original opinion text
Mr. Gerald T. Buhr
City Attorney, City of Avon Park
7747 US Open Look
Lakewood Ranch, FL 34202
Dear Mr. Buhr:
On behalf of the City of Avon Park, you have requested an opinion on the following question:
Whether the city council, presently sitting as the governing board of the city community redevelopment agency, can transfer its authority to an independent board?
In sum:
Chapter 163, Florida Statutes, does not authorize the city council to transfer its existing authority as the city community redevelopment agency to an independent board.
The Community Redevelopment Act of 1969, codified in chapter 163, Florida Statutes, permits county and municipal governments to create community redevelopment agencies to redevelop and revitalize slum and blighted areas. A community redevelopment agency may only be created after the local government adopts a resolution making a finding of need. Once created, a community redevelopment agency is a separate "public body corporate and politic" from the local government. Generally, the Act provides that such a separate public agency when formed may be governed in two ways. First, the local government may, by ordinance, appoint a board of commissioners which may be comprised of members distinct from the members of the board of the local government. Second, the local government's "governing body" may instead designate itself as the community redevelopment agency board.
Consistent with chapter 163, Florida Statutes, and its own Code of Ordinances, the city council of the City of Avon Park, in creating a city community redevelopment agency, chose the latter structure and declared its members, by resolution, to be the commissioners of the community redevelopment agency. The city council now asks whether it can designate, as the community development agency acting in its stead, a public agency configured as set forth in section 163.356, Florida Statutes.
Section 163.356(2), Florida Statutes, requires that a board of commissioners distinct from the city council be appointed "[w]hen the governing body adopts a resolution declaring the need for a community redevelopment agency." The statute is clear that the board of commissioners be established when the community redevelopment agency is established. There is no provision for transfer of governance of an established community redevelopment agency to a later constituted board of commissioners. Notably, the converse is not true. Section 163.357(1)(a), Florida Statutes, provides that, "[a]s an alternative to the appointment of not fewer than five or more than seven members of the agency, the governing body may, at the time of the adoption of a resolution under s. 163.355, or at any time thereafter by adoption of a resolution, declare itself to be an agency, in which case all the rights, powers, duties, privileges, and immunities vested by this part in an agency will be vested in the governing body of the county or municipality, subject to all responsibilities and liabilities imposed or incurred." (Emphasis added.)
Therefore, I am of the opinion that the city council lacks statutory authority to transfer its authority as the community redevelopment agency of an existing agency to an independent board.
Sincerely,
Ashley Moody
Attorney General
AM/tlm