News

By Dan Moffett

    Rob Sivitilli offered to write Ocean Ridge as many checks as needed to save his family’s commercial building at 5011 N. Ocean Blvd.
    He told town commissioners he would reimburse the town for the legal fees it ran up fighting the Sivitillis in court for over a decade. He said he would give the town $250,000 to hold in escrow for the building’s renovation. He said he would indemnify the town against future lawsuits from other property owners who might come forward and want similar commercial concessions.
    Sivitilli even offered to pay Town Attorney Ken Spillias to help come up with a development plan to ensure the building is used in a way that suits the town for years to come.
    In the end, none of it was enough to win Sivitilli the three votes he needed to pass an ordinance that would grandfather the family property into compliance with town rules.
    Commissioners James Bonfiglio and Richard Lucibella voted against the ordinance, Commissioner Lynn Allison and Mayor Geoffrey Pugh voted for it, and Commissioner Gail Adams Aaskov, who would have supported the Sivitillis, had to recuse herself because she rents space for her business in the building.
    The proposal died at the Dec. 1 meeting for lack of a majority.
    “Every promise that could possibly be made has been made by the Sivitillis,” Allison said. “What else can he promise you? What are we looking for? Blood?”
    Lucibella became the swing vote in recent weeks, opposing the family’s renovation plan after leaning toward approving it in October. He said his concern had grown about changing the town’s rules to accommodate one property owner, and he worried about potential legal consequences. He said Sivitilli had shown the commission an attractive renovation plan, but that isn’t enough.
    “I’m concerned we’re going to get sued,” Lucibella said. “What Rob has come in and done is just too little too late.”
    Bonfiglio, the commission’s most strident critic of grandfathering the property, was firmly opposed to changing the town’s rules, calling it “spot zoning” that is sure to bring lawsuits. Bonfiglio said the family should apply for a variance, which the code allows, if it wants to stay in business, or petition for a change in the town’s comprehensive plan.
    Allison and Pugh believed that the commercial building wasn’t detrimental to the town, and with the renovation, could become an asset.
    “It’s not just a benefit for one family,” Allison said. “A lot of people in Ocean Ridge use the services there. It would benefit the town.”
    Sivitilli said he was disappointed in the vote, but wasn’t giving up. He said he’s considering bringing the commission another proposal — to de-annex the property from the town.
    “They say we don’t fit, so then let us go,” he said. “De-annexation could be a possibility. We’ll keep trying. We don’t give up easy.”