How to Get a Zoning Confirmation Letter in Melbourne
In Melbourne, you request a zoning confirmation letter from the city's Zoning Technician and pay a fee (City of Melbourne Zoning FAQ).
At Reach Commercial Real Estate, we represent tenants. We help you find locations, compare costs, investigate property questions and negotiate the lease.
1. Ask for what the listing leaves out
A listing is a starting point, so we ask for the previous use, the available floor plans and any known use restrictions.
If a critical answer is missing, we keep the property under investigation. We do not treat an unanswered question as an approval.
2. Look up the zoning for the address
Search the city's online mapping system by the property's address or its seven-digit tax account number. The Zoning FAQ says zoning and land use information is there.
The Planning and Zoning Division can also check the address of your proposed location. That check helps show whether your business would be permitted there and whether other site improvements would be needed (Melbourne's Starting a New Business Toolkit).
The Zoning FAQ gives the Planner of the Day at 321-608-7500.
3. Request a zoning confirmation letter from the Zoning Technician
If a lender, a real estate transaction or a similar purpose requires written documentation of the zoning classification, ask the Zoning Technician for a Zoning Confirmation Letter (City of Melbourne Zoning FAQ).
The city's fee page lists a zoning verification letter at $157.00. The FAQ uses the name Zoning Confirmation Letter. The fee page uses the name zoning verification letter.
4. Ask for written zoning verification in unincorporated Brevard County
Brevard County lists a Written Zoning Verification Fee of $37.50 under miscellaneous fees (Brevard County Applications and Fees page). The same page links a form titled Zoning Verification Letter.
To schedule a zoning application appointment, call the Planning and Zoning Office at (321) 633-2070.
5. Know when a state license asks for zoning documentation
The state will not approve a change of an alcohol licensee's location without documentation of proper zoning from the county or city (Florida Statutes, section 562.45(2)). The same goes for a change in the series of a license.
The Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco lists Zoning Approval among its application requirements. It says each license type may have these and other requirements.
If you are opening a tattoo shop, one condition for a tattoo establishment license is that the shop complies with local building, occupational, zoning and health codes. The license comes from the Florida Department of Health (Florida Statutes, section 381.00777(3)(c)).
6. Put the zoning answer into the lease
We want to know which approvals apply before you commit. If other approvals are needed, we bring the expected process and timing into the lease discussion.
Our lease checklist includes a use clause and a permit contingency.
Extra items to add to your list
A pre-application meeting. The city's fee page lists the first pre-application meeting per property per year at $0.
The zoning use permit on the county receipt. Brevard County's Planning and Zoning fee list shows Zoning use Permit Approval for Business Tax Receipts at $25. Melbourne's toolkit says to submit the Business Tax Receipt / Zoning Use Permit application to the Brevard County Tax Collector.
The owner's notarized statement. In unincorporated Brevard County, if you do not own the property, the owner of record must authorize you to apply. A notarized statement from the owner has to go with the application.
Start your search with Reach
You do not need to find the property before calling us. In most deals the landlord pays our fee.
Call 321-514-0876 with your business type, target opening date and whether a lender needs written zoning documentation, or with the address of a space you have found.
See tenant representation and the space needs analysis.
Related: the leasing guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does the Brevard County Tax Collector list as prerequisites for a new location?
Five: State License, Building Occupancy, Zoning, City Receipt and Health Inspection. The Tax Collector asks applicants to verify with the state, county and city agencies that each one is satisfied. Its Business Tax Receipt does not confirm that the business activity complies with local zoning. For a business in an unincorporated area, it lists three contacts to call before you submit the application. Brevard County Zoning is (321) 633-2070. Environmental Health Services is (321) 633-2100. Brevard County Development Services is (321) 633-2072.
Does Melbourne's zoning code mention the letter?
No. A search of the text of Appendix B, Zoning, returns no hits for zoning verification or zoning confirmation.
Sources
Written by Cassandra Hartford, founder and CEO of Reach Commercial Real Estate. She has worked in Brevard County commercial real estate for 17 years, representing buyers, sellers, landlords, and tenants across Florida's Space Coast.
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