Palm Lake Christian Church received a permit to develop 86 units of affordable housing before the city passed a new ordinance allowing churches to build housing without additional permits. | Google Maps / Palm Lake Christian Church
St. Petersburg became the first Florida city to allow religious institutions to build housing on their land regardless of the underlying zoning code. According to an article in St. Pete Rising, the new law was made possible by Florida Senate Bill 1730, which gives cities the right to permit affordable housing on church land.
According to the article, “Before SB 1730, affordable housing could be built on church land only if a city approved a rezoning, conditional use, or comprehensive plan amendment.”…