Elling O. Eide v. Sarasota County

Summary

The Eleventh Circuit held that a landowner's §1983 substantive due process and equal protection claims challenging a county's sector plan as unconstitutional were not ripe because the landowner had not submitted a development plan or rezoning petition, and the county had not made a final decision on the extent of permitted development. The court rejected the futility exception, finding that at least one meaningful application was required before the exception could apply, and that the county had not unambiguously foreclosed commercial zoning or a comprehensive plan amendment. The case was reversed and remanded with instructions to dismiss the claims as unripe.

Holdings

1. The claims are not ripe because the landowner has not obtained a final decision from the county regarding the application of the zoning regulations to his property.

Questions Presented

1. Whether a landowner's equal protection and substantive due process claims regarding a county's zoning decision are ripe for adjudication when the landowner has not submitted a development plan or petitioned for rezoning and the county has not made a final decision on the application of the regulation to the property.

Disposition

reversed_and_remanded