St. Johns County commissioners considered agricultural enclave certification for 4,462 acres of land north of Nocatee under a controversial new state law that critics say strips local governments of control over rural land conversion. The board did not reach agreement on the Davis application. The county has also pursued a legal challenge to Senate Bill 686.
The board considered Agricultural Enclave Certification Application ENCERT 2026-01. The application was discussed after an earlier meeting at which commissioners did not reach agreement.
What the Davis Family Wanted to Build
The application came from BR4700 LLC, which filed for certification of 4,462.09 acres on July 1, the same day Senate Bill 686 took effect.
Attorney Ellen Avery-Smith, a shareholder at Rogers Towers who represented the applicant, addressed concerns raised about the application during the hearing. The statutory framework sets out five alternative geographic criteria for agricultural enclave certification, including a 75% designated-development test and a 50% test for properties of 700 acres or fewer.
Boundary Questions and a Missing Survey
The general rules for enclave certification address how a property's perimeter is measured.
The law's effect on local planning and growth in St. Johns County is part of the broader debate.
What Comes Next for the Ruling
The board did not reach agreement on the Davis application, leaving the matter unresolved.
The fight over Senate Bill 686 itself is not new. Commissioners had been evaluating legal options related to the state law. Effective since July 1, the statute lets landowners with qualifying agricultural properties apply directly for enclave certification rather than pursuing a traditional comprehensive plan amendment, and it treats certified projects as conforming uses despite inconsistencies with the comprehensive plan, future land use designation or zoning. Certified developments must instead be treated as conforming uses under the statute.
Other Applications Under Review
The Davis proposal was among multiple agricultural-enclave applications St. Johns County has been reviewing. Under the law, any application not acted on within 90 days of filing is automatically approved for certification, a deadline pressure that shaped the county's earlier special meeting on the applications, held at 9 a.m. on Aug. 19 to take public comment before any board action, according to the St. Johns County government.
St. Johns County is not alone in wrestling with the new framework. Orange County has received a similar application for property known as Chuluota Road in District 5, and has scheduled a public hearing for 2 p.m. on Sept. 29, per Orange County's public notice. That notice clarifies that certification itself would not approve any specific subdivision, site plan or construction project — it would simply allow the landowner to later submit residential development applications under the state law, with certification automatic if the county board fails to act within 90 days of receiving the application.
The underlying tension driving these fights traces back to how Florida treats agricultural land itself. Florida Statutes Section 163.3162 states that agricultural lands constitute unique and irreplaceable resources of statewide importance, according to the Florida Legislature. The enclave certification framework created by Senate Bill 686 is set to sunset in 2028, according to a Lowndes law firm analysis, meaning landowners across the state have a limited window to pursue the streamlined path before it disappears. For now, the broader legal dispute over the law continues, and St. Johns County's written order on the Davis property is likely to become a key document in that fight.
