Art Yatsko alleges North Port's 2024 zoning rewrite reclassified his long-held residential lot as commercial, allowing uses such as breweries and shooting ranges while barring a single-family home. Represented by the Institute for Justice, he has filed a federal lawsuit arguing the rezoning exceeded the city's authority and violated constitutional protections. City officials cite flooding and outdated 1960s platting as reasons for the change and say the update expands commercial opportunities; the dispute will be decided in federal court.
Florida Retiree Sues After North Port Rezones His Lot for Breweries and Shooting Ranges — But Bans His Home
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Art Yatsko, a retiree in North Port, says a vacant lot he bought roughly 20 years ago so he could one day build a retirement home has been rezoned and can no longer be used for that purpose.
What Happened
The dispute stems from revisions to North Port's Unified Land Development Code, adopted in 2024. Those changes reclassified Yatsko's long-held single-family lot into a commercial zoning category even though the rest of the street remains composed of single-family homes. Under the new code, certain commercial uses — including nightclubs, breweries and shooting ranges — are allowed on the parcel, but a single-family residence is not.
The Lawsuit
Yatsko filed a federal lawsuit after the city told him he could not build the home he had planned. He is represented by the Institute for Justice; attorney Katrin Marquez argues the zoning decision exceeded the city's authority and violated constitutional protections.
"According to North Port, nightclubs, breweries and shooting ranges are all welcome in this quiet community, but his home is not. That's unconstitutional,"
— Katrin Marquez, Institute for Justice
City's Explanation
City officials told WINK News the rezoning was part of a broader effort to encourage commercial development across the area and to address local flooding concerns. In an email cited by reporters, North Port leaders pointed to stormwater runoff problems in the Lady Slipper Avenue neighborhood and said the neighborhood's 1960s platting did not adequately account for modern drainage needs.
A city spokesperson also said the change "actually expanded property rights in the area by allowing for greater commercial uses on those properties."
Current Status
Existing single-family homes in the neighborhood may remain occupied under the new code, but Yatsko says he is no longer permitted to build the house he planned on his vacant lot because it is now zoned for commercial uses. The matter will be resolved in federal court, where Yatsko and the Institute for Justice ask a judge to overturn the rezoning as an unlawful overreach.
Why it matters: The case raises questions about how far a city can go when rezoning long-held residential lots for commercial development and whether such changes can effectively strip an owner of previously expected uses for their property.
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