15-002386BID Capital Grove Limited Partnership vs. Florida Housing Finance Corporation Status: Closed Recommended Order on Monday, August 3, 2015.

Summary: Protester failed to establish standing or that its application should be approved for funding.

STATE OF FLORIDA

FLORIDA HOUSING FINANCE CORPORATION

CAPITAL GROVE LIMITED

PARTNERSHIP,

Petitioner,

v. FHFC CASE NO.: 2015 -012BP

DOAH Case No.: 15- 2386BID

FLORIDA HOUSING FINANCE

CORPORATION,

Respondent,

and

HTG WELLINGTON FAMILY, LLC,

Intervenor.

FINAL ORDER

This cause came before the Board of Directors of the Florida Housing Finance

Corporation ( "Board ") for consideration and final agency action on August 7, 2015.

Petitioner Capital Grove Limited Partnership, ( "Capital Grove ") timely submitted

an Application for funding ( "Application ") in response to Request for Applications

2014 -114. The matter for consideration before this Board is a Recommended Order

pursuant to §120.57(1) and (3), Fla. Stat. (2014).

1. Petitioner timely filed its Petition for Formal Administrative Hearing

pursuant to § §120.569 and 120.57(1) and (3), Fla. Stat. (2014), (the "Petition ")

challenging the preliminary agency action of Florida Housing Finance Corporation

FILED WITH THE CLERK OF THE FLORIDA

HOUSING F CE CORPORATION

/DATE- 9- . !S"

( "Florida Housing ") regarding the scoring of its Application and that of Intervenor

HTG Wellington Family, LLC ( "HTG "). HTG subsequently intervened in the

proceeding.

2. Florida Housing reviewed the Petition pursuant to § 120.569(2)(c), Fla.

Stat. (2014), determined that the Petition raised disputed issues of material fact and

referred the case to the Division of Administrative Hearings. Pursuant to

§120.57(1), Fla. Stat. (2014), an informal hearing was held in this case on July 1,

2015, in Tallahassee, Florida, before Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) James H.

Peterson, III. Following the hearing, Capital Grove, Florida Housing and HTG all

timely filed Proposed Recommended Orders.

3. After consideration of the evidence and arguments presented at hearing

and the Proposed Recommended Orders, the All issued a Recommended Order. A

true and correct copy of the Recommended Order is attached hereto as "Exhibit A."

The ALJ recommended: that Florida Housing issue a Final Order affirming the

Florida Housing's scoring of the Capital Grove Application; finding that as a result

Capital Grove lacks standing to challenge HTG's Application; otherwise affirming

Florida Housing's scoring of the HTG Application; and recommending denial of the

relief requested in the Petition.

4. §120.57(1)(k), Fla. Stat. (2014) provides a procedure for a Petitioner to

challenge the findings of a Recommended Order entered pursuant to a formal

hearing. Capital Grove timely filed its Exceptions to the Recommended Order on

August 5, 2015, a copy of which is attached hereto as "Exhibit B" and made a part

hereof by reference. Florida Housing and HTG subsequently filed a Joint Response

to Petitioners Exceptions ( "Joint Response ") the following day, August 6, 2015, a

copy of which is attached hereto as "Exhibit C" and incorporated herein by

reference.

RULING ON EXCEPTIONS

5. Based on a review of the record and the arguments presented by the

Parties, the Board specifically rejects Capital Grove's enumerated Exceptions 1 -5

for the reasons set forth in the Recommended Order and the Joint Response.

RULING ON THE RECOMMENDED ORDER

6. The Findings of Fact of the Recommended Order are supported by

competent substantial evidence.

7. The Conclusions of Law of the Recommended Order are supported by

competent substantial evidence.

8. The arguments presented in Capital Grove's Exceptions 1 -5 are

specifically rejected on the grounds set forth in the Recommended Order and the

Joint Response.

ORDER

In accordance with the foregoing, it is hereby ORDERED:

9. The Findings of Fact of the Recommended Order are adopted as Florida

Housing's findings of fact and incorporated by reference as though fully set forth in

this Order.

10. The Conclusions of Law of the Recommended Order are adopted as

Florida Housing's Conclusions of Law and incorporated by reference as though fully

set forth in this Order.

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Florida Housing's scoring of the Capital

Grove and HTG Applications is AFFIRMED and the relief requested in the Petition

is DENIED.

DONE and ORDERED this 7th day of August, 2015.

FLORIDA HOUSING FINANCE

CORPORATION

Bv:

Copies to:

Hugh R. Brown

General Counsel

Florida Housing Finance Corporation

227 North Bronough Street, Suite 5000

Tallahassee, FL 32301

Ken Reecy

Director of Multifamily Programs

Florida Housing Finance Corporation

227 North Bronough Street, Suite 5000

Tallahassee, FL 32301

Michael P. Donaldson, Esquire

Carlton Fields Jorden Burt, P.A.

215 S. Monroe Street, Suite 500

Tallahassee, FL 32301

Maureen McCarthy Daughton, Esquire

Maureen McCarthy Daughton, LLC

1725 Capital Circle NE, Suite 304

Tallahassee, FL 32308

NOTICE OF RIGHT TO JUDICIAL REVIEW

A PARTY WHO IS ADVERSELY AFFECTED BY THIS FINAL ORDER IS

ENTITLED TO JUDICIAL REVIEW PURSUANT TO SECTION 120.68,

FLORIDA STATUTES. REVIEW PROCEEDINGS ARE GOVERNED BY

THE FLORIDA RULES OF APPELLATE PROCEDURE. SUCH

PROCEEDINGS ARE COMMENCED BY FILING ONE COPY OF A

NOTICE OF APPEAL WITH THE AGENCY CLERK OF THE FLORIDA

HOUSING FINANCE CORPORATION, 227 NORTH BRONOUGH

STREET, SUITE 5000, TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA 32301 -1329, AND A

SECOND COPY, ACCOMPANIED BY THE FILING FEES PRESCRIBED

BY LAW, WITH THE DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL, FIRST DISTRICT,

300 MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR., BLVD., TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA

32399 -1850, OR IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL IN THE

APPELLATE DISTRICT WHERE THE PARTY RESIDES. THE NOTICE

OF APPEAL MUST BE FILED WITHIN THIRTY (30) DAYS OF

RENDITION OF THE ORDER TO BE REVIEWED.