Case Name: ISLAMORADA, VILLAGE OF ISLANDS, Appellant, v. Ervin HIGGS, as Property Appraiser of Monroe County, Appellee
Court: Florida District Court of Appeal
Jurisdiction: Florida
Decision Date: 2003-11-19
Citations: 882 So. 2d 1009
Docket Number: No. 3D03-1508
Parties: ISLAMORADA, VILLAGE OF ISLANDS, Appellant, v. Ervin HIGGS, as Property Appraiser of Monroe County, Appellee.
Judges: Before LEVY, GERSTEN, and WELLS, JJ.
Reporter: Southern Reporter, Second Series
Volume: 882
Pages: 1009–1014

Head Matter:
ISLAMORADA, VILLAGE OF ISLANDS, Appellant, v. Ervin HIGGS, as Property Appraiser of Monroe County, Appellee.
No. 3D03-1508.
District Court of Appeal of Florida, Third District.
Nov. 19, 2003.
Order Denying Rehearing En Banc and Opinion Dissenting From Denial of Rehearing En Banc Aug. 11, 2004.
Weiss Serota Helfman Pastoriza Guedes Cole & Boniske and Edward G. Guedes and Nina L. Boniske, for appellant.
John C. Dent, Jr., and Sherri L. Johnson(Sarasota), for appellee.
Before LEVY, GERSTEN, and WELLS, JJ.

Opinion:
' LEVY, Judge.
Islamorada, Village of Islands ("Village"), appeals from a Final Summary Judgment entered in favor of Ervin Higgs, the Property Appraiser of Monroe County, Florida ("Property Appraiser"). We reverse.
The Village has exclusively owned and operated the Plantation Yacht Harbor Marina ("Marina") since April 13, 2000. The Marina is a portion of a recreational facility formerly known as Plantation Yacht Harbor, but now known as Islamorada Founders Park ("Founders Park"). The master plan for Founders Park includes various recreational facilities, and administrative offices for the Village and fire rescue. In 2001, the Village operated the Marina for the purpose of serving the recreational needs of both its residents and the general public, including out-of-town visitors. Boat slips at the Marina were rented on a daily, weekly, monthly, or annual basis. The Marina and the- services provided at the Marina were available and open to members of the public. The services included, but are not limited to, the use of a boat ramp, dockage, and refueling. The Village set standardized charges for both fueling and dock space. The revenues of the Village's operation of the' Marina exceeded the expenses associated with its operation. In setting the rates for the Marina, the Village intended to provide a flow of revenue and funds to the Village's general fund to help pay debt service incurred when the entire facility was purchased. In 2001, the Property Appraiser denied the Village's application for an exemption from ad valorem taxation for the Marina. The Village appealed to the Monroe County Value Adjustment Board ("VAB"X After an evidentiary hearing before a special master, the special master determined that the Marina represented a proper public function, and was not-a proprietary venture. The VAB adopted these findings. The Property Appraiser then appealed the VAB's determination by filing suit in the Circuit, Court pursuant to Section 194.036, Florida Statutes. Both parties filed Motions for Summary Judgment. The Circuit Court denied the Village's Motion for Summary Judgment and granted the Property Appraiser's Motion for Summary Judgment. This appeal follows.
Municipalities are not subdivisions of the State and, thus, are not immune to taxation. See Greater Orlando Aviation Auth. v. Crotty, 775 So.2d 978, 980 (Fla. 5th DCA. 2000) (citing Orlando Utils. Comm'n v. Milligan, 229 So.2d 262 (Fla. 4th DCA 1969), rev. denied, 237 So.2d 539 (Fla.1970)). However, according to Article VII, Section 3(a) of the Florida Constitution, "[a]ll property owned by a municipality and used exclusively by it for municipal or public purposes shall be exempt from taxation." Moreover, Section 196.199(1)(c), Florida Statutes (2002), provides that the property of the municipalities of the state used "for governmental, municipal, or public purposes shall be exempt from ad valorem taxation, except as otherwise provided by law."
The issue in the instant case is whether a marina that is owned and operated by a municipality is entitled to an ad valorem tax exemption when the marina serves both residents and nonresidents, despite (1) operating in competition with other marinas in the area and (2) generating a profit for the municipality which is deposited into the municipality's general fund. The Village contends that the Marina is entitled to an ad valorem tax exemption because, as the eloquent argument of appellant's attorney clearly demonstrates, the Marina is a recreational facility that is available to residents and nonresidents and is operated without the involvement of a non-governmental lessee or operator. We agree.
The resolution of the issue centers around whether the Marina is being used exclusively by the Village for municipal or public purposes. If the Marina is being used for municipal or public purposes, then it is exempt from ad valorem taxation. The term "municipal purpose" embraces all activities essential to the health, morals, protection and welfare of the municipality. See Crotty, 775 So.2d at 980 (citations omitted). "Municipal functions" are functions created for or granted for the benefit and advantage of the community included within the corporate boundaries. See id. at 980-81 (citations omitted). Municipal functions are those which "specifically and peculiarly promote the comfort, convenience, safety and happiness of the citizens of the municipality rather than the welfare of the general public." Id. at 981. In Page v. City of Fernandina Beach, 714 So.2d 1070, 1076 (Fla. 1st DCA 1998), the First District stated,
Municipal operation of a marina is a legitimate municipal corporate undertaking for the comfort, convenience, safety, and happiness of the municipality's citizens . When a city operates a marina it owns, marina property it has not leased to a nongovernmental entity is exempt from ad valorem taxation,
(emphasis added). We agree with the foregoing language from the First District.
In the instant case, it is abundantly clear that, despite the fact that the Village earns a profit from its operation of the Marina, the Marina exists and is operated for the comfort, convenience, safety, and happiness of the citizens of the Village. Accordingly, the Order granting Summary Judgment in favor of the Property Appraiser is reversed with directions to enter Summary Judgment in favor of the Village.
Reversed and remanded with directions.