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Minutes 03-05-97MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING HELD IN COMMISSION CHAMBERS, CITY HALL, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA, ON WEDNESDAY, MARCH S, 1997, AT 7:00 P.M. PRESENT Gerald "Jerry" Taylor, Mayor Shirley Jaskiewicz, Vice Mayor Matthew Bradley, Commissioner Henderson Tillman, Commissioner Jamie Titcomb, Commissioner Kerry Willis. City Manager James Cherof, City Attorney Sue Kruse, City Clerk CALL TO ORDER Mayor Taylor called the meeting to order at 7:04 p.m The innovation was given by C0mmiss~oner Bradley. The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Vice Mayor Jaskiew~cz. The City Commission sat as the Community Redevelopment Agency to consider the Boynton Marina Project Conditional Use Site Plan Approval/Site Plan Review. All those who would be testifying were sworn in by City Attorney Cherof. Architect Gary Eliopoulos of Robert G. Currie Partnership, Inc. reviewed the revisecJ site plan Six parallel parking spaces were added on N.E. 6,n Street. He stated that the parking spaces were not depicted on the plan correctly. They should be 25 feet wide, not 20 feet wide. With regard to the retail area the landscaping shown on the prewous site plan was replaced with six parking spaces. The loading space was replaced with four parking spaces. The pedestrian access along Casa Loma Boulevard was replaced with two parking spaces. The access on the west side of the boat storage was replaced with parallel parking spaces. Due to the concerns of the Fire Department accessing the side of the building, we shifted the loading zone/fire truck back jp and reinstated that entrance; however, it will be only for the Fire Department. On the east side of the boat storage, the harbor master has been removed. We removed the upper office portion of the retail area (3,200 square feet of office space) in order to deviate from some of the required parking. Mr. Garcia has agreed to pull the easternmost restaurant out of the right-of-way. The kiosk for fueling, for manning the pumps, and for some restrooms for the public was MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 5, 1997 removed. Along the lower portion, we are going to reinstate a loading space for trucks to service Two Georges. There is a strong possibility for off-site parking; however, Mr. Garcia needs to see some kind of cemmitment. He will get the parking. It will not be the issue that is going to kill this project. Mayor Taylor said the last time he met with Mr. Garcia and the architect, they discussed removing the planter from [he middle of the turnaround to make that area more spacious. Mr. Eliopoulos advised that the planter will be removed because we need access to the compactor. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz asked if all the parking will be shared parking. Mr. Eliopoulos stated that the whole site has always been shared parking. However, with regard to the calculations, staff is allowing the developer to have 15 out of the 69 spaces. The rest would be dedicated to the dive shop and Two Georges. Commissioner Bradley asked if the parking to the west would be shared as well. Mr. Eliopoulos explained that some parking spaces are being used in the calculations for this project; however, the site has always been open for everybody. This site is designed for everybody to use the parking. Tambri Heyden. Planning and Zoning Director. advised that the applicant has agreed to move the restaurant building out of the right-of-way. There is a reduction in square footage due to the reduction in the office use and the elimination of the harbor master. Parking has been added. The west entrance to the ooat storage building has been deleted and parking spaces have been added along the west building front. Utility plans and conceptual drainage plans have been turned in. Staff has reviewed the market study and provided staff comments with respect to that study. Staff has agreed to credit 15 of the parking spaces that are partially located on Casa Loma Boulevard and partially located on the property. There is currently an approximate 48 space deficiency. Fifteen will be taken off that, leaving 33. We recommend that there be some easements and dedication of property to clear up the parking space being half on property that is owned by the City and half on proper~y owned by the property owner. The parking proposal and the calculations do not provide for any allocation of current licenses. Right now, there are five uses (charter boats, drift boats, etc.) that would require 12 parking spaces. Therefore it is assumed those uses would be removed from the property once the property is developed. Also, the adjacent Sea Mist Manna. which currently has no parking of its own, has a lease agreement that has been approved by MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 5, 1997 the City for 40 ~)arking spaces, Therefore, when this property is developed, that user would need to seek parking somewhere else to meet the current licenses that the marina has. Two Georges also has a similar situation. They have seven parking spaces on site that would be blocked by this plan. However, they have a current lease with Barnett Bank for 58 spaces to allow their 100 seat restaurant and three marine uses. Staff recommends that the plan submitted in September and the one that was originally submitted which showed parking and access along the north part of the canal and a sea wall be required to be constructed as part of this project approval. This would add additional parking spaces. There are mangroves thatwould have to be worked around that would require environmental permitS. It is believed that if that area is constructed, additional spaces would be.added and it would probably reduce the parking deficiency to about 10 parking spaces. Those 10 parking spaces could either be leased from adjacent ~)roperty owners, or Code allows a fee in lieu of parking for redevelopment projects. The City's contract engineer, Gee & Jenson, has estirpated that it wou Id cost $752.00 to construct a typical par,king space, which would inc!u~te paving, drainage landscaping, lighting, sidewalks, etc. If the Commission feelsthis is a viable option to resolve the parking shortage, a fe? of $752.00 per parking space could be given to the City to provide parking elsewhere lin the City,that WOUld serveithiS project.and other projects that come on line in the area that redevelop and also have a parking shortage prOblem. Our Visions 20/20 RFP includes as a bulleted item a parking strategy for the downtown area. Once We go through that, we will be able to identify ~hether or not we should construct a parking garage an~l where that garage should be located. There are vacant parcels scattered throughout the downtown that could be constructed as small parking lots, and this money could be put into a fund and used towards that. Mayor Taylor asked if we currently have any money in such a fund. Ms. Heyden advised that we do not. Ms. Heyden continued that because of the changes to the west facade of the building, some of the landscaping was r.~moved. She was concerned about this. Screening of the boat storage building is not required by Code: however, screening can be required as part of the conditional use ~.pproval. The Palm trees that were proposed in the last plan were quite large and she believes they should be reinstated. Aisc, the entrance to the west side of the building needs to be reinstated, which means that the couple of parking spaces that block that access have to be removed. Ms. Heyden made one correction to the comments from the Economic Development Director. On page 8 of Memorandum No. 97-069, it states that a storage facility would MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEET1NG BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 5, 1997 not functionally need 16 full-time employees, Ms. Heyden said this statement is incorrect, She believes they would need only about eight people to man that building. With regard to the technical issues relating to fire, there were comments made at the last public hearing about fire access to Two Georges and how the lack of pavement in this area would not allow proper fire access to this building. The Fire Department is satisfied with this arrangement. They are requiring stand p~pes in this location, and Ms. Heyden believes the applicant has agreed to provide them. The applicant has hired a fire protection engineer and is willing to comply with all the fire comments. However, this area still poses a problem with regard to deliveries, Staff believes cars will end up parking in the cul-de-sac, blocking access to the restaurant for deliveries. Therefore, staff recommends that the paved area be extended with a stub, not a full cul-de-sac, to allow closer access to the restaurant for deliveries and/or the Fire Department, Peter Mazzella, Assistant to the Utilities Director, addressed the utility and drainage plans. He distributed to the Commission Utilities Memorandum No. 97-031. He stated that it is our basic premise that the developer should be responsible for designing and constructing all the water, sewer, and stormwater on the property. We are not necessarily opposed to the City giving incentives; however, because of the complexity of the site, the unknowns regarding soil types, exact building d'irr~nsions, and landscaping changes that are continually occurring, we do not,feel it would be wise for us to do any of the design work or let contracts for construction Qn the site. We think it would be prudent for us to make whatever changes are necessary. The water mare on Casa Loma Boulevard needs to be upsized, and the gravity se~Ner needs to be modified slightly. We can do these. The water mare on Boynton Beach Boulevard needs to be extended to tie into the future 10 inch water main that the developer is proposing. The conceptual plan for the water and sewer on site still needssome work. It looks like it is doable if there are no other conflicts with the other infrastructure elements on the site. However. we cannot tell right now because the plans arenot that far along to do so. We will look at that during the engineenng design review. Since this has to go for health department permits, we will look at it very closely. We were asked to look at the overall stormwater ~ssue because we are a stormwater utility and one of our charges is to maintain or improve surface water quality in this area. We were presented with a conceptual plan and made some comments on it, These comments are in addition to the comments made by the Development Department. The Development Department asked for a stormwater master plan and certain certifications which are required by Code. We know the site is very Iow lined and is going to have a lot of im pervious area. The stormwater is going to have to be pretreated in some way before it runs out into the Intracoastal. The applicant has stipulated that he would be using exfiltration trenches. We see some problems with 4 MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 5, 1997 that because of the Iow lying area. They will have to work that out, and that will come in at the Building permit stage. Mayor Taylor asked how stormwater is currently being treated in the surrounding area. Mr. Mazzella advised that much of the area right now is pervious. He believes we have direct runoff into the Intracoastal from Casa Loma Boulevard, which is paved. However, with the addition of all this pavement and the buildings, which are also going to generate runoff, you are going to have a high percentage of imperious area (inthe 60 percent range for the whole site). There is no room for.re~ainage on site. There is no pond. This could make or break the project. The stormwater design for this site is going to be a real engineering challenge. Mayor Taylor pointed out that currently there is no stormwater treatment, but we are working towards having some type of stormwater treatment. He also pointed out that there is going to be a retention pond. On Woolbright, stormwater ran right into the lntracoastal and as they built that project, we had them put in some sort of stormwater purification system on that site. Mr. Mazzella stated that that was basically an existing site with no increase in impervious area. This site is seeing a drastic increase in impervious area, which means more pollutants, oils~ and grease from cars, etc. He believes this stormwater retention area ~s dedicated strictly to the bridge and Ocean Avenue. He did not think there is any excess capacity, so he is not sure it will help this project. Commissioner Bradley asked what other remedies there are if exfiltration is impossible. Ron Dickson, a Professional Civil Engineer with Dickson and Associates, stated that there are several ways to dispose of waste stormwater in South Florida. Exfiltration trenches is one of the more popular means; however, sometimes this is not cost effective. There are some other solutions, such as on-siteiretention, but there is no room for a pond. One of the other more popular methods has been pervious concrete pavement, which permits rainfall to go through the concrete pavement. At the time we do the detailed engineering, we are going to look at that material. Mayor Taylor pointed out that we would have to address this problem no matter what project is put on the site. Mr. Mazzella agreed but said the~ percentage of impervious area makes this project somewhat more critical in that aspect. Commissioner Titcomb asked about drainage or parking credits where adjacent properties could be used to site stormwater. Mr Mazzella was not aware of any without actually purchasing the property and routing the water to them. The applicant is going to have to go to South Florida Water Management District and possibly some other MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 5, 1997 agencies to get permits. He did not think they use that type of concept. What falls on the site has to be treated either on site or on land that they own off site. Mayor Taylor opened the floor to the public, Patti Hammer, 52 Stratford Lane, was appalled at the condition of the manna and said something has to be done. She urged the Commission to vote in favor of this very needed project. Buck Buchanan, 807 Ocean Inlet Drive, is on the Board of Directors of the Inlet Cove Association. He is an engineer by training, even though he does not practice anymore. At the Community Redevelopment Advisory Board meeting a couple of weeks ago, the architect said only 50 parking spaces ara needed for the 200 capacity in and out boat storage facility. From his personal experience, 25 percent does not begin to cover the amount of parking needed. In and out boat storage facilities are unattractive, industrial, and not conducive to further development. Also at that meeting he heard thoro would be very little conflict between the need for parking spaces for the in and out boat storage facility and the other businesses. Mr. Buchanan felt the success of the restaurants and retail spaces depends on the number of parking spaces, and they will need the parking spaces on the weekends, the same time the highest number of parking spaces will be utilized for the in and out boat storage facility. He suggested that the Engineering Department do a study of all the in and out boat storage facilities in Palm Beach and Broward Counties. in addition to a parking study. He also suggested that aerial photographs be taken dur ng the h gh usage t mos From h s experience the operations of an m and out boat storage faclhty have tremendous problems. There is a pile up of boats trying to get back into the facility. People wash their boats and flush their engines. The water in that area is always polluted with gas, oil, etc. He was concerned about safety because of the number of boats: Mr, Buchanan also wanted smaller buildings, and he did not think there is enough in~'ormation to make a logical, rational decision. John Alvaroe, 680 N.E. 15th Place. is a real estate broker. He applauded the developers an~l staff for all their work. He felt something needs to be done in this area. He stated that parking can make or break any commercial project. Mr. Garcia is ~mpacting this Jand with very high density. To impact this property with that type of density is not going to do the citizens of Boynton Beach t~e good that they are proposing. He pointed out that other marinas do not have a boat barn in order [o make it economically feasible, He felt there needs to be more research to find out what will work in that area, Don Freeman, attorney and personal representative of the Estate of George Culver, advised that the Scaggs family has the Two Georges' property under contract. He was 6 MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 5; 1997 in favor of a project that will work on this proper~y, and opposed to a project that will not work. He felt Mr. Garcia's request is premature because the drawings do not depict What he said he will do. He felt Mr. Garcia shou Id commit to getting the 48 parking spaces he needs. They are available in the City, or he could erase part of the building on his property. The staff report states that parking spaces, loading areas, and dumpsters are proposed on the eastern end of the cul-de-sac and that these improvements are acceptable and accessible by all property owners located on Casa Loma Boulevard. Mr. Freeman said the present design is not acceptable to Two Georges. Also, the staff report states that Two Georges has seven on-site spaces that will be blocked by this proposal. Mr. Freeman said 13 spaces will be blocked, not seven. He stated that a boat storage facility is a light industrial use and does not work on this premium waterfront property. He requested that the Commission ask the developer to make a commitment to the City regarding what they are going to do. They should redesign the parking and come up with the 48 spaces and answer the questions in terms of shared parking. Staff report recommends against the shared parking. There are inconsistencies that need to be straightened out. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz wondered how Mr. Freeman came up with 13 parking spaces in that area. She did not think there was room for 13 parking spaces in that area. Garry Jasper, 655 South Road. said there is obviously a problem with parking. He felt the project, as it stands now, has a tremendous number of unanswered questions. He wondered how boat trailers are going to park in a parking space for a car. He asked how many parking spaces the applicant is short and what that equates to in square footage. He stated that if the applicant cannot put in parking spaces, he should sacrifice some square footage. He asked if the City is going to pay for the work that has to be done on the canal area to add additional parking spaces. He wondered if any consideration was given to a boat fire. He asked about the overall cost of what this project is going to cost the City, and how much the City is going to get back. Mike Fitzpatrick, 101 S.W. 4'n Avenue. believes the in and out boat storage facility is like trying to put ten pounds in a five pound sack He was concerned that this facility wil pollute the mangroves and kill the young fish. He pointed out that the mangroves are the basis for a sustained fish production. Mike Friedland. 330 N.E. 26'" Avenue, stated that Visions 20/20 met a few months ago and came back to town with the idea that a nautical design should be used for the City and for the property in question. The Commission will be interviewing companies with expertise on parking, street widening, and many other problems that we are going to have with this or any other type of use on this property. We will not solve every 7 MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 5, 1997 problem at the beginning. We are going to have to add parking, widen streets= and perhaps build a little inside parking as Boynton Beach grows. This is the only project that we have now and a lot of effort and thought has gone into it. Ken Blair, 825 Ocean Inlet Drive, applauded the efforts of the Commission to do something with the downtown area. He felt it is very necessary; however, he had concerns about the permeable area. To handle that with a French drain gravel bed is very difficult and costly. Surface water quality is a very big problem He expressed concern about the mangroves, the juvenile fish, and boat safety. He pointed out that there are very strong currents in this area. He was in favor of a quality project. He felt we could do something like Bayside in Miami. He felt we are grabbing at this project because we think nothing else will come along. He stated that the value of this land is going to increase very rapidly with the density and the build out of Palm Beach County because there is only so much waterfront property. He asked the Commission not to grab at something that does not have the quality that we would really like to have here. Engineering wise, there is an inordinate amount of concessions being made by the Commission. Lee Wische, 1302 S.W. 18TM Street, stated that this project has to be approved by several agencies. The mangroves will have to be addressed before this project is approved by the Environmental Protection Agency. The engineering has to be approved, and before a Certificate of Occupancy can be obtained, all ordinances, etc., have to be complied with. He said this is not the most perfect project; however, it is the only project. He heard people say that the land can be put to a better use. He said there has never been a better use and if this project is not approved, the downtown area will never be developed. Terry Brabham, 652 South Road, is a State licensed building contractor, has a BS degree in marine biology from FAU. runs the Dow Charter business at the Sea Mist Marina, and has operated a boat barn type setup for three years. He stated that the Code requires 342 spaces; 223 with a 35 percent reduction. The applicant claims there are 182 spaces on site. If we subtract the 69 that are on City right-of-way, which the applicant has no right to claim, there are only 113 parking spaces on site, leaving a shortage of 110. If this project is approved, we will lose 45 existing parking spaces. Added to the 110, that makes a shortage of 155 on-site spaces. This does not include the erroneous number of I to 4 with regard to the boat barn. You will get from 70 to 80 percent usage every weekend. The boat barn alone will need 176 parking spaces. This is not a one story building. It is a six story building. A one story building is 10 feet tall. He suggested that there be two stories of parking underneath the 9arn for the boats and parking on top. 8 MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 5, 1997 The Code states that you cannot build on a right-of-way. We should hold them to the Code. He stated that the 10 dive and charter boats were granted their licenses under the parking spaces in this area. His customers carry tanks, regulators, backpacks, weight belts. They are not going to be able to park far away and carry that equipment to the boat. Right now, they can park right behind his boat. It is a 20 passenger boat and he needs at least 12 spaces just for his business alone. The ten boats bring approximately 31,600 new persons to the Boynton Beach area each year. About 15,200 of them stay over night at the local hotels and eat at the local restaurants. The 200 people who are going to use the boat barn are not going to spend money here. They will be coming from Delray Beach and Boca Raton because they cannot park their boats in their yards. As soon as they are done, they are going to go home. The boat barn is not going to bring ~n any revenue for the City. He submitted a petition signed by 106 Boynton Beach residents and 22 nonresidents who are opposed to this project as it is set up. He said if he is put out of business, he would have no recourse except to come back [o the people who allowed this to happen. He stated that we are going to tie this up in legalities unless it is worked out properly for everybody involved. He asked the Commission to deny this project because it is not approved by the City's professional staff. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz did not think the parking was part of the license. Mr. Brabham said he tried to bring another boat in. but the City would not allow him to do so because there are no parking spaces available. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz believes this area was grandfathered without parking. A lady in the audience said her license is set on the number of people that her boat carries. Mayor Taylor pointed out that it is public parking, and is not reserved for any particular business. Becky Jones. 808 Ocean Inlet Drive, pointed out that there are very successful long term restaurants in the area that have parking problems already. She suggested that in lieu of the boat barn. a third restaurant be put in that area. She also suggested extending the walkway around the waterway. She thought the purpose of the redevelopment was to draw people downtown. She suggested a facility be put in for Tunes in Town and felt the nearby residents would walk to eat at the restaurants and listen to music in a grassed area. However, in order for these people to come downtown, there needs to be more than a couple of extra restaurants. There needs to be some kind of entertainment on Friday and Saturday nights. She suggested extending part of the current land use to accommodate parking. She also suggested that the City invest some money in redoing the facades on some of the current buildings on Ocean Avenue. 9 MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 5, 1997 Mr. Eliopoulos said he never had to go this far with a conceptual plan. He pointed out that the developer will have to meet all the conditions. The only way the developer can make this project work is with the boat storage faci.lity. With regard to square footage and how it relates to parking, there are different ways of taking calculations. With regard to the restaurant, 100 square feet equals one space. With regard to retail, 200 square feet equals one space, and with regard to office space, 300 square feet equals one parking space. We are trying to have this as a conditional use as far as several components involved on one site. When you start taking away, you m~ght not have enough office or retail. It involves balancing. With regard to shared parking, we want some of the parking for our calculations; however, the whole site is shared parking. Ms. Heyden stated that there are still some technical difficulties that need to be worked out with this plan. She believes all the comments can be worked out. She believes the boat storage use in this location is not consistent with our community redevelopment plan She believes that since the resident use has now dropped off and the retail and office space have been minimized, that this no,longer represents the kind of mixed use project that we need to encourage downtown. Unless there is the residential base to support it, it could be a problem. Until we start bringing more residences down to this area, we are not going to get the draw to support retail. It is very important that this project be truly a mixed use project. Janet Hall. 700 Casa Loma Boulevard, requested that the Commission eliminate the licensing of Casa Loma Boulevard to Mr. Garcia as part of th~s project because she did not think this is the solution to the parking problem. If you license the street, you have perpetually taken a step that you cannot back out of. If you license the street, you completely shut off our access to parking. Mayor Taylor stated that all the parking will remain public parking. Some of it is just being used in the calculations for this project. Lynn Simmons owns Splash Down Divers Incorporated ocated at 700 Casa Loma Boulevard. She has been there for 15 years. Those parking spaces are being used r~ght now. If you assign them to someone else. they are going to use those spaces also. Mayor Taylor pointed out that anybody can park in any of those parking spaces. It is based on a first come, first serve basis. Ms. Simmons said her divers will not come if they cannot park where they want to go diving. Mayor Taylor agreed that it is a convenience right now. Ms. Simmons said the City gave her a license based on the number of parking spaces that she needed If the City is going to g,ve those parking spaces to someone else. then her license is not good for anything. Mayor Taylor reiterated that the parking spaces are for the public. 10 MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 5, 1997 City Attorney Cherof stated that Ms. Simmons has an occupational license in spite of the fact that she does not have parking on her property. Ms. Simmons asked why she was denied a license for another boat based on the parking. City Attorney Cherof stated that the fact that she had a business there that was nonconforming gave the City the basis not to permit her to expand that business and thereby expand the nonconforming use. He stated that Ms. Simmonshas enjoyed the benefit of conducting a business there for many years ~n spite of the fact that she does not provide parking for her customers. Ms. Simmons said she was the first dive boat 15 years ago that started the diving fleet that is nowwhat makes Boynton Beach. The fishing is gone. There is only one drift boat left. You will run the dive boats out of business by approving this project. People come down here to see the water and the boats. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz stated that currently the real estate taxes realized from that entire property is $16.893.00. It is anticipated with the development that this would increase to $138 000.00. She has visited other sites and did not think they were aesthetically pleasing. However, she felt we cannot compare this project with others because they did not require any landscaping, etc.. to dress up the building. They also had outdoor storage. She thought it was interesting tha[there were high priced condominiums next to two of them. About three days ago, she went to Clematis Street in West Pa m Beach and had to ride around for a half hour before she found a parking space. She believes this is a s~gn of the times and a sign of progress Delray Beach did not always have a parking problem. They are getting more successful and, therefore, parking has become a problem. She hopes that some day we have a parking problem. It would mean that we have revitalized the downtown. With regard to the boat storage facility, she would prefer to develop the property another way. She pointed out that we.sent out RFPs all over the country. One developer wanted to put in a 10 story hotel. He said he had definite commitments from three compames. However, that did not workout. Then he wanted to put in 360 apartments. That did not work either. Five out of state people were ~nterested in the project. They all looked at the property, but none of them ever came back. The City is not in a position at this time to purchase the property and be the developer. Right now the docks are falling apart, the overlook has disintegrated, and the area is no longer pedestrian friendly because there is no place to walk along and watch the boats. She said Mr. Garcia indicated that if the economics of the situation change and if any of us could present something better than the boat storage facility, something economically feasible, he would be willing to dismantle it. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz pointed out that almost the same project was presented in 1990 and no one objected to it. 11 MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 5, 1997 Mayor Taylor stated that he has been working on this for two years. The City argued for 30 years about where the bddge should be located. At some point you have to stop talking and make something happen. This is a small project to kick off development in Boynton Beach. The Gateway boat storage has boats stacked up outside. We have worked hard to build conditions into this project so that this does not look like that. We do not allow anystorage outside. We asked that this building be put inside with a facade that blends into the stores. We are making this user friendly and are putting in paver bricks. We want people to be able to walk around the area. There will be more parking there than there is today. He did not feel parking is a problem and stated that if people want to get there, they will get there. Mayor Taylor pointed out that the CRA could waive all parking requirements. Lake Worth did that and that town is starting to come back. Someday we are going to have to build parking garages; however, right now we need to bring in business and build a town downtown. We have plans to build this community and we are going to face these same problems with regard to parking, drainage, etc.. on Federal Highway and Marbn Luther King Jr. Boulevard. We are investing ~n expanding Boynton Beach Boulevard: however, that is going to feed into all the other development around there. So is the drainage. This is the first project. We are probably going to put in bigger lines. However, we are capping the money that the City is investing and the developer is going to cover anything in excess of that cap. Mayor Taylor felt the parking is not a major problem. What it boils down to is people do not want a boat barn He advised that he personally showed at least eight or nine major developers this property1 After they looked at the property and the surrounding area, not one of them came back. Nobody is going to invest $80 million dollars in that property with what is there now. This will be a catalyst for what is going to happen m the City. It is a tough decision and someone has to bite the bullet. This has been discussed for two years. A lot of developers have looked at the land around here and have planned on what they are going to do, but they are waiting to see if the City is senous about redeveloping the downtown. The value of this property has dropped $2 million in the last two years. Every one of the conditions will have to be addressed. He ~s in favor of this project and has worked hard to make this project acceptable to the rest of the commun ty. Commissioner Titcomb referred to the comments that were made at Visions 20/20 about a nautical Boynton Beach. He envisioned a wider inlet someday, and a taller bridge with a bigger charter fleet. He is pro marina and boat business. He was supportive of this project to try to get something going in Boynton Beach to make this an exciting place. Last night the Commission discussed parking plans for the entire CDB area. We have to solve the parking problem, and we will. He wants a project where the neighbors can coexist comfortably with this project. We are looking for 12 MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 5, 1997 solutions to problems that we face in the entire downtown area and we need to bring these problems to the forefront, resolve them. and move forward. The conditions will be met. We are going to bring a deteriorating element of our City back to an economically feasible and vibrant area. He did not have a problem with the boat storage. It is the economic enabler for this project. We are asking a private developer to help us bring the core of our CBD back to life. The developer has to have an economic enabler to make this project happen. We have asked for a hotel to be built there, but the developers will not do it. We should channel our energies and solve the parking problem for the entire CBD. Unless someone comes up with a viable alternative that can be implemented, he was in favor of this project. In a decade or two, he would like Boynton Beach to be the manne capital of the world. He felt there is plenty of room there for all the marine businesses and that they will feed off of each other and create an economically viable project. Commissioner Bradley was less optimistic about this project. He felt the cdtical piece is the boat storage.facility. He was concerned about a number of issues, such as safety and the ecology. He pointed out that the size of the building is as big as a football field and six stories high with the parapets. It is part of what keeps this entire project from being pedestrian friendly. He pointed out that the property owners may not agree to sell their property for a sidewalk to be built. That would wreck our pedestrian friendliness. Even if they did, he was concerned aboutthe right-of-way access. The restaurant has been moved out of the right-of-way; however, there is still clearly no pedestrian access way to the water for the public. The people are going to have to walk through the parking lot. That is not a pedestrian friendly environment. Ultimately, they will end up face to face with the boat storage facility, which '~s an industrial Jse. There is no way for them to continue their walk. If they would continue along the water, they would be drawn to the Mangrove Park and the boardwalk that is going to be constructed soon. This project started out as a $15 million project. The incentives are over $1 million. NOW it is a $6 million project, and the incentives are the same. Therefore, the taxpayers are financing about 20 or 30 percent of this project. Because the applicant has cut back on the professional and the retail, we are ending up with much less of a truly mixed use project. He was discouraged by the way this applicant has come through the process. Staff has worked incredibly hard to get the materials to us in a timely fashion. He felt this was due to the fact that the applicant has not brought materials in timely. We do not have a developer's agreement. We only received the drainage and utility plans two days ago. We have not had a chance to see them before this evening. He felt staff is making comments that have to do with a very rushed, cursory overview. He pointed out that many people are against this project. 13 MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 5, 1997 He said the developer originally agreed to develop the north end. He pointed out how hard it is to get a developer to come back in after a project has been permitted and do work that they had promised they would We have not heard about any anchor tenants who are interested in coming in. There are other technical issues, including concerns about fire. The parking and access are difficult situations. He did not think they are insurmountable; however, he felt this points to the fact that we are putting way too much project on a specific amount of land. The boat storage facility itself creates far too intense a use and isfar too big a building. It creates parking and drainage problems. He felt the drainage problem is going to be serious. He was interested in the permeable concrete, but he wondered if we would have the same problem if it permeates through the muck underneath. The boat storage use is the wrong kind of use for this area. The noise and use is the wrong kind of use for an area that we are trying to make into a destination area. The noise, sight, and smell of that use is going to turn people away. He was afraid 5 or 10 years from now that we are going to have a minimal project there. The boat storage facility will be making money for the owner, but he did nol think much else will be happening. He did not think it was going to end up being the lynch pin that is going to send us off in the direction that we want to go. He was in favor of master planning this area The master planners are about ready to be hired by the City. He did not know why we cannot hold off for a couple of months and look at this from a joint use, friendly kind of development. The applicant has not created a relationship with the people down there. To make something work on such a small parcel., you have to have a relationship with those people in addition to the business owners there. He heard the Commission say something has to be done, but he did not think this was a reason to put in an inferior project. Commissioner Tillman has had some concerns about this project from the beginning. He does not believe the boat storage facility is the most aesthetically pleasing project that can be placed in this area. Economically, the return to the City in terms of jobs. commercial vitality, and long-term growth is questionable. The marketing study that was presented by the developer is questionable. It was thrown together to respond in a short period of time. Boynton Beach has continued to have stagnantgrowth. He agreed that something needs to be done: however, a number of things have to be worked out before we think about moving forward. Previous projects have come before this Commission. and we have alwaYs asked the developer to have a communal, friendly approach in terms of the neighbors who will be sharing a particular area. He was concerned about the drainage and the marketing vitality for the long-term growth of the downtown. 14 MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 5, 1997 Motion Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz moved to approve the conditional use as presented, including all staff comments. Mayor Taylor asked her is she would consider including in her motion that the developer and the City reach agreement on capping some costs, specifically the extension of Boynton Beach Boulevard and the movement of the sewer pipe. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz agreed to include this in her motion. Commissioner Titcomb asked if the concept of the mitigating parking ~s included in the staff comments. He said Ms. Heyden had mentioned information on a cost per space in terms of mitigating parking. Ms. Heyden stated that in the staff comments, she mentioned four alternatives to parking, but the fee in lieu of parking was something she presented tonight. Commissioner Titcomb said he would be more comfortable if the parking issue resolution was worked into the agreement as a whole. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz agreed to include this in her motion. Commissioner Titcomb seconded the motion Commissioner Bradley said at the beginning of the meeting, Mayor Taylor said we were going to review this as we typically review all applications that come forward. He asked if the applicant has agreed to all the conditions. He pointed out that we have not gone through the conditions one by one like we usually do. Mayor Taylor explained that the conditions will be put into a developer's agreement and brought back to the Commission for approval. Commissioner Bradley asked what we are approving this evening. Mayor Taylor explained that we are approving the conditional use and the fact that we reviewed the site plan and we are asking that these things be ironed out in a developer's agreement and brought back to us. City Attorney Cherof listed the issues that he thinks need to be resolved as follows: · Approve or disapprove a conditional use to permit boat storage in this particular area; 15 MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 5, 1997 Approve or disapprove the height of the structure at 55 feet because there is a limitation within the body of the Central Business District that deals specifically with boat storage and a height limitation: Approve or disapprove the site plan that has been proposed for a mixed use project. There are 150 to 170 conditions recommended by staff in conjunction with the site plan and Address the broader issue of a developer's agreement, This project has gotten to this point because of a conceptual idea that was brought forward for the City to fund incentives to make the project economically possible. If the City is going to go forward with the developer's agreement, the Commission should address a little more specifically what the uppermost limits are for the incentives that have been proposed and discussed over time by the Commission and by the developer. At City Attorney Cherof's suggestion, a recess was declared at 9:26 p.m. to word a motion or a series of motions. The meeting resumed at 9:48 p.m Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz withdrew her motion. Commissioner Titcomb withdrew his second. Ms. Heyden added comment number 140 as follows: It is recommended that a fee in lieu of parking be allowed as an option to meeting required parking. Commissioner Titcomb stated that condition 118 recommends withdrawing a comment regarding shared parking agreements with adjacent property owners. Since it is not a requirement to have that agreement as part of this situation, he felt it would be a security for the adjacent property owners if the information that is currently noted on the plans was left in there regardless of whether it is required or not. City Attorney Cherof advised that condition 140 would override condition 118. Condition 118 suggests that a shared parking agreement is not a necessity. The additional condition is that it would be a necessity, without defining specifically what the shared parking would be. Commission[er Titcomb asked if it can be purchased because of the additional cond tion. City Attorney Cherof stated that this could be the subject of subsequent negotiation~ and it would come back to the Commission as part of the developer's agreement and a commitment through the developer's agreement on the part of this developer to the adjacent property owners Mayor Taylor believes the intent of this Commission is that the entire project would be shared parking. Ms. Heyden explained that this term "shared parking" means 16 MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 5, 1997 something different. City Attorney understood this to mean that none of the parking on the site will be restricted for any specific use; that is, first come, first serve. Mayor Taylor said that is correct. Commissioner Titcomb stated that the intent is also that no business or entity will be unduly burdened or put out of business because of exclusion from a parking formula based on reserved parking. City Attorney Cherof advised this is a whole different subject matter which is in the nature of parking restrictions for the entire area. To accomplish that end result, you would have to change the parking formula for that area. City Attorney Cherofverbalized the motion as follows: To approve a request for a site plan approval of a mixed use project comprised of a boat storage building marina, retail office floor area, including the sale of fuel for boats and two restaurant buildings, and conditional use approval for boat storage and a structural height of 55 feet, subject to: 1. City Commission approval of a developer's agreement incorporating incentives; and 2. StaffconditJons as set forth on Exhibit "D" in tonight's package, which now includes 140 conditions for development. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz asked if this includes the capping. City Attorney Cherof advised that the Commission previously approved, in concept, a package, and that would be the starting point in the first draft of the developer's agreement. Commissioner Bradley asked what would happen if the negotiated amount for the incentives is too high. City Attorney Cherof advised that this will be contained in the developer's agreement which must be returned to the Commission for approval. If the Commission does not approve it, we will go back to the table or the deal with be dead. Motion Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz moved approval, as verbalized by City Attorney Cherof. Commissioner Titcomb seconded the motion. Commissioner Bradley would like a clause included that states that the incentives are not transferable. He is also interested in whether or not the Commission would like to consider a time limit of six months on the conditional use for the boat storage in case there is a change of mind. City Attorney Cherof suggested that the first time restriction be on the time that is allowed to staff and the developer to negotiate the developer's agreement. Mayor Taylor did not object to the clause about the incentives not being transferable; however, he was comfortable with the 12 month time limit as mentioned in the staff 17 MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MARCH 5, 1997 conditions. Also. he did not think there was a problem with City Attorney Cherof's suggestion. He felt the developer is going to want to negotiate the developer's agreement as rapidly as possible. The motion carried 3-2. Commissioners Bradley and Tillman cast the dissenting votes. City Attorney Cherof explained to the public that the next step would be for the City Attorney's Office, with the assistance of staff, to draft a proposed developer's agreement incorporating the 140 conditions that staff has suggested and the incentive package that the Commission has discussed previously. When that is negotiated to a point of agreement, that document would come back to the Commission for approval. There is an economic incentive ordinance that requires the Commission to vote on that separately. The City Manager will review it and make recommendations. If we are unable to negotiate a developer's agreement, because this was made a condition of the motion, that is the end of the story, unless the applicant comes back with a new project. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to come before the City Commission. the meeting was adjourned at 10:00 p.m. CITY OF BOYNTON BEACH ATTEST: City'Clerk Vice/M~yor /' Commissi r/ (Four Tapes) Commissioner 18