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Minutes 05-27-14 MINUTES OF THE PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT BOARD MEETING HELD IN COMMISSION CHAMBERS, CITY HALL, 100 E. BOYNTON BEACH BLVD., BOYNTON BEACH, FL. ON TUESDAY, MAY 27, 2014 AT 6:30 P.M. PRESENT: Roger Saberson, Chair Mike Rumpf, Planning & Zoning Director Ryan Wheeler, Vice Chair Ed Breese, Principal Planner James Brake Stacey Weinger, Assistant City Attorney Sharon Grcevic David Katz Brian Miller Gregory Murphy Stephen Palermo, Alternate Aieshia Macon, Alternate 1. Pledge of Allegiance Chair Saberson called the meeting to order at 6:33 p.m. Ms. Grcevic led the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. 2. Introduction of the Board Chair Saberson introduced the members of the Board. 3. Agenda Approval Mr. Murphy moved to approve the agenda. Mr. Katz seconded the motion that passed unanimously. 4. Approval of Minutes —April 22, 2014 Mr. Katz requested the following change to the April 22, 2014 minutes: • Mr. Katz was present at the last meeting; however, the minutes do not reflect his presence. Mr. Katz moved to approve the minutes with the amended changes. Mr. Miller seconded the motion that passed unanimously. 6. Communications and Announcements: Report from Staff Mike Rumpf, Planning and Zoning Director, stated there was one item for discussion from the May 20, 2014 City Commission agenda. The time extension request for the Gateway Hotel project was approved by the Commission for 12 months instead of the 18 month extension requested. Mr. Rumpf stated there would be a short presentation by staff added to the agenda under Item #7 regarding the minor modification list distributed to the members. 1 MEETING MINUTES PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT BOARD OYNTON BEACH, FL. MAY 27, 2014 Chair Saberson acknowledged Commissioner Merker in the audience. 6. New Business Attorney Weinger administered an oath to all those intending to testify. A. Minimum Development Intensity for Transit Oriented Development District (CDRV 14 -001). Approve amendment to the Land Development Regulations (LDR) modifying minimum F.A.R. (Floor Area Ratio) for projects zoned Mixed Use -High (MU -H). Hanna Matras, Planning and Zoning Senior Planner, reported the City has been working with Treasure Coastal Regional Planning Council on both Code and Comprehensive Plan amendments to improve land development patterns around the future downtown rail station at Ocean Avenue and FEC tracks. In June 2013, the City Commission approved amendments to the Land Development Regulations to create Transit - Oriented Development (TOD) provisions intended to guide development around the planned downtown train station for the future Tri -Rail Coastal Link commuter service. The amendments added standards for the mixed use zoning regulations, the minimum density and intensity criteria for mixed use districts within the Transit Core and the Station Area, defined as a % mile and Y2 mile radius around the station. The most significant features of TOD are increased density and intensity. The minimum F.A.R. noted in the amendment for the MU -H zoning designation was 2.5. The minimum of 2.5 was arrived at by staff through the analysis of existing projects. However, the Florida Transit - Oriented Development Guidebook (FTODG) recommends reducing the F.A.R. from 2.5 to 2.0. There are three types of transit stations; regional, community and neighborhood. The Boynton station falls into the category of a community station and the request is to be consistent with the FTODG which reduces the F.A.R. from 2.5 to 2.0. When Mr. Brake inquired if the intention was to make it less intense than originally planned, Ms. Matras explained reducing the F.A.R. to 2.0 would ensure that developers would not build below what was needed. Motion Mr. Katz moved to approve decreasing the F.A.R. from 2.5 to 2.0. Mr. Brake seconded the motion that passed unanimously. B.1. 500 Ocean (REZN 14 -001) — Approve request for 500 Ocean (REZN 14 -001) rezoning of subject property from Mixed Use High (MU -H) with expired Master Plan for 378 multi - family residential units plus retail to Mixed Use High (MU -H) with a new Master Plan for 341 multi - family residential units plus retail, located at 101 South Federal Highway. Applicant: John Wohlfarth, IBI Group. Bonnie Miskel, 14 SE 4 th Street, Boca Raton, was present on behalf of the applicant and explained she was present eleven years ago when the first project for this location began. The 2 MEETING MINUTES PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT BOARD OYNTON BEACH, FL. MAY 27, 2014 original plan was similar to the current project. Mixed use residential was the principal component. The original developer was inexperienced and flipped the project within a few years after receiving approval. The second developer was interested, but nervous about the economy and flipped it to another developer who unfortunately could not get it off the ground in time before the market fell. It went back to the lender who still has it today. The original approval was zoned for the Mixed Use High (MU -H) which was consistent to the Mixed Use Core land use. Even though the master plan expired, Ms. Miskel explained it was a requirement to go forward with a rezoning even though the rezoning was from Mixed Use High to Mixed Use High. There was a new site plan (master plan) which would be presented following the rezoning request. M otion Mr. Katz moved to approve the request for 500 Ocean (REZN 14 -001) rezoning. Mr. Brake seconded the motion that passed unanimously. B.2. 500 Ocean (NWSP 14 -002) — Approve request for New Site Plan approval to construct 341 dwelling units within five (5) and six (6) story buildings, retail space and associated recreational amenities and parking on a 4.69 -acre parcel located at 101 South Federal Highway. Applicant: John Wohlfarth, IBI Group. Ms. Miskel said the project was called 500 Ocean and is located at the southwest corner of Ocean Avenue and Federal Highway. This was the companion item previously presented for rezoning. The developers would present the full site plan. Beatrice Hernandez, MSA Architects, 7695 SW 204 Street, Miami, thanked staff for their help and expressed her excitement about moving this project forward. This mixed use project was comprised of 341 residential, market rate luxury apartments with just under 20,000 square feet of retail and office space. The residential units wrap around the entire block of the project. Ms. Hernandez referred to the PowerPoint presentation to describe where the residential apartments versus the retail and office properties would be located in the project. Some amenities and public space would consist of two private garden -style courtyards for the residents. One would have a pool and outdoor amenity space and the other courtyard would be in the center of the site. The amenity space for the residents faces Federal Highway with an urban court drop -off area that spills over both sides and connects to the courtyard. The north side would consist of the retail component with additional residential space which bridges and connects to the south side of the project. The retail element contains a series of public plazas. One would be located on the corner of Ocean Avenue and Federal Highway which would have an art sculpture for the community as a gateway to downtown Boynton Beach. There would be another series of smaller plazas to the west consisting of arcades with more retail space. There would be two types of parking conditions; surface parking for easy access to the retail spaces and a central breezeway in the middle of the block to access retail space along Ocean Avenue. Additional retail parking would be provided in the parking garage which would be an enclosed five story structure with rooftop parking as well. There would be excess parking to 3 MEETING MINUTES PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT BOARD OYNTON BEACH, FL. MAY 27, 2014 accommodate the retail, office and residents. In addition, there would be street parking on Federal Highway and Ocean Avenue. The remainder of the block where the residential units are located would have enclosed porches. Units at the street level would have direct access to the sidewalk through private porches. People would be able to come out of their unit, step out onto their porch and down to the sidewalk. This brings an urban feel to this type of project. Mr. Brake inquired if any of the current parking spaces on Ocean Avenue would be lost to the new frontage. Ms. Hernandez responded one of the parallel spaces was converted into a fire lane as requested by the Fire Department. Parking spaces would actually be added to Ocean Avenue and there is preliminary approval from the Department of Traffic. In summary, Ms. Hernandez stated the entire four sides of the block would be activated. There would be wide sidewalks, landscaping, canopy trees, services such as loading areas and trash would be hidden. The ground floor of the garage would be enclosed with signage capabilities for retail so people can see the names of the shops. There would be canvas awnings to provide shading and protection from the elements. The architecture is an elegant Spanish style with clean lines and a simple color palette, barrel tile on the roof and decorative brackets. Mr. Brake inquired about a pedestrian bridge connecting the Ocean Avenue side to the other buildings. Ms. Hernandez explained the units on Floors 3 to 5 would have a bridge over the top. It would be open on the first two floors to provide clearance for Fire to access under the building. Mr. Miller questioned if there would be one main entrance. Ms. Hernandez responded the main entrance for residents would actually be in the parking garage. The main entry would be off of Federal Highway where the drop -off and pick -up area would be located. There are no plans at this time for a full -time concierge, but the leasing center would be open seven days a week from 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 or 6:00 p.m. In addition, one or more staff members would reside onsite. Tom Hayden, 810 East Central Blvd., Orlando, stated there would always be staff onsite to handle any situation that might arise. Mr. Miller inquired about pedestrian accessibility to the retail space from the parking garage. Ms. Hernandez stated there would be a door on the ground floor that would connect to the retail space as well as crosswalks that lead to the sidewalk and a crossover either on the west side or down through the middle where there is a breezeway that connects to the retail space. A sidewalk along the back side of the retail space would also be created where pedestrians could walk through as well. Mr. Palermo inquired if there were any elevators. Ms. Hernandez confirmed there are multiple elevators noted on the site plan on the southwest, southeast, northwest and inside the parking garage. Code requires the building have elevators. Mr. Palermo questioned if the square footage of the one and two - bedroom apartments reflected the 2.0 F.A.R. or the 2.5 F.A.R. Ms. Hernandez explained the square footage described corresponds to the actual net leasable square footage for each of the unit types and was represented in the F.A.R. depicted. In addition, F.A.R. also takes into consideration the 4 MEETING MINUTES PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FL. MAY 27, 2014 corridors, elevators, stairs, amenity space, retail space and the office space. It is in addition to the net leasable area. Mr. Palermo inquired about Condition #59 of the Conditions of Approval which stated there was a Recreation and Parks fee of $220,150 which is based on the following calculation - 370 multi- family dwelling units multiplied by $595 per unit. This fee shall be paid at time of permit application and he questioned who would pay that fee. Ms. Miskel explained the Recreation Impact Fee is paid at the time of permitting by the developer. However, the number should be based on 341 units. Mr. Wheeler inquired if the applicant reviewed the Conditions of Approval. Ms. Hernandez stated they reviewed all of the items in the Conditions of Approval and were in agreement with all except #59. Item #59 needed to be revised to reflect 341 multi - family units instead of 370. Mr. Wheeler inquired about Palm Tran and if the intent was to have the architecture match the building. He also asked about the location of the stop. Ms. Hernandez stated it has been difficult to communicate with Palm Tran. Ms. Hernandez commented they received Palm Tran's standards and would work with staff to provide what the City needs in terms of a transit stop at the location. Palm Tran has its own design standards as to size and look. If a bus stop is required along the property, it would be provided. Mr. Brake commented he appreciated the care that had gone into the project and inquired who would be responsible for maintaining the medians on Federal Highway. Ms. Hernandez said Federal Highway is under the Florida Department of Traffic and maintenance would be the responsibility of the City. Mr. Katz inquired why the developer decided not to go to the allowable height limit. Ms. Hernandez responded part of it had to do with development needs and construction costs. Anything over six stories or 75 feet would have put the project into a high -rise category which would have increased the cost of construction. Mr. Hayden commented another consideration was the number of units. The developer felt 341 units was an optimal size to better service the residents. Mr. Katz asked for clarification of the discrepancy between the square footage of 11,300 in Item 6A and 13,330 square feet in Item 6B. Ms. Hernandez was not sure if this was an oversight, but indicated the total square footage for both retail and office space is 19,943. There is 6,613 square feet of office space and the balance would be in retail. Mr. Katz indicated the original project had 40,596 square feet of retail, office and restaurant space and inquired why the current project was half of that amount. Ms. Miskel stated market conditions are dramatically different 10 years later. The 40,596 number was not one that could be satisfied as the two original projects went under. There was a concern the non - residential market was still extremely soft. The number incorporated into the report as requested by the CRA and staff is a number that may not be the correct number either. Mr. Katz commented about the Art in Public Places fee of $416,000 and suggested making donations to certain schools for their students to create pieces of art. Ms. Hernandez thought this was a good suggestion. 5 MEETING MINUTES PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FL. MAY 27, 2014 Mr. Katz inquired of CRA Director, Vivian Brooks if the developer of the project supplied her with a pro forma. Vivian Brooks, CRA Director, responded she was given one which had been requested. She also added the developers have done a great job. Mr. Breese also commented the applicant was very good to work with. There was a lot of give and take to get the plans to this point. Mr. Brake questioned if it could be a condition of approval to request the maintenance of the median in front of their building. Mr. Breese responded the FDOT would not enter into an agreement with a third party. Even if the City entered into an agreement with the developer the City would still be responsible should they not maintain the medians to the FDOT's standards. Coordinated efforts would be made to maintain the landscaping so that it is uniform throughout. Chair Saberson reiterated Condition #59 of the Conditions of Approval had to be revised to indicate 341 multi - family units instead of 370. Mr. Breese confirmed staff would make this correction before it moved forward to the City Commission. Chair Saberson requested Ms. Miskel verify her acceptance of the revisions to Items 16 and 23 of the Conditions of Approval. Ms. Miskel responded they were in agreement with the revisions. Chair Saberson asked for clarification that all Conditions of Approval with the revision of Condition #59 based on 341 units and the revisions of Conditions #16 and #23 handed out by staff were acceptable. Ms. Miskel responded affirmatively. Chair Saberson opened the floor for public comments. Dr. Piotr Blass, 113 W. Tara Lake Drive, stated he welcomes the project and it would make the area beautiful. Dr. Blass mentioned the possibility of a University opening in the Boynton Beach area and this would be a good place for students to live. He also mentioned there is hope of getting energy from the Gulf Stream that could help with lighting. Dr. Blass commented he mentioned to the developers to make the buildings hurricane and flood proof. Dr. Blass inquired about the approximate cost to rent an apartment would be and was advised by Mr. Hayden the rental range would be from $1,200 to $2,000 per month depending on the size of the apartment. Motion Mr. Katz moved to approve the new site plan for multi - family residential (rental apartments) consisting of 341 dwelling units within five and six story buildings, retail space, associated recreational amenities and parking on 4.69 acres subject to all staff comments. Mr. Miller seconded the motion that passed unanimously. Chair Saberson referred back to Items 6 B.1 and B.2 and announced the public hearing. There was no one present who wished to speak on these items. 6 MEETING MINUTES PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FL. MAY 27, 2014 7. Other A. Major Site Plan Modifications versus Minor Site Plan Modifications Mr. Breese explained how site plans are modified and how it is determined whether they are major or minor site plan modifications. Major site plan modifications are those that would go through the full development review process of staff, Board and City Commission. Minor modifications are those that are administrative type of reviews. For over a year reports indicating the projects staff has reviewed administratively along with their address and a brief description of the modification being made have been distributed monthly. Mr. Breese read and explained the different criteria staff uses to determine whether the proposed site plan modification is major and should go before the Board and City Commission or whether it is minor and remains at the administrative level. A major site plan process can take four months before it goes before the Board and on to the City Commission for approval. The minor site plan modifications can be one week or less. It can take longer if there are issues that go back and forth for resolution. 8. Comments by Members There were no comments by the members. 9. Adjournment Motion There being no further business to discuss, Mr. Katz moved to adjourn. Mr. Brake seconded the motion and the meeting adjourned at 7:34 p.m. Grace Morales Records Coordinator 070214 7