REVIEW COMMENTS
DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT
PLANNING AND ZONING DIVISION
MEMORANDUM NO. PZ 07-084
TO:
Chair and Members
Community Redevelopment Agency Board
Michael W. Rump~~JU
Planning and Zoning Director
THRU:
FROM:
Kathleen Zeitler /(Z.
Planner
DATE:
September 4, 2007
SUBJECT:
Abandonment of a segment of the 3D-foot right-of-way of Railroad Avenue
(adjacent to 399 - 417 SE 4th Street)
ABAN 07-005
NATURE OF REOUEST
Mr. Jeff Tomberg, agent for 4th Street LLC, is requesting to abandon a portion of Railroad Avenue, an unimproved
3D-foot right-of-way, located between SE 2nd Avenue and SE 4th Avenue. The applicant has assembled several
parcels in the area and is considering future development of a residential project. This unimproved right-of-way is
situated adjacent to six (6) parcels of land to the east (all owned by 4th Street LLC) and the Florida East Coast (FEC)
Railroad to the west. The platted right-of-way subject to this specific request is 30 feet wide and approximately
483.46 feet long. It is described as follows:
That portion of Railroad Avenue being described as bounded on the south by the south line of Lot 6, Block "B"
(extended westerly); bounded on the north by the north line of Lot 3, Block "B" (extended westerly); bounded
on the east by the west line of Lots 3, 4, 5, and 6, Block "B"; bounded on the west by the east right-of-way line
of the Florida East Coast Railroad right-of-way, all as shown by the Plat on Pence Subdivision No.1; as
recorded in Plat Book 1, Page 33, of the Public Records of Palm Beach County, Florida.
And
That portion of Railroad Avenue being described as bounded on the south by the south line of Lot 6 (extended
westerly); bounded on the north by the north line of Lot 5 (extended westerly); bounded on the east by the
west line of Lots 5 and 6; bounded on the west by the east right-of-way line of the Florida East Coast Railroad
right-of-way, all as shown by the Plat of Sunset Court; as recorded in Plat Book 11, Page 29, of the Public
Records of Palm Beach County, Florida; said described property consisting of approximately 14,503 square feet
or 0.33 acre.
The subject portion of the 3D-foot wide right-of-way was platted as Railroad Avenue and lies within the boundaries
of the Pence Subdivision No.1 Plat. The approved plat was recorded in Plat Book 1, Page 33 on March 25, 1910.
Typically a reversionary clause in the dedication of the plat dedicates to the perpetual use of the public the public
highways, streets, avenues, boulevards, and alleys shown on the plat, and reserves unto itself, its successors and
legal representative, the reversions or reversion of same, whenever abandoned by the public or discontinued by
law. The City makes no representation regarding the impact of the reversionary language on title to the adjacent
properties.
Page 2
Memorandum No. PZ 07-084
ABAN 07-005
Re-development or expansion of the adjacent property following abandonment requires the property owner to
establish proof of clear title as a condition of re-development or expansion. The applicants have submitted a copy
of a title opinion (ownership and encumbrance report) for the subject property stating that the property adjacent to
the portion of Railroad Avenue to be abandoned is owned by the applicant and that the properties are currently free
and clear, and such abandonment of the property under public domain will not prevent other property owners from
access to and from their property, and no other property owners will be adversely affected by the abandonment.
Exhibit "A" - Location Map shows the general vicinity of the right-of-way to be abandoned. The Exhibit "B"-
"Proposed Abandonment" shows the exact location of the subject site and its legal description. The following is a
description of the land uses and zoning districts of all properties that surround the subject right-of-way.
North -
Unimproved Right-of-way for Railroad Avenue; and to the Northeast 301 SE 4th Street,
zoned Community Commercial (C-3);
East
Unimproved Right-of-way for Railroad Avenue; and to the southeast a vacant parcel at
513 SE 4th Street, zoned Community Commercial (C-3);
Several parcels (399-416 SE 4th Street), including vacant commercial and multi-family
residential uses, zoned Community Commercial (C-3); and Right-of-way for SE 4th Avenue;
and,
South -
West -
Right-of-way for the FEC Railroad, then farther west are single-family residences zoned
R-1A (Single-family Residential).
BACKGROUND
The subject abandonment request is for a segment of the 30-foot unimproved Railroad Avenue right-of-way that
extends a distance of approximately 484 feet in the area of SE 4th Avenue. That segment of Railroad Avenue,
located immediately south of the subject right-of-way, was previously abandoned to the properties to the east (513
and 515 SE 4th Street) in October of 1994, by Resolution 94-171. In addition, a segment of unimproved Railroad
Avenue right-of-way running south to SE 5th Avenue was abandoned to the property to the east (415 SE 5th Avenue)
in July of 2005, by Ordinance 05-030.
ANALYSIS
When a right-of-way, such as this unimproved roadway, is abandoned, the ownership of the abandoned land is
transferred from the City of Boynton Beach to the abutting property owner(s). Typically, abandoned property is
divided in half, with fifty percent (50%) of the property transferred to the owner of each adjacent real property.
The applicant requesting this abandonment is the owner of all of the affected properties to the east and the FEC
Railway right-of-way lies immediately to the west of the property to be abandoned. Per the Palm Beach County
Property Appraiser's Mapping & GIS Department, a right-of-way is not considered to be real property to which a
portion of abandoned property can be transferred. In addition, property to be abandoned, when located in a
platted subdivision, must remain within the boundaries of the plat. The subject Railroad Avenue is part of the plat;
however, the FEC Railway right-of-way pre-dates the plat, and is included on the plat only as an existing right-of-
way adjacent to the boundaries of the plat. Therefore, the entire width (30 feet) of the abandoned property would
be transferred to the applicant in accordance with standard procedures conducted by the County's Property
Appraiser's office. Adequate public notice was given to all affected property owners in accordance with Chapter 22,
Article III, Section 4 of the Land Development Regulations. All public utility companies have been notified and the
abandonment request has been advertised in the local newspaper.
Page 3
Memorandum No. PZ 07-084
ABAN 07-005
A summary of the responses from the utility companies and city staff is noted as follows:
CITY DEPARTMENTS/DIVISIONS
Engineering
Public Works / Utilities
Planning and Zoning
Approval with conditions (see Exhibit "C" - Conditions of Approval)
No objection
No objection
PUBLIC UTILITY COMPANIES
Florida Power and Light
BellSouth
Florida Public Utilities Co.
Cable (Adelphia/Comcast)
No objection
Approval with conditions (see Exhibit "C" - Conditions of Approval)
No objection
No objection
Excluding BellSouth, all public utility providers have indicated that they have no objection to the applicant's request
for abandonment. Both the Engineering Division and Bellsouth are requiring conditions of approval which must be
satisfied prior to future development of the applicant's property. Both the Engineering Division and Bellsouth would
have no objection to the proposed abandonment upon compliance with their specific conditions of approval.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff has determined that the subject right-of-way no longer serves a public purpose, and therefore is
recommending approval of the request to abandon the 30-foot unimproved roadway as described above, subject to
the comments included in Exhibit "C" - Conditions of Approval. Any additional conditions recommended by the
Community Redevelopment Agency Board or City Commission will be placed in Exhibit "C" - Conditions of Approval.
S:\Planning\SHARED\WP\PROJECfS\SE 4th Avenue ABAN\ABAN 07-005 RR Ave\Staff Report.doc
" ~,~,
Exhibit "A" - Location Map
ABAN 07-004, ABAN 07-005
R1A - Single-family
Residential
SE 3RD AVENUE
R1A - Single-family-
Residential
40 20 0
1""-.IIIIIIII-
40
80 120 160
I Feet
....
w
w
0::
....
en
::I:
....
~
w
en
W.E
S
Joseph M. Tucker. P.LS.
_EXHIBIT "B"
BOUNDARY SURVEYS
MORTGAGE SURVEYS
CONSTRUCTION LA YQUT
219 S.E. 23rd AVENUE .' P.O. BOX 759 . BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA 33435
BOYNTON BEACH Phone (561) 737-6546 . Fax (561) 734;7546
PORTION OF RAILROAD A VENUE
AND S.E. 4 TH. A VENUE
TO BE ABANDONED
A PORTION OF RAILROAD AVENUE, AS RECORDED BY PENCE SUBDIVISION NO.1, IN PLAT BOOK 33, OF THE
PUBLIC RECORDS OF PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA, AND A PORTION OF S.E. 4 TH. AVENUE, AS RECORDED
BY THE PLAT SUNSET COURT, IN PLAT BOOK 11 , PAGE 33, PUBLIC RECORDS OF PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA,
SAID LANDS TO BE ABANDONED ARE DESCRIBED AS FOLLOWS;
THA T PORTION OF RAILROAD A VENUE BEING DESCRIBED AS BOUNDED ON THE SOUTH BY THE SOUTH LINE OF
LOT 6, BLOCK "B", (EXTENDED WESTERLY); BOUNDED ON THE NORTH BY THE NORTH LINE OF LOT 3, BLOCK "B",
(EXTENDED WESTERLY); BOUNDED ON THE EAST BY THE WEST LINE OF LOTS 3, 4, 5, AND 6, BLOCK "B",
BOUNDED ON THE WEST BY THE EAST RIGHT OF WAY LINE OF THE FLORIDA EAST COAST RAILROAD RIGHT OF
WAY, ALL AS SHOWN BY THE PLAT OF PENCE SUBDIVISION NO.1; AS RECORDED IN PLAT BOOK 1 , PAGE 33, OF
THE PUBLIC RECORDS OF PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA.
AND
THAT PORTION OF RAILROAD A VENUE BEING DESCRIBED AS BOUNDED ON THE SOUTH BY THE SOUTH LINE OF
LOT 6, (EXTENDED WESTERLY); BOUNDED ON THE NORTH BY THE NORTH LINE OF LOT 5, (EXTENDED
WESTERL Y); BOUNDED ON THE EAST BY THE WEST LINE OF LOTS 5, AND 6, BOUNDED ON THE WEST BY THE
EAST RIGHT OF WAY LINE OF THE FLORIDA EAST COAST RAILROAD RIGHT OF WAY, ALL AS SHOWN BY THE
PLAT OF SUNSET COURT; AS RECORDED IN PLAT BOOK 11, PAGE 29, OF THE PUBLIC RECORDS OF PALM BEACH
COUNTY, FLORIDA.
AND
THAT PORTION OF S.E. 4 TH. AVENUE BEING DESCRIBED AS BOUNDED ON THE SOUTH BY THE NORTH LINE OF
LOT 6 AND 7; BOUNDED ON THE NORTH BY THE SOUTH LINE OF LOT 4 AND 5; BOUNDED ON THE EAST BY THE
EAST LINE OF LOTS 4, AND 7, (EXTENDED); BOUNDED ON THE WEST BY THE EAST RIGHT OF WAY LINE OF
RAILROAD AVENUE, ALL AS SHOWN BY THE PLAT OF SUNSET COURT; AS RECORDED IN PLA rBOOK 11, PAGE
29, OF THE PUBLIC RECORDS OF PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA.
I HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THE DESCRIPTION AND THE ATTACHED SKETCH OF DESCRIPTION WERE PREPARED IN '
ACCORDANCE WITH THE SURVEYING STANDARDS, CHAPTER 61G 176, FLORIDAADMlNISTRATIVE CODE, SETFORTH :
BY THE FLORIDA BOARD OF PROFESSIONAL SURVEYORS AND MAPPERS, PURSUANT TO SECTION 472;027, FLORIDA, !
I
STATUTES, AND IS TRUE AND CORRECT TO THE BEST OF MY KNOWLEDGE AND BELIEF, UNLESS IT BEARS THE ,
SIGNATURE AND THE ORIG~AL RAISED SEAL OF A FLORIDA LICENSED SURVEYOR AND MAPPER, THIS DRAWING,
, SKETCH, AT OR MAP IS FOR INFORMATION PURPOSES O~ Y AND IS NOT VALID
,~':~
:5. ~ef / of' 2
LB 2102 .
Joe Tucker
. NOTE: TIIIS IS NOT A SKETCH OF SURVEY, BUT ONLY A GRAPHIC DEPICTIONS
OF TIffi DESCRIPTION SHOWN HEREON, THERE HAS BEEN NO FIELD WORK
VlEWlNG OF THE SUBJECT PROPERTY, OR MONUMENTS SET IN CONNECTION, ,
wrrn THE PREPARATION OF TIllS INFORMATION SHOWN HEREON.
NOTE: IANDS SHOWN HE...T{EON WERE NOT ABSTRACTED BY THE SURVEYOR
FOR RIGHTS OF WAYS, EASEMENTS OR RESERVATIONS OF RECORD
Phone:
"Boca (561) 391-4388
Boynlon(561) 737-0546
FAX (561) 734.7546a
JOSEPH M. TUCKER, P.L.S.
219 S.E. 231d Ave.. P.O. Box 759
Boynton Beach, FL 33435
EXHIBIT "C"
Conditions of Approval
Project Name: Abandonment of a segment of the 30-foot right-of-way of Railroad Avenue
File Number: ABAN 07-005
DEPARTMENTS INCLUDE REJECT
PUBLIC WORKS- General
Comments: None
PUBLIC WORKS- Traffic
Comments: None
UTILITIES
Comments: None
POLICE
Comments: None
ENGINEERING DIVISION
Comments:
1. The abandonment of this 30-foot unimproved right-of-way (Railroad
Avenue) shall be so designated on a required new boundary plat prior to the
issuance of a Land Development permit for future development of the
property.
2. As required after site plan approval, the proposed new development shall
generate and submit a boundary record plat (as a minimum) to reflect the
area contained therein, the easements for utilities and storm drainage
systems, the abandonment(s) of right-of-ways (after action by the City
Commission via ordinances), L.A.E. 's, access location(s), etc.
BUILDING DIVISION
Comments: None
PARKS AND RECREATION
Comments: None
FORESTER/ENVIRONMENT ALIST
Comments: None
Conditions of Approval
2
I DEPARTMENTS I INCLUDE I REJECT I
PLANNING AND ZONING
Comments: None
PUBLIC UTILITY PROVIDERS
Comments:
3. Should there be any relocation or adjustments of Bellsouth's facilities
associated with this project, those costs would be the responsibility of the
property owner.
ADDITIONAL COMMUNITY REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY BOARD
CONDITIONS
Comments:
To be determined.
ADDITIONAL CITY COMMISSION CONDITIONS
Comments:
To be determined.
S:\Planning\SHARED\WP\PROJECTS\SE 4Tl-1 Street & RR ABAN\ABAN 07.005 RR Ave\COA.doc
TO:
FROM:
DATE:
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS
ENGINEERING DIVISION
MEMORANDUM NO. 07-081
Ed Breese, Principal Planner
Planning & Zoning Division rL ,<
H. David Kelley, Jr., PE/PSM ~'fi/
City Engineer
June 28, 2007
City Abandonment Petition No. 07-xxx
Portion of Railroad Avenue & S.E. 4th Avenue,
Between FEe R/R and S.E. 4th Street
Application(s) by the 4th STREET, LLC
SUBJECT:
This memorandum is in response to your Memorandum dated June 25, 2007 on the above noted subject.
We have reviewed the application submitted by their agent, JeffTomberg, dated March 8, 2007, including
the legal description submitted by their consulting surveyor, and find the application in general order
except for several discrepancies as follows:
A.
Both applications seek to abandon the railroad "easement". Please be advised that the railroad
roadway in a legal roadway shown as RAILROAD AVENUE of both record plats [PENCE
SUBDIVISION NO.1, P.B. 1, Pg. 33, P.B.County, recorded on March 25, 1910 (after Palm
Beach County was created from being a portion of Dade County, with the original record plat
being recorded in Dade County in P.B. "B", Pg. 148, on July 23, 1908), and the plat of SUNSET
COURT, P.B. 11, Pg. 29, recorded on February 25, 1925].
~~~~
As a public right-of-way, Chapter 336.12 F.S., being created in 1955, involves any public roadway
abandonment(s); this section of the law divides the roadway equally to the adjacent property
owners. I am also under the impression that if the right-of-way was adjacent to another right-of-
way [even railroad right-of-way] that the abandonment went to the private property (only on one
side). This has been discussed with the City Attorney and the Assistant City Attorney several
times in the past. Thus in this case, the FEC RJR will obtain Y2 of the right-of-way to be abandon
(whether they want it or not). They can do with it whatever they want (subject to city zoning rules
and regulations); they can give it to the 'other' property owner or sell they component to the
'other' property owner (to get it off of their future tax rolls). Currently, the applicant will only get
~'2 of the roadway right-of-way (after the abandonment).
~
I cannot speak for any action taken by the City Commission prior to my transfer to the
Engineering Division of the Department of Public Works in January, 2000. But, we are currently
following what the City Attorney's Office has instructed us to do on these applications. You are
advised that this is contrary to a previous similar set of circumstance on the same roadway
(Railroad Avenue) located approximately Y2 mile north of this application to which the P & Z
Director allowed the applicant to utilize all of the roadway abandonment to the landside of the
FEC RJR right-of-way.
Ed Breese
June 27,2007
Page 2
B. The submitted survey reflects an erroneous bearing for S.E. 4th Avenue; it should be either N. 890
00' 00" W., or S. 890 00' 00" ~. to align property with numerous other course bearings on the
document.
A portion 0'[ the "Legal Description" is shown incorrectly. In the I st paragraph, it cites that in
addition to original lots 3 thru 6, PENCE SUBDIVISION, this property also contains "the west 50
feet, of the east 90 feet, of the north 10.0 feet, of Lot 9, Block "B" . . . .", however, the survey
drawing reflects "the west 50 feet of the east 120 feet of the north 10 feet of Lot 9, Block "B", . . ."
This needs to be clarified.
C. One of the applications states that "and the portion of Fourth Avenue that's being abandoned is
being abandoned by the same owner is going to be proposing a development of the property."
Only the western half of S.E. 4th Avenue (Sunset Way) is eligible for abandonment as legal access
must be maintained to the south side of Lots 2 & 3 of the SUNSET COURT development (not
being a part of the re-configuration of the area by the applicant). This would be "all of S.E. 4th
Avenue LESS the east 120 feet thereof according to the plat of SUNSET COURT, etc. etc."
D. S.E. 4th Avenue currently has live city water and wastewater service lines located within its
boundary. I find no mention by the applicant that these systems will be taken out of service or
abandoned ip. place with any abandonment (or portion thereof). This needs to be clarified.
This Division has no obiection to the proposed abandonment(s), but it must contain several provisos, as
follows:
1. All existing city utilities (water and wastewater conduits) must be relocated if it is the intent to
continue their functional purposes in S.E. 4th Avenue, or abandoned (and agreed to by the Utilities
Department)
2. All other utility services within this project shall be relocated at the applicant's cost. This is
reflected in the projected right-of-way for conceptual S.E. 3rd Avenue which has electrical service.
3. The abandonment of this 20-foot street right-of-way (S.E. 4th Avenue) shall be so designated on a
required new boundary record plat to reflect same. A similar comment can be made for Railroad
Avenue.
4. The proposed new development shall generate and submit a boundary record plat (as a minimum)
to reflect the area contained therein, the easements for utilities and storm drainage systems, the
abandonment(s) of right-of-ways (after action by the C. Commission via ordinances), L.A.E.s,
access location(s), etc.
If the above provisos are performed, this Division will support the application (once completed in the
proper form of the, required ordinance). Please keep this Division informed as to the progress of the
application. If you have any questions, please advise me at x6988.
Ed Breese
June 27, 2007
Page 3
xc: Jeff Livergood, PE, Dir. ofP.W.
Laurinda Logan, PE, Sr. Engr.
Jim Cherof, 'Esq., City Attorney
Mike Rumpf, Dir. of P&Z Div.
Peter Mazzella, Deputy Utility Director
File
Page 1 of 1
Breese, Ed
From: Mazzella, Pete
Sent: Tuesday, July 17,20078:40 AM
To: Breese, Ed
Subject: Alley abandonment - SE 4th Ave.
Ed
Just for the record, we have no objection to the proposed abandonment as outlined in your memo dated June 29,
2007. The developer of the site will be required to modify the utilities as needed in order to preserve their proper
functioning, and allow service to his proposed development.
As an added note, we have completed the redesign of SE 4th Street in the area from SE 2nd Ave. down to SE 12th
Ave., and those plans are currently being reviewed for various permits. We intend to place them out for bid in the
near future, possibly in early 2008. That project includes improved water mains, a new storm sewer system,
reclaimed water lines, and significant streetscape. It is important that we coordinate curb cuts, etc. with proposed
private projects east and west of SE 4th Street. Do you happen to have a master plan for that area, or a series of
site plans we could piece together?
Thanks
fitu- v: tlfmJla
7/19/2007