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Minutes 04-30-96MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING HELD IN COMMISSION CHAMBERS, CITY HALL, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA, ON TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 1996, AT 7:00 P.M. PRESENT Gerald Taylor, Mayor Shirley Jaskiewicz, Vice Mayor Matthew Bradley, Commissioner Jamie Titcomb, Commissioner Henderson Tillman, Commissioner Carrie Parker, City Manager James Cherof, City Attorney Sue Kruse, City Clerk EXTENSION OF PROPERTY AND SALE AGREEMENT WITH OCEAN BREEZE FESTIVAL PARK~ INCJMARINA MARKETPLACE, INC. FOR AN ADDITIONAL 15 DAY:~ Mayor Taylor called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. The purpose of the meeting was to consider the third amendment to the agreement for purchase and sale of real property. Commissioner Bradley had not yet arrived. City Manager Parker summarized the second amendment which gave the City and T & J Equities until May 1 to reach agreement on the developer's agreement. To date, no agreement has been reached. Furthermore, Mr. Simons requested additional time for real estate transactions he is involved with. Mr. Garcia agreed to a 15-day extension if Mr. Simons would deposit $100,000 in the City Attorney's trust account. If the City and Mr. Simons cannot reach an agreement with respect to the developer's agreement within the 15-day period, the $100,000 will be returned to T & J Equities, and the purchase contract with Mr. Garcia is null and void. If agreement is reached, the $100,000 will be forwarded to Mr. Garcia as the down payment deposit approved in the second amendment. At that time, Mr. Garcia will undertake the cleanup of the property and has 90 days to complete that cleanup. This third amendment to the agreement has been revie,wed by Mr. Garcia, and signed by one of his corporate officers. Commissioner Bradley arrived for the meeting at 7:10 p.m. Mayor Taylor reviewed the iniormation supplied by City Manager Parker for Commissioner Bradley's benefit. Attorney Cherof suggested that the Commissioners listen to the points that are still open because they may have a bearing on the decision to support or deny the extension. There are a significant number of legal points which remain unresolved at this time relative to the language of the contract. Attorney Cherof feels those legal issues will be resolved or identified during this time extension. MOtion Commissioner Titcomb moved to accept the third amendment agreement for the purchase and sale of real property as presented to us. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz seconded the motion. MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA APRIL 30, 1996 City Manager Parker identified the issues as fOllows: Originally, there was discussion about the City issuing bonds with the TIF money to build a parking garage to house the parking for the restaurant and retail portion of the project. When discussions began about the coordination between two contractors for that portion, plus Mr. Simon's garage portion for the marina and residential, it became obvious that it would be difficult to accomplish and the timing was a major issue. As opposed to the City issuing a bond, a suggestion was made that the TIF money generated from Mr. Simons' project only be provided back to him for a ten-year period to be used to fund the garage expenses of construction and operation. This would be the entire obligation of the City with regard to the garage. This is an alternate proposal which is part of the agreement. In addition, the Downtown Development Plan, adopted by the City in 1986, contemplated a hotel/restaurant/retail/residential/entertainment complex on this property as well as the property to the north of this site behind the old Winn-Dixie shopping center at the corner of Boynton Beach Boulevard and U.S. #1~ The RFP mentioned the need for the developer to respond. The developer submitted a proposal which contained a hotel component as a response to the RFP. The agreement, as currently written, develops a process to delete the hotel from that site plan and replace it with retail square footage. The Commission and the City contemplated the construction of all of the components of this project at one point in time. There was a mechanism in the agreement that if the developer wanted to phase the project, he would have to come back to the City Commission for approval of the phasing plan. The developer has requested that the agreement be reworked to acknowledge up front that phasing may be necessary for the project. That phasing would consist of the restaurant and marina component as the first phase, retail and residential as a second phase, and remaining retail and residential as a third Phase with the possibility of a banquet facility of approximately 300-350 seats as part of the overall development project. The banquet facility would be one of the last items. Jeck Simonsi 602 NW 1 Avenue, Delray Beach, presented a site plan, and explained that his original intent was to develop the marina and two restaurants on the eastern end of the projecl. The restaurants will encompass approximately 15,000 square feet. The total component of the non-residential portion encompasses approximately 60,000 square feet and is on the first floor of the residential structure. The banquet faci.lity, which will be substituted fc~r the hotel, is in the southwest corner of the property, close to Ocean Avenue. If Chis is phased, all of the retail on the north/south access will be developed. He can then meve in an east/west axis. If it is broken up into two sections, they will not be building any 100 percent residential areas. They will only be building the residential above the retail. If there is a third phase, it will be the residential on the north end of the property which has MINUTES SPECIAL CiTY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA APRIL 30, 1996 no retail or banquet facilities. As a practical matter, the banquet facility needs to be built because the garage is attached to that component as well as the residential above it. There has been concern from the first day that the developer would build only the residential and never move forward to the retail. The developer feels this proposed configuration is economically viable and will alleviate that concern. This particular site plan will not allow development of the residential without building the retail. Mr. Simons stated that he does not want to build 320 condo units. The more units built on this property, the higher the density and the greater the downside risk for the developer. The reason for the 320 condo units is to generate sufficient TIF funds to pay for the garage spaces allocated to the retail/restaurant/banquet facilities. Commissioner Bradley was surprised that the number of condo units had to be so high to generate the TIF to pay for the parking. He questioned what the dollar figures would be if the number condo units were reduced to get away from nine stories, and go to three, five, and seven stories instead. He questioned the amount of shortfall if the number of units was reduced to 260 or 280. Mr. Simons explained that he has done considerable research on parking garages, and he is comfortable with a figure of $8,000 per parking space. There would need to be a reduction in retail and restaurant space, or building fewer condos and seeking grant or other monies to pay for the shortfall. Mr. Simons would prefer to build fewer condos; however, in an effort to address all of the requirements of the RFP, he could not find a way to develop an economically-feasible project that way. His proposal is his way of addressing as, much of the RFP as he could. COmmissioner Bradley is not convinced of the viability of the banquet facility. He is fearful of the down time of a facility such as this. He wondered if part of the subsidizing of the b~nquet facility could be rolled into the equation of losing some of the condo units. At Commissioner Bradley's request, Mr. Simons explained that as a result of a change in the laws on October 11, 1995, that South Florida Water Management District has adlministrative control, and has, as its subjective decision, the decision on the number of slips that are put in a marina-type facility. This can be, as we envision it, slips every 22' to 35'. We intend to demolish the existing bulkheading and put in new bulkheading. On the no!rth side of the canal, the South Florida Water Management District has, as its discretion, ani allocation of one slip every 100'. in this marina, we have 485 linear feet on the north and south sides of the canal. We are optimistic we can get anywhere from 25 to 32 slips oni the south side. On the north side, it can vary anywhere from four to 20 or 22 depending on the interpretation of South Florida Water Management District. This study will cost approximately $100,000 and take about eight to twelve weeks. There are no existing permits which are valid on the marina project. 3 MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA APRIL 30, 1996 Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz inquired about the access to the marina. Mr. Simons explained that it has been his intention from the start to make as much of the marina as possible available to the public. This configuration in the retail space on the first floor will make available at least 300' linear feet on the south side. The north side has more problems because of the mangroves and the residential building in the mangrove area. Parking and access cannot be addressed at this point because they are subject to negotiations with various agencies. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz agreed with Commissioner Bradley's remarks about height. Because of the space limitations of the property, there would be a needle-like appearance of ~he building which extends to 100'. She would like to further investigate Commissioner Bradley's suggestions because she feels it would more aesthetically appealing and easier to design. Mr. Simons pointed out that will bring up the question of who will pay for the garage. Mr. Simons has been operating under the assumption that the City did not have any money to pay for the parking garage. Ci!y Manager Parker said this is a critical issue. The original plan submitted by Mr. Simons involved the two restaurants that stood alone at the far eastern end of the property. This plan involved a fishing village motif with a lot of wood, glass and an open-air feeling. Mr. Simons is now suggesting a Mizner Park look. She indicated that the eastern side of Miizner Park is almost exactly the site plan being described by Mr. Simons. There is an arcade in front of retail shops on the first floor. In the center, there is a nine-story apartment complex similar to Mr. Simons' suggestion. City Manager Parker pointed out that this will look like a large box because the length will go from Ocean Avenue to Boynton Beach Boulevard. However, Mr. Simons has done close financial planning, and he feels the project is not financially feasible if he deviates too much from 320 condo units. Going to three, five and seven stories would eliminate 100 units and would not make the project feasible in Mr. Simons' opinion. However, he will do it that way if the City pays the difference. At this point, the City has offered the following incentives: · waiver of payment of the building permit fees; · impact fee payments; TIF monies for ten years that would be generated from his property only downtown; repave Casa Loma Boulevard and construct pavement to the front of the driveway from the end of the hotel to the lift station on Boynton Beach Boulevard; and provide the water and sewer improvements off site necessary to handle this development. 4 MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA APRIL 30, 1996 This incentive package does not assume that the City would pay anything else for the condominium units or additional garage space. The site plan does not go to 100' so there is some room for staggering coming off Ocean Avenue, but there is not a lot of room to move the 320 units around. If the units are cut down and staggered off Ocean Avenue, the height would be pushed up at the back end of the property. At some point, the height would be at 100'. City Manager Parker does not believe Mr. Simons will agree to reduce the number of units by more than 10 without feeling that the project is not economically feasible. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz pointed out that fewer condo units would result in the need for fewer parking spaces. Mr. Simons disagreed and stated that the condo units are profitable and have their own parking. The TIF monies are for the 100 spaces allocated to the banquet facilities; a ratio of 15 parking spaces for every 1,000 square foot of restaurant space, and five parking spaces for every 1,000 square feet of retail space. This amounts to approximately 615 parking spaces at $8,000 per parking space. COmmissioner Bradley questioned how much the parking number be reduced without the banquet facility. Mr. Simons responded that 100 parking spaces have been allocated for the banquet facility. That cost would be $800,000. CitY Manager Parker stated that the Commission would want to substitute retail for the banquet facilities. They would not want to eliminate the space altogether; therefore, they would not be reducing the amount by $800,000 because the retail would require additional parking spaces. City Manager Parker asked for direction from the Commission on the banquet facility. Commissioner Tillman likes the idea of the banquet facility. The City had an interest in trying to provide something for use of the public, and he feels the banquet facility should remain. Mayor Taylor said the City's original intent was to revitalize downtown. One of the first initiatives taken by the Commission was the increase in the height limit to accommodate the nine-story complex. When that was done, everyone on the Commission seemed comfortable with that decision. When it become obvious that the hotel was not marketable, he suggested including a meeting hall to accommodate 300 to 350 people. The reason the City is involved is to draw people to the downtown area. The condo units create a situation of people already living in the downtown. Mayor Taylor does not have a problem with the nine stories. He feels the location is inconspicuous. There are large buildings in the area already, and this complex will generate new growth. With regard to the banquet facility, Mayor Taylor realizes that no one can build the facility and promise it will be sold ou~ everyday. However, it will offer an opportunity for people to gather. He feels there are MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA APRIL 30, 1996 no guarantees, but the development must take place, and then be marketed. Mayor Taylor is open to ideas. If someone has a better idea, he is willing to listen. He is not supportive of eliminating parking spaces. There are businesses in the area that will be utilizing that parking garage on a regular basis, and new businesses will require some of that parking area. Mayor Taylor is ready to make this happen. Commissioner Tillman said he has experienced many occasions when organizations he is involved with have wanted to have large functions and had to go somewhere else to be accommodated. The hotels in the area cannot accommodate groups of 300 to 350 people. He sees the banquet facility as a viable project. Mayor Taylor pointed out that Mr. Simons would be happy not to build the banquet facility because it is not something he wants. The banquet facility is something the City wants. City Manage Parker stated that Mr. Simons was envisioning charging for the use of the banquet facility. COmmissioner Titcomb advised that he was a fan of the hotel concept from the beginning, and thought that with the proper marketing, the hotel could be used to echo tourism. He feels it is very important to keep as many public components as possible in this project so that it is not scaled down to the size where it becomes a retail center with residential over the top with basically open doors to only those who live there. Some of the earlier site plans contained more decorative Key West or Sanibel fishing village motifs. This site plan is beginning to look more like a flat-topped tall building. He encouraged the developer to do as much as possible from a design standpoint to make this a pleasing, open project. City Manager Parker said she was very adamant about the Key West idea because she heard those remarks from the Commission. In looking at the east side of Mizner Park, there are one-story residential homes on one side and one and two-story commercial on the other side. Mr. Simons is proposing an almost identical replica of the east side of MiZner Park with the nine-story square building in the center. At this point, the City COmmission almost has carte blanche design decision. However, Mr. Simons has coincerns. Mr. Simons said it was never his intention to give the Commission the impression that they Were going to have carte blanche on the design. His intention is to build a project that is ecDnomically viable and will stand the test of time. There are few projects he builds that address his own aesthetics and suggested desires. The people who design his projects are the people who occupy them. He gets significant input from the sales and leasing brokers. He then sits down with construction and architectural people so that a ec~onomically viable project can be built. Everyone here thinks it is easy to get restaurants in this particular location, but the history of the restaurant industry in the United States is dismal. The quality of management over time, and the economic viability is limited. He is looking at the best managed and the best capitalized restaurant companies. Those people 6 *should read, "eeo-tourism". MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA APRIL 30, 1996 have significant input as to what they will and will not accept relative to exteriors. It is his job to coordinate that. It would not be prudent to give carte blanche to people who do not have the concerns he has about the economic viability of the project, and he will not do that. It is obvious to Mr. Simons that the City is desirous of having a project that will stand the test of time. Tremendous efforts have been made to date to negotiate this project. There were a number of items in the development agreement that were totally unacceptable to Mr. Simons, but he was not surprised by them. The development agreement was an outstanding first presentation drawn up by someone extremely knowledgeable of development agreements. Mr. Simons feels that the extension of 15 days would allow the time necessary to finalize the agreement. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz pointed out that Mr. Simons was the one who brought the fishing village motif to the Commission and sold it to them. If they had not seen it, things might have been different. Mayor Taylor does not want to duplicate Mizner Park here in Boynton Beach. We would like tO see something that is unique to our City. He feels the location of the project must be considered. This is in a waterfront environment that has a fishing type atmosphere. He pointed out that no one told Bob Currie how to design the bridge or Old School, but he brought in some good concepts. Mayor Taylor feels the Commission will have some input into the aesthetics of this project when the time comes. Attorney Cherof explained that the City Manager's desire is related to the fact that the Commission's ability to control or have input on the design of what will be built there is best addressed in the contract because there are limited powers when it comes time for the conditional use or use approval process. According to City Manager Parker, the design approval language in the contract is to give the Commission some flexibility. Sometimes when the Commission discusses design issues with the developer, he is negotiating with the Commission on a good-faith effort. There is no Code to back up that discussion during the site plan approval. The developer could agree to do something requested by the Commission, but not follow through on that request because there is no Code to require that condition. From the comments made by Mr. Simons, he is moving toward a Mediterranean look; however, the Commission is not moving in the same direction. This is a conflict point that could be before the Commission when all documents are signed and the Commission does not have design approval. She requested that the Commission advise her now if they do not like the Mizner Park type look because Mr. Simons wants to delete a lot of the design approval language included for the Commission. Mayor Taylor recommended that this "look" be referred to as a Mediterranean look rather than the Mizner Park look. He questioned whether or not the Commissioners liked the Mediterranean look. L MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION MEETING BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA APRIL 30, 1996 Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz advised that in speaking with some of the homeowner groups, she learned that they would prefer a banquet facility over a hotel; therefore, she is in favor of it. She hopes a very good restaurant will be included. Mr. Simons reminded the Commissioners that when the aromas and noise from the nightly utilization of the restaurants travel up to the condo units, he is hopeful the insurance of the City will cover those problems. Vice Mayor Jaskiewicz pointed out that there are already two restaurants planned in the area. Mayor Taylor explained that the restaurants will be in place before the condo units, so that the people moving in will be aware of the situation. COmmissioner Bradley requested that the project take into consideration a pedestrian- friendly aspect. At the water's edge, he wants as much pedestrian access as possible because people are drawn to the water. MT. Simons questioned whether the point of repurchase by the City at less than his cost had been withdrawn from the agreement. City Manager Parker advised that she would diScuss that area with him tomorrow. The vote was polled, and the motion carried 5-0. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to come before the Commission, the meeting properly adjourned at 8:25 p.m. CITY OF BOYNTON BEACH ATTEST: Ci{~Clerk GZecording Secretary (One Tape) ~a¢or ~ ~ice Ma~°r'/ "/ ~missioner Commissioner C~issioner ]0