SCHMIDT'S ADVOCACY REPORT
Downtown Master Plan Panel #1 , March 20, 2025 -The Downtown Master Plan was first created in 1994, revised in 2007, and the mayor wants to revise it again to reflect changing times. Downtown Master Plan Roundtable #1 was the first public meeting on that topic. Roundtables #2 and #3 will be April 24 and May 22. The format: local developers and government officials give power-point presentations and are interviewed by a moderator regarding their concerns about attracting and retaining residents and businesses.
Here's the gist:
1) Gopal Rajegowda from Related Ross lives in Flamingo Park, and he believes that there is an urgent need for taller, denser buildings appealing to both the rich and poorer folk in and near downtown.
2) Jennifer Harrold, head of HR at NewDay USA (a fintech company and downtown's largest employer) says that many of her employees complain about traffic and long commute times. However, she says recreational amenities were the key factor in NewDay opening offices in WPB. Most of their new employees are recent college graduates, and they want to hire 300 more.
3) Kelly Smallridge, CEO of the Business Development Board for Palm Beach County says that the quality of public schools is a major issue in attracting new talent and residents. She floated the idea of creating special public schools dedicated to STEM (science, technology, engineering, math). She also discussed the idea of creating an "Okeechobee Corridor" since most people who work downtown live in Wellington & Royal Palm Beach. The plan is to facilitate better traffic flow on Okeechobee, and to improve the overall appearance of Okeechobee by tearing down old, ugly strip malls and replacing them with "workforce" apartments / condos.
4) Chris Roog, representing the city, said that the goal is not just to have affordable housing in one spot---meaning the Broadway Corridor.
There was also some talk about creating a "Fern Street Corridor" to funnel traffic away from Dixie and Quadrille toward Parker / Tamarind. There was also concern expressed by the fire department about traffic inhibiting their response times--and perhaps building another station to cover downtown. There were 2 question & answer periods for the audience. I made a point to speak with both Rick Greene and Rick Reikenis (a member of the DMP steering committee, appointed by the mayor) about better publicity needed for future meetings. They agreed.
Updates from the March 31st City Commission Meeting:
1) Palm Beach Atlantic University wants to build a 25-story dormitory just north of the Family Church between Olive Avenue and Flagler Drive. However, discussion of the plan was delayed until the April 14 commission meeting. Commissioners expressed skepticism about the necessity of an 11-story parking garage "for student parking" as part of that plan, deeming it unnecessarily large and a threat to traffic flow.
2) Lots of discussion about the 55-acre parcel that Related / Ross Group wants to purchase from the city next to the turnpike. They are trying to build a new private K-12 school due to frantic demand from their employees and other business leaders. Apparently, there are long waiting lists for admissions at existing private schools in the area. To sweeten the deal, Related / Ross will donate $1m for repairs at Roosevelt Elementary School in the Northwest neighborhood---the city and state contributing the other $12.5 million needed. The main sticking point is the asking price of the land based on two wildly different appraisals: $3.7m versus $9.5m, for an average of $6.625m. Commissioners want a third appraisal before making a decision.
3) During public comments, 3 members of the DNA board spoke requesting a seat on the Downtown Master Plan steering committee---or at very least, an invitation to attend all steering committee meetings as observers. Mayor James believes that it is unnecessary, since he appointed a realtor (and City Place resident) Stephen Graham to the steering committee. However, Commissioners Fox and Lambert spoke in favor of the DNA getting some sort of representation on the steering committee, and we board members are currently making progress to find a way to make resident concerns heard early in the process. We will keep you posted.
Updates from the March 17th City Commission Meeting:
1) The 3/17 city commission meeting was sedate, and all discussion was about development projects between Palm Beach Lakes Blvd. and 59th street, especially the promotion of "workforce housing" along Broadway Avenue between 25th and 59th streets. Recall that a few months ago, Planning Division head Rick Greene said that there are incentives to build workforce housing downtown, but developers' interest is scant---so that's why there's so much emphasis on both our city and the state governments to funnel money into the "Broadway Corridor." Currently, the city receives an average of $1.1m every year from the state specifically to fund "workforce housing," and U.S. Congresswoman Sheila Cherfilus-McCormack (D-FL district 20) appeared in person to present the mayor with a check from the state for $1m more. Bear in mind that PB County issued a $200m bond to build affordable housing.
N.B.: I'd never heard of Congresswoman Cherfilus-McCormack before, and had no idea that her district 20 includes a thin arm of WPB from the west side of Broadway Avenue to 95, then south to Fort Lauderdale, including PBI airport, Belle Glade, and vast stretches of the Everglades and sugar farms. If you examine district 20 on a map, you'll see its borders are extremely squirrelly---a classic case of gerrymandering. Our congressional district 22 has a much more sane, logical shape.
2) GL Homes is seeking permission to build townhouses on the east side of Broadway Ave. between 40th and 45th Streets.
3) The owner of 1.46 acres on the west side of Dixie Hwy. between 14th & 15th Streets is trying to get the zoning changed from commercial to residential in order to build "Kirksey Commons"---but there was no discussion of the size of the proposed building.
4) Related Group* is seeking approval---and will probably get it---for a scaled-down, waterfront condo tower called "Apogee" between 48th & 49th Streets. It will be 21 stories tall with 39 units. The sticking point was that the city zoning code wants at least 2 acres to build a condo tower and Apogee only has 1.45. So that's why Apogee was reduced in size from its first iteration in 2023. A few homeowners in that neighborhood voiced complaints about the construction chaos and aesthetic harm to their historic neighborhood. But the mayor and commission approved it.
*N.B.: A frequent source of confusion is the difference between 3 major developers in WPB that all have similar names. "Related Companies" was established by billionaire Stephen Ross, who lives here. He's now retired from that company and created "Related / Ross" which is focused on developing WBP. "Related Group" is owned by billionaire Jorge Perez and is headquartered in Miami.
5) The last item at the commission meeting was from Commissioner Fox, who announced the "Downtown Master Plan Roundtable #1" on 3/20....the first any of us heard of it.
---Schmidt