The proposal is for a Residential Planned Unit Development Master Plan approval for 284 multi-family units on a 11.34 acre lot which will be comprised of two four-story apartment buildings and may be privately gated.
The access of the site shall be from a single access along the western boundary from US Highway One. Traffic improvements include the addition of a right-turn lane for the northbound traffic. Sidewalks internal to the site shall have a minimum width of 6'. The provision of 6' sidewalks is one of the PUD waivers requested by the applicant.
Another PUD waiver is the request for a density bonus up to 27.23 dwelling units per acre. The applicant has demonstrated that the demand for luxury apartment homes is very high and that there is a shortfall of apartment housing in the area. The applicant is requesting the density bonus based on the Stuart Land Development Code definition of Density Bonus: Additional residential density may be approved for a RPUD in accordance with the City of Stuart's Comprehensive Plan and Land Development Regulations provided the total density does not exceed 30 dwelling units per acre. A density bonus may only be granted at the discretion of the City Commission as an incentive for developments to provide greater public amenities or housing opportunities which enhance the City, such as affordable housing, new housing stock, or housing types that are in demand.
On-site parking was provided at a rate of 1.65 spaces per dwelling unit (or 486 parking spaces), which is below the required parking per code (508 parking spaces). The applicant is requesting a waiver to the code to allow for the decrease in provided parking.
Martin County shall provide the water and sewer for the project. All necessary permits for construction will be required prior to the initiation of construction.
The applicant is preserving one wetland under the jurisdiction of South Florida Water Management District, and provided an avoidance and minimalization of wetland impacts analysis. This one wetland and an average 50-foot buffer will be preserved and protected by a Preserve Area Management Plan. This wetland has been dedicated as a conservation area and recorded on county records as such.
A second wetland, under the jurisdiction of the US Army Corp of Engineers and includes a .49 acre impact. The applicant has applied for a permit to impact this wetland and is mitigating the loss of the natural resource through on-site features, such as the planting of littoral vegetation in the southernmost wet retention area/pond, and the creation of a bio-swale that connects said pond to the South Florida Water Management wetland being preserved.
Pursuant to Florida Statue Section 166.033(4), a municipality may not require as a condition of processing or issuing a development permit that an applicant obtain a permit or approval from any state or federal agency unless the agency has issued a final agency action that denies the federal or state permit before the municipal action on the local development permit.
As part of this request for mitigation, the applicant is requesting to provide 16% of the site as landscaped, but is requesting to include a .46 acre dry detention area to be included to meet the required 20% pervious area.
The architecture of the building meets all of the required architectural standards of the code. The building height is 42' 6" and is four-stories. The applicant is also proposing amenities, such as a pool, internal courtyards and 96 stand alone parking garages along the perimeter of the site.
The applicant's requested timetable of development is for the final development or permit approval by September 1, 2019, and the final CO to be issued by January 1, 2023.
The Local Planning Agency shall make an advisory recommendation to the City Commission as to the need and justification for the change and as to the relationship of the proposed change to the goals, objectives and policies of the Comprehensive Plan and of the Land Development Code. The Local Planning Agency shall include in its recommendation to the City Commission any information which it deems is relevant to issues relating to the proposed amendment.
The LPA had the following concerns:
• Automobile stacking distance seems very short from the privacy gate off US-1.
• What are the parking rates based on, please provide justification/examples.
• What is the response from the Department of Transportation regarding the traffic turning movements on US-1.
• What is the reason for the construction methodology to be wood frame – although meeting the building standards per Steve Nicolosi, wood frame is not required by the building code.
• Could the project support workforce housing?
• Wetlands – Must delineate and confirm that the wetland in north/east corner is taken into account. And the reason why there is a differentiation in the SFWMD and Army Corp wetland designations.
• Confirmation of wetland maintenance agreement PAMP arrangements etc.
• Provide better explanation of the bus stops and pedestrian connections.
• Setback to single family from multi-family – ensure that the code is being applied
• Provide bike racks.
• Provide a condition of approval that will limit the condo conversion by deed restriction.
There is also the issue of a potential wetland area at the north-eastern corner of the property which has yet to be fully addressed by the applicant. The applicant will be presenting confirmation that all impacts to wetlands on the subject property have (or will be) mitigated, together with an explanation of the differentiation in the SFWMD and Army Corps wetland designations. This confirmation is required to allow the proposal to utilize the north eastern area of the subject property as car parking and to utilize the area of the wetland delineated by the Army Corps.
In response to public comment regarding the transfer of development rights from environmentally sensitive lands into wellfields area, staff has established that the net density of 27.23 units/acre has been calculated by removing the areas occupied by wetlands. Therefore there is no transfer of development rights in this instance. This applicant is requesting a density bonus in accordance with the City’s Land Development Code.
The applicant is prepared to answer the above mentioned concerns in their presentation.
Public Comment: Staff has received public comment from Brian DiVentura, a resident in the vicinity of the development. His email has been made an attachment to this agenda. The specific concern addressed in the email is the transfer of development rights from environmentally sensitive lands. However, the applicant is not requesting a transfer of density. The net density was established by removing the acres of all wetlands. The number of units that are permitted without a density bonus is156 dwelling units, and that is based on 15 dwelling units per acre and the definition of net density, which lesses out all of the dedicated wetlands (15 x 10.43 acres.) The requested 284 units or 27.23 dwelling units per acre (284 units 284/10.43 = 27.23). Therefore, the applicant is requesting a net density of 27.23 dwelling units per acre. The requirement for this density bonus is to allow an additional 128 units.
Pursuant to Florida Statute, the City transmitted the large scale comprehensive plan amendment to the Department of Economic Development (DEO) and 9 other agencies on November 27, 2018. During the review period, staff has received one public comment (attached as Public Comment 2 in agenda), and responses from most of the agencies that were given the opportunity to provide comments. In particular, the comments from FDOT and DEO are noted by staff and will be addressed in follow up workshops on transit and in the EAR update to the Comprehensive Plan. Specifically, staff will add the planning horizon to the Future Land Use Element, and staff will plan a systematic coordination with Martin County on bus stop locations. It is noted that there is a bus stop location at the property adjacent and to the north of the subject property. The public comment regarding wetland mitigation has been addressed by legal review in the past public hearings. Staff will be prepared to provide additional response on the January 14th second reading.