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HomeMy WebLinkAboutDocumentation_Regular_Tab 4E_7/27/1989 ,, ,_,_.„... ear e ) . . , _ , ...,-,,,.. „... , VILLAGE OF TEQUESTA `�` v-• Post Office Box 3273 • 357 Tequesta Drive ��; Tequesta, Florida 33469-0273 • (407) 575-6200 - FAX: (407) 575-6203 h , TEQUESTA DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT TASK FORCE MEETING MINUTES JULY 7 , 1989 I . The Tequesta Downtown Task Force held a meeting at the Village Hall , 357 Tequesta Drive, Tequesta, Florida, on Friday, July 7 , 1989 . The meeting was called to order at 9 : 40 A.M. by Carlton Stoddard, Chairman. Task Force members present were : Dr. Stanley B. Jacobs, Jim Pilz, and Jim Stergas. Edwin Nelson was out of town. Village Officials present were : Village Manager, Thomas G. Bradford; and Jack Horniman, Village Planning Consultant. Other persons present were: Laura Morgan, Wallcoverings by Laura; Sir John van Kesteren, citizen of Tequesta; Vic Perrone, Retailer; _ Ralph Sganfat, Tequesta Bicycle at Lighthouse Plaza; Jean Gorman, Lighthouse Gallery; John Giba; Al Berry, Bill Hart Realtors ; June Evos, Lighthouse Gallery; and Faye Schrecengost, Lighthouse Gallery. Mr . Stoddard expressed the Tequesta Downtown Development Task Force's great appreciation for concern the community showed by their presence at the Task Force meetings and that their input as well was appreciated by the Task Force. II . APPROVAL OF AGENDA The Agenda was approved as submitted. - III . APPROVAL OF MINUTES A) Task Force Meeting of June 16, 1989 . Dr. Jacobs asked if a Memorandum had yet been written (re : Item IV, second paragraph of above-referenced Minutes ) and was answered by Village Manager Bradford who informed Dr. Jacobs these Minutes were to be addressed at the next Village Council Meeting and the subject matter would be taken care of at that time. Chairman Stoddard reiterated to Mr. Bradford that he concurred with Dr. Jacobs to broaden the scope of the Task Force' s assignment to the Golden Circle was timely and should be done now. With this one note of reference, the Minutes were approved as submitted. w � Tequesta Downtown Development Task Force Meeting Minutes July 7, 1989 Page 2 IV. CONTINUATION OF DISCUSSION RELATIVE TO TASK FORCE MISSION STATEMENT: Chairman Stoddard at this point invited Jim Pilz and Village Manager Bradford to report on their meeting with Karen Marcus , Cornty Commissioner . Mr. Pilz reported: It was suggested at the last Task Force meeting that Mr. Pilz, Mr. Bradford, and Mayor Capretta meet with County Commissioner, Karen Marcus to discuss : 1 ) the U.S . Government Coast Guard property on CR-707 , since it could become surplus in as short a time as 12 months to suggest potential land use of this area. It was suggested to Commissioner Marcus that the County and Village work together at a high level on the use of this land, rather than appoint it to a staff person at the County. Commissioner Marcus observed the County would probably be interested in some part of the land for park use, but assured the Tequesta representatives the County would work with the Village of Tequesta. She reminded these representatives that Tequesta did have leverage since the land is located in the Village of Tequesta. She stated she desired to discuss the situation further with her staff. The CR-707 Beautification was also discussed. Commissioner Marcus was advised that the Village had agreed to a maximum of $25 , 000 to be matched with $25 ,000 from Beach Road Association to improve, beautify and water both sides of CR-707 from U.S .Highway #1 to the inland waterway. She was presented with _ a copy of this plan, which she kept, and agreed to do what she could to spearhead permitting of this situation to assure it was done in a timely manner. 2 ) Mayor Capretta, Mr. Bradford, and Mr. Pilz also made an investigative visit to Prosperity Oaks Health Care Center to prepare thoughts and ideas for a Health Care Center in Tequesta. They spoke with Charles Sparks, President of Care Bridge Corporation which does joint ventures in health care . Mr. Sparks is also the national Chairman of the 600-member Association of Health Care Centers . Mr. Sparks told the Tequesta group he was familiar with Tequesta, had already looked at the Dorner land, and agreed to take another look at the area of interest to consider it as a possible health-care campus . Tequesta Downtown Development Task Force Meeting Minutes July 7, 1989 Page 3 Chairman Stoddard suggested this be followed through, making a formal , written invitation to Mr. Sparks to attend the next Task Force Meeting. Mr. Bradford mentioned the August Charette to Mr. Sparks, who immediately threw out the name "Duany" and suggested it would be a viable thing for Tequesta, indicating he would gladly be a participant in the Charette from the health care perspective. Chairman Stoddard suggested Gary Van Brock also attend this meeting. Jim Pilz suggested the Mission Statements previously submitted be pulled together into one concise statement to be formally presented at their July 21 meeting . The Task Force agreed that's what should be done . Planning Consultant Jack Horniman reported a good response from local professionals who were willing to donate time to the Charette. He mentioned he had received official letters from: Urban Design Studio; George Gentile & Associates ; GBS&H, (Jim Stergas ' firm) , as well as some verbal commitments from other companies . Mr . Horniman mentioned a visit he and Mr. Bradford made to a company called "Imaging Network" who have computer capabilities to superimpose potential projects, i .e. , using existing structures , but with certain architectual facades, while instituting new landscaping regulations . This firm also had computer capabilities to show what landscaping would look like at five years ' maturity. Mr. Horniman and Mr. Bradford asked Imaging Network to run a cost proposal for comparison. Mr. Bradford was impressed with the keen observation Imaging Network made after viewing the highlighted maps of Tequesta which were presented to them, explaining all variables, and after all verbal presentations had been made , Imaging Network summarized Tequesta was essentially a Village, without a Village Center. Their suggestion was three-fold: 1 ) identify the problems and opportunities; 2 ) site plan the area; 3 ) based on what your product is , how do you change your development regulations to make that work. Mr. Horniman pointed out that with this approach, at the end of a four-day Charette, you would have a complete package, a package that would cost $23 , 000 . Chairman Stoddard felt it was very important to have a visual product of the project, as well as a tabular one. Mr. Bradford stated he was most impressed with Image Network' s computer assisted design . Tequesta Downtown Development - Task Force Meeting Minutes July 7, 1989 Page 4 Bill Johnson, of Ann Arbor, Michigan, who worked with the MacArthur Foundation, is also available, and expressed interest in working with this proposed project, but because of heavy scheduling, he would not be available until after Labor Day. It was pointed out that Mr. Johnson is not unfamiliar with the Tequesta area, though he is from Ann Arbor, and he has an office and home in Jupiter. Chairman Stoddard expressed concern about those chosen to participate in the Charette be people whose ideas are compatible with the thinking of the Village. He suggested by July 21 (next Task Force meeting) a judgment be made on the availability of these professionals, Village Council, Task Force, etc. , and set some window dates for the Charette, one for August and one for September. Mr. Pilz suggested St . Jude Church people also be involved in this Charette. Mr. Horniman stated the professionals mentioned above did keep asking about the church, since it could become a focal point. Chairman Stoddard suggested to John Giba that he talk to the St. Jude people about this Charette, since he is an attendant at that church, and because he understands so well not only the church situation, but the Village of Tequesta also, and expressed possibilities of Mr. Giba serving on the Charette himself. Mr. Bradford mentioned all should be aware that the church property, the water treatment plant property, and the Coast Guard property in Tequesta are all on the Palm Beach County Inventory List of Native Ecosystems because of the Scrub Pines, and it' s scheduled to be part of Palm Beach County' s moratorium for building activities, unless Tequesta opts out of that Ordinance. Mr. Pilz suggested authority be received from the Village Council to give an allowance of monies to stage the Charette. Mr. Bradford mentioned there would be overhead expenses such as electricity, a site such as former Publix or K-Mart space, or Village Hall , copying machines, air conditioning, . . . some basic overhead needs . Mr. Bradford suggested the Task Force first needed to decide whether or not the Coast Guard property is going to be part of the study or not; the Charette should not be approached with unknown variables or parameters . Mr. Bradford suggested since Mr. Horniman has been appointed to appear at the next Task Force meeting with window dates of opportunities of availability for the professionals he had contacted, that he and Mr. Horniman also put together a Charette Budget (all the overhead costs, design costs, etc) , Tequesta Downtown Development Task Force Meeting Minutes July 7 , 1989 Page 5 present it to the Task Force so they might know what to recommend to Council . The Task Force agreed that should be done and be presented at the next Task Force Meeting. It was also suggested the Jupiter/Tequesta Board of Realtors, the Chamber of Commerce, and Tequesta Business Association be invited to attend that meeting. V. DISCUSSION OF POTENTIAL CULTURAL/COMMUNITY CENTER A) Chairman Stoddard's Report of June 27 , 1989 Meeting with William E. Ray, Executive Director, Palm Beach County Council of the Arts . The purpose of this meeting was to explore the potential of a cultural community center in Tequesta. Mr. Ray was presented with maps locating the Golden Circle area, as well as a drawing of Sir John van Kesteren' s concept of a proposed cultural/community center for Tequesta. Mr. Ray asked if Tequesta might be interested in merging efforts with Burt Reynolds Institute for Theatre Training for finding a new home, and perhaps locating that new home in Tequesta. It was mentioned there were three potential opportunities in Tequesta: 1 ) the potential community center presented by Sir John van Kesteren; 2 ) sharing with the County the 55-acre Coast Guard property; or 3 ) sharing a community/cultural center, merging with the Institute of Theatre Training at Lighthouse Plaza. Sir John van Kesteren felt the merging was an excellent idea and suggested a meeting be arranged with Village representatives , William Ray and Bob Montgomery to view the potential site and discuss further the possibilities . Mr. Pilz reiterated to Sir John the County had some strong ideas on using this property for a passive park setting. Mr. Bradford stated one way to accent the public utilization aspect of the Coast Guard property might be to combine the cultural idea, with a promenade along the water, as in Savannah and Jacksonville, which allows public access to the water in a passive park-like setting, envisioning the cultural center on the water, allowing the people to mingle. Tequesta Downtown Development Task Force Meeting Minutes July 7 , 1989 Page 6 Jim Stergas asked what made the Coast Guard property a better prospect for a community center than the Dorner Lands . Mr. Bradford answered the property was not necessarily better, but there were some economic variables to consider: 1 ) the current Coast Guard land is not on the Tequesta tax base. It has the potential of being given to the Village/County, or whoever for free; 2 ) any quasi-governmental organization construction that goes on the Dorner Land has the potential of removing that land from Tequesta's current tax base, which could be counter productive. Mr. Pilz reminded the Task Force a Charette is badly needed to discuss some of these issues, and again mentioned the Village's need for a life care center. Chairman Stoddard agreed the Charette would help toward achieving full evaluations , and that professional guidance is needed, and asked for input from attendants who were present from Lighthouse Gallery. Faye Schrecengost, of Lighthouse Gallery, mentioned she was impressed with the idea of a Charette as well as a potential community center where Lighthouse Gallery could possibly be housed, since the Gallery is presently pushing the walls in their present location, and offered Lighthouse Gallery as a potential meeting place for the Charette. She mentioned the Gallery generates 30,000 people per year through there, and could be a strong magnet for revenue wherever it is located. • VI. - DISCUSSION OF ZONING CODE TEXT AMENDMENT TO ALLOW FOR INCREASED BUILDING HEIGHT WITHIN THE C-2 ZONING DISTRICT Mr. Bradford reminded the Task Force of the site plan approval of David Sullivan, representative for Coachman Inns , to build an economy hotel just north of County Line Plaza, six-twelve months ago. Coachman Inns was unable to get financing. Therefore, the Raddison hotel is now moving forward with acquisition of that site with a 135-unit hotel. The architecture will be similar to the Raddison in Boca Raton, a five-story hotel. Mr. Bradford referred to Scott Ladd's memo to him dated June 21 , 1989 which covered: the closer Tequesta comes to build-out, the only way to expand the tax base to minimize continual tax increases per property owner, over time, is to annex property, thereby expanding geographicaly, or to allow people to go higher, thereby expanding vertically. Therefore, Mr. Ladd' s suggestion was to amend the zoning code to allow for five stories, because: Tequesta Downtown Development Task Force Meeting Minutes July 7, 1989 Page 7 1 ) It would allow for more diversity and creativity in the C-2 district; 2 ) It will come closer to matching what Palm Beach County allows in that area which abuts our C-2 district ( i .e. , currently there are 2 8-story multi-family condos on the east side of U.S. #1 , and the potential 8-story office complex on the corner of U.S . #1 and County Line Road) . This would allow a carrot for annexation purposes . 3 ) Increase the tax base by incorporating vertical layering within the C-2 district ; 4 ) Create a favorable atmosphere within which it would become _ economically feasible to demolish older commercial buildings and replace them with buildings of greater story height in order to better offset land acquisition and development costs ; 5 ) Obtain more green space and landscaping, due to the fact that higher buildings generally have a smaller lot coverage than one- or two-story buildings, which tend to spread out and cover more of the property. Mr. Bradford mentioned this issue is scheduled. for Village Council discussion on July 13 , 1989, and he felt Task Force input was a necessary pre-requisite . Chairman Stoddard stated he felt the proposal was a good one, if attendant to this proposal was full control of Village Administration and the Village Building Department, so it would be administered in a manner not to create a forest of skyscrapers . Dr. Jacobs stated he would not like to see an 8-story building in, for instance, the Lighthouse Plaza location. Sir John van Kestern mentioned a problem Germany confronted with highrise buildings in the center of the town, in that the center was dead at night. Another problem Mr. Bradford pointed out was , since the Village is considering going to a Public Safety program, the fire-fighting problem of an 8-story building should be considered. Mr . Pilz was . Tequsta Downtown Development Task Force Meeting Minutes July 7 , 1989 Page 8 concerned regarding the allowance of the 8-story office building that this would set a precedent and perhaps get into a legal ramifications if the Village said, no more 8-stories beyond that point. Mr. Bradford' s reply was : "If a zoning district only allows three stories , and you were to annex an 8-r-tory office tower within that district, no way was known to alleviate non-conformance use. But, if you create new districts that are specific in their citing that 8 stories are allowed, then it would not be a non- conforming use. If you allow 8 stories within the C-2 districts, and all zoning and site plan review requirements are met and the builder wants to do an 8-story edifice, then there would be legal problems . " Mr. Bradford made the suggestion of having a cut-off point such as no 8-story office buildings allowed south of Village Boulevard. Mr. Horniman brought up the Planned Unit Development (PUD) special exceptions , subject to conditions and approval by Council , looking at every situation, but that to increase height, substantive reasoning was needed. Chairman Stoddard asked Mr. Bradford to look into this . Mr. Pilz suggested discussing this at the Charette , but Mr. Bradford pointed out the Raddison doesn't have time to wait for Charettes, and asked the Task Force if it was safe for him to relay to Council the Task Force thought the 8-story idea was acceptable north of Village Boulevard, five stories south of Village Boulevard, with Village control . The Task Force agreed. VII. ANY OTHER MATTTERS Ralph Sganfat, Tequesta Bicycle located at Lighthouse Plaza, expressed concern over the vacancy situation at Lighthouse Plaza and asked if a major tenant had yet been found. Mr. Bradford stated he had had several meetings with people from Ft. Lauderdale, Boca Raton, and others who had come to him expressing interests of buying Lighthouse Plaza and re-build there -- though that doesn't mean that would happen. Laura Morgan, Wallcoverings by Laura, stated merchants at Lighthouse Plaza cannot hang on much longer for survival . Mr. Bradford responded that, though Tequesta would like the merchants at Lighthouse Plaza to remain in business in Tequesta, they each had to do what was financially best for them and suggested his advice to them would be to perhaps look for another location, hopefully within Tequesta. 0 Tequesta Downtown Development Task Force Meeting Minutes July 7, 1989 Page 9 VIII. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business before the Task Force, the meeting was adjourned at 12 : 30 P.M. Respectfully submitted, Fran Bitters Recording Secretary /fgb Date Approved: July 27 , 1989