Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes_Miscellaneous_09/19/1994_Redevelopment Committee F � `��� VILLAGE OF TEQLJESTA ; , _, Post Office Box 3273 • 357 Tequesta Drive `' Tequesta, Florida 33469-0273 • (407) 575-6200 ° ' � � Fax: (407) 575-6203 a o 9 4 f, �H COUH VILLAGE OF TEQUESTA REDEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES SEPTEMBER 19, 1994 I. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL The Tequesta Redevelopment Committee held a scheduled meeting at the Village Hall, 357 Tequesta Drive, Tequesta, Florida, on Monday, September 19, 1994. The meeting was called to order at 9:00 A.M. by Chairman Ron T. Mackail. A roll call was taken by Betty Laur, the Recording Secretary. In attendance were: Chairman Ron T. Mackail and Co-Chairman Joseph Capretta. Also in attendance were Village Manager Thomas G. Bradford, and Village Clerk Joann Manganiello. Committee member Earl L. Collings was absent from the meeting. II. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Chairman Mackail moved that the Agenda be approved as submitted. Co-Chairman Capretta seconded the motion. The vote on the motion was: Ron T. Mackail - for Joseph Capretta - for The motion was therefore passed and adopted and the Agenda was approved as submitted. III. DETERMINATION OF SITE FOR THE TEQUESTA BRANCH LIBRARY. Village Manager Bradford explained that the Village Council had placed a self-imposed deadline of September 22, 1994 for deciding the location of the Tequesta Branch Library since sufficient lead time prior to the December 1, 1994 deadline established by the County would be needed to receive County approval for the library location. Village Manager Bradford clarified that the project had been turned over to the IZecycled Pnper Redevelopment Committee Meeting Minutes September 19, 1994 Page 2 ------------------------------ Village of Tequesta to administer and to reserve the remaining $505,000 in the County's budget for that job. In determining a site, Village Manager Bradford stated since he had been informed by Jupiter Medical Center officials that the North County Ambulance property would not be given to the Village in the event North County Ambulance went out of business, that he had eliminated the fallback site next to Village Hall to reserve that property for future expansion of fire-rescue services. Village Manager Bradford presented the following options for consideration by the Redevelopment Committee: • An offer from the Dorner Trust of an approximate 10-acre tract north of Tequesta Drive and south of the Post Office for municipal, cultural and library sites. • An offer from the Dorner Trust of a 7-acre tract north of Tequesta Drive ancl south of the Post Office for municipal, cultural and library sites. Both of the above offers would include donation of one acre of the property to the Village to give, sell or lease to the Palm Beach County Library System. • The possibility of a site at Lighthouse Plaza which was recently purchased by Mr. DiVosta who had not yet made a development decision for the parcel. • The possibility of a site on Fehlhaber Corporation property. Village Manager Bradford suqgested�the possibility of purchasing the Fehlhaber property for municipal and library sites and the smaller of the two Dorner properties for cultural purposes. Village Manager Bradford concluded that the safest option to wrap up a library site would be the Dorner Trust offer and listed the steps necessary to proceed: 1. Appraise the land. 2. Review financing options. 3. Keep Palm Beach County staff informed. 4. Begin professional site planning. 5. Inform the Lighthouse Gallery and BRITT of the intentions of the Village and obtain their fe�dback. 6. Consider incentives to have the cultural organizations initiate fund drives for their buildings and/or land. Redevelopment Committee Meeting Minutes - September 19, 1994 Page 3 ------------------------------ Gary Van Brock presented to the Redevelopment Committee the Dorner Trust offers in conjunction with a concept plan for a Tequesta Village Center which would include a Village government complex. The total area would encompass 15-3/4 acres from Tequesta Drive bordering on Old Dixie Highway, south of the Post Office to Tequesta Drive. The Village governmental complex and the library would be situated in the center of the site, with room nearby for future expansion andjor cultural facilities for Lighthouse Gallery, BRITT and a common-use theatre/auditorium for both, as well as for use by the Village governmental complex for various activities. The area proposed for the governmental center, library and cultural facilities would consist of 9-3/4 acres. Mr. Van Brock pointed out that the proposed Village Center would meet all requirements that were set forth in the Village Needs Assessment Study conducted by Gee and Jenson in December, 1993, and all requirements that were set forth in the Cultural Needs Assessment Study conducted by Gee and Jenson in April, 1994. Mr. Van Brock stated the Village Center was designed to lend itself to development by phases which were completely independent of each other so that each could be developed as circumstances dictated, and that he and the Dorner Trust would sell, lease, develop the property, or build to suit. Other highlights of the concept included an outparcel which was shown as a proposed commercial structure, but which could be developed for any other use including an �CLF; almost an acre which had been allotted next to the post office for their future expansion; and 202 rental apartment units which were proposed far property north of the post of�ice which would complement the other features of the Village Center and provide consumers to help the Village economically. Mr. Van Brock asserted that he and the Dorner Trust have full control over the land, would work with the Villaqe to accomplish their needs, and stated that the Village would be dealing with a substantial financial entity who could accomplish the project. Co-Chairman Capretta questioned that no other entrances were shown into the proposed Village Center except from Old Dixie Highway, and that there were not internal roads. Mr. Van Brock explained that he and the Dorner Trust had no control over the adjoining land owned by Mr. DiVosta and by the church, and when Mr. DiVosta proposed some type of development on his property that the Village could then look at the whole area to see if a road should then be built between the parcels; and that this was a flexible conceptual Redevelopment Committee Meeting Minutes September 19, 1994 Page 4 ------------------------------ plan that could be changed to accommodate roadways where needed. Co-Chairman Capretta commented that if the Village were to accept this plan that he believed the first step that should be taken would be to get Northern Palm Beach Water Control District to install the infrastructure for the whole parcel. Mr. Van Brock did not agree, stating that things change, and that it could be done in phases, and that engineering of each phase would alter the present drainage. Chairman Mackail asked whether the proposals included a one- acre donation for a library site to which Mr. Van Brock answered in the affirmative. Chairman Mackail mentioned the possibility of establishing a CRA to give the Village control, and questioned how the Village could be assured that Mr. Van Brock would develop ail of the property and complete the project. Chairman Mackail stated he would like to see a comprehensive plan fo� all available land. Mr. Van Brock answered that a master plan had been circulated and no one had come up with anything concrete in order to go forward, but that the Village had made great strides by taking ideas presented in the master plan and had incorporated them into mixed-use zoning which allows flexibility for developers to come in. He expressed the thought that the whole concept is market-driven and if the Village were to decide what to build today and build it tomorrow that it would be based on today's market, and that planning for the whole Village today would not be what the Village would want in the future. Chairman Mackail asked whether the Dorner Trust would be willing to finance the property. Mr. Van Brock replied that each issue would need to be considered on its own merits, but that the Dorner Trust was willing to sell or to lease or to build to suit-- which would mean they would design, build, finance, lease, rent, or whatever the Villaqe desired and were willing to cooperate. Mr. Van Brock explained that Ken Spina, Architect for the plan, had considered the needs assessments in square footage, analyzed them in relation to the number of people who will use that space, calculated the traffic flow and taken the topography in relation to drainage and other infrastructure and designed this plan with thos8 criteria in mind to allow for a total intregal plan, whereas the other plans which had been presented to the Village such as the master plan and Mr. Benjamin's plan had no concept of the engineering in mind. Ken Spina, Architect, repli.ed to Mr. Capretta that he had only considered the needs of the Lighthouse Gallery on a Redevelopment Committee Meeting Minutes September 19, 1994 Page 5 ------------------------------ square footage basis; however, Mr. Van Brock explained that the needs were addressed that were shawn in the cultural needs study. Chairman Mackail questioned whether the Dorner Trust would be willing to finance the land in conjunction with the Village. Mr. Van Brock stated the Dorner Trust was not in the business of financing but they were wiiling to build, finance and construct a facility and were willing to listen to a proposal. Mr. Van Brock replied to Co-Chairman Capretta that a CRA could present a lot of problems and that the Village would not have control until all landowners had been negotiated with and/or the Zand condemned. Mr. Capretta voiced his opinion that the Village was caught between two different strategies by two different developers: that the Dorner Trust would like the Village to purchase land at a high price to establish a value for all the land, while DiVosta would like nothing to be done untii the land went down in value so he could buy at a reduced p�ice. Mr. Van Brock stated the Dorner Trust was not looking to gouge the Village but would ask whatever is fair, which would be a lot less than the appraisal of 2-3 years aqo, and with the economy picking up the land would not sit there that lang. Mr. Van Brock asserted that their proposal would give identity to all of the proposed uses and all would have independence, exposure and identity, and could be phased as such. Co-Chairman Capretta reminded the Redevelopment Committee that the purpose of this meeting was to make a decision where to locate the library, and if the library were to be built today the only location possible under Village control would be next door to the Municipal Complex because the acre of land offered to the Village by the Dorner Trust carried the condition that Mr. Van Brock would build the library, which he probably could not do now. If the decision were delayed then other options would be open, but answers must be obtained to the following questions: 1. What is the value of the ten acres offered by the Dorner Trust? {Obtain an appraisal) 2. Is the proposed layout what the Village really wants? (Get Gee & Jenson to look at it) 3. Is this the right size facility for Lighthouse Gallery? 4. What do BRITT and Lighthouse Gallery want, what do they have the financial capability to do, and what would they commit to? R�development Committee Meeting �inutes September 19, 1994 Page 6 ------------------------------ 5. Does the Village want to establish a CRA? 6. Where is the financing? 7. Is there time to answer all these questions before the December 1 deadline imposed by the County? Chairman Mackail agreed with Mr. Capretta and observed that all the players must work together to achieve the goal, and that he believed the County would work with the Villaqe beyond the deadline if the Village had a basic comprehensive plan. Mr. Capretta made the final point that the real purpose was to rejuvenate the whole Village and that Mr. Benjamin's plan was based on the belief that he could convert undeveloped land into developed land and sell it to developers to then build on it; however, the question of financial exposure had not been resolved. Co-Chairman Capretta recommended the following action within the next 60 days : 1. To delay the decision on the library location. 2. To hold serious meetings with the Boards of Lighthouse Gallery and BRITT to determine their needs and desires and obtain their commitments. 3. Meet with parties interested in building an ACLF. 4. Consider the possibility of disconnecting the library location from the downtown development. 5. Meet with Mr. Van Brock and obtain a commitment. 6. Meet with Mr. Benjamin to determine how he could lessen financial exposure. Mr. Van Brock stated the Dorner Trust was willing to risk their money and could accomplish the same goal as having a CRA, which would not be as financially feasible because of the length of time it would take. Mr. Van Brock stated the cheapest, fastest way to finance would be to float bonds and to purchase the land. Hal Hutchinson commented he believed Mr. Van Brock's plan was very flexible and as close to risk-free as the Village would get, and agreed that the library did not need to be located within the proposed Village Center, which took into consideration the needs of both Lighthouse Gallery and BRITT, and that he liked the plan. Mr. Capretta commented that there would be tax incentives for Lighthouse Gallery and for BRITT. Mr. Hutchinson stated he was against establishment of a CRA because he felt that was too risky. �ttie Campbell questioned whether the County would accept Redevelopment Committee Meeting �inutes September 19, 1994 Page 7 ------------------------------ the library location within a complex, and stated that 426 signatures had been collected on a petition to place the library west of the railroad tracks since that is where schoolchildren live. Mrs. Campbell urged the Village not to lose the library. Mrs. Campbell stated she thought Mr. Van Brock's plan was wonderful but did not know how it would be paid for. Chairman Mackail stated if Jupiter should accept the Viliage's Fire Rescue services proposal that the present Municipal Complex would become solely a public safety facility; therefore, he would like to find a way to incorporate the library location with facilities for Lighthouse Gallery and BRITT in a cultural location. Mr. Capretta inquired whether if the Dorner Trust plan were generally approved and the Village made a commitment to buy a few acres, could the Village acquire future parcels as needed and negotiate a price for each parcel at time of purchase, to which Mr. Van Brock replied yes. Village Manager Bradford clarified that there was no condition attached with either the 7-acre or 10-acre proposals that the Dorner Trust or Mr. Van Brock construct the buildings. Mr. Van Brock explained that a couple of years ago the County had taken bids for the library which were too high, and the Dorner Trust had committed to design, build, and donate a site within their tY�en budget of $530,000. He stated that commitment still stood within the budget available now of $506,000. Co-Chairman Capretta discussed the County's design and the fact that it could not be built for $506,000 so the Village would have to make a major contribution. It was the consensus of the Redevelopment Committee that their recommendation to Village Council at their next meeting on September 22, 1994 would be to incorporate facilities for Lighthouse Gallery and BRITT into the library location, and to direct Village Manager Bradford to pursu� answers to Co-Chairman Capretta's questions referenced above within the next 60 days. V. COMMiINICATIONS FROIYI CITIZENS Communications from citizens were taken under Agenda Item IV. Redevelopment Committee Meeting Minutes September 19, 1994 Page 8 ------------------------------ VI. ADJOURNMENT Co-Chairman Capretta moved that the meeting be adjourned. Chairman Mackail seconded the motion. The vote on the motion was: Ron T. Mackail - for Joseph Capretta - for The motion was therefore passed and adopted and the meeting was adjourned at 10:24 A.M. Respectfully submitted, . a F�,'' 8 , � •, � - . l �� ? , � � ..>�+1 '� ��'� ��G`") `C't.�� s a d � .,� ,, 0 \� Betty Laur Recording Secretary ATTEST: , J ann Mangani lo Village Clerk DATE APPROVED: �/�� �7 , i95'sL