Boca Raton CRA postpones Camino Square Phase 2 amendment after debate over reduced retail, traffic and height

The Boca Raton Community Redevelopment Agency on Tuesday, Oct. 14, postponed action on an Individual Development Approval amendment for Camino Square Phase 2 after extended presentations, public comment and questions about reduced retail, traffic and neighborhood impacts.

The amendment would replace previously approved Phase 2 retail with 394 residential units, add a 7-level structured parking facility and provide 8,632 square feet of retail on the Ground Floor, while requesting a one-foot technical deviation to reduce an internal driveway throat from 34 to 33 feet. Staff and the applicant said the site is roughly 9.13 acres and the Phase 2 portion under review is about 4.54 acres at 171 West Camino Real. The board voted to postpone the item and asked the applicant to meet with staff within 30 days and return with a status update to the CRA.

Why it matters: The amendment would move a large portion of the project from street-facing commercial to residential, change the mix of uses in Downtown Sub Area G and rely on a transfer of office-equivalent development rights (60,255 square feet) from Downtown Sub Area D to Downtown Sub Area G. Commissioners and many residents said the change could reduce the long-promised walkable retail that nearby neighborhoods expected and increase neighborhood traffic; the applicant and staff argued the revised design better meets the city’s downtown urban design objectives and would generate fewer daily vehicle trips than the previously approved Phase 2 retail plan.

What staff presented

Susan Lesser, senior planner in Development Services, reviewed the amendment to IDA CRP16O2R2 and related approvals under Ordinance 4035 and implementing DDRI standards. Lesser said the request replaces an earlier approval for about 37,399 square feet of retail with 394 residential units in two eight-story buildings (approximately 80 feet, 8 inches to the main roof and up to 96 feet, 8…