Planning board backs Echo Resiliency SAP for Watson Island, approves 13.2-acre public waterfront park and rezoning

The Planning, Zoning and Appeals Board on Oct. 21 recommended approval of the Eco Resiliency Special Area Plan (SAP) for the former Jungle Island site on Watson Island, including a 13.235‑acre public waterfront park and a rezoning that would permit two residential towers capped at 48 stories and 600 dwelling units on roughly 5.4 acres of the larger 18.61‑acre site.

The SAP — presented by Richard Brown of the Planning Department as a staff‑recommended amendment to the existing Jungle Island SAP — would rezone portions of the island from T6‑12 to T6‑36 and adopt a new regulating plan and concept book that set development parameters, public benefits and design standards for the park and the future residential portion of the site. “My name is Richard Brown. I'm with the special projects planning group of the planning department,” Brown said during the staff presentation.

Why it matters: the application stems from a 2024 ballot measure and follow‑up real estate transaction that returned roughly 13 acres of the former amusement park to the city for public waterfront park use and allowed sale of a smaller parcel for private residential development. The city’s sale agreement includes a package of public benefits valued in the staff report at approximately $40 million and, separately, $15 million in proffers for affordable housing and…