Planning Board backs reimagined Marina CMPD master plan and site plan, despite neighbor concerns about height and traffic

The West Palm Beach Planning Board on Sept. 16 recommended the City Commission approve a major amendment to the Marina Commercial Marine Planned Development (CMPD) and granted approval for a related level‑3 site plan to revise the master plan and move active commercial uses to a widened waterfront promenade. The board’s action preserves the development’s previously approved cap of 1,059 dwelling units and the original maximum gross square footage while changing how that development is arranged across roughly 19 acres of waterfront property on North Flagler Drive.

Why it matters: The amendment reconfigures a mix of residential, retail and marina uses and removes the marine‑industrial use from the site, aims to activate a continuous promenade and revises garage and building massing along Flagler Drive. Supporters said the changes create a pedestrian‑oriented hub and help spur further north‑end redevelopment; nearby residents warned the changes leave them with tall buildings close to their homes and warned of traffic impacts.

Applicant attorneys and planners told the board the amendment does not increase the project’s authorized density or total square footage. “We are not looking to add a single unit, and we’re not looking to add a single bit of square footage,” attorney Brian Seymour said. Planner John Roach told the board the update reallocates approved, unbuilt floor area to create more publicly active waterfront and to “activate the promenade” while lowering…