Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Land Use topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Planning Commission backs 89-unit Boca Raton Commerce Center amendment with workforce housing requirement
Summary
The Palm Beach County Planning Commission recommended approval of a small‑scale future land use amendment for Boca Raton Commerce Center 3 that would allow 89 multifamily units (25% on‑site workforce housing) on a 4.79‑acre site; commissioners debated traffic, buffering and building height before the 6‑3 recommendation.
The Palm Beach County Planning Commission on July 11 recommended approval of a small‑scale future land use amendment for Boca Raton Commerce Center 3, a 4.79‑acre site south of Glades Road, to allow a multifamily development of 89 rental units with 25% required on‑site workforce housing.
The recommendation matters because the proposal replaces an industrial underlying future land use with HR‑12 residential capacity on the south portion of a property that currently includes a 14,986‑square‑foot professional office building. Planning staff recommended approval with conditions, including a trip‑generation limit and the requirement that 25% (22 units) be built as workforce housing on site.
Applicant Josh Nichols of Schmidt Nichols told commissioners the project had been reduced from an earlier proposal of 110 units and 5–6 stories to the current 89 units and 4–5 stories after meetings with the adjacent Meissner Point homeowners association and staff. Nichols said the project would keep the existing office building and develop the south portion of the property, and that ‘‘25% of those units will be workforce level housing, and that's required as a condition of approval as well.’’ Principal Planner Travis Goodson told the commission staff had found the revised plan consistent with comprehensive plan policies and determined ‘‘the applicant will be providing 22 workforce housing units to add to the county's inventory’’ and was recommending approval with conditions.
Commissioners and staff focused most of their questions and comments on traffic and compatibility with the adjacent townhomes. The applicant presented trip‑generation figures comparing the site’s current allowable commercial/industrial uses with the proposed mix; he said the proposed professional office plus 89 multifamily units would generate about 566 trips per day compared with 4,300 daily trips for the fully commercial medical‑office scenario that is on the books for the site, and about 953 trips per day for an all‑industrial scenario. Nichols said the current proposal would reduce traffic from what the existing future land use permits. Planning staff confirmed a traffic study and said the site is in the urban/suburban tier, served by existing utilities, and that the applicant had purchased all available TDRs consistent with future land use element policy 2.4.b.
Commissioners pressed the applicant on building height, setbacks and buffers. Nichols described a 100‑foot setback from the adjacent townhomes and said existing mature oaks and palms in the buffer would remain; he added the design intentionally avoids windows overlooking the backyards. Commissioners also questioned the traffic study methodology, peak‑hour counts and how planned roadway improvements (including an anticipated Boca Rio widening scheduled to begin construction in 2027) interact with the proposal. Staff supplied peak‑hour direction counts and said detector‑based signal timing adjustments would address directional flows.
After discussion, a motion to recommend approval of the future land use amendment as presented and with staff‑recommended conditions passed on a roll call vote of 6 in favor and 3 opposed. The vote reflected support from commissioners Cara (Kara) Farris, Varissa Laudas, Rafael Clemente, Rosie Matos, Selena Samuels and John Carr; commissioners Rick Stopik, Gary Brown and Serge de Haiti voted no. The recommendation moves the amendment to the Board of County Commissioners for final action.
Votes at a glance: Motion to recommend approval of Boca Raton Commerce Center 3 with staff conditions — Approved (6‑3: Yes—Cara/Kara Farris, Varissa Laudas, Rafael Clemente, Rosie Matos, Selena Samuels, John Carr; No—Rick Stopik, Gary Brown, Serge de Haiti).
Context and next steps: The commission's recommendation authorizes the change in the future land use atlas and conditions (limit of 89 units, workforce housing requirement, TDR purchase and trip limit) but the project will need final action by the Board of County Commissioners and subsequent zoning/site‑plan approvals for the development order amendment, workforce housing density bonus and use of TDRs.
