Martin County LPA rezones 2.97-acre site to General Commercial for Driven Brands Inc.

The Martin County Local Planning Agency voted unanimously on June 5 to rezone a roughly 2.97-acre undeveloped parcel owned by Driven Brands Inc. from a Planned Unit Development (PUD) commercial designation to General Commercial District.

Luis Aguilar, principal planner in the Growth Management Department, told the board the parcel sits at the southwest corner of South Canner Highway and Southwest Salerno Road and that the previously executed Conner Square PUD zoning agreement from July 1, 2008, had expired. Aguilar said the underlying future land-use designation is commercial general and that staff found rezoning to the General Commercial District consistent with the comprehensive plan and adjacent commercial development.

Bill Barbaro of Bowman Consulting, representing the applicant, said the rezoning request will allow a single commercial establishment rather than the multiple-establishment layout the prior PUD contemplated. He said the previous PUD timetable had expired and the property remains undeveloped.

During public comment, neighbors expressed concerns about traffic, loss of a natural habitat area at the site frontage, noise and dust during construction, and asked for a substantial wall or buffer between future development and adjacent residential yards. One resident, identified as Cecilia Cleveland, said, "My biggest concern when they develop that property is access to the roads because right now it's so congested." Randy Cleveland asked for a "DOT wall or something similar ... to block the noise." Aguilar and staff clarified that the hearing was for rezoning only and that specific development proposals, traffic analysis, buffer/wall requirements and landscape mitigation would be addressed during subsequent site-plan and development-review processes under the county’s land development regulations (LDRs).

Aguilar explained that the PUD agreement—Conner Square PUD executed in 2008—had expired and that two standard zoning districts are available to implement the commercial general future land use: Community Commercial and General Commercial. The applicant requested General Commercial.

After questions from commissioners about district differences and confirmation that required notice and affidavits were filed, a motion to approve the requested rezoning passed by unanimous voice vote. The board’s approval was limited to the zoning map amendment; future development proposals will require separate site-plan review and may trigger additional public hearings depending on use and scale.

The transcript records that past PUD plans included proposed uses such as a bank with drive-through and a 7,000-square-foot retail building; staff said those approvals and timetables have expired. Staff also said LDR standards typically address walls and buffers adjacent to residential property and that specific mitigation requirements will be assessed during future development review.