Planning Board recommends 200‑foot private dock with two lifts for West Palm Beach property

Planning Board members on April 4, 2025, recommended that the City Commission approve an amendment to a Class A special‑use permit to allow a private dock up to 200 feet in length with two boat lifts at a single‑family property in West Palm Beach.

The recommendation concerns Planning Board Case No. 1961A, a request by Brady Flagler Management, LLC represented by a planner from iPlan Design LLC to extend an existing private dock and to add two boat lifts. City planning staff supported the amendment with two conditions: (1) no advertising signage on the dock and (2) the permit approval is limited to a maximum dock length of 200 feet and two boat lifts; any modifications would require an amendment and applicable federal review.

The applicant, represented in the meeting by Brian Chagas, principal planner for iPlan Design LLC, described local bathymetric conditions at the Summa Beach area and said those conditions necessitate a longer dock to reach deeper water. Chagas said the application seeks "the addition of 63.3 feet of residential dock" and described an intended final configuration of 200 feet with a reduced visual profile for boat lifts. He told the board the property already holds state and federal permits related to the dock's construction, which he identified in the record as FDEP and "AECO" permits.

Senior planner Santini, representing City of West Palm Beach development services staff, told the board that staff concurs with the applicant and recommended approval subject to the two conditions shown in the staff report dated 04/04/2025. Santini stated the property is in the single‑family low‑density (SF7) zoning district and is approximately 0.4 acres; surrounding properties are also single‑family.

Board members asked about sedimentation in the area and whether the city performs dredging. The applicant and staff said the coastline at Summa Beach accumulates sediment and that the city does not routinely dredge those areas because dredging tends to resuspend sediment and the holes often fill back in. That exchange was part of the board's evaluation of whether a longer dock was warranted to accommodate maneuverability and deeper water offshore.

The record includes discussion of an earlier City Commission action referenced by the applicant as Resolution No. 32423, which the applicant said authorized a dock measured at 104 feet in the water; the applicant also described other measurements on the record (including a stated actual dock length of 36 feet, 3 inches and various references to earlier approvals). Those length figures appear in the hearing record and were presented by the applicant; they show inconsistent measurements in the transcript and were not reconciled at the hearing.

After discussion, a board member moved that the Planning Board recommend approval of Case No. 1961A based on the public testimony, the application materials, and the staff report. The motion incorporated the conditions in the staff report dated 04/04/2025. A second was recorded, and the board voted unanimously to recommend approval; the meeting minutes record the motion as passing unanimously.

The item will advance to the City Commission for final action. The staff report and the conditions referenced at the hearing are part of the administrative record (staff report dated 04/04/2025).