Council approves development agreement for 405 Coronado Drive after public calls for infrastructure review

The Clearwater City Council on a unanimous vote approved a development agreement with AP Beach Properties LLC for property at 405 Coronado Drive, authorizing the city to execute Resolution 25-01 and allocate density under the Beach by Design reserve.

Planning staff said the proposal requests allocation of 100 hotel units from the beach density reserve and would build a project on a 1.759-acre parcel that includes 35 overnight accommodation units and 20,000 square feet of retail. The city presentation identified a provision for 400 parking spaces with at least 50 reserved for the public and said the project footprint and intensity are consistent with the Comprehensive Plan, Community Development Code, and Beach by Design guidelines.

The approval came amid public comments pressing the council to reconsider the pace of beach development and to demand clearer city records on remaining density and infrastructure capacity. “Perhaps now is the time to consider whether Beach by Design should undergo some type of pause or perhaps a halt,” resident Rudy Michalek told the council, citing what he described as procedural and record-keeping gaps around returned units and the density pool. Another speaker, Chris Michael, asked the council to “return 405 Coronado units to the pool” and to commission “a comprehensive infrastructure demand report” covering citywide capacity and the cumulative impact of projects.

Ted Kozak, planning and development, described the application (case HDA2024090001) and said the project mirrors a previously approved agreement that expired in October 2024. Kozak told the council the current proposal reduces planned hoteling intensity compared with earlier approvals while maintaining required levels of service. “As proposed, it is consistent with the comprehensive plan, the community development code, and Beach by Design,” Kozak said.

Mayor Bruce Rechter responded to questions about hotel occupancy data, noting that the city’s planning department does not track room occupancy and that the city’s safety/visitor data had recently shown high demand following hurricane recovery. He said recent post-storm counts showed strong rebound in occupancy.

Council members did not change the recommendation and a motion to adopt Resolution 25-01 passed unanimously. The council did not adopt a moratorium or pause on Beach by Design at this meeting; several residents asked the city to evaluate an updated, citywide infrastructure capacity analysis and to clarify the status of density units previously allocated and returned.

Background: staff said the density reserve originally contained 1,385 units, that a previous development agreement covering the site had expired in October 2024, and that 1.32 acres of development area remain based on prior approvals. Specific figures cited in the staff presentation about prior unit counts and units-per-acre were part of the planning presentation; public commenters disputed whether the city’s cumulative capacity and occupancy data are adequate.

Next steps: the resolution takes effect per its terms and city staff will execute the development agreement. Petitioners and members of the public reiterated requests for a public, citywide infrastructure capacity and demand report to inform future beach-area approvals.