Delray Beach CRA pauses platting of CRA-owned lots and leans on ADU/diverse-housing study to shape developments

Renee Jadissing, executive director of the Delray Beach Community Redevelopment Agency, told the board Jan. 28 that staff would pause a major plat application for several CRA-owned parcels and instead await the city's accessory dwelling unit (ADU) and diverse housing options study before completing final lot divisions and development approvals.

The decision follows months of property acquisitions and preliminary planning by the CRA. Jadissing said the agency owns a cluster of lots north and south of West Atlantic Avenue and is working through title and plat issues at addresses including 704 Southwest Fourth Avenue, 106 Northwest 10th Avenue and 111 Northwest 11th Avenue. She said six lots recently went to bid: four offered to the Delray Beach Community Land Trust, one to Habitat for Humanity and one to Boynton Beach Faith Community Development Corporation, and that additional CRA-owned parcels could be split into three lots once minor-plat work and closings complete.

Why it matters: holding the plat lets the city's ADU/diverse-housing study and potential zoning changes inform whether the sites should be subdivided into single-family lots, duplexes or higher-density buildings such as quadplexes. That choice would determine how many affordable units the CRA can create on the parcels and whether to pursue accessory dwelling units or new code language to permit different housing types.

Board members and residents discussed several site-specific issues. Jadissing described an unresolved title/probate matter tied to a structure that straddles one parcel (111 Northwest 11th Avenue); the CRA intends to acquire the small rear parcel, demolish the dilapidated structure and then split the land into two buildable lots. At 704 Southwest Fourth Avenue staff said they will submit a minor plat to divide a large site into three separate lots across Corey Jones Alley. Jadissing also reviewed a purchase-and-sale she said the CRA approved with Lake Ida Church: the parcel is currently zoned single-family and staff outlined three options for its future use, including (1) proceed with eight single-family lots, (2) file the major-plat application and physically separate and landscape the parking-lot portion, or (3) pause platting to await the ADU/diverse-housing study results that could permit denser configurations (Jadissing showed conceptual quadplex layouts that would increase unit count to as many as 24 on that site under alternative code allowances).

Public comments at the start of the meeting underscored local priorities. Deborah Davis Walker, a Delray resident and CDC board member, urged the CRA to prioritize "attainable housing" on CRA parcels and specifically asked for full-service grocery access in the neighborhood. Evelyn Dobson, speaking both as a homeowner and representing the Delray Beach Community Land Trust, praised the CRA's housing work and said the CLT is one of several affordable-housing providers that can partner on development. Other commenters, including Montre Bennett and Andrea Bridal, opposed siting modular shipping-container structures on West Atlantic Avenue and urged permanent solutions such as grocery or housing, rather than temporary container setups.

Board direction and next steps: the CRA voted to hold the major-plat application and continue engaging with the ADU/diverse-housing study. Jadissing said staff will physically separate and landscape the portion of the Lake Ida Church parking lot identified for acquisition to prevent informal parking once the CRA owns it, and that closings with four private owners are expected in the summer to permit subsequent subdivision. She also proposed a joint CRA-city workshop on March 25 to present the ADU/diverse-housing study and discuss next steps for land use and code changes.

The agency also plans to update its online GIS map to flag the additional workforce- and affordable-housing lots and to provide parcel addresses to city staff for coordination with the study and potential LDR (land development regulation) amendments.

"A healthy community is a productive community," Deborah Davis Walker said during public comment, urging the board to make grocery and attainable housing part of the near-term redevelopment plan.

Ending: The CRA will carry the plat pause while staff and commissioners monitor the ADU/diverse-housing study process. The agency scheduled a joint CRA-city workshop in March; if the city adopts code changes that permit higher-density options, staff said it will reopen platting and subdivision work with the revised regulatory framework.