Planning board recommends approval with conditions for 20,216 sq ft Delray business incubator

The Delray Beach Planning and Zoning Board on Jan. 27 recommended that the City Commission approve a level‑4 site plan for a 20,216‑square‑foot office/warehouse “business incubator” at 905 Southwest 14th Avenue, subject to a variance and three waivers and a set of neighborhood‑oriented conditions.

Applicant Delray Industrial Properties LLC proposed a single‑story building with 10 tenant bays, new parking, a stormwater retention area, an on‑site generator and a decorative perimeter fence. Planning staff reported the property is zoned Light Industrial and lies adjacent to recently developed Island Cove residential housing to the east; it is also located in the county’s well‑field protection area and therefore requires county notification and compliance with well‑field standards.

Architect John Theiss of GHA Architects described the design as a project intended to serve smaller start‑up industrial and light‑commercial tenants. The proposed unit sizes range from roughly 1,005 square feet to approximately 3,038 square feet for the end bays; the two largest end bays each contain through‑doors on both east and west elevations to allow drive‑through loading. Staff and the applicant requested a variance reducing required non‑vehicular open‑space from 25 percent to 23.9 percent (about 1.1 percent short), and waivers for (1) overhead doors facing adjacent rights‑of‑way, (2) tenant bay minimum size (4,000 sq ft), and (3) a reduced 5‑foot perimeter landscape strip where a dedication shifts the property line.

Planning staff noted the site provides 74 parking spaces versus 54 required for the proposed uses and that drainage, potable water, traffic and solid‑waste concurrency were met. Staff also said the applicant had contacted Palm Beach County environmental reviewers and supplied the required affidavit related to the well‑field protection ordinance.

Several nearby residents and a commercial realtor, Christina Morrison, spoke during public comment urging stronger screening and limits on overhead doors facing the residential neighborhood. Morrison said the project fills a local market need for small industrial bays but asked the board to “limit the number of overhead doors on that side” and to require additional landscape or fencing at the retention area.

Board members expressed support for the project’s industrial‑space goals but raised concerns about visual and noise impacts on the nearby residential area. After discussion the board voted to recommend approval with conditions intended to reduce the visual impact of east‑facing bay doors: require hedges and tree plantings that will mature above the fence line, encourage less‑visually intrusive door types or shorter doors on the east elevation, and adjust entrance locations and site detailing to reduce visibility from homes across SW 13th Avenue.

Action: The board recommended approval of the level‑4 site plan, the single variance (non‑vehicular open space reduction to 23.9%) and the three waivers (overhead doors facing right‑of‑way; sub‑4,000‑sq‑ft bay sizes; reduced landscape strip) subject to the conditions listed above. Motion by Mitch Katz; second by Judy Malika. Roll call: Mitch Katz, Yes; Deidre Strong, Yes; Allison Thomas, Yes; Jeffrey Meiselman, Yes; Judy Malika, Yes; Gregory Snyder, Yes. Outcome: recommended to City Commission (unanimous among present members).

Next steps: The project and the requested relief will go to the City Commission for final action; staff said an unexecuted agreement allowing the existing perimeter fence to remain in the right of way will be finalized as part of the Level‑4 site‑plan submittal.