Plantation board adopts parking and zoning changes to encourage denser, transit‑oriented projects in Midtown

The Plantation Planning & Zoning Board voted Wednesday to adopt revisions to a parking and zoning ordinance (PP 24‑0028) that reduce minimum parking requirements in targeted redevelopment areas, allow greater building heights in some gateway districts and impose new parking location limits in the Central Midtown Village area around Broward Mall.

Assistant Director Michael Alper, speaking for city planning staff, said most edits are formatting and clarifications but highlighted several substantive policy changes, including a 25% reduction in minimum parking for dwelling units that meet long‑term affordability criteria, reduced setbacks and higher allowable heights in certain gateway districts and new parking maximums and removals of minimums in Midtown, Gateway Overlay and transit‑oriented corridor areas such as Sunrise Boulevard and Broward Boulevard. "With a few exceptions, most of the revisions deal with corrections and reformatting of language, not major policy changes," Alper said. "The changes from what you saw in April — the new language is in red so it's easier to find."

Why it matters: planners and staff said the changes are intended to support walkable, mixed‑use redevelopment in areas with current or future transit, to incentivize affordable housing and to help shape redevelopment of the Broward Mall/Central Midtown Village area. The new Midtown rules encourage buildings closer to the street, shared parking and pedestrian plazas, prohibit large swaths of surface parking and limit parking within 125 feet of certain boundaries except for small parking areas up to 50 spaces.

Key provisions and examples - Affordable housing incentives: 25% reduction in minimum parking for units that meet long‑term affordability criteria; minimum setback reductions of 25% for housing that is 50%–100% workforce housing; allowances for increased heights in some gateway districts to encourage denser buildings that can better integrate parking. - Midtown/Gateway/TOD parking: for many uses, minimum parking requirements are reduced or eliminated in Midtown and Gateway Overlay Districts and in areas designated as transit‑oriented corridors (examples named by staff include Sunrise and Broward boulevards). For certain uses applicants may be required to submit a qualified parking study; TODs would require a minimum of 10% of units to meet affordability criteria. - Central Midtown Village specifics: staff said the 2016 Plantation Midtown District Urbanizing Vision (referred to in materials as the Midtown plan) called for up to 50 dwelling units per acre in parts of Midtown; the ordinance incorporates that density for the area. Staff also described limits on automobile‑oriented uses in the district — prohibiting drive‑thrus, self‑storage, large distribution and single‑use outparcels — and encouraging integrated parking structures and pedestrian connectivity.

Public comment and board questions Several developers and property‑owner representatives urged more time or changes for Midtown provisions. Paul Dorelli of Florida Zoning Law, representing Midtown Plantation LLC (the new owners of the Sears at Broward Mall), asked the board to defer Midtown‑specific provisions for further evaluation, saying the draft shifted some uses from permitted to conditional or prohibited in ways that could hinder mixed‑use redevelopment. "There are uses that are changing from permitted to conditional and conditional to prohibited that we think could be integrated well within a mixed‑use project," Dorelli said.

Residents voiced traffic and property‑value concerns. Annette Gaddis and Robert Deutsch, both describing nearby addresses, asked how the city will address existing peak‑period congestion on Pine Island and University drives and whether schools and other services can absorb new residents. Gaddis asked, "Do we have any statistics on traffic… if you build all these other residents?"

Supporters of the ordinance and its goals also spoke. Joe William, who said he chairs the city's Sustainability Board, urged the city to pursue reduced parking and denser housing to reduce vehicle miles traveled and the area’s carbon footprint. "If we were able to allow them to live in that Midtown area, we create a wonderful space there that they can walk, scooter, bicycle, micro transit, Uber," William said. Designer Sarah Clark framed the changes as design‑driven: "Design influences human behavior... If we're creating a mix of uses, if we're creating higher density, if we are allowing safe places for pedestrians to walk… people are gonna do that."

Board discussion and conditions Board members asked staff to review use tables and minimum‑unit sizes. One member noted the draft's minimum efficiency unit size (600 square feet in Exhibit K) may be larger than Broward County incentives that encourage efficiencies below 500 square feet, and asked staff to align the table with county standards before council review. Another member asked whether the city would monitor effects such as spillover parking or other unintended consequences; Planning Director Dan Holmes said the city accepts that adjustments may be needed after implementation and that staff will collect feedback and revise the ordinance as appropriate.

Vote and outcome A motion to approve the ordinance was made by Josh and seconded by Matt. The board recorded the following roll call: "Miss Gilfon? Yes. Mister McIntosh? Yes. Miss Peacock? Yes. Mister O'Brien? No. Mister Freeman? Yes. Mister Goldstein? Yes. Mister Delagrange? Yes." The board chair declared the motion passed. The adopted changes will move on to the City Council process as provided by city procedures.

What’s next Staff said the updated ordinance text and associated exhibits — including the Midtown maps and the redlined language highlighted in the packet — will be forwarded for City Council consideration. Staff and board members noted the city may revisit numeric standards (parking counts, unit sizes) and make adjustments after observing implementation and development applications in the newly defined priority redevelopment areas.

Ending note: the ordinance revisions are targeted at priority redevelopment areas, including Midtown and Gateway, to support mixed‑use, walkable development and to provide specific incentives for affordable housing. The board adopted the text on May 20; council review and any further changes will come through regular public hearings.