Planning board recommends 4‑unit townhome project at 1700 Juana Road over neighborhood objections, 4–1

The Boca Raton Planning & Zoning Board on Jan. 16 recommended approval of a developer’s plan to replace an existing 4,116‑square‑foot commercial building at 1700 Juana Road with four two‑story townhome‑style condominium units, after more than two hours of public comment opposing the proposals.

Planner Jacob German told the board staff recommended the universal conditional application, which seeks a small‑scale amendment to the future land‑use map (from neighborhood commercial to residential medium), a rezoning to multifamily (R‑3), and site‑plan approval for an approximately 11,277‑square‑foot building. German said the project includes a new 6‑foot sidewalk on Juana Road and Southwest 17th Street, additional street trees, landscaping to buffer the eastern property line, and design changes (reduced glazing on the eastern facade) to address privacy concerns.

Petitioner Ellie Zacharias, who identified herself as a neighborhood resident and the applicant, described the project as “townhomes, but with the neighborhood in mind.” She said each unit would have a private two‑car garage and that the design provides “double the parking that code requires,” for a total of 16 spaces. Zacharias told the board the proposed use would generate fewer daily vehicle trips than many permitted commercial uses and that the property had historically been commercial.

More than two dozen neighbors urged the board to deny the land‑use change and rezoning. Laura Coffey, who lives catty‑corner to the site, told the board the parcel is too small to qualify for the Live Local Act and said, “To put multifamily housing in the heart of Palm Beach Farms would be completely incompatible with the surrounding area.” Other speakers—several of whom said they helped collect roughly 350 petitions filed with staff—said the rezoning would create a precedent for spot zoning, generate more on‑street parking and traffic on residential streets where children play, and worsen local flooding.

In response, Zacharias and members of the project team reiterated that their traffic analysis shows a reduction in trips compared with several commercial uses that are permitted on the site today, and that the design adds oak trees, sidewalk improvements and increased pervious area to improve drainage.

Board discussion balanced concerns about precedent and neighborhood character with staff’s compatibility analysis and the fact the application represents a down‑zoning from commercial to residential. Several members said residential development could be preferable to allowing higher‑trip commercial uses on the corner. The board also asked staff to draft enforceable language requiring that garages be maintained for vehicle parking.

On roll calls the board recommended approval of the small‑scale future‑land‑use amendment (4–1), the conditional rezoning to R‑3 (4–1), approved the parking/garage condition (4–1), and recommended approval of the site plan with that condition (4–1). The board’s recommendations will be forwarded to city council for final action.

The applicant and staff said the condition language would be prepared for city council, and the board’s recommendation does not itself change zoning or land‑use designations until council takes final action.