Commission approves Goddard School daycare at Sawgrass Mills with traffic and safety conditions

Mayor Michael J. Ryan and the Sunrise City Commission approved a special exception use permit and revised site plan Jan. 27 for a Goddard School daycare at 2600 Sawgrass Mills Circle, voting 4–0 after a more than three‑hour quasi‑judicial hearing and added traffic and safety conditions.

Staff recommended approval and set a series of conditions tied to school operations and site improvements. "Staff did find a special exception to be compliant with the city's land development code, and ... receive[d] staff recommendation of approval, subject to a few conditions in the staff report," Shannon Lay, the city's director of community development, told the commission. The staff report limited enrollment to 220 children, capped on‑site staff at 29, restricted hours to Monday–Friday 7 a.m.–6 p.m., required an on‑site security guard during operating hours, and required construction of a left‑turn storage lane on Pink Flamingo Lane prior to occupancy.

The applicant and its consultants presented traffic and parking studies arguing the project would have minimal operational impact when those conditions were met. "We took the highest observed rates from three comparable Goddard locations and applied the worst‑case counts," said Natalia Lercari, the applicant's traffic consultant, describing staggered drop‑off and pick‑up windows the team said avoid large vehicle queues. City traffic consultant Carl Peterson said staff had reviewed the applicant's analyses and supported the engineering approach, including a left‑turn lane to provide up to about 150 feet of refuge storage for turning vehicles.

Neighbors and the affected property owner of the adjacent Tau condominiums pressed the commission for more protections. "We are 27‑floors high ... and we want the freedom to go in and out of our homes at will without such a traffic hazard," Dorothy Powell, an affected party who lives at Tau, told the commission, describing dense residential circulation and delivery traffic. Retired traffic‑trained witnesses and other residents described frequent congestion at peak times and said the mall's heavy visitation makes the site atypical of the other locations the applicant used for comparisons.

In response to those concerns the commission and staff negotiated three additional conditions the applicant accepted: installation of two permanent speed cushions on the drive aisle north of the building at the applicant's expense; a requirement that the applicant work in good faith with the two adjacent outparcel owners to install additional speed cushions on their properties (with the applicant to document its efforts to staff); and engineering and construction of improvements to restrict egress onto Pink Flamingo Lane to right‑turn only, to be designed and approved by city staff. Scott Bachman, counsel for the applicant, told the commission the ownership team accepted the added conditions and would work with staff on the designs.

In closing, Bachman reiterated the applicant's agreement with staff recommendations and the new conditions: "My client is fully, in agreement with all conditions of approval." The commission recorded four yes votes — Mayor Michael J. Ryan, Assistant Deputy Mayor Latoya S. Clark, Commissioner Neil C. Kirch and Commissioner Joseph A. Scudo — and the special exception and site plan were approved 4–0. Deputy Mayor Jacqueline A. Guzman was absent for both votes.

The approvals require the applicant to complete several items before receiving a certificate of occupancy or business tax receipt: final site corrections and Development Review Committee comments, the left‑turn lane construction and signaled stacking, completion of security and fencing measures around the outdoor playground and the speed‑calming devices specified in the added conditions. Staff said the "no off‑site parking" and event‑size limits (to avoid exceeding parking demand during family events) will be enforceable conditions; code enforcement follow‑up would be the city's remedy if conditions are violated.

What happens next: the applicant must finalize engineering drawings and receive staff approval and applicable permits for the turn lane and other improvements before occupancy. Neighbors and the applicant both said they will monitor operation closely; the commission indicated it expects staff, residents and the applicant to report back if real‑world traffic or safety impacts deviate from predictions.

Votes at a glance: Special exception for Goddard School — approved, motion by Commissioner Neil C. Kirch, seconded by Commissioner Joseph A. Scudo; site plan approval — approved; both passed 4–0 (Mayor Michael J. Ryan, Assistant Deputy Mayor Latoya S. Clark, Commissioner Neil C. Kirch, Commissioner Joseph A. Scudo).

The hearing took up the bulk of the commission's Jan. 27 agenda; earlier business included proclamations, employee recognitions and approval of a KONE cooperative agreement for elevator/escalator maintenance.