Port St. Lucie planning board recommends Sandpiper Bay land-use and PUD amendments with conditions

The Port St. Lucie Planning & Zoning Board on Jan. 20 voted to recommend approval of a small-scale future land use amendment and a Planned Unit Development (PUD) amendment for the Sandpiper Bay Resort and RPS Academy, moving the property’s designation to commercial general/institutional (CGI) and authorizing expanded sports and accessory facilities subject to staff conditions.

Bethany Grubbs of the city’s planning department told the board the application would consolidate approximately 28.6 acres of the property under a single CGI land-use to reflect the resort, marina and the academy’s campus and accessory uses. Staff’s analysis estimated a net potable water increase of 14,581 gallons per day and wastewater of 12,393 gallons per day under maximum intensity assumptions and noted the site is not in a flood zone; staff recommended approval with conditions tied to future site-plan reviews.

The PUD amendment, described by Grubbs as Amendment No. 2, updates the concept plan and permitted uses, adds buffering requirements (including a western berm and a 50-foot trigger buffer for parking areas), and requires a photometric plan with dark-sky lighting and a provision that lighting be switched off within an hour of events. Grubbs also said the applicant must execute a revocable encroachment agreement before site-plan approval for limited, de minimis infrastructure that…