Westgate CRA unanimously recommends approval of Neighborlee’s 38‑unit micro‑unit project at 2818 Westgate Avenue

The Westgate/Belvedere Homes Community Redevelopment Agency voted unanimously on Feb. 10 to recommend Palm Beach County approval of a four‑story mixed‑use project proposed at 2818 Westgate Avenue.

Staff described the project, proposed by Neighborlee Development, LLC, as a 38‑unit building with 26 micro‑units of 240 square feet each, 10 studios at 360 square feet, and two one‑bedroom apartments at 538 square feet, plus about 1,585 square feet of ground‑floor commercial space. The developer said the building would elevate all residential units above a ground floor dedicated to parking and commercial space, with vehicular access from the rear via Nokomis Avenue.

The applicant requests a zoning change to Commercial General (CG) for district consistency; an allocation of 33 bonus density units from the WCRA Density Bonus Program (a 50 du/acre bonus); a subdivision variance to reduce an 80‑foot minimum legal access requirement; and an assignment of 281 daily trips and 21 pm peak‑hour trips from the CRA Transportation Concurrency Exception Area pool.

Board members focused much of their discussion on long‑term maintenance and management and on who the units would be marketed to. Board member Joanne Rufty asked whether leases would be short‑term or month‑to‑month; project representative Braden Miller said, “Most likely 12 months.” Rufty also pressed whether the units could be limited in occupancy and how management obligations would be enforced if the property were sold.

A community speaker, Sharon Sheppard, who identified herself as a former WCRA employee, raised concerns about unit size and market fit: “One of the concerns was the size of the micro unit,” Sheppard said, questioning whether the micro‑units would suit families or provide stable, long‑term housing and whether rents might rise after initial occupancy. Staff said a Good Neighbor agreement could spell out maintenance and management obligations and that bonus‑density allocation would be provisional on compliance with Workforce Housing Program rental‑rate criteria, including a 40% low‑income cap.

Staff recommended conditions that would require the developer to share updated architectural elevations and a final site plan with the CRA for review prior to final county approval, and to make bonus‑density allocation conditional on Workforce Housing Program compliance and the CRA’s review input.

On a motion by Rufty, seconded by Haggerty, the board voted 4‑0 to accept staff recommendations and forward a recommendation of approval to Palm Beach County. Next steps identified by staff include final site‑plan review, a Good Neighbor agreement with enforcement terms to be negotiated, and the county’s formal public‑hearing and review process for rezoning and density allocation.

Authorities and procedural requests referenced in the presentation — rezoning to CG, a county allocation of 33 bonus density units, a subdivision variance, and a concurrency trip allocation — will be decided by the Palm Beach County Board of County Commissioners during its entitlement review; the CRA’s action on Feb. 10 is a recommendation to the county rather than final county approval.