Are you aware that a beach in North Boca Raton purchased by city taxpayers may be considered for development of a private beach club?
Residents have filed a petition with the city in order to request residents to vote on whether they want to protect public beaches from being used for private development. If you want to help protect the Boca Raton beaches, then please send us an email at saveboca4u@gmail.com and we will email you the petitions.
Time is short as this residential effort only has until approx. 12/21/10 to obtain 1,000 signatures of registered voters within the city limits.
Thank You for Your Assistance,
Save Boca Raton Green Space
"A residential advocacy group"
------------------Background Info on This Issue---------------
Boca Raton Ocean Strand land needs to be preserved for recreation, residents say
The oceanfront land was purchased by the city in 1994 to save it from development but the land is still zoned for residential use
By Angel Streeter, Sun Sentinel - July 20, 2010Residents who live near the Greater Boca Raton Beach & Park District's 15-acre oceanfront property recently fought off a developer. Now they want it rezoned to keep builders away for good. The request comes after their protests thwarted the developer, who recently proposed building a beach club on a portion of the Ocean Strand property on State Road A1A. In May, the park district board said it had no plans to sell or lease the property after residents came out in droves to protest the proposal. And just Monday — after the City Council noted they had not received a response from the park board inquiring about its plans for the property — board Chairman Bob Rollins sent a letter to Mayor Susan Whelchel reiterating the park district's plans to use the land for a park.
"In evaluating the comments received from the public on this subject, there does not appear at the current time to be any public benefit to be enjoyed by the community other than use of this property for park purposes," he wrote in the letter. But that's not enough for some residents. They contend the best way to protect the land from future developers is to change its zoning from residential to recreation. "The land usage has to be changed," said Andrea Stekloff, who lives in the Boca Towers condominiums just north of the property. "We don't want to have to go through this again in another 10 years.
"Penn- Florida Companies expressed interest in building a beach club on part of Ocean Strand as part of its Via Mizner project, a redevelopment project planned at the northeast corner of Federal Highway and Camino Real in downtown Boca Raton. The mixed-use development, approved by the city Community Redevelopment Agency in 2006, would consist of a 118-room luxury hotel, office space, 192 condominiums and high-end retail stores and restaurants.
In April, Penn-Florida asked city officials to help it secure the beachfront part of the land from the park district. In a letter, the company called a beach club a necessary amenity to attract an exclusive international hotel that has expressed interest in Via Mizner. Since then, residents have been skittish, worrying that the developer would find some way to get ahold of the land, which the district purchased in 1994 for $11.9 million to save it from development. So residents asked the park district board on Monday to request a zoning change from the city. But the district's attorney suggested the board wait until it has developed a master plan, a sort of blueprint of how the land could be used. That process could take several months.
Showing posts with label beach club. Show all posts
Showing posts with label beach club. Show all posts
Monday, December 13, 2010
Saturday, May 22, 2010
North Ocean Blvd. Property Proposed Development Site - Ocean Strand
The property was purchased to protect it from development, so is the city now considering breaking this promise to neighbors on North Ocean Blvd.?
Developer proposes Boca Raton park district land for private beach club
By Angel Streeter Sun Sentinel - Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Many hailed the purchase of the Ocean Strand property in 1994 as a major victory for preserving green space. For $11.88 million, the Greater Boca Raton Beach & Park District secured the city's last sizeable piece of undeveloped oceanfront property, saving the 15-acre site near Gumbo Limbo Nature Center from development. And there it has sat, undeveloped, untouched, in the midst of condominiums, single-family homes and other city parkland. Now, a developer is proposing building a private beach club on a portion of the property as part of a major development planned for downtown.
But residents who live near the property worry a beach club, possibly with dining and bars, could change the quiet, residential character of the coastal neighborhood."It would destroy the area," said Alan Goldman, who is on the condominium board of the Aegean, condominiums just south of Ocean Strand. "You've got an area here with no commercial property on the ocean side."District commissions have yet to agree; their lawyer is looking into the proposal.
"They said, 'We can think about this,' " said Bob Langford, park district executive director. "But there's a ton of things to think about. "The proposed beach club is critical to development of Via Mizner, a $1 billion redevelopment project at the northeast corner of Federal Highway and Camino Real, Penn-Florida Companies says. The mixed-use development, approved by Boca Raton's Community Redevelopment Agency in 2006, could consist of a 118-room luxury hotel, office space, 192 condominiums and high-end retail stores and restaurants. Penn-Florida has stressed to city and park district officials that the beach club would be a necessary amenity to attract an exclusive international hotel that has expressed interest in the Via Mizner project. And that hotel is critical to the success of Via Mizner overall.In an April 27 letter to City Manager Leif Ahnell, Penn-Florida President Mark Gensheimer asked the city to help the developer get access to the oceanfront portion of the Ocean Strand property to build a "low-rise beach club.
"In addition, a western portion of the property would be needed for beach club parking. In addition, Gensheimer said, Penn-Florida would help develop the Ocean Strand property as a passive park. In response, and at the direction of the City Council, Ahnell wrote to the park district board, stressing the importance of Via Mizner to the downtown and "its huge economic development potential. "He said the council was interested in exploring the beach club idea and getting public input. The developer's lawyer proposed the beach club to the district in December. Although at the time, the commissioners didn't know who the lawyer was representing or what major development he was referring to, Langford said. That had been the only contact the district had with Penn-Florida, he said.
At the December meeting, the developer's representative explained that the developer would want to lease the oceanfront property for the private beach club. But many questions remain unanswered: How much land does the developer want? How much is the developer willing to pay? When would the developer want to build the beach club?And a critical question for the park district is whether it should turn over public land to a private entity that wants to develop it.
"We haven't been too aggressive about building anything out there," Langford said. "We didn't buy it to develop it. We didn't buy it for any particular use. "The district bought it because neighbors and the city didn't want the previous owners to move forward with plans to build 79 condominiums and six beachfront homes on the site.Since the purchase, the district has done very little with the property.
Early on, it removed some old homes and duplexes. But nothing else has been done. And the land gets very little use. Neighbors seem to like that. They worry a beach club would bring traffic and noise. "It's basically like a nightclub in the middle of a residential area," said Mike Graham, who lives just north of the Ocean Strand property.While he approves of the Via Mizner project Penn-Florida plans downtown, he is skeptical about the district leasing prime real estate to a developer for a fraction of what it's worth."I'd sure like to know more about it," he said. "The beaches are nice. The traffic is minimal. It's our last piece of prime ground.
"Penn-Florida stressed it would work with neighbors to create a low density, low-rise beach club that would enhance the neighborhood, said Bonnie Kaye, a Penn-Florida spokeswoman. "The plans are conceptual," she said. "Nothing is finalized because the goal is to work with the city and the neighbors in a collaborative effort. The plans are to make it a showpiece and a welcome part of the community."
Developer proposes Boca Raton park district land for private beach club
By Angel Streeter Sun Sentinel - Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Many hailed the purchase of the Ocean Strand property in 1994 as a major victory for preserving green space. For $11.88 million, the Greater Boca Raton Beach & Park District secured the city's last sizeable piece of undeveloped oceanfront property, saving the 15-acre site near Gumbo Limbo Nature Center from development. And there it has sat, undeveloped, untouched, in the midst of condominiums, single-family homes and other city parkland. Now, a developer is proposing building a private beach club on a portion of the property as part of a major development planned for downtown.
But residents who live near the property worry a beach club, possibly with dining and bars, could change the quiet, residential character of the coastal neighborhood."It would destroy the area," said Alan Goldman, who is on the condominium board of the Aegean, condominiums just south of Ocean Strand. "You've got an area here with no commercial property on the ocean side."District commissions have yet to agree; their lawyer is looking into the proposal.
"They said, 'We can think about this,' " said Bob Langford, park district executive director. "But there's a ton of things to think about. "The proposed beach club is critical to development of Via Mizner, a $1 billion redevelopment project at the northeast corner of Federal Highway and Camino Real, Penn-Florida Companies says. The mixed-use development, approved by Boca Raton's Community Redevelopment Agency in 2006, could consist of a 118-room luxury hotel, office space, 192 condominiums and high-end retail stores and restaurants. Penn-Florida has stressed to city and park district officials that the beach club would be a necessary amenity to attract an exclusive international hotel that has expressed interest in the Via Mizner project. And that hotel is critical to the success of Via Mizner overall.In an April 27 letter to City Manager Leif Ahnell, Penn-Florida President Mark Gensheimer asked the city to help the developer get access to the oceanfront portion of the Ocean Strand property to build a "low-rise beach club.
"In addition, a western portion of the property would be needed for beach club parking. In addition, Gensheimer said, Penn-Florida would help develop the Ocean Strand property as a passive park. In response, and at the direction of the City Council, Ahnell wrote to the park district board, stressing the importance of Via Mizner to the downtown and "its huge economic development potential. "He said the council was interested in exploring the beach club idea and getting public input. The developer's lawyer proposed the beach club to the district in December. Although at the time, the commissioners didn't know who the lawyer was representing or what major development he was referring to, Langford said. That had been the only contact the district had with Penn-Florida, he said.
At the December meeting, the developer's representative explained that the developer would want to lease the oceanfront property for the private beach club. But many questions remain unanswered: How much land does the developer want? How much is the developer willing to pay? When would the developer want to build the beach club?And a critical question for the park district is whether it should turn over public land to a private entity that wants to develop it.
"We haven't been too aggressive about building anything out there," Langford said. "We didn't buy it to develop it. We didn't buy it for any particular use. "The district bought it because neighbors and the city didn't want the previous owners to move forward with plans to build 79 condominiums and six beachfront homes on the site.Since the purchase, the district has done very little with the property.
Early on, it removed some old homes and duplexes. But nothing else has been done. And the land gets very little use. Neighbors seem to like that. They worry a beach club would bring traffic and noise. "It's basically like a nightclub in the middle of a residential area," said Mike Graham, who lives just north of the Ocean Strand property.While he approves of the Via Mizner project Penn-Florida plans downtown, he is skeptical about the district leasing prime real estate to a developer for a fraction of what it's worth."I'd sure like to know more about it," he said. "The beaches are nice. The traffic is minimal. It's our last piece of prime ground.
"Penn-Florida stressed it would work with neighbors to create a low density, low-rise beach club that would enhance the neighborhood, said Bonnie Kaye, a Penn-Florida spokeswoman. "The plans are conceptual," she said. "Nothing is finalized because the goal is to work with the city and the neighbors in a collaborative effort. The plans are to make it a showpiece and a welcome part of the community."
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