Indiantown amends Terra Lago PUD again | Martin County

INDIANTOWN – The Village Council hear unanimously approved the sixth amendment to the 806-acre Terra Lago Planned Unit Development here on May 14 that will enable the doubling of the commercial component, a change opposed by most of the handful of residents that addressed the Board that evening.

Community Development Director Deana Freeman introduced the applicant’s request as she referred to an overhead map.

“What is being requested today is the approval of the sixth amendment to the Terra Lago PUD Zoning Agreement and master site plan,” she said. “It’s modifying the development standards and refining the project phasing without increasing the approved [2,500-unit] residential cap. This 806.34 acres encompass the entire subject property of Terra Lago. This shows the location of the property at 16205 S.W. Warfield Blvd. and the active construction of Phases 1A and 1B north of State Road 710.”

Freeman pointed out the primary changes to the agreement, which she noted had inherited its large number of residences from the Indiantown Development of Regional Impact approved by Martin County in 2008.

“There’s a new 50-acre commercial and mixed-use area, which establishes the commercial corridor along Allapattah Road,” she explained. “That includes the fire station, some townhomes and 100,000 square feet of commercial. There’s a redistribution of the residential units and a reallocation across Phases 2-5, within the existing 2,500-unit cap. There’s some internal roadway alignment. A public fire station is proposed in Phase 6, 28 multifamily units and 100,000 square feet of commercial mixed use. This brings the total commercial entitlement to 200,000 [from] 100,000 square feet.”

After she recommended approval, the applicant’s representative Erika Beitler provided a few more details.

“The addition of Phase 6 is what prompted this amendment,” she said. There’s a need for a fire station as mentioned by staff. With the additional phase, we had to redistribute the lots that were approved in Phases 2-5. Really the biggest change was in Phase 2. Additionally, the roadway alignment for Garcia Drive was adjusted to be more centralized along Allapattah and the western portion of the site between Phases 4 through 5.”

Councilwoman Karen Onsager was the first member of the Board to request clarification.

“What type of mixed-use commercial are they looking at?” she asked.

Garcia Companies’ Chief Executive Officer Joshua Kellam came to the podium to tackle that inquiry.

“It’s undecided at this point, but what we have heard from the community is additional retail, doctor’s offices, restaurants, etc.,” he said. “I think the goal was to create walkability, as we have with the rest of Terra Lago. That’s why we’re asking to put 28 units over there because we think people will want to live there as well, so it’ll be more like a downtown type of thing.”

Board Member Vernestine Palmer then pointed out that the planned fire station would benefit the residents of Booker Park, who’ve actually helped man a volunteer fire station in their community. She wanted to know, however, whether the developer had thought about including emergency services in the new commercial sector.

“With all the development, we know we’re looking at more kids,” she said. “Have you all considered urgent care? I know you talked one time about having elder care there.”

Kellam acknowledged that he’d been “working with some urgent care tenants” about that very possibility but not necessarily along the Allapattah Road Corridor.

“We think that will probably land in our current commercial space along 710, but we definitely could have medical services, doctor’s offices and others,” he replied. “As the narrow amount of commercial space along 710 gets built out and businesses continue to grow there, there’s going to be a need for expansion near the residential areas for connectivity and walkability.”

Board Member Onsager rejoined the conversation, wanting to know if the new 28 multifamily units would be for rent or purchase. Kellam admitted that he didn’t have a definitive answer as of yet.

“Right now, we don’t have any homes that are rentals inside of Terra Lago,” he said. “We are moving forward with the final plans for our 300 apartments approved under the PUD already and those would all be rentals.”

The first public speaker addressing the Board afterward was Little Ranch Estates homeowner Allen Gilliam, who lives just outside the Village limits and worried about worsening traffic on Allapattah Road, especially where it intersects with State Road 710.

“What I’m concerned about is the 50-acre commercial property,” he said. “If you go up and down 609 pretty much any time of the day, and you go up to this intersection right here, there might be 20 or 25 cars ahead of you. It takes a long time to get out on Highway 710. You’re coming down the busiest road in Indiantown and want 50 acres of property to turn into a commercial nightmare with traffic.”

One of his neighbors, Erick Miller, followed him to the podium. Miller has gained a reputation for opposing any form of Village government, arguing against its initial incorporation and successfully lobbying to keep Little Ranch Estates outside the Village limits. Now he insinuated that Terra Lago’s approved relocation of a drainage ditch may be negatively impacting adjacent property owners.

“I am an affected party to this PUD, and the word injunctive relief comes to mind,” he said, alluding to potential future litigation. “Everyone on that side of the road, their generational ponds have emptied. In the past 75 years, those ponds have never gone dry until the South Florida Water Management District and all the permitting you do through your LDRs has [gotten] full control over all this. I came here for a reason – not to live in an industrial town – and I will do what is necessary to protect that lifestyle for me and my family.”

One of the speakers, new Terra Lago homeowner Sheila Rosario, supported the amendment but worried it might increase her homeowners association or community redevelopment fees. Kellam allayed her fears while also addressing a separate allegation by Miller that the planned road relocation would destroy an acre of wetlands.

“This 50 acres would be carved out of the HOA [and] the CDD as well, so it would have no impact on the HOA or CDD fees,” Kellam said. “I do want to address another comment by a speaker [about] wetlands. There has been zero impacts to wetlands on Terra Lago, and there will remain zero impacts to wetlands.”

After much further Board discussion, the Village Council voted unanimously to approve the amendment.