PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (CBS12) — The debate over a new United Soccer League (USL) stadium in Port St. Lucie continues, as the City Council held a special counsel meeting Monday to discuss the facility’s proposed leasing agreement and address mounting resident concerns. The public outcry focuses largely on the location, with a petition opposing the project having gathered a significant number of signatures since its creation last week.

Kearsten Bernard, who represents the petition’s organizers, criticized the planned site, even though she isn’t against the stadium itself. “We think it’s kind of silly where they’re putting it. So we’d rather it be somewhere else. We don’t care that the stadium’s coming; we just don’t want it where it’s going. The noise ordinances and the traffic is already crazy,” Bernard said.

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CRA Director Jennifer Davis presented the project’s benefits to the Council, emphasizing the financial and logistical safeguards for the city. Davis explained that the City won’t be financially responsible for the stadium until a year after completion. Safeguards are in place in case the developer backs out or the tax revenue doesn’t meet current estimates.

“So when we did estimates, we looked at today’s valuation within that CRA, and our finance team did a very conservative estimate of about a 2.5% increase in taxable revenue over the years. So they looked ahead about 10 years to see how that would play out,” Davis said. This conservative estimate claims the area will see a nearly $3 million increase in tax revenue by 2035.

Council members also addressed public worries about previous failed Port St. Lucie projects. Councilman Dave Pickett assured the public that the contract specifically addresses those issues. “One thing I don’t want us to get involved in again is a Torrey Pines or a Digital Domain. And this contract specifically addressed those issues to make sure that we do not get ourselves back in a situation like that,” Pickett said.

Regarding traffic concerns, the meeting did not give a specific timeline for when those assessments will happen. However, the lease agreement stipulates that the operator must provide a traffic management plan and pay for additional police presence during events. The Police Chief stated that he thinks traffic flow will be better than at the St. Lucie Mets stadium, as the USL stadium is smaller and will have a larger access road.

This is just the first of two public meetings to discuss the leasing agreement. The next one is scheduled for November 4th at 5 p.m. at City Hall.

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