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Minutes 11-20-06 MINUTES OF THE PUBLIC MEETING TO DISCUSS THE PROPOSED OCEAN 95 EXCHANGE HELD IN CITY COMMISSION CHAMBERS, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA, ON MONDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2006 AT 6:30 P.M. 1. Introduction by Kurt Bressner, City Manager (City Commission Members, City Staff and Developer) Mr. Kurt Bressner, City Manager, opened the meeting at 6:33 P.M. and thanked the public for coming. The meeting had been convened at the request of the City Commission, to review the Ocean 95 Exchange project in detail with the residents, and more specifically, to review the traffic and impacts on the surrounding neighborhood. More than 300 notifications were sent in an effort notify more residents than the original public hearings held by the Planning and Development Board and the City Commission. State Statute required notification be provided to property owners within a 400-foot radius of a project. However, with projects having a broader impact, the notice may not always be sufficient. Mr. Bressner gave a review of the topics for discussion. He introduced Mayor Taylor and Commissioner Jose Rodriguez, who were attending with Special Observer status. Mayor Taylor represents the entire City and part of the subject property falls within District III represented by Commissioner Rodriguez. The following City staff were present: . Jeff Livergood, Director of Public Works and Engineering · Mike Rumpf, Director Planning and Zoning . Eric Johnson, Principal Planner The following Developers were present: . Anthony DeSimone, Representative for Coral Capital Palm Beach, LLC, Property Owner . Crockett Farnell, Director of Development, Genesis Development, Inc. and Authorized Agent for Boynton Industrial LLC . Chris Heggen, Project Manager, Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc., Traffic Engineer 2. Review of Procedure to follow for the meeting - Kurt Bressner Mr. Bressner served as moderator for the meeting and reviewed the agenda. He announced there would be a question and answer period. The last item on the agenda would be whether there would be any recommendations forwarded to the City Commission for review. Mr. Bressner encouraged the public to sign in so the City could maintain contact with them. 1 Special Meeting Minutes Ocean 95 Exchange Plaza Boynton Beach, Florida November 20, 2006 3. Background of Project (Location, history of property, history of industrial zoning of property) - Mike Rumpf, Planning Director for City of Boynton Beach Mike Rumpf, Planning and Zoning Director, explained staff conducted a review of the site. Industrial zoning dated back to 1975/1977. Commercial zoning preceded that going back to the early 1960's or earlier. There were permits for commercial/industrial uses dating back to the 1970's and older. Delray Chemical, located at 516 West Ocean Avenue had an occupational license in March of 1978. Historically, there were occupational licenses issued there. As long as the project met the criteria in the Code, the owner has the legal right to develop the site. The zoning was in place and in effect. The City does not have the legal authority to deny the request. The Comprehensive Plan also recognized industrial areas there in 1979 and 1986. It did not identify conflicts or issues given their proximity to residential areas. Recent zoning and land use studies did identify the subject area and others in close proximity that would be impacted through noise, odor or other industrial impacts and traffic. Those were specifically identified in the plan and continue to be studied by the City through pending consultant. The site plan for this project was filed on May 17, 2006. The presentation made at the October 17, 2006 City Commission meeting, revealed it would occupy 3/4 of the subject property and would not affect the Bulldog Fence Company. The remainder of the property was acquired by the current landowner and was the subject of the site plan application for an industrial project. There would be three buildings occupied by multiple tenants. 4. Review of Proposed Project - Developer and Staff Mr. Bressner introduced Mr. Crockett Farnell, representing the applicant/developer. Mr. Crockett Farnell explained the type of project to be developed, and the type of traffic that would be generated. He explained having deed restrictions or restrictions on the sale of the property were legally unenforceable. The property configuration limited their options as it pertained to truck traffic. The proposed use was historically an allowed use, but they wanted to find the best route and have a method of improving, it to accommodate the community's concern. Mr. Farnell did not want to put an undue burden on any neighborhood or create unnecessary hazards. He described the location as between the railroad tracks and 1-95. They considered many traffic options including Boynton Beach Boulevard, but the grade and the ramp did not make it viable. The buildings and layout of the site were long and narrow. All buildings align parallel to the property. Because of the depth of the property, traffic would travel parallel to the buildings themselves. Where the building ends, there are 18-foot parking stalls with a 20 or 24-foot roadway and parking stalls on the other side. There are no accommodations for tractor-trailers. They do not have dock high loading ramps to off load. He showed the building elevation with the main entrance. The only way a truck could get in was to pull straight in. There was an area to back in and turn around. The Code dictated the uses for the site, but he stressed anyone looking at the site for reasonable and efficient use that would need tractor-trailers, would not buy it because they could not accommodate trucks on a regular basis. They see the vast majority of traffic to be car or box trucks (i.e. UPS and FEDEX/ two-axle truck traffic). 2 Special Meeting Minutes Ocean 95 Exchange Plaza Boynton Beach, Florida November 20, 2006 Mr. Farnell indicated trip counts for all vehicles were 1,000. The national average for truck to car traffic for industrial standards was about 8%, with the majority being passenger vehicular traffic. That aspect further limited the exposure, turning the focus to which of the available routes made the most sense. The existing route, which uses NW 1st Avenue and other roads, had a problem because it was narrow, with a bad corner that needs to be enlarged and the City does not have a right-of-way area. The positive aspect of that route was that it affected the least amount of residents. The West Ocean Drive route was a good straight-forward easy route, but the right-of-way was not as wide and there was a difficult at the round-about. The remaining option used West Ocean Drive because it had a wider right-of-way and offered greater visibility to see oncoming traffic. There was also space for sidewalks. Mr. Farnell had a chart of school bus stops, that were assumed to be at corners or at intersections. Three stops along the Ocean Drive access way were indicated 6. Is a South Access to the project site feasible (via Home Depot/Expo)? - Jeff Livergood, Director of Engineering and Public Works for the City of Boynton Beach (Taken out of order) Jeff Livergood, Director of Public Works and Engineering explained as engineers they look at roadway design, infrastructure that would carry traffic volume, and safety. In this instance, there was an existing roadway network for many years. Ocean Drive was the main entranceway to the downtown area before 1-95 was built. One of the reasons Ocean Drive had a 70-foot right-of-way was because it was the collector road to the downtown area. There was an industrial area right along the tracks. This was a normal infrastructure design. Mr. Livergood explained 1-95 was constructed parallel to the CSX railway. The zoning allowed for industrial uses and for all these years traffic hasn't been too much of an issue. Because the zoning allows a developer to approach the City to use the land for different purposes, the City is now tasked with finding a solution to the situation. When the developer and the City reviewed the design, staff's perspective was they thought it was an opportunity to proVide a different access pOint to the development. 1. There is a public roadway that dead ends on the north side of Home Depot Design Expo. The roadway was designed to tie into a large piece of property owned by Winchester. There was ability for Winchester to develop the property and that would have been ideal. 2. There was a major change in rail lines when CSX built double tracks to accommodate Tri- rail. There was also a redesign on the location of the tracks, which used to be located behind Home Depot. The railway realized in their desire to increase train speeds, they had to realign the rail bed to have a higher speed turning movement. Trains do not turn quickly and wide sweeps of curvature on the tracks are needed which necessitated realigning them. Formerly cars would have come straight across the tracks and could access the property fairly easily. To safely cross train tracks, a 90-degree angle is needed. There is no location to cross the railway at a 90-degree angle. Staff asked the developer to review that, but there is no property available because it had been bisected with the realignment of the rail line and CSX would not allow it. Therefore, south access was not a possibility. 3 Special Meeting Minutes Ocean 95 Exchange Plaza Boynton Beach, Florida November 20, 2006 5. Traffic Report and Traffic Recommendations - Jeff Livergood, Director of Engineering and Public Works for the City Staff looked to the north end of the property because it was accessible by a public right-of-way. The owner of the property has the right to use the right-of-way road to access the property, but it was not ideal with industrial or commercial development because it runs through a residential neighborhood. The dilemma was how to best get the vehicles to the site without an impact on surrounding residents. Some areas would have a higher impact and traffic may be directed down a particular street, to minimize the impact on the rest of the neighborhood. Traffic has been directed to 7th, the 1st to 6th, because it is the path of least resistance. At one time there were not a lot of homes there. In general, 8th Street from Home Depot towards Boynton Beach Boulevard, is posted as "No Trucks". At some point, 7th, 1st to 6th was chosen as the access route because of a lesser impact. Historically, there have been problems over the years to restore right-of-ways from damage where trucks went off the roadway. They looked at all the streets, and each one could be made into the route, but some are just better than others; none are perfect. The City examined safety for the children and the best way to ensure safety would be to have separation. They have to look at the least potential for vehicles to come into contact with pedestrians or children, and children. Ocean Drive has a 70-foot right-of-way to utilize the street with enough room to install sidewalks and have separation from the sidewalk to the street by a green area. Ocean Drive already has sidewalks but they need to be connected at intersections and at Hibiscus Park. Hibiscus Park was one of the negatives because you would not want more vehicles where there would be more children. There were several things the City could consider to mitigate the impact on the users of the park. Another option was to not use Ocean Drive at all. The City could work with the developer to design and construct the route to minimize impact on the community and enhance safety for the children. He emphasized they could not do all of it and not everyone would be happy. They could not guarantee it would be 100% safe for kids, but they could do their best to minimize the impacts. Everything assumes risk. Staff pledged their commitment to work with their developer to develop a route as safe as possible and asked the community recognize there is no perfect solution. 7. Questions and Answers - Moderated by Kurt Bressner Mr. Bressner had questions to staff and developer. Mr. Bressner spoke about the replacement of a 20k sf, (square foot) building with a 133K sf building in the area. The magnitude of scale is larger than what was currently there. The intensity of the development drives the traffic. He asked Mr. Rumpf to explain how that was possible under the zoning regulations. Mike Rumpf explained the Land Development and Zoning Regulations do not go outside scope of the property boundaries. When a project applies for a new site plan, if the zoning is in place, there are general performance standards to satisfy with respect to concurrency and traffic. The majority of the regulations apply to the site itself. It assumed it is preferred the City have zoning districts, unless special provisions were previously made or the Comprehensive Plan was rewritten. It assumes if it complies with zoning regulations the project has a right to develop. 4 Special Meeting Minutes Ocean 95 Exchange Plaza Boynton Beach, Florida November 20, 2006 Mr. Rumpf confirmed the developer had the legal right to develop a building of that size provided it conformed to the setback requirements of the City. Mr. Rumpf pointed out the property had a difficult configuration and size, and was essentially underutilized at the present time, in spite of the intensification. The property in its present condition is blighted. The new plan showed the property being internally developed, contained within the walls, and cleaned up on the outside. He confirmed the property has been zoned for years for this use. There was nothing the City Commission could legally do, so long as the building conformed and they met the standards of approval in the Land Development Regulations. Mr. Bressner advised the design of the building precluded or made it very cumbersome for larger vehicles to access the site with any regularity, other than incidental access of trucks initially. He inquired if there had been any discussion about deed restrictions or other types of restrictions on the sale of the property that limits the type of vehicles that could be used, to provide some type of mechanism or instrument of ownership for the property that would carry with it some restrictions. Mr. Crockett advised his understanding was that was not legally enforceable. They could be in the covenants but they are not enforceable in court or the practical reality of someone policing and refusing trucks. He explained in reference to the project density, this project is between 10-15% smaller than the allowable use based on the zoning regulations. Mr. Bressner asked Mr. Farnell to review the design of the building and why it was thought larger trucks would be discouraged from getting in and out of the site with any regularity. Mr. Farnell reviewed the south, middle and north buildings, which had gaps between them and loading areas, of only 30 feet. He discussed the Ocean Avenue Drive entranceway. The road is two lanes in and out with a loading area in front of the overhead doors. The depth is 30 ft of loading space and a regular tractor-trailer is 50 feet. They could parallel park, unload and depart. If an owner wanted to use a building that needed that type of truck support on a regular basis they would not buy the building. They would not go after large-scale distribution and warehouse spaces. He could not guarantee there would be no semi-tractors, but generally speaking, for businesses that use large-scale trucks, the location would be problematic. Donald Marks, 746 West Ocean Avenue, asked when trucks were traveling west on Ocean Drive towards 8th, the truck would take 8th to Boynton Beach Boulevard, which was a posted "No Truck" road. He advised he counted 43 trucks traveling that road. He asked about law enforcement, and advised they are not enforcing the road or the speed limit. Mr. Livergood explained he was not certain what "No Trucks" signage meant. He clarified typically there would be a weight limit posting which would allow the police to enforce that restriction. Mr. Marks was concerned the traffic counts would increase. Mr. Livergood explained they would change the configuration or the posting of the weight restriction on 8th Street. Katie VanLennep, 818 W. Ocean Avenue, explained the present condition of 8th Street was poor, having no sidewalks and uneven pavement. She asked if 8th Street would be improved for pedestrian, general and vehicle truck traffic in light of the increased traffic generated by the project. 5 Special Meeting Minutes Ocean 95 Exchange Plaza Boynton Beach, Florida November 20, 2006 Mr. Livergood responded that would be a consideration they would have in determining the final route. Mr. Bressner added that issue may not necessarily be attributable to this specific development. Mr. Livergood responded there may be some responsibility to the developer for cost participation, and noted some of the trucks using the road are not associated with the site. There are trucks going to Home Depot and Lowe's that should be coming off of Woolbright. Mr. Livergood announced that location was where the truck restrictions needed to be diligently enforced. He did not believe they would have the same weight, loading, or type and size trucks for this development that they have going to Home Expo and Home Depot. Matt Prisabell, 741 W. Ocean Drive, explained traffic generated would be boxed truck traffic. He wanted to know what was being done to help the residents as opposed to helping a profit center flourish. Mr. Livergood explained there would be infrastructure improvement to separate pedestrians from vehicles, which would be widening Ocean Drive to back up to both sidewalks on the other side and putting up a fence at Hibiscus Park. Mr. Livergood explained they wanted to make sure they had a reasonable width of two 12-foot travel lanes. They would make improvements to the intersection of Ocean Drive and 7th. Mr. Bressner indicted some decisions need to be made at this meeting about how to handle the traffic that would be affected by this project. Sldt:ter BeRgsleR, 719 Vinola Rada. 718 SW 3rd Avenue, had maps and discussed Boynton Beach Boulevard near Industrial Avenue and pointed out there was a storage facility, and an industrial road that goes under the 1-95 bridge. She advised the Department of Transportation (DOT) owned the road and they could get an access easement through Industrial Road. She advised the City just needed to negotiate with the owner and the DOT. She explained all the options pertained to finding a route through the neighborhood, but Industrial Avenue was an option. Mr. Chris Heggen, the consulting engineer looked at that option and agreed the road does go underneath the Boynton Beach overpass, but the problem was making the connection on the south side of the roadway because it aligned with a privately owned property, east of 6th and west of the railroad tracks. He explained it was not possible to bring the road through with the correct design and curvature without going through condemnation process. Ms. Bengston Rada spoke with FDOT and indicated no condemnation needs to place. She explained the owner of the storage facility said he could give an access easement. She recommended finding out the regulations for permits from DOT as opposed to going though the neighborhood. She announced the City of Boynton Beach had equipment in the staging area and advised there was access via Industrial Road. Mr. Bressner explained the contractor had their staging area near Store All. He asked if it would be feasible if a corridor were acquired south of Boynton Beach Blvd. that could connect to the general area along the railroad right-of-way. Mr. Heggen explained the problem is there was a house on the property. The railroad would not allow a roadway within its right-of-way. The 6th Street alignment could be done with condemnation of one piece of property. There was one piece of privately owned property. 6 Special Meeting Minutes Ocean 95 Exchange Plaza Boynton Beach, Florida November 20, 2006 Mr. Bressner explained when property is purchased, damages to the remainder, would occur which meant the property had to be acquired in total in order to make the connection to 6th. It was possible that two properties would need to be acquired. Mr. Farnell explained the problem was the 90 degree angle issue. There would need to be a large turning radius and it might impact the second home as well. Mr. Farnell explained DOT only encompassed the right-of-way and overpass, and the railroad owned the rest. If the road connected through, he would be more than happy to take that route, but the reason they could not was because the abutment at the end of the road was sharp and steep by the ramp, and there would need to be a ramp almost all the way back to the circle. He advised if there was a way through, they would have looked at it. Skitter Bengston Vinola Rada indicated that based on the September meeting minutes, there were 34 conditions of approval and she wanted to know why the site plan was approved without meeting the conditions. Mr. Farnell explained the standard procedure in Boynton Beach is to provide the condition and the developer accepts the conditions. It was not typical to have full-blown construction drawings because it is not known at that time whether it would be approved or not. Ms. Bergston Rada commented some projects take years to get approved. She questioned why this project only took four months. Mr. Farnell explained they have been working with staff and the site for over a year and a half. He elaborated there were many adjustments and they changed the plans as they went along to get to the point of presentation to the Planning and Development Board. There was also a moratorium on industrial zoning. A woman from the audience asked the Commissioners and all associated with the project to really look at the project and see the impact. She clarified doing so did not just pertain to homes; it can pertain to all projects and would not necessarily result in a lawsuit. She urged the City to place stipulations on the agreements. Bill Dier, 700 SW 1st Avenue explained he is a site development manager in the industry. He noted the developer is starting to tear down the old buildings and asked if they had a permit. In his line of work he indicated they had a stipulation that they were not buying anything until the project was approved. He questioned why the developer was moving ahead with modifications to the property when he did not have the right to build the building. Mr. Farnell responded the demolition was fully permitted and allowed; they were cleaning up the site. There were old deteriorated buildings on the site that were attracting poor transients, so demolition was needed. The property is vested and is zoned, but does not have site plan approval. Mr. Dier announced he chooses to not make assumptions and the way the City was talking, the project was all set to go. Mr. Dier explained Hibiscus Park was the biggest sore they have there. He announced they went to town meetings and the police indicated they are making drug busts there. He expressed he did not believe putting a fence up and lights on it would cure the problem. The project is not an improvement. Mr. Farnell explained they were open to recommendations and was not aware of issues at the park. 7 Special Meeting Minutes Ocean 95 Exchange Plaza Boynton Beach, Florida November 20, 2006 Mr. Dier requested the City officially review the DOT option of using the road under the overpass. Mr. Bressner announced a commitment was given by the developer to look at the DOT. An unidentified woman referred to the September 26, 2006 Planning and Development Board meeting minutes. She quoted the minutes, in response to a question about the type of traffic expected at the site as being 55-foot trailers, which they could put on the site and turn around easily. She announced this was a contradiction throughout the meeting. The meeting minutes indicated the loading dock heights would not accommodate tractor-trailers. The woman indicated if the buildings did not accommodate 55-foot. trailers, why did the City want to discuss a plan that accommodated the 55-foot trailers. Mr. Farnell indicated the comment was in reference to the fire department. Mr. Farnell responded from a feasibility standpoint and as a user, the docks do not accommodate the trucks as an efficient transportation method. Trucks could be drive into the site, parallel park and turned around in certain locations. He advised when people were moving in, there would be semi-trucks and an occasional user will have a semi- truck. But it is a requirement of the City to allow Fire department to enter the site so there needed to be roads designed so a full size fire truck could enter the site. For day-to-day truck use it is highly impractical. The woman asked if the Fire Department was satisfied with the grade of the road. Mr. Farnell responded they were. Terry Iiames, 656 NW 1st Avenue, explained she owns commercial property. She thought saying there would not be very many rigs was not accurate. There were tractor-trailers using the road all the time, and the police department does not know its one way because they traverse the road as well. She stressed tractor trailers will use the road. Light industrial could encompass, cabinetmakers, plumbers and others with tractor-trailers entering the site. She noted there could be up to 38 companies. She announced she lives on 1st Avenue and if she lived on Ocean she would be upset. Their subdivision has been in existence for quite some time. She wanted to know if the Police Department would be in that area. Mr. Bressner explained the Police Department would do selective enforcement. The City of Boynton Beach proactively enforces traffic, but could only do it on a complaint basis. The woman announced that would ruin the community. Mr. Farnell indicated he never at any time said there would be no tractor-trailers on the site. To the contrary, there was no way they could stop them from being there. It was an allowed use and he stressed he was trying to say the buildings do not lend themselves to businesses needing rigs. An unidentified man, residing at 722 W. Ocean Drive thought this was a quality of life issue. He requested the northern options be looked at more closely. Mr. Farnell announced some of the allowable uses were to store septic waste there, a recycling plant there, or a steel plant, tow- truck services, outdoor car services are all allowed uses. Mr. Farnell announced he would target small sole proprietor businesses such as subcontractor businesses, storage to some extent, but not self-storage, and what was limited by the Code - generally office warehouse units. Mr. Farnell was not opposed to re-examining the north access option and would prepare the information again about it. 8 Special Meeting Minutes Ocean 95 Exchange Plaza Boynton Beach, Florida November 20, 2006 Gloria Melvin, 131 W. Ocean Drive, wanted to know what the City would do if a child got hurt. She explained there were school bus stops and kids on the streets. Ms. Melvin explained when individuals come up W. Ocean Drive from the park it was easy to travel up to 60 mph, because there were no stop signs. She elaborated speeding occurs all the time. She questioned whether the City Commissioners could live with themselves if something happened to the children and implored the City to not allow it. She indicated speed bumps do save lives and indicated if the City could not control the speed on the road, to not allow it. She also commented if traffic- calming devices were added, they would slow emergency vehicles. Mr. Farnell shared the concern about safety. He acknowledged there were some problematic and dangerous intersections, which require improvements. Sidewalks would help keep pedestrian traffic off the roads. He explained once the route is identified, they could add traffic- calming features and design the roads to ensure the traffic is controlled in the proper fashion. Gary Leonards, 619 SW 2nd Avenue, thought Ocean Avenue may be widened and sidewalks added on both sides of the street. He advised many homes there do not have much of a front yard and if a sidewalk were added by Hibiscus Park, a significant part of the park would be lost. There are almost 1,200 trips per day and questioned the eight percent would be trucks. He calculated that to be a heavy truck driving by every five minutes. He spoke about the intersection of Old Boynton Road and Boynton Beach Boulevard and it having capacity until 2009. He indicated right now if the intersection were developed it would be fine, but not in three years. With the addition of big trucks, the intersection would be dangerous. When the Tradewinds was developed, the City said they would put a crossing behind the Home Expo. The City was promised there would be a crossing there and they would close the crossing at Ocean. He questioned, why the City could not go along the railroad tracks at a 90-degree angle and then go up. Mr. Bressner explained you could not run the road on the east side of the tracks. The tracks have moved. Mr. Leonards suggested coming behind the Home Expo across the old tracks and new tracks, and then go north, between 1-95 and the new tracks. It appeared there was enough of an easement. He contended CSX promised to close down the Ocean Avenue crossing, 20 years ago. Mr. Livergood explained with the above proposal, in the gravel area, compared to where 1-95 was, there was a Florida Department of Transportation right-of-way with private property and then the CSX right-of-way. The width of the area that is private property where the road could go is not sufficient to handle a 24 ft right-of-way, with drainage appurtenances, and the turning radius requirements. Carol Mahoney, 737 SW 1st Avenue, asked at what pOint it was determined the railroad crossing was not sufficient. Mr. Livergood explained that was discovered months ago. Ms. Mahoney advised in the September 26, 2006 minutes, Eric Johnson, Planner, noted the property to the south could be developed and there could be a cross access agreement. Mr. Farnell advised that was not in reference to the railroad crossing, rather it was in reference to property that is not available to them. It is too small to build on. The Industrial Avenue 9 Special Meeting Minutes Ocean 95 Exchange Plaza Boynton Beach, Florida November 20, 2006 access road could not pursued because there are two homes on the property. The area of drivable easement is not aligned and the shoulder of the road has a fence. The owner has equipment staged there. To develop a roadway there, one property and likely a second property would have to be acquired. Mr. Bressner advised the purpose of the meeting was to gather any new information available. A roadway under Boynton Beach Boulevard, without the property being available, is not an option. Mr. Livergood advised there is no perfect solution. 6th Avenue has a traffic circle, and people cut a corner to go across the tracks and do not use the circle. Mr. Bressner advised an alternative would be to take out the traffic circle. He further advised there is a memorial planned for the circle; however, Mr. Livergood advised the City does not want to encourage any unsafe movements. Mr. Heggen advised the traffic concurrency analysis for the 8th Avenue and Boynton Beach Boulevard intersection were reviewed by the City and the County. They reviewed the conditions at build out, and the 2009 conditions would operate within the County's gUidelines and acceptable levels of service. The County also required a third level of traffic from others means. Demaris Oliver, 619 W. Ocean Avenue, explained their home is the only home her daughter has known. She loves the neighborhood. She asked how to make contact with the owner of the property to determine if they were willing to sell the property. She asked if the City could guarantee the trucks would use the truck route. Mr. Bressner advised the route would be posted, but there were no guarantees and there would be abuses. Commissioner Rodriguez, thanked all who came out for the meeting. He indicated there was a different alternative presented and it appeared the focus was on the north access. He requested a report how to get a route established on the north side, and then a decision would need to be made. Jeff Morgan, 745 SW 1st Court, suggested abandoning the property. He asked why the developer did not pick another site, and why would the City allow it. He suggested rezoning the area. He spoke about the church in the area and suggested listening to the community. Wendy Fretwell, who grew up at 713 SW 3rd Avenue and was a co-owner of the property of 412 E. Ocean Avenue, indicated besides the comments made, she asked whether the City spoke to Tri-Rail and Amtrack. She reported they traverse the route much more than CSX. She noted Tri-Rail is increasing its services, and the gates would be closed more often which adds to the chances of a wreck. Mr. Bressner advised there are four quadrant gates at the current crossings. Mr. Livergood explained by having the quadrant gates at the location would allow the City to petition the Federal Railroad Administration, Florida Department Transportation for a quiet 10 Special Meeting Minutes Ocean 95 Exchange Plaza Boynton Beach, Florida November 20, 2006 zone. The gates would come down on all four sides. CSX owns the tracks and Tri-Rail and Amtrack are permitted users by CSX. Matt Berger, SW 6th Street, asked how high the structure was and then indicated if the building were 24 feet high, it would serve as an amplifier for train noise and deafen the neighborhood. MariAnne Griffiths, 656, SW 4th Avenue, read about the issue in the Palm Beach Post. She announced, there were two schools within one mile of her home. The children walk to school down Ocean Avenue, and the children are at the park with their parents waiting for the bus. She indicated the school bus cannot make the turn there. She did not understand why the City would want to send the traffic north. There were two lanes of traffic on either side of the road, and traffic turning off Woolbright from 1-95, have designated turn lanes. She alleged traffic was being diverted to another route that cannot accommodate it. Ms. Griffith questioned the height of the building. Mr. Farnell explained the Code allows for the building to be 34.5 feet in height. He has 210 parking stalls as required by zoning regulations. He anticipated having 39 to 40 bays. They could have three different businesses or more. He responded to landscaping questions and advised the building would front 1-95. For every 12 to 15 feet there would be trees planted with a hedge-row and other plants and buffers in accordance with Code. There would be trees planted along the back of the building, which could help mitigate the noise. Paul Bosco, the Adjunct and Secretary for the American Legion reported they did not like traffic going through a residential area regardless of what improvements were made, because of the children. He advised between the trains and the trucks, his building needed to be cleaned everyday because of the dust. His biggest concern was the children, and he was the Children and Youth Chairman for the entire American Legion district. Mr. Farnell responded the dust occurs because the area was unpaved. That aspect would be improved, paved and cleaned up. Ken Griffiths, 656 SW 4th Avenue, indicated he worked in Delray and noted residential property was being squeezed out to commercial. Terry Iiames commented there had been a feed store on the property and the City told the feed store it had to become residential. She asked why this property had to be commercial/light industrial. Mr. Rumpf explained the feed store was a non-conforming use. The zoning of the property was residential at that time. When it discontinued operations, the regulations mandated the license could not be renewed. The property was rezoned to M-1 in approximately 1975. The City cannot just rezone the property without costly ramifications. Mildred Willes, 315 SW 6th Court, had a problem with the traffic flow. She advised the traffic does not stop and she was concerned for children and elderly residents. She requested the City figure out a plan. 11 Special Meeting Minutes Ocean 95 Exchange Plaza Boynton Beach, Florida November 20, 2006 Mr. Bosco asked when the zoning was changed to light industrial. Mr. Rumpf indicated his research showed the zoning was changed to M-1 in approximately 1975. 1-95 was developed in approximately 1977. Chris Lemon, 737 W. Ocean Avenue, asked if there would be any possibility of bringing traffic from the north one-way, on a one-way road, and have it continue out another way. Mr. Livergood explained to do so, would require the developer to acquire property from Mr. Winchester and install a $300K railroad crossing. Mr. Bosco asked what could be done to make the area a residential area. Mr. Bressner noted one option was the City could acquire the property. He explained the law requires the purchase price would be based on the highest and best use of the property based on its industrial zoning. Sara Newcombe, 160 W. Ocean Drive, felt the highest and best use for the industrial property diminishes the highest and best use for the residential property in the community. She was opposed to the project. Kari Kimmey, 707 SW 3rd Avenue, asked what residential area meant if there were signs indicating no trucks. She asked what weight the road could withstand. She thought the City should be able to dictate how property could be used. Mr. Bressner indicated the issue was the weight of the vehicles and not the volume of the vehicles. He noted the overall percentage of large trucks, versus small trucks, based on traffic projections was a small percentage. Mr. Livergood explained the street pavement has the capability to handle a semi-tractor trailer of about 72,000 pounds. As contained in the staff report, the developer would be required to look at the structural number of the pavement, and determine what improvements were needed to offset and mitigate the additional wheel loadings. This could be addressed by engineering design. Mr. Livergood announced that whatever was developed would need to be definitive in how the streets are posted so the police can enforce by weight. Carol Fretwell, 713 SW 3rd Avenue explained, on SW 3rd Avenue in the 700 block, there were nine homes with more than a dozen children, which was common to the area. She explained the middle school was close by and the children are not bused. She advised they would have dead and maimed children. She announced for each 55-foot truck, the visibility of the driver is limited and they would not see someone two feet tall. She explained with the big trucks, and 39 possible businesses, there was a tremendous amount of traffic in a residential area. Gary Pouncey, 661 SW 4th Avenue, spoke about a north/south entranceway and the property being owned by an individual. He advised if the property was wanted, a check needed to be written. He reported further west of Ocean Avenue, there were two schools with about 5,000 children who would be using Ocean, 8th, 7th and other streets. He suggested buying the property. Lola Swanson, 721 W. Ocean Drive, spoke about the trucks coming down SW 8th. She asked what improvements would be made. 12 Special Meeting Minutes Ocean 95 Exchange Plaza Boynton Beach, Florida November 20, 2006 Mr. Livergood reviewed improvements on 8th Street and on Woolbright. He thought working towards the south end could be a good solution and could offset improvements that need to be made. Ms. Swanson and Mr. Livergood reviewed other improvements that would need to be made. Mr. Heggen reported they studied existing traffic volumes on Ocean Avenue and Ocean Drive to determine the existing traffic levels over a 24-hour period. Based on those counts, the trips generated do not warrant a traffic signal. Ms. Swanson indicated traffic during peak hours, and the four way-stop would need to be addressed. For afternoon rush hour, Ocean Drive had a total of 39 vehicles. Mr. Heggen reported 120 vehicles are needed to warrant a signal. On Ocean Avenue there were 53 vehicles. Ms. Swanson suggested a crossing guard. Mr. Livergood responded a crossing guard is posted by the Police Department based on gaps in the traffic stream and if there were sufficient gaps for pedestrians or groupings of students to cross. He indicated that could be looked at. Mr. Livergood indicated on Ocean Drive, they would need to make sure there was adequate turning radius so when the vehicles turned they would stay on the pavement. This would assist children to stay on the pavement and off the street, and also protect green areas. That would be on all intersections. Ms. Swanson noted sidewalks do not line up. Mr. Livergood agreed. They would look for a consistent sidewalk network with appropriate ramps and handicapped accessibility all the way through up to 8th. The intersection by the park at 7th split, and needs a new geometric design. Ms. Swanson advised that is a bus stop. Mr. Livergood advised although sidewalks would cut down on green space at the park, they provide a psychological barrier and indicate to pedestrians to stay inside the sidewalk area. He suggested reviewing with the developer, if the neighborhood thought it was appropriate, to install a fence to keep basket balls in the area. They would need to ensure the traffic circle was properly signed and stripped and designed to encourage traffic to travel in a clockwise circle. Mr. Livergood explained those were the types of issues that could be viewed, but stressed they did not know what the all encompassing list would include until they knew exactly where the route would be. The staff report indicated the types of design considerations that would be made. They would take into consideration where there might be a high number of pedestrians and/or where a crossing guard and school cross walk might be placed. Wendy Franklin, 120 NW 6th Street, was the home owner of the property that was discussed for acquisition. She attended the Planning and Zoning meeting. Her family had four businesses, she has lived in the area for 50 years and several family members were employed by the City of Boynton Beach. She reported the home in question was built by her father, she was born here. She advised another route needed to be found because she was not interested in moving. Her aunt and uncle live across the street from her and her mother lives down the road. Joe Somoana, 649 SW 3rd Avenue commented the developer was indicating there were no trucks, while trying to make truck access. He indicated the City was facilitating tractor-trailer trucks. 13 Special Meeting Minutes Ocean 95 Exchange Plaza Boynton Beach, Florida November 20, 2006 Mr. Bressner clarified there would be truck traffic, predominately from the small step van trucks, but there would be some larger trucks. Theresa Rodriguez 708 SW 1st Avenue, advised If one of the routes went through her street, she would have to put her home up for sale. Ada Dier, 700 SW 1st Avenue, spoke about bus stops. She attended a neighborhood watch meeting, and was told by the Police they would not install speed bumps. Mr. Bressner indicated staff generally discourages speed bumps, or humps because they can cause road noise, although it does slow traffic down. City staff has been reluctant to utilize those and there are other traffic calming methods or enforcement. Adlin AuGustin, 607 SW 1st Avenue, advised as a truck driver he would use the shortest route. Mr. Bressner advised as a designated route, it would be an enforcement issue. Peter Simo, 813 SW 1st Avenue, suggested accessing the property from the east or doing a feasibility study coming from 1-95 heading southbound. Mr. Heggen explained FDOT has a limited access facility and they protect the areas except for designated ramp areas, not allowing any driveways or access points onto or off of 1-95. FDOT also spaces ramps to prevent weaving of traffic. 8. Possible Recommendations to the City Commission - Group Mr. Bressner reviewed the three alternatives and the information from the meeting. Staff had recommended Ocean Drive to 8th be the option of the three originally proposed. One permutation would be to have access to the south, from Woolbright rather than Boynton Beach Boulevard. The north access route could be reviewed but could not be mandated as it involved personal/private property and interagency discussion, but it could be investigated. A permutation of this would be to come in off of Industrial Drive and go out another way or visa versa, but have some manner of splitting the traffic. That could reduce traffic coming through the neighborhood by 50%. The need for a traffic signal at 8th and Ocean Avenue was probably very small. As a fact, the property itself was zoned Industrial, and the developer had the legal right to develop the property and it was a lawful use. The City has the ability to review the impacts and minimize them to the best of their ability. Mr. Bressner commented they received good input from the meeting. He reiterated what he announced at the City Commission meeting which was, the art of compromise and the art of a good deal was both parties leave the table feeling a little disappointed. The City Commission asked to have something brought back to them. 14 Special Meeting Minutes Ocean 9S Exchange Plaza Boynton Beach, Florida November 20, 2006 Charlotta Terri, 317 SW 7th Street, wanted it noted in the minutes it was very important there be a last option, which was to view the neighborhood and the way it is laid out. The project is not wanted and it was the City's responsibility to rezone the property. She advised the City needed to take responsibility for it. Mr. Bressner advised this meant the City would have to buy the property. Mr. Bressner advised he would add that as an option, but did not know if it was feasible or a viable option. From a real estate perspective, the property would be acquired based on the highest and best use of the property. Mr. Bressner thanked all for coming and closed the meeting at 9:28 p.m. Respectfully submitted, 15