Latest news with #PlanningandZoningBoard
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
15-story boutique hotel slated for Fort Lauderdale beach seeks approval
A 15-story boutique hotel would stand 200 feet high on a quarter-acre parcel near Fort Lauderdale beach, offering views of the ocean and Intracoastal Waterway. The proposed 42 Hotel calls for 75 rooms, a rooftop pool deck with cabanas, 47 parking spaces and basement parking. The property is located at the northeast corner of North Birch Road and Alhambra Street at 3001 Alhambra St. Fort Lauderdale's Planning and Zoning Board is set to vote on the project Wednesday night. The project will also require commission approval. The building has a combination of nautically and tropically inspired elements with round edges and exposed round columns, the developers' application with the city states. 'Circular openings are provided in the slabs from level five to 14 along the west façade at the balconies to provide additional natural lighting and ventilation,' according to the application. Given the limitation of the small lot size, the design cannot accommodate a traditional tower step back. Instead, the project employs innovative design strategies to mitigate the scale and bulk of the tower, according to the developer, New York-based Hariohm Realty. The developer is requesting dimensional modifications to the tower stepback and tower separation as well as an increase in the floor area ratio. 'The parking facility is located underground, creating a pedestrian realm that is visually appealing with landscaping, a double-height ground floor and an outdoor garden seating area that creates an urban respite at the ground level,' the application says. 'Parking is proposed in the basement, eliminating the view of a parking garage above the first floor and replacing it with habitable space.' Susannah Bryan can be reached at sbryan@ Follow me on X @Susannah_Bryan
Yahoo
03-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ankeny Walmart proposal stagnant, draft study shows signage, turn lane changes
ANKENY, Iowa — The City of Ankeny says a rezoning application that would add a Walmart is still on hold. A recent draft of a traffic survey indicates the project would require major signage and road work. A proposal to change a multi-family residential area near Northwest 36th Street and North Ankeny Boulevard into commercial property for a Walmart was presented to the City of Ankeny in December 2024. In response, the city ordered a traffic impact survey to assess the proposed development's impact. Since the proposal was presented, residents in the area have spoken out against the development online and at City of Ankeny board meetings. Residents worry about increased traffic along main and side roads, and increased noise and light pollution. The City of Ankeny says an early draft of the requested traffic impact survey was submitted to them on April 1. The draft will now go through rounds of comments and revisions before it's approved and considered a final document. Majority of Granger EMS staffers resign after chief's termination The first draft of the survey outlines other developments expected to go up in the area by 2027 and the impact on traffic. A senior living facility, a bank, and office space are listed to go up in the area west of the proposed Walmart. The study focused on 11 surrounding intersections that would be impacted by the development, and recommended changes for traffic safety and efficiency. The first would require signage and turning lanes at the three Walmart access points. The results also advise putting in traffic signals and left and right turning lanes at six intersections along Northwest 36th Street and North Ankeny Boulevard. Turning lanes and a traffic signal at Northwest Reinhardt Drive are also listed in the draft. The City of Ankeny says there is no timeline on how long revisions to the traffic impact study will take, and there is no word on when the proposal would go before the Planning and Zoning Board. While the project will not go before the May 6 Planning and Zoning meeting, the city says there will be an opportunity for citizens to file correspondence, as in previous meetings. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Axios
18-04-2025
- Politics
- Axios
"Ugly as hell." Critique of Surfside collapse memorial complicates project
Last-minute objections to a planned memorial for the victims of the 2021 Surfside condominium collapse have upset family members who say the project must continue without delay. The big picture: Commissioners and a family-led memorial committee have already approved design plans for a memorial park near the site of the Champlain Towers South collapse. But last month, the town's Planning and Zoning Board criticized the appearance of the project and urged the commission to seek alternative design proposals. Friction point: At the March 27 meeting, board member Carlos Aparicio, a Surfside architect, called it "ugly as hell" and "the worst thing I've ever seen in my life." "It makes me want to throw up, it's that bad," he said. Aparicio said the memorial project — proposed to include a roughly 20-foot-tall water feature depicting the Champlain Towers and original materials from the building — had "no soul" and looked like "every cliche of every cheap monument that's ever been put together." "I will chain myself to this corner until this doesn't happen; this is a monstrosity." He told Axios this week that he "never intended to hurt anyone" and was only giving his opinion on the architecture and design of the project. "I spoke as an architect who lives in Surfside that has a private opinion on the matter," he wrote in a text message. The latest: Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett told Axios Wednesday evening that Aparicio had resigned. Pablo Langesfeld, whose 26-year-old daughter Nicole Langesfeld died in the collapse, called Aparicio's comments "not only inappropriate but cruel" in an April 2 email to Surfside and Miami-Dade County elected leaders. "The process to create this memorial has been transparent, inclusive, and lawful, and it is disgraceful that a few individuals believe they have the right to dismantle years of work and the collective will of grieving families and the community," Langesfeld wrote. Between the lines: The chair of the planning board, Lindsay Lecour, apologized for the inflammatory comments at an April 8 commission meeting but said she still wants the board to provide input on the design — with final say coming from the family-led committee. "I understand the urgency. But this memorial is going to be here long beyond anyone in this room." Some commissioners, who argued the design plans were incomplete, said they also wanted to hear the board's ideas if it didn't delay the project. Reality check: The planning board doesn't have the authority to block the project. Surfside leaders, including Burkett, say they want to fast-track it while following the will of the family committee. "We are not slowing down," Burkett said at the April 8 commission meeting. The commission voted that day to direct the firm behind the memorial project, Keith & Associates, to engage an artist and work with the memorial committee and the planning board to discuss any possible design changes. The board will discuss the memorial at its Tuesday meeting. Martin Langesfeld, Nicole's brother, said at the April 8 meeting that the families were not opposed to "seeing other ideas and making this better; we just really do not want delays, and we want the final concept to be approved by us." In emailed comments to Axios this week, Martin Langesfeld said it seemed the town was delaying the project by asking the planning board to provide input. "I hope that's not the intention, but it certainly feels that way." He said the planning board had four years to make suggestions about a memorial. Members speaking up now "feels like an unnecessary delay." "The families deserve action, not disrespect and setbacks." The other side: Burkett tells Axios that the planning board will not slow down the process unless Langesfeld and the other family members decide to adopt their suggestions. "Martin is in control, and he can take it or leave it, but we're going," Burkett said. "If anybody says the word 'delay,' then we'll just go right past the [planning] board."
USA Today
16-04-2025
- Business
- USA Today
Proposed private Florida golf course for an insurance company to be discussed tonight
Proposed private Florida golf course for an insurance company to be discussed tonight The city of Alachua's Planning and Zoning Board will hold a public meeting Tuesday to consider plans for a private golf course just south of the intersection of U.S. 441 and Interstate 75. Alachua sits just 20 minutes northwest of Gainesville in the middle of the state. Tomoka Hills Golf Course, as it would be known, will be for the "private use of the employees of Tower Hill Insurance Group, Inc., its affiliates and subsidiaries and their guests," according to the application submitted by local civil engineering firm CHW on behalf of Lexington, Kentucky-based Tomoka Hill Farms Inc. The proposed golf course will be next to the new 71,000-square-foot Tower Hill headquarters currently under construction. Other plans for the immediate area include single-family homes, apartments, a hotel, and office and retail space. The golf course, clubhouse and maintenance facility is slated for almost 200 acres directly west of I-75 and east of Northwest 173rd Street, near Santa Fe High School. According to the application, the actual golf course would take up about 160 acres, with the greens, fairways and tee boxes only accounting for about 25 acres. Staff recommends approval of the application based on several conditions, including the development of a groundwater monitoring plan that will monitor for pollutants from fertilizer and stormwater, and that a formal approval process take place if the course is ever opened up for general play. Tuesday's public meeting will take place at 6 p.m. in the James A. Lewis City Commission Chambers at 15100 NW 142nd Terrace in Alachua. If approved by the Planning and Zoning Board, the application would then move to the Alachua City Commission for final approval.
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Mesa Planning and Zoning Board gives OK to contested townhome plan
A proposed two-story townhome development in East Mesa would bring in cut-through traffic, families with kids and is just not compatible with the neighborhood, according to residents of an adjacent age-restricted mobile home park. Nonetheless, the city Planning and Zoning Board last week unanimously recommend that Council approve Elliot Barkan Development,'s request. It was unclear when the council will hear the project. Elliot Barkan is seeking a rezone for 45 three-bedroom units on 3.5 vacant acres at the southwest corner of Sossaman Road and Main Street. Mesa East submitted a petition signed by 453 residents opposed to the Main 45 Townhomes project. The residents own their home and the land in the community established in 1971. 'Mesa East is a well-established 55-plus retirement community,' said Dean Senne, the community's HOA president. 'This provides a quiet, age-restricted living environment. The introduction of multifamily dwellings with no age restrictions would fundamentally alter the character of our neighborhood.' According to Senne, vehicles are already cutting through the community to get to Broadway Road and the development would exacerbate that. Also, the multifamily project would negatively affect the property values for existing homeowners, many of whom have invested their total retirement into their homes, Senne said. 'The proposed multifamily development is inconsistent with the surrounding land use, which primarily consists of single-family, age-restricted residents and commercial retail business,' Senne continued. 'The different uses could create conflicts related to safety, noise, parking and overall community harmony. 'We're worried about the influx of younger families that could put additional pressure on ongoing infrastructure, roads, emergency services and recreational facilities, which are not designated according to an increase in the non-senior residents.' Resident Jeffrey Stromquist said that the community 'got old people, including my wife, who must walk the streets because we do not have sidewalks at Mesa East.' 'My wife walks the street with a cane, moves fairly slow,' he said, adding that she would not have time to get out of the way of a car driven by an inattentive driver. He also said that because the development's recreation area is adjacent to its entryway, parents worried about the traffic may encourage their children to use Mesa East's amenities. 'We have a number of courts, we have a pool with different things like this,' he said. 'That's a temptation for kids.' Brad Kahlhamer worried that there would be overflow parking from the proposed development into Mesa East. 'When you have 45 units, you'll have maybe four people (each),' he said. 'They're going to have guests, they're going to have parties. I think we're going to have a tremendous spillover.' And Robert Comeau said that because it's a rental project with no management on site, there would be six to seven people crammed into a unit. 'Having somebody off-site to complain to is bull,' he said. 'I got a lot of experience in this area. Renters are not fun. We don't need young people who don't know how to act.' Land-use Attorney Jon Gillespie noted that Mesa's ordinance prohibits over four non-related people to occupy a unit and the lease would enforce that. 'If that does get violated, then the renter would be violating their lease and they'd be subject to expulsion,' he said. Although management would be off-site there would be a contact number and all complaints quickly responded to, he added. According to Gillespie, Elliot Barken intended to keep and manage the property long term and that the units would rent for $2,400 a month. Amenities include a barbecue ramada, children playground, open space areas and a dog park. According to Gillespie, vehicle access in and out of the development would be restricted to Main Street, ample parking was provided with 45 single garages and 60 surface parking spots and to ensure privacy to Mesa East there would be no second-floor balconies and more trees planted to shield the project. Tenants also would be required to sign a separate agreement prohibiting them from using Mesa East amenities. Violation of that would result in lease cancellation. Gillespie also said that the developer would improve and take over the maintenance of a 20-foot-wide alley between Mesa East and the project. The alley was unkempt with overgrown vegetation and is supposed to be maintained equally between the two adjoining properties. Gillespie said that the property owner has been unsuccessful in developing the land zoned limited commercial since 1985 due to challenges such as narrowness of the site and access to Sossaman. He noted that the city's economic development staff and planning staff are in support of the proposed project. 'From a zoning perspective, this is a site that's been sitting empty for quite some time, 40 years,' Chair Benjamin Ayers said. 'I think this is a better use than it's sitting vacant, not doing anything. 'Vacant lots tend to bring issues. I think the density here is actually really appropriate for what it is. I think you're not trying to put 10 pounds in a 5-pound bag. 'I'm in support of the project. I think it's a good project.'
