Changing landscape: Will GL Homes land swap deal signal an end to 50 years of protected land?
Fifty years ago, a swath of rich agricultural land west of Florida's Turnpike was simply called “The Reserve.”
Farm after farm dotted the landscape and at that time, county planners recognized the need to protect the area from development. It was one of the most productive agricultural areas in South Florida.
After voters approved an open space bond issue in 1999, the county adopted a master plan to restrict what could be built on what is now known as the “Agricultural Reserve.” What followed was $100 million of bond funds used to buy more than 2,400 acres of farmland with almost all of it leased to area farmers.
The 60-40 rule was created, designed to limit density — 60% of a development had to be preserved as open space while 40% could be used for development. Builders were allowed to preserve land outside their development site as long as it was within the Ag Reserve.
The results: More than 6,400 acres have been preserved, which means nothing can be built upon them unless the county removes deed restrictions.
But something that could cause a seismic shift in that business model created half a century ago is on the horizon.
The long-standing requirement that preserve parcel swaps can only occur within the Ag Reserve will be tested as county commissioners will vote Tuesday, Oct. 24, on whether to approve a request by GL Homes to swap land outside the Agricultural Reserve, in the Acreage area.
More: Palm Beach County approves The District, two other commercial developments in Ag Reserve
GL Homes desperately wants to make the land swap deal happen
GL Homes, the home builder that has already built more than 10,000 homes in the Ag Reserve with more to come, wants to build a 1,000-home, high-end senior community west of Boca Raton. It is land that has been preserved by GL Homes so that GL could build higher-density developments inside the Ag Reserve. But those lands have easements on them and cannot be built upon unless the county agrees to remove them.
In exchange for the permission to build the community west of Boca, GL Homes would preserve land it owns in the Acreage area. And GL has added a number of sweeteners to make it happen:
A much-needed 250 units of workforce housing near the proposed high-end, age-restricted development west of Boca Raton.
A water reservoir that would need to be permitted by federal and state sources.
Land that could be used to build a county park.
A Chabbad synagogue.
Land for a residential care facility to be built by Jewish Family Services/Jewish Association.
Land for a Torah Academy School Campus.
RELATED: COBWRA mounts 11th hour fight to kill the GL Homes' land swap in Palm Beach County
Why many environmental groups are so adamantly against the deal
Environmentalists and civic groups, such as the Alliance of Delray Residential Associations and the Coalition of Boynton West Residential Associations (COBWRA), are mounting a strong effort to block the swap, fearing the precedent would open up the floodgates for additional preserve parcels within the Ag Reserve to be developed.
Critics say it will be the end of the Ag Reserve. GL Homes claims the "business deal" it has offered to the county is too good to pass up.
But what has happened to the Ag Reserve since the master plan was adopted 20 years ago? The plan has already been altered many times; will those changes make it easier for the county to approve the upcoming land swap?
The Ag Reserve lies between Hypoluxo Road on the north, Clint Moore Road on the south, the Florida Turnpike on the east, and the Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge on the west. It encompasses nearly 22,150 acres.
County planners noted in the late 1990s that vegetable imports from Mexico and pressure for development were factors behind the increasing loss of farms. Labor shortages were another issue as the federal government limited the number of farm workers from other countries that could work. Those same arguments continue to be made today.
Ag Reserve defenders say the changes were necessary to adjust to changing times, such as, more recently, to respond to the need for workforce and affordable housing. Workforce housing is designed to accommodate workers. Affordable housing can also include workers but is designed primarily for people with incomes below the county’s average median income.
The "adjusting to changing times" argument is the same being made to support the GL Homes' land swap.
Ag Reserve over the years: How development has chipped away the coveted land
According to county planners, "the result of the unanticipated events" increased the allowable housing units by nearly 1,300 and decreased the amount of land that would have been preserved for agriculture. Many developments have landed before county commissioners since the bond issue was approved in 1999:
2005: A five-story hospital on Boynton Beach Boulevard
A land use amendment on a 63-acre site was adopted in 2005 to allow for the development of Bethesda West Community Hospital on the northeast corner of Boynton Beach Boulevard and State Road 7. Such a facility was not envisioned. The five-story building is the tallest in the Ag Reserve.
Plans were approved two years ago for a tripling of hospital beds to 236 along with nearly 200,000 square feet of additional medical offices. The project is expected to further strain an already congested traffic situation along Boynton Beach Boulevard.
RELATED: Palm Beach County Commission faces Agricultural Reserve dilemma: Preserve or develop?
The county also sold a 40-acre property, bought with voter-approved bond money, to the Solid Waste Authority (SWA) for a Waste Transfer Station in the Ag Reserve west of Boynton Beach on State Road 7. County commissioners, agreeing there was a need for the transfer station, amended the zoning code to allow it to happen.
2006: 'Preserve parcels' are established
GL Homes paid nearly $20 million to the South Florida Water Management District in 2006 to buy land near its canals so that it could have them considered as preserve parcels, a move that allowed it to increase the number of homes it could build on developments built within the Ag Reserve. Critics argued that it made no sense to approve the deal because land was being preserved that could never be built upon. Commissioners approved it nonetheless.
2015: County allows for smaller, isolated parcels
In 2015, landowners with fewer than 150 acres succeeded in persuading the commission to repeal a requirement that their land be contiguous to preserve parcels. The change allows smaller, isolated parcels to become preserves, which was not the intent of the original provisions.
2019: The definition of 'commercial' properties comes into question
A commercial cap in 2019 restricted how much commercial property could be built and where it would be located. While the current commercial cap of 1.1 million square feet has been reached, some developers have yet to build on their approved plans. The cap was increased several times to accommodate developers.
Once the cap was reached, a developer, looking to build on Boynton Beach Boulevard and Acme Dairy Road, called on the county to exempt self-storage facilities from being considered commercial.
Commissioners granted the request, resulting in a self-storage facility of as much as 120,000 square feet to be built at the northeast corner of Lyons Road and Acme Dairy Road. Another developer, looking to build on Atlantic Avenue, was faced with the same dilemma, and used the precedent set on Boynton Beach Boulevard, to build another self-store facility to get around the commercial cap limit.
2020: Landscapers need storage areas
Landscapers pleaded with county commissioners in 2020 to store their equipment on preserve parcels in the Ag Reserve. The rule had required them to show receipts to prove that their primary use of the land was for agriculture. The commission agreed to change the rules to eliminate the receipt requirement.
Instead, the landscape companies were called on to use at least 70% of their parcel for “a nursery growing area.” Critics said far too much preserved land was being used for the storage of landscaper vehicles, something that was not envisioned.
The commission had received complaints that the landscape operations were affecting the quality of life in rural residential areas. Residents argued that storing landscape equipment had nothing to do with farming.
The new rule only applies to existing landscape operations.
2022: A deal with the Lake Worth Drainage District and a new 'essential housing' designation
The Lake Worth Drainage District (LWDD) in 2022 called on the commission to allow it to sell off land adjacent to its canals to GL Homes. The home builder agreed to pay $22 million. Staff and environmentalists strongly opposed the plan, noting that land so close to the canals could never be built upon. The same argument was made when the county approved the South Florida Water Management District's sale of canal rights-of-way in 2006 to GL Homes. The homebuilder used that precedent to argue that the LWDD purchase should be approved.
County commissioners voted 5-2 to override the staff recommendation and approve the LWDD plan even with staff noting that "there was no benefit" to the county to allow the rights-of-way to be considered as preserve parcels.
The result: another 300-plus homes in the Ag Reserve that had never been anticipated.
Also in 2022, the following happened:
Commissioners accommodated the plans of Erickson Senior Living, the nation’s second-largest independent-living provider, to build a Congregate Living Facility (CLF). Such a facility was never envisioned for the Ag Reserve as the CLF's high density and the 60% preserve requirement made it impossible to be built. The commissioners changed the zoning to permit a CLF on a 92.5-acre site between Florida's Turnpike and Acme Dairy Road on Boynton Beach Boulevard. Nearly 1,200 CLF beds are expected to be built. The move clears the way for additional CLFs in the Ag Reserve.
County commissioners created a new category — “essential housing” — allowing workforce and affordable housing to be built in the Ag Reserve but only along the region’s two major east-west thoroughfares — Atlantic Avenue and Boynton Beach Boulevard. Advocates argued the change was needed to help address the region’s lack of affordable housing. The current rules limit base density to just one unit per 5 acres. The new rule allows for up to eight units per acre with a minimum lot size of 30 acres. The change could result in an additional 2,000 housing units being built.
County commissioners also created a new category, “commerce,” that like, essential housing, can only be built near the two major east-west thoroughfares of Atlantic Avenue and Boynton Beach Boulevard. The commerce projects will not be subject to the commercial cap. Eligible projects include storage, laboratories, landscape service and light manufacturing and processing.
2023: More loopholes for housing
Owners of the Brookside property near Delray Marketplace this year called on the county to let them build on a parcel that was initially bought with funds from the 1999 bond issue.
The proposal calls for more than 600 housing units. Critics call the request outrageous, saying approval would be a slap in the face to voters who approved the bond issue. Making approval even more problematic was the fact that the county bought the 75-acre parcel for $5.3 million, and then sold it back to some of the same owners for $3.2 million, allowing the ownership group to realize a profit of more than $2 million.
The county sold the land because lawyers said it was making too much money from leases to farmers; an easement was included that barred the land from ever being built upon. The owners have been trying since 2017 to lift the easement. The commission rejected the request.
All those roads lead to Tuesday's final vote.
County planners say the Ag Reserve master plan had accomplished what it set out to do — reduce the number of housing units in the Ag Reserve from 20,000 to 14,000.
Critics of the land swap note that thousands of preserved acres could be built upon throughout the Ag Reserve if the GL Homes' request is approved, and that additional commercial development that will occur under the Commerce and Essential Housing categories was never envisioned.
Those 2023 figures of homes built in the Ag Reserve would have to be updated.
Mike Diamond is a journalist at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. He covers Palm Beach County government and transportation. You can reach him at mdiamond@pbpost.com. Help support local journalism. Subscribe today
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Land swap plan in South Florida pits builder against environmentalists
