Development in Riviera Beach: City open to any and all ideas for key 80 acres

Riviera Beach soon expects to solicit ideas from developers on what they'd do with access to 80 acres in the heart of the city.

More than 100 developers and business officials crammed into a conference room at the city's Marina Event Center last month to hear about the city's long wish list, which includes a 150,000-square-foot municipal complex with a new City Hall, a sports and recreation center with complimentary uses for Inlet Grove High School and mixed-use development with retail, business, education, hospitality and nighttime uses.

Rather than simply borrow to build those facilities, the city wants to partner with developers who would, in exchange for the right to build their own projects on city-owned land, construct the facilities for Riviera Beach.

It's a novel approach that could lessen costs for a city with vast infrastructure needs, a limited tax base and only $55 million in borrowing capacity.

City Manager Jonathan Evans pitched that approach.

"Welcome to paradise," he said during the Jan. 24 meeting. "You are on the precipice of something great."

Evans then went through the city's assets — its proximity to the port, coastal location and direct access to Interstate 95 — and noted that some $1 billion in development projects are already approved or in the approval process along the Broadway corridor.

"We are on fire," he said. "We are looking for developers with the same passion that want to join us in reimagining Riviera Beach."

The city has already hired a consultant, Dallas-based CBRE, a giant commercial real estate services and investment firm, to serve as its adviser. And in the next 30 days, the city expects to issue an "invitation to negotiate," inviting firms to spell out what they'd do with access to those 80 acres, which are spread out over three parcels.

One of those parcels is the 41-acre site at 600 and 601 Blue Heron Blvd. Another is a 2-acre site at 2250 Broadway, and a third is a 38-acre site owned by the Palm Beach County School Board that is bordered by 34th Street to the north, West 28th Street to the south and Avenues H and J to the east and west.

Firms would have 60 or 90 days to respond with their development ideas for those sites, depending on the final terms of the ITN.

Despite its many assets, Riviera Beach has been dogged by previous, failed attempts at large-scale development, most notably the fits and starts that have hamstrung redevelopment of its marina. Political infighting has continued to slow progress.

Some of that infighting was on display during the January meeting, when the city held a special meeting to go over how it plans to proceed with its ITN.

Mayor Ronnie Felder and some City Council members disagreed on whether a single or multiple developers should be asked to undertake the work.

Felder indicated he'd like to see a single developer handle the work, which he argued would improve the chances that some of the city's more costly projects would be undertaken. Council member Shirley Lanier indicated she'd like to see multiple developers get a chance to handle the work, which she argued would disperse opportunities and increase fairness.

CBRE representatives and Evans said current plans for the ITN, still a work in progress, would allow a single or multiple developers to handle the work. Developers would not have to pitch projects on all of the 80 acres; they could pitch smaller projects on smaller parcels.

That process, Evans said, "gives us great flexibility to ultimately bring the best deal to the city and to the council for consideration."

Council member Tradrick McCoy appeared to object to the whole process.

"I'm not even pleased with being here," he said.

The councilman expressed unease about CBRE's role and whether the firm and Evans were taking on evaluation duties that should be the domain of elected officials.

Some of McCoy's criticism hinted at his long-standing unhappiness with Evans' role, performance and pay.

Evans has been leading education sessions on a trio of bond referenda Riviera Beach voters will consider in March, which, if approved, would allow the city to raise $115 million for various infrastructure projects.

The ballot questions will cover a $25 million bond for a new fire station, a $35 million bond for a new police department headquarters and a $55 million bond for parks, recreation and leisure projects.

State law bars city officials from lobbying residents to vote yes, but they can — and have — told residents the benefits of approving the measures.

A flyer distributed last month noted: "Improvements to public safety facilities can affect response times, provide cost savings to tax-payers over time, and improve the safety of residents and first responders alike."

Some residents, including McCoy, have raised concerns about the cost to taxpayers and wondered aloud if city officials have their priorities in order.

McCoy noted the city's recent and belated notification to residents about a contaminant in its drinking water. While that problem has been addressed, McCoy argued that it illustrates the folly of asking residents to authorize spending for parks, recreation and leisure projects.

"I would encourage you to vote no on the parks bond because you can't even have any kind of city if you don't have clean water," McCoy told residents at the meeting. "Parks are not a necessity."

The city has plans to replace its aging water treatment plant. In September, council members, sitting as the city's Utility District, sharply raised water and wastewater rates to help manage the old facility and lay the financial groundwork to build a new one.

Evans said the city already has $20 million in sales tax money to contribute toward a new City Hall. He added that he hopes the new facility will be a community hub that won't sit idle after work hours, as is typical at other city halls.

Lee Ann Korst, CBRE's senior vice president, said the turnout for the developers' workshop in January was an indication that firms are eager to work with the city.

"That interest in Riviera Beach is very heartening and encouraging at the start of a project like this," she said.

Wayne Washington is a journalist covering West Palm Beach, Riviera Beach and race relations at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at wwashington@pbpost.com. Help support our work; subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Riviera Beach wants to negotiate development projects near West Palm