Hutchinson Island building height zones under attack by land developers | Opinion

Charles Grande, Don W. Stacks & Dick Calabro
·3 min read

There are times as residents of St. Lucie County when we just have to sit back and wonder just what is happening to our county.

Major changes have occurred. Population density and travel times have increased as more cars are driven by more residents, and county commissioners approve more and more land development code changes. This can easily be seen in western St. Lucie with the development of areas such as Tradition.

Now we find developers are attempting to get a change in building height limits on our barrier islands. Interestingly, this is not a countywide proposed change, it only impacts the Hutchinson Island Residential Zoning District.

Hutchinson Island serves as a barrier island, providing protection to the mainland and simultaneously serves as an environmental zone protected by keeping a check on population density through zoning codes.

Currently, building height is limited on Hutchinson Island to two zones. Zone A is for high-rises limited to 125 feet, while Zone B limits residential and business heights to 35 feet. Lately, the County Commission has approved height variances for at least two developers.

The twin Ocean Towers condominiums (from right) and the twin Islandia condominiums are seen along the shoreline looking southward, along with others, in the 9000 block of State Road A1A on Thursday, June 1, 2021, on Hutchinson Island in St. Lucie County. Many condominium residents are asking questions about the safety of their buildings. There are nearly 60 high-rise condos (3 stories or above) in St. Lucie County scattered along Hutchinson Island, and majority of those high rises are between 30 and 40 years old, according to county officials.

Now developers want more.

A proposal is being drafted that will create a Zone C. In proposing the zoning change, height will be redefined. Instead of using feet as the measure, the proposal redefines height as “floors” and redefines Zone A as 12 floors and Zone B as 3 floors. Zone C would add two floors to both residential and business buildings, providing developers with five floors. Zone C would include undeveloped areas west of State Road A1A.

Why should this change bother St. Lucie County residents? At least three outcomes (other than the additional developer profit) will come from the changes.

First, as developers build in Zone C, additional floors allow for more population growth, thus increasing population density.

Second, as population density increases, so does traffic with the resultant increases in driving time on and off both islands.

Third, infrastructure will be significantly impacted by more people residing and commuting between Hutchinson Island and the mainland. The environmental impact of more residents and increased traffic will be substantial, to say nothing of the social impact of increased population density.

The proposed changes to Hutchinson Island height limitations are being opposed by the Presidents Council of Hutchinson Island. Clearly, the proposed changes will yield a less precise measure of building height and allow developers to build larger buildings, thus adding to already dense population centers on both Hutchinson Island.

Given the recent increase in residential value on Hutchinson Island and the population movement from Miami-Dade and Broward counties to our island, developer profit and an increased county tax base seem to be driving this proposal.

Presidents Council board members met with county commissioners late last year to express their concerns about the proposed changes. While the proposed changes sit in the Planning and Development Services Department, commissioners appear to be less concerned about the impact of the proposal and seemingly more concerned with the impact on the tax base than on the probable problems due to increased density by allowing developers to build taller, larger buildings in previously undeveloped areas.

Do we want Hutchinson Island to become mirrors of Miami-Dade and Broward counties? St. Lucie County has already permitted height variances to current zoning code; what will stop them from approving Zone C variances?

As representatives of Hutchinson Island, we see no measure of improvement in any of the proposed changes and overwhelmingly oppose all of them. We have made our opposition known to all five county commissioners and their staff, finding little support but from a minority of commissioners on stopping these proposals before they get out of the Planning and Development Department.

Our countywide elected commissioners should serve their constituents, not political backers, developers, and consultants who look at undeveloped areas on Hutchinson Island as potential money trees.

The Presidents Council of Hutchinson Island strongly urges St. Lucie County Commissioners to stop this proposal before it is forwarded for formal discussion.

Charles Grande is president of the Presidents Council of Hutchinson Island. Dick Calabro is co-head of the council's Governmental Affairs Committee. Don W. Stacks is head of its Communication Committee and treasurer. They live in Jensen Beach.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Beware developer tries to boost heights on Hutchinson Island | Opinion