How Juno Beach is growing: Town poised to annex 25-home Captain's Key neighborhood

JUNO BEACH – Captain’s Key is an important step closer to becoming part of Juno Beach.

The property owners in the gated neighborhood of 25 homes and six undeveloped lots off U.S. 1, and two lots west of it have submitted signatures asking to be annexed into the town.

The Town Council unanimously voted on Wednesday, Dec. 14, to give the move initial approval and clear the way to annex Captain’s Key as soon as Wednesday, Jan. 24, when the council meets next. State law requires a final vote of approval before the annexation becomes official.

“It might look at times that we are making these decisions quickly, but we have all thought through this process of the voluntary annexation of Captain’s Key,” Vice Mayor Peggy Wheeler said. “I’m fine with the annexation and I’d like to give a welcome to the 33 lot owners who will now become residents of our town.”

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The City of Palm Beach Gardens is also trying to annex the neighborhood, which lies just south of the Juno Beach border. The city included it in their sprawling 1,316-acre annexation plan over five zones of land. Residents of the unincorporated areas will vote to approve or deny the annexation in March.

Captain’s Key approached Juno Beach about annexation after Palm Beach Gardens unveiled its proposed annexations. Its homeowners began collecting signatures for voluntary annexation in October.

Annexing entire neighborhoods can add hundreds of thousands of dollars to a local government’s tax base. The competing plans come at a time of soaring property values across Palm Beach County.

Palm Beach Gardens and Juno Beach are pursuing the annexation of Captain’s Key in different ways. Palm Beach Gardens must get 50% plus one of voter approval from residents in the currently unincorporated areas in a process known as forced annexation.

Juno Beach is seeking an voluntary annexation of the neighborhood, meaning all its property owners must indicate their intent for the town to annex them.

A spokesperson for the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections office could not say whether or not Palm Beach Gardens’ annexation ballot question would still be posed to voters in Captain’s Key if Juno Beach annexes the neighborhood first. The town attorney is researching the issue, according to Town Manager David Dyess.

When asked to comment on the Juno Beach annexation, Palm Beach Gardens Mayor Chelsea Reed said, “We appreciate and understand Juno Beach’s annexation consideration and, as always, look forward to continuing to be good neighbors.”

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What Captain's Key would bring to Juno Beach

Captain’s Key sits between Juno Beach and Palm Beach Gardens and has been in Juno Beach’s future annexation map since 2008, Dyess said.

The move would add 21.1 acres, 25 households and about 70 residents to the town of about 4,000 people. Captain’s Key amounts to about $105,000 in annual tax revenue and would increase Juno Beach’s taxable value more than $58 million, according to Dyess. Its streets would remain private.

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Most of the homes in the neighborhood have three or four bedrooms and date to the 1970s and 1980s. Some have been demolished and rebuilt, with two homes under construction now.

More than 90 percent of its homeowners live there full-time. The homes get their water from the Seacoast Utility Authority, which provides water to Palm Beach Gardens, Juno Beach, Lake Park, North Palm Beach and unincorporated Palm Beach County. The homes are on septic tanks.

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Only one person spoke during public comment on the proposed annexation ordinance on Dec. 13, and that was Enrique Alcaraz, a resident of Pleasant Ridge, which sits across U.S. 1 from Captain's Key.

He asked if the town would consider annexing his neighborhood before Palm Beach Gardens gets the chance to in the March vote. The council did not comment on the request during the meeting.

The town does not have enough time to get the needed signatures of approval from the owners of 132 homes in Pleasant Ridge before the March vote, Dyess later told The Palm Beach Post.

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Alcaraz said that he submitted a survey to the council a few months ago which showed that 80% of Pleasant Ridge homeowners wanted to become residents of Juno Beach rather than Palm Beach Gardens.

Six Pleasant Ridge residents spoke during public comment at an October meeting, urging Town Council members to annex them into the town. Many said they like the small-town feel of Juno Beach and already consider themselves its residents.

Maya Washburn covers northern Palm Beach County for The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida-Network. Reach her at mwashburn@pbpost.com. Support local journalism: Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Juno poised to annex Captain's Key near Palm Beach Gardens