West Palm Beach's south end waterfront sees updated plan for apartments, stores and restaurants

A highly anticipated plan to develop a key piece of waterfront property in the south end of West Palm Beach won city support this week with increases in workforce housing, but minus a coveted boutique grocery store.

The project proposed for the long-vacant land at 8111 S. Dixie Highway along the C-51 canal includes an eight-story apartment building with 358 units, retail shops and restaurants at a site considered the gateway to the city from Lake Worth Beach.

It is also in the popular community south of Southern Boulevard, nicknamed SoSo, which has experienced a surge in retail renovations, new design shops and high-end home construction since the pandemic.

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City commissioners unanimously approved Monday moving forward with plans for the development, although there were questions about a 70% increase in apartment units from the original pitch made earlier this year and the lack of a Trader Joe’s-like grocery store.

Patrick Koenig, co-founder of Flagler Realty & Development, which is partnering with Woodfield Development on the project, said adding a grocery store has not been ruled out, but that the store considering opening at the site wanted to sit further from the road and have a “sea of parking in the front.”

“That plan didn’t fit with a mixed-use development,” Koenig said.

The increase from the initially planned 210 residential units to 358 is allowed for per a city resolution passed in December 2022 that says a developer can increase a building’s capacity if 25% of the units are set aside for workforce housing. An original plan called for 52 units of workforce housing. The new plan has 90 workforce housing units.

Jennifer Ferriol, the city’s director of housing and community development, said the project stopped well short of the allowable 420 units, and isn’t asking for additional incentives from the city, such as grants or development fee waivers.

Flagler Realty & Development won a so-called "invitation to negotiate" in May 2022 from the commission, which calls for it to buy the city-owned vacant land for $10.5 million. Koenig said 41% of the project will be open spaces with walkways for the public and kayak and paddleboard launches along the banks of a renovated C-51 canal.

More than 10 people spoke in favor of the project at Monday's commission meeting, including a co-owner of Flanigan’s Seafood Bar and Grill, the chief executive officer of Mint Eco Car Wash, both on Southern Boulevard, and a representative of Palm Coast Plaza, which sits directly to the north of 8111 S. Dixie.

“Finally, SoSo is coming into its own,” said resident Gail Levine at the meeting. “I really do feel this will be a great gateway into our town. We have waited a long time.”

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Palm Beach Atlantic University also wrote a letter in support of the plan. Last year, the private Christian school bought four townhomes for $2.8 million as a way to create affordable housing for its faculty, staff and graduate students.

Koenig said rents at the project will average about $3,000 a month, but the 90 workforce housing units will get discounted rates. Workforce housing is generally defined as housing that is affordable to households whose income is between 81%-140% of the area median income.  Ferriol said that in the city's most recent projects, it has limited the workforce housing to those who are  between 81-100% of the area median income.

Workforce housing is generally aimed at middle-class workers such as teachers or police officers.

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In addition to the apartments, there will be two buildings along Dixie Highway with a total of nearly 17,000 square feet of commercial and restaurant space.

“We need this section of West Palm Beach to evolve and catch up with the rest of the city,” said south end resident Sabra Kirkpatrick, noting that the vacant land has been a magnate for nefarious activity and the homeless. “The reality is 8111 is not only an eyesore but has been a serious problem in the south end for far too long.”

Kirkpatrick, who is a member of the South End Neighborhood Association, made clear she was speaking for herself and not the association.

Association President Richard Pinsky said that while the project still has the support of the association, there is concern about the increase in units. He said the changes will be reviewed by members at an August meeting.

The project still faces reviews by city zoning and planning boards.

Kimberly Miller is a veteran journalist for The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA Today Network of Florida. She covers real estate and how growth affects South Florida's environment. Subscribe to The Dirt for a weekly real estate roundup. If you have news tips, please send them to kmiller@pbpost.com. Help support our local journalism, subscribe today. 

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: West Palm waterfront lot sees plan with restaurants workforce housing