Village of Indiantown
Planning & Economic Strategies is working with the Interim Village Manager and Planning Staff to provide general planning consultant focusing on special planning-related projects. Currently, PES is developing an extensive update to the Village’s building and development review and permitting fees. The Village of Indiantown was incorporated in 2018 and now has several years of experience implementing the originally adopted fee schedule. The Village is working to improve the level of cost recovery for the work Village staff performs along with the other planning consultants hired to assist with planning services. Once the updated fee schedule is ready, PES will work with the Village to conduct public outreach and attend public meetings with the Village Planning Board and Village Council.
Treasure Coast Food Bank
Planning & Economic Strategies is assisting the Treasure Coast Food Bank with the development of a new facility. Founded in 1988, Treasure Coast Food Bank (TCFB) is the largest hunger-relief organization on Florida’s Treasure Coast and the only Food Bank in the Treasure Coast and covers a four-county region – Indian River, Martin, St. Lucie and Okeechobee counties. The TCFB works to help families and individuals in need by providing nutritious food, hope, and dignity.
The Treasure Coast Food Bank is seeking to consolidate its existing food distribution, food production and administrative offices into a single structure. Currently, the Food Bank operates out of three different facilities in Fort Pierce. None of the current facilities nor the land they occupy is large enough to accommodate the current and future needs. The Food Bank is working to build a 109,000 building on a site in Fort Pierce that will consolidate all operations and dramatically improve efficiency of food distribution and operations. PES has been assisting the Food Bank president with site selection, reviewing site and architectural plans as they are developed along with reviewing bids provided by contractors responding to the request for bid.
Brevard County Comprehensive Plan Update
Bonnie C. Landry Associates
Working with BCLA, Planning & Economic Strategies assisted with the review and analysis of a proposed amendment to an existing comprehensive plan policy that limits increases in land use density on the south barrier island in the County. This legacy comprehensive plan policy that seeks to limit further increases in population density on the barrier island has been in place for decades. The County Commission was seeking alternatives to a policy that has created what some view and unequal land development rights for undeveloped properties sandwiched in between oceanfront high rises.
PES also assisted BCLA with a review of the County’s existing Coastal Construction Control Line (CCCL) policy which is based, in part, on the rules of the State of Florida regulating ocean-front construction. Brevard County has additional policies that further limit new construction setbacks from the ocean.
City of Stuart Site Plan Review
Bonnie C. Landry Associates
Planning & Economic Strategies has also worked to assist BCLA with review of site plan projects including a car dealership expansion on US 1; a conditional use for a pain clinic in a mixed office residential neighborhood; construction of a new fire station and; conversion of an office building to a small animal hotel facility in a mixed residential and office neighborhood.
North Hutchinson Island Land Use Analysis for a Condominium Project
District Planning Group (DPG)
Review, analysis and write up of changing the land use and zoning of an existing planned unit development site plan approved for single family residential to a multifamily condominium development fronting State Road A1A. The underlying land use allows for greater density than originally approved. The client wanted to understand the St Lucie County comprehensive plan process and steps needed to accomplish the conversion, including the likely timeframe and cost for a land use change. The analysis also included review of historic records and documents for a possible ocean access agreement with an adjacent development.
SAMPRAK Townhome Entitlements Project in Indian River County
District Planning Group
Working with DPG, Planning & Economic Strategies took the lead in assessing the development costs and permitting process for developing a 17-unit townhome project in southern Indian River County on a three-acre property. PES also worked to coordinate subconsultants to perform survey, land clearing, environmental and civil engineering services to support the project. PES also developed a spreadsheet to help identify project permitting, subconsultant services and impact fee project costs.
West Palm Beach Utility
District Planning Group
The City of West Palm Beach Utility (WPBU) is a municipal utility providing water and sanitary sewer to the City of West Palm Beach and a number of other municipalities in Palm Beach County. WPBU has requested District Planning Group address a significant policy issue in potential new strategies for assessing new development the proportionate share of needed capacity upgrades. Planning & Economic Strategies has assisted by performing the requested scan of how other municipal utilities policies and developing the proposed options for the utility.
