Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutJoint Meeting Minutes 02-19-2007BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ST. LUCIE COUNTY, FLORIDA JOINT MEETING WITH INDIAN RIVER COUNTY Date: February 19, 2007 Convened: 2:00 p.m. Adjourned: 5:45 p.m. Commissioners Present: Chairman, Chris Craft, Joseph Smith, Paula A. Lewis, Charles Grande, Doug Coward Indian River County Commissioners — Com. Wheeler, Com. O'Bryan, Com. Davis, Com. Bowden, Com. Flescher Others Present: SLC: Doug Anderson, County Administrator, Dan McIntyre, County Attorney, Millie Delgado -Feliciano, Deputy Clerk Indian River Staff. Joseph Baad, County Administrator, Mike Zito, Asst. County Administrator, Wil Collins, County Attorney A presentation was made by Mr. Ernie Cox, Family Lands Remebered, LLC representative. Mr. Cox confirmed they will be having a full public workshop on March 22, 2006 regarding the Stewardship sending area and the 5,000 acre Cloud Grove receiving area. The applications for the areas have not been submitted however, the DRI has. Ms. Cynthia Angelos, Florida Conservancy & Development Group LLC addressed the Board and stated they were seeking a special assessment district and stated they had withdrawn the Indian River County portion from the application and will be presenting the SAD's for the St. Lucie county portion on Friday for approval vote by the Board. Mr. Cox addressed the Stewardship legislation and referenced legislation Chapter 163.3177 F.S. and stated changes have been made since its inception. There are 22,000 acres for build out in the long term of 30 years +. Presently there are two property owners, Cloud Grove and Adams Ranch which cover the 22,000 acres, i.e. 16,000 acres the Adams Ranch and 6,000 acres Cloud Grove. The Stewardship credits are the new currency. The more valuable the land is environmentally, the more credits are given. Of the 5,000 acres, 35% will remain open space. Mr. Cox reviewed the DRI which will identify the needed transportation needs and will be improved by phases. The transportation improvements must be in place or funded in order for development to continue. Cloud Grove will coordinate with transportation agencies throughout the build out time frame. Mr. Fred Rodd addressed the Environmental aspects of the project and gave the following as environmental benefits Cloud Grove would provide: Surface water Water use Cabbage Palm Hammock — 11 acres Reservoir Snail Kite (this would improve the habitat for its food source) Mr. Cox summarized the presentation and stated they are barely '/2 way through the project phase. Com. Bryan questioned the Minute Maid road to Orange timeline. Mr. Cox stated it may stay as a dirt road or may be used as a turnpike interchange, presently they do not have any plans to utilize this road. Com. O'Brien questioned the number of units on the Cloud Grove site. Mr. Cox advised the Boards there would be 1 unit per 5 acres or a total of 13,428 homes in the entire area and 12,000 would go into the Cloud Grove mixed use area. The question of how many wells would be installed. Mr. Cox stated he was not sure how many would be installed and he would need to meet with the Water District and possibly place test wells in. Com. O'Brien questioned how many gallons of water would be required by the 12,000 homes. Mr. Tom Waldech stated at build out they would require 3.83 million gallons per day. Com. O'Brien questioned if a special assessment district would be developed for this purpose. Mr. Cox stated it would be similar to Abacoa. Com. O'Brien stated he felt everyone heads east when they want to visit the beach, river etc., and it was not realistic to think that many people would staff in a community all the time. Com. Coward stated he had objections to the project and felt it was too intense for the area. Com. O'Brien stated she hared the same concerns and was not a proponent of high densities. Com. Coward stated he could not conceive having one road for a town of 12,000 people. The Board was advised of the timing of access for the project. Phase 1 year 2014 — Indrio Road Phase 2 year 2019- Indrio and Minute Maid Road Phase 3 year 2024 Indrio and the Turnpike Phase 4 year 2029 Indrio, Turnpike, Oslo Com. Wheeler stated he felt the problem here was it was being sandwiched between two counties with different building ideas. Com. Wheele4r questioned how the credits were identified. Mr. Cox stated the Stewardship credits are the "currency" of the RSLA, the more environmentally valuable and the more the uses are eliminated, the greater the number of credits generated. Credits can be transferred to eligible receiving areas. PUBLIC COMMENTS Mr. Frank Deserdes- Spanish Fairways, Indrio Road, expressed his concerns with the impact on the area. He concurred with the water availability concerns and also the traffic. 2 NOMMMME A representative from Indian River Citrus League addressed the Board in favor of the project. Mr. Beau Griffin, Fla. Dept. of Agriculture and Consumer Services addressed the Boards in support of the stewardship program. Mr. Joseph Paladin, Chairman Growth Awareness and also a builder in Indian River County stated it was difficult to see a comparison in Indian River County. Mr. Michael Minton, Dean Mead Minton Law Firm, and working with the Adams family addressed the Board and stated there were two water districts interested in the projects in the area. Com. Grande stated he felt he needed to look at the fiscal neutrality very carefully and at this time there is not a guarantee of this happening. Mr. Bob Ulevich, St. Johns Water Control District and Sebastian River Water Control District presented a history of the creation of the Central and So. Florida Flood Control District. Mr. Steven Kauffman, Florida Conservancy and Development Corp. addressed the Boards and expressed interest in speaking with Indian River County with regards to land purchase. There being no other business to be brought before the Boards the meeting was adjourned.