West Palm Beach city leaders are making way for a 318-unit apartment complex on a church site near the city’s baseball spring-training stadium.
City commissioners have given initial approval to a request to annex a 9-acre church site at the corner of 45th Street and Haverhill Road and allow high-density development there.
The site at 5710 N. Haverhill Road has housed Crossroads Baptist Church for more than 30 years. Delray Beach developer the Kolter Group is proposing to redevelop it as a gated apartment complex.
Kolter plans three six-story buildings with 318 apartments, including 44 rent-controlled workforce housing units. The company is asking the city to extend its city limits to include the church lot, which currently sits in the unincorporated county.
The church sits along a stretch of 45th Street that city officials say is poised for redevelopment.
It is just up the road from CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches, the sports complex that serves as the spring training home of the Houston Astros and Washington Nationals.
Just to the east, at the northwest corner of 45th and Military Trail, a Wawa convenience store is being built, and Chick-fil-A and Chipotle restaurants are planned.
Along with the annexation, the city is zoning the property to permit high-density residential development. The developer says doing so makes sense given the site’s location and the city’s need for more middle-class housing options.
The number of units planned still exceeds the amount generally permitted under zoning rules. But the developer is planning extra units by taking advantage of the city’s workforce-housing program, which allows additional units if the project includes sufficient workforce housing.
Kolter also asked to build 23% fewer parking spaces than city rules require, saying that doing so would allow the complex to include a park, in addition to a planned pool and clubhouse.
Commissioner Joe Peduzzi, whose district includes the site, said the project was a needed investment in a less-developed section of the city.
“I hope that it leads to more development in District 4, particularly in that area,” he said. “We don’t see many redevelopment projects in District 4, so this is exciting and I think it adds to our housing opportunities for our residents.”
Commissioners voted unanimously to give preliminary approval July 7. A final vote is set for July 20.
Andrew Marra is a reporter at The Palm Beach Post. Reach him at amarra@pbpost.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Apartments planned on church site near West Palm’s baseball stadium
Reporting by Andrew Marra, Palm Beach Post / Palm Beach Post
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By Andrew Marra, Palm Beach Post | USA TODAY Network
