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BACK TO SCHOOL
You’ve probably noticed the additional traffic during your morning commute: the yellow buses are back and so are the walkers and kids on bikes. School’s back in session and that means close to 190,000 students as well as more than 20,000 school district staffers are back at it. To make sure all students start the year off prepared for school, each year the county’s Office of Community Revitalization (OCR) organizes Back to School PBC. On August 2 at four different locations throughout the county, Gregg and scores of other volunteers made sure that thousands of low-income students received back packs with supplies, books, clothes to get the year off to a good start. Thanks to all who contributed!
CYPRESS CREEK REDEVLOPMENT
A long shuttered golf course east of Military Trail just north of Boynton Beach Boulevard could see up to 152 new residences after the Board of County Commissioners, on July 17, approved a proposal by Toll Brothers to develop the approximately 120-acre golf course that has been fallow for more than 5 years. The approval to redevelop the golf course comes after a previous request by another builder was rejected in 2019.
Golf course conversions are never fun for people who live next door and who will have to deal with years of disruptions caused by preparations and construction. In addition, there’s the challenge of cleaning up the legacy pesticides and herbicides that are often present on golf courses. The process of cleaning the dirt, also known as soil remediation, is regulated by state statute and closely monitored by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. Existing Cypress Creek residents were also concerned about the impacts of the development on the current drainage, which they said is already a problem in some areas and wanted to see bigger buffers between their homes and the new development.
The Cypress Creek community was fairly evenly split: on the one hand, people vehemently opposed to the project, whereas others were supportive of development of the unused course. County staff gave the project a recommendation of approval, meaning in their professional opinion the project doesn’t violate any of the standards used to evaluate it. The Zoning Commission concurred with staff’s assessment and greenlit the proposal as well. So, it was up to the board to make the final call.
Zoning hearings are quasi-judicial in nature. It’s a court-like setting, where evidence is presented at the hearing and experts provide testimony. County commissioners serve as the judges who apply the law to the evidence presented to come to a decision based on competent substantial evidence. This is to say that county commissioners can’t just do whatever they want, or bend to political pressure or public opinion, as their decision must be impartial and based on facts.
Gregg was not thrilled by the project, which does not include any workforce housing, but he did not find any reasons that would lead him to reject the proposal. At the hearing he wanted to make sure the residents’ concerns were adequately addressed, so he insisted on adding numerous conditions of approval that the developer agreed to. Among the conditions of approval Gregg advocated for were enhanced buffers with more mature trees and shrubs, larger setbacks as in more separation between new and existing homes, and stronger oversight of the soil remediation plan. Staff created a website to collect all relevant information for interested parties. That website is here.
Shout out to everyone who came to the Loggerhead Marine Wildlife Center in Juno Beach for the Plastic Free July proclamation!
Thanks for being a reader!
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