19 Dec Smart growth is incompatible with mindless sprawl

By Tom Twyford
Courtesy of The Palm Beach Post

It is both frustrating and disappointing to see municipal and county decision-makers allow sprawling growth to occur, and in all the wrong places. The Post article from Dec. 9, “Gardens planning panel backs massive project,” is the latest example of a developer getting a green light for zoning changes that will forever alter the character of our county’s landscape.

If given final approval by the Palm Beach Gardens City Council, the proposed Avenir development will be granted approximately 10 times the current allowable housing density, building nearly 4,000 homes in an area surrounded by rural communities and natural areas.

Granting a tenfold increase in density, and expanding the city’s urban service boundary is a windfall for the developer. It is a blow to taxpayers and to those living in surrounding communities, who will be affected the most. Avenir will significantly increase water demands and traffic congestion on systems that are already stressed.

Property development is speculative. No developer is guaranteed anything other than what the zoning was when they purchased the property, which, in this case, according to the Comprehensive Plan, was 483 units. Let’s build communities that are more appropriate for the region where they are located, and which are less impactful to the environment and to those who live nearby.

Regional growth is inevitable, but let’s have smart growth, not more sprawl. The concrete is creeping, eroding all the things that make Palm Beach County special. I, for one, hate to see it come.