Good Development – is there such a thing?

As we learned from Councilwoman Andrea Levine O’Rourke’s June 4, 2019 Newsletter, ‘common sense development’ or “Good Development” is possible:   

Qualify and Quantify Development Quality

Yes, property owners have rights and protections; as do the City’s residents.  Good development accomplishes both. In theory, the residents have the Building and Zoning Code and our City Council to ‘protect’ their interests and ‘quality of life’.  Critical issues such as parking requirements, setbacks from abutting properties, sidewalks and streets, neighborhood compatibility, access and egress, traffic impact, height limitations, minimum lot size, lot coverage, landscaping, etc.  

Additionally, issues such as hours of construction, staging and delivery areas, maintaining open streets and sidewalks, construction worker parking, are or should be contained within the Code of Ordinances.  These elements of zoning requirements work together to limit the impact on surrounding neighborhoods both during construction and for the many decades to follow.  Most importantly, by adhering to these ‘fundamental’ zoning elements, ‘density’ is also limited to a ‘common sense’ and acceptable level; and perhaps even sustainable.  Ergo, good development.

But Quality has Been Compromised

We residents are more than aware of developments (past and present) which have been allowed by variances, technical deviations, and specific ordinances.  Does the development going up behind the downtown Boca Raton Post Office best exemplify these techniques that appear to effectively bypass the Code?  You decide.  

I therefore both applaud and appreciate Councilwoman Levine O’Rourke for conveying her understanding that the Zoning Code’s application to submitted building plans – makes for a better finished product.  I hope all Council Members apply the code with due care to transform development applications that don’t sufficiently serve the best interests of the City and its residents into projects that do. 

Residents of Boca Raton know when our rights have been subjugated to a developer’s.  “Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.”