Avenir is wrong for Palm Beach Gardens: city planners

Rendering of Avenir and map
Rendering of Avenir and map

Palm Beach Gardens planners fear the Coral Gables-based WAL Development Group’s plans for a 7,600-house development called Avenir would threaten the “rural character” of the area.

A requested plan amendment would increase the number of proposed homes to 9,520, planners told the Development Review Committee in a memo. The developer can only build 406 homes on the 7.4-square-mile tract under current zoning laws.

Danny Lopez, a principal for WAL, told the Palm Beach Post that WAL will prepare responses and makes changes given the staff’s feedback.

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“The comments are part of an ongoing review process for the application we submitted,” Lopez said in a statement, cited by the Post. “We believe the process shows that our vision of Avenir could connect economic opportunities, environmental, health care, educational and community improvements in one project.”

A 10-acre Jupiter panel at a former waterfront mobile home park would need to be studied by archeologists before it is developed. The land likely contains historical artifacts underground. [Palm Beach Post]Mark Maurer