More homes may come to west Palm Beach County

An affiliate of a California firm plans to build 1,030 houses in west-central Palm Beach County, bringing to almost 15,000 the number of new houses planned for the exurban area.

Iota Carol LLC, affiliated with a financial investment firm in Newport Beach, California, submitted its application to build homes on a 1,288-acre tract located west of the Acreage community.

The Palm Beach County Commission is scheduled to review the project in late August and is likely to hear opposition to Iota Carol’s plan from home owners opposed to further large-scale development in the county’s west-central section.

Developers have announced five developments, including the proposed Iota Carol plan, that would add 14,723 houses in west-central Palm Beach County, an area where residents have resisted development to preserve a quieter environment.

The five developments — Minto West, Indian Trails Grove, Iota, Arden and Avenir — are planned or approved on a cluster of parcels west of Royal Beach Boulevard, extending south from the Beeline Highway to Southern Boulevard.

The 4,500-home  Minto West development already had raised concerns about increased traffic, and the Iota proposal is likely intensify such concerns.

Lisa Interlandi, senior attorney for the Everglades Law Center, told the Palm Beach Post, “This is just ridiculous. The roads out there are already going to be significantly over capacity.” [Palm Beach Post] — Mike Seemuth