The plan calls for a 13-acre “town square” of multi-story buildings at U.S. 1 and Northlake Boulevard to be built on the site of the old Twin City Mall.
Project plan for Twin City Mall includes apartments, shops and a hotel in North Palm
A developer has proposed a project with apartments, shops, a hotel and a senior living center on the site of the former Twin City Mall in North Palm Beach.
Provided by Cypress Realty of Florida
NORTH PALM BEACH – A master plan before the City Council calls for redeveloping the old Twin City Mall site into hundreds of apartments, retail and restaurant spaces, a hotel and even an assisted living center, mostly in buildings ranging in height from nine to 14 stories.
The plan, which the City Council is scheduled to vote on Thursday, calls for the weed-overgrown site along U.S. 1 to become a hub for North Palm Beach, a place where residents can shop and eat closer to home instead of having to drive to West Palm Beach or other nearby cities.
Some council members like that Village Place would increase local tax revenue and add value to the property. Others worry that the buildings will overwhelm a community made up mostly of single-family homes and smaller office buildings.
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On August 8, nearly 100 people gathered at Village Hall to hear a presentation about the complex. Several spoke both for and against Village Place that evening when the council was scheduled to vote on the plan. It postponed the vote in hopes of reaching a consensus among its five members.
“I think the project is great and I’m happy about the tax revenue, but I can’t stand nine stories on US 1,” said Mayor Susan Bickel, one of three who expressed reservations about the master plan. “I wouldn’t want to drive past that every day.”
A seven-story apartment complex is already planned in the area. It will be called Northlake Promenade Apartments and will be located on the west side of the former mall site. It has already received approval from the Lake Park and North Palm Beach planning boards. The final vote on the proposal will be the Lake Park City Commission.
The Village Place plan calls for several rows of buildings extending to those with water views
The planned redevelopment of the Twin City site comes at a time when the influx of affluent new residents due to the COVID pandemic has changed the development pattern in Palm Beach County.
Developers who once favored single-family homes are now showing interest in building taller buildings and filling them with luxury condos and market-rate apartments, often in addition to retail, restaurant and office space.
In Lake Park, North Palm Beach’s southern neighbor, this change was first seen with the 24-story Nautilus 220 complex on U.S. 1. Additional complexes closer to downtown along Park Avenue are currently being considered.
The master plan for Village Place outlines possible uses for the 13-acre site at the northwest corner of Palmetto Drive and U.S. 1. It does not include construction plans for the buildings, all of which would have to be voted on separately by the town council. If the plans are approved, Village Place will be under construction for a decade, said Nader Salour of Cypress Realty, the developer.
The complex’s buildings along U.S. 1 and Palmetto Drive could rise as high as nine stories, or 120 feet. Others further into the middle of the property could rise 14 stories, or 175 feet, records show. The developer wants some buildings tall enough to offer water views, said Harvey Oyer, an attorney for Cypress Realty.
Salour, whose company also built the Abacoa neighborhood in Jupiter, has said he wants to build the buildings along U.S. 1 in phases, with some along the street being four stories, then nine stories 10 feet further in, and 14 buildings in the middle of the property.
The buildings would be set back 25 feet along U.S. 1 and 242 feet along Northlake Boulevard. Trees would line the surrounding streets and there would be more than 1 acre of open space in the center. The residential buildings would have hidden parking garages on at least the first three floors, Oyer said.
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The open space, which makes up about 30 percent of the complex, is intended to serve as a venue for community events, including live music, outdoor yoga and farmers markets. Oyer compared it to a town square.
The project includes 100,000 square feet of commercial space, records show. The complex is projected to generate about $1.5 million in property tax revenue for the village in its first year.
“We have to rely on redevelopment to ensure our long-term economic well-being,” said Council Member Kristin Garrison, who works in the planning department. “I’m happy with what I heard tonight. I’m not afraid of heights.”
Council members urge developers to lower building heights along US 1
Bickel and Council Member Lisa Interlandi had strong reservations about nine-story buildings directly on U.S. 1. They asked if the developer could build fewer stories or build the buildings in stages so they would be lower toward the street. Salour offered to lower the buildings to eight stories, but that did not result in a vote.
Oyer tried to allay concerns about height, saying Village Place will be much smaller than Nautilus 220. Nautilus is more than twice the height of Village Place, he said.
He said that if North Palm Beach rejects Village Place, he would be “fearful for the community” that a sea of parking lots or garden apartments would be built on the site.
“Don’t let the scaremongering surrounding Nautilus influence your decisions,” Oyer said.
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Noel Martinez, CEO of the Palm Beach North Chamber of Commerce, said the complex will bring much-needed jobs and housing to the area. Some residents said they support Village Place because of its family-friendly gathering places.
“I’m going to be here forever, raising my kids,” Matt Woodbury said. “They’re building a family of sorts.”
Others disagreed and said the complex would not fit in with the rest of the village.
“It’s just too big, too dense, too high and doesn’t fit the area at all,” said Ron Okolichany. “What is being proposed is far from what the residents want.”
Maya Washburn covers northern Palm Beach County for The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach her at [email protected]Support local journalism: Subscribe today.
