The 15-story Harbor Reflections condo tower planned for the Destin Harbor is the first to be approved under a “tiering system” in the city’s land development code. What will be the city's tallest building passed by a narrow margin, with four councilors voting to approve the project, while three voted against it.According to Destin's Community Development Director, Jerry Mucci, Harbor Reflections will be 159 feet tall, which is one foot shorter than the maximum allowed. That makes it 9 feet taller than the Emerald Grande. The two will probably look the same, Mucci said.
The tiering system allows for development in Tiers One and Two to receive automatic approval as long as it conforms to city rules. Developments where the units per acre and the height exceed Destin standards fall into Tier Three and require council review, including whether the “public benefit” the developer has to provide compensates for the size of the project.
The “public benefits” of Harbor Reflections, which will go up next to Harbor Docks, include $350,000 for workforce housing; burying overhead utilities; providing pedestrian access from Harbor Boulevard to the planned harbor boardwalk; and upgrading the Destin bus stop on Benning Drive.
“The developers met all the criteria they were supposed to,” Councilor Sam Seevers said. “It’s a beautiful building, and we’re going to get ($1.3 million) worth of public benefit.”
That figure is a third of the profit the developer expects to realize by going from Tier Two to Three.
At the hearing, Councilor Kelly Windes said taking that much money verged on “socialism” and set a bad precedent.
“For those old (landowning) families who held out for 50, 60, 70 years, they are not making a good return,” Windes said, adding that the rules were too subjective. “Every project that comes before us, we are going to argue with them about what chunk of the profit the city should get, and it’s too ambiguous. There has to be a standard, and we have to simplify this formula.”
Mayor Craig Barker said the council decided the size of the benefit was appropriate for the impact of Harbor Reflections going up on the site of Gilligan’s Restaurant and Gilligan’s Watersports, and the effect it will have on traffic and city life.
“I think the process went smoother than I’d expected for the very first trial,” Barker added.
Both Windes and Councilor Dewey Destin objected that under the city’s parking code, Harbor Reflections requires 270 parking spaces, but the developers only have to provide 219.
The city’s policy is to minimize harborfront parking lots because wide swathes of asphalt don’t encourage foot traffic, and because parking isn’t the best use of such valuable land. The harbor district is already several hundred spaces short of what consultants say it should have, so the city plans to build parking garages on the north side of Harbor Boulevard, allowing smaller parking lots on the south side.
The city had planned to pay for garages by issuing bonds against future property-tax revenues, but the Florida Supreme Court ruled last year that this requires a public referendum. City officials have said it’s not clear whether that would be a Destin referendum, or would have to include all Okaloosa County.
“We’re dead in the water right now,” Councilor Destin said. “We’re going forward with permitting when we don’t have any realistic understanding of when we’re going to get the public parking ... If we’re at a parking deficit, where are they going to park?”
Councilor Ted Corcoran was the most optimistic of the council members.
“The plan fit all the criteria, and therefore should have been approved ... It will be a great benefit to our city to show that the redevelopment of the harbor has officially begun. It will take several years to start seeing results, yet it is happening."
Source : http://www.nwfdailynews.com/
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