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1. PL ANNING DOCUMENT OF THE PROJECT
See items submitted as part of criteria No. 3.
2. COMPLETED ANNUAL PROJECT AWARDS
APPLICATION INCLUDING :
A. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT
(500 words) – setting, time frame, significance to the planning field, innovations and theory, methodology and/or practice and other unique
aspects to the application
Minto West is a 3,800-acre property located in the western portion of unincorporated Palm Beach County. The
site is located East and West of Seminole Pratt Whitney Blvd., South of 60th Street North, and North of 50th
Street N, East of Mead Hill Drive, and 44th Street North, East of 190th Terrace North and West of 140th Avenue
North. Historically, the property was utilized as an orange grove operation, which has since ceased. There are
still various active agricultural uses on the property. The property is located in the middle of sprawling residential
development. The overarching goal of the project is to bring balance to the existing land uses in the western
communities.
Originally established as an Agricultural Enclave in the Palm Beach County Comprehensive Plan in 2008. The
site was approved for 2,996 dwelling units and 235,000 square feet of nonresidential uses. In 2014, the developer
received approval from Palm Beach County to amend the Comprehensive Plan to permit increased density and
intensity consistent with the surrounding community. This change in allowable density and intensity will help
create a more sustainable western community by adding balance to the single-use land use pattern of the existing
area, and by contributing to the drainage, water supply, and transportation issues in the region.
Currently, the land uses surrounding the Agricultural Enclave consist of residential, schools, commercial, and
some public sites, all of which have been approved by the County since the grove was built. The majority of the
residential and nonresidential uses were built since the late 1980’s and were exempted from concurrency rules
in the early 1990’s by the creation of the Acreage Unified Planning Area. The area to the north of the property
are single-family, residential properties in the unincorporated Acreage community. The Acreage is a sprawling,
antiquated subdivision, consisting of 33 square miles of 1.25-acre lots,. These lots are inclusive of road and
drainage rights-of-way. An elementary and middle school are located on the adjacent land area in the northeast
corner of the subject site. The adjacent land to the east is residential (the Acreage). The adjacent land area to the
south is also residential and includes portions of the Acreage and the Town of Loxahatchee Groves, a primarily
low-density residential community consisting of 7,650 acres. On the west side of the site are agricultural uses and
rural residential.
The subject site has been recognized for special planning by Palm Beach County for twenty years through a variety
of planning efforts. These include the Midlands Study and later the Sector Planning effort, which recognized the
urbanized, sprawling residential development pattern of the surrounding area that is unsupported by sufficient
nonresidential uses and infrastructure. Implementation of the Minto West Master Plan over its 25-year build out
will help balance the mix of uses within the western community and provide much needed services to the existing
sprawling development areas. The project included amendments to the Palm Beach County Comprehensive
Plan, a Master Plan, Design Standards, and supportive text.
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[WORD COUNT 497]
B. PROJECT SUMMARY
(100 words)
Minto West is a 25-year, 3,800-acre master planned community located in Palm Beach County, Florida. It will
help responsibly manage future growth of the western county communities. Minto West consists of 4,546 homes
and 2.1 million square feet of non-residential use including office space, light industrial, 3,000-student college
campus, 150-room hotel, Research and Development Park, a Town Center featuring retail shops, restaurants and
entertainment, and extensive naturalized open space that will serve as a public benefit to the community. Minto
West is uniquely poised to create a vibrant and sustainable community that integrates with the rural character of
the area.
[WORD COUNT 100]
C. DISCUSSION
(200 words each)
ORIGINALITY AND INNOVATION
How does the entry present a visionary approach or innovative concept to address needs? How does the use of the planning process in this context
broadened accepted planning principles within the context of the situation?
Minto West has the unique opportunity to alleviate a number of issues caused by sprawling residential development
existing in western Palm Beach County, which is unsupported by sufficient nonresidential uses and infrastructure.
Over the past 20 years, the single-use land use pattern of the area has created regional drainage, transportation,
and water supply issues. Minto West Master Plan incorporates east/west vehicular connections between roadways
identified on the County’s Thoroughfare Map. The plan also contemplates over 600 acres of water storage to
help historic flooding episodes as well as the ability to give excess drainage capacity to neighboring districts in
an effort to improve water quality and storage. The 2.1 million square feet of nonresidential uses will provide
employment and educational opportunities within the western community, which are currently located primarily
in the eastern portion of the County.
The physical development of Minto West will embody traditional design including a sustainable mix of
residential, commercial, civic, and economic development center uses while also providing a variety of pedestrian
transportation options and large spans of open space and natural areas.
[WORD COUNT 178]
QUALITY
How does the project represent excellence of thought, analysis, writing, and graphics, regardless of budgetary limitations? How were available
resources used in a thoughtful and ethical process?
Due to the scale of Minto West, graphics and illustrations were an essential aspect of communicating the purpose
and benefits of the project elements as well as garnering public input. As part of the informational sessions,
discussed above, graphic renderings of the Conceptual Plan, Master Plan, and image boards were prepared
and placed around the Community Center. The image boards included photographs of places, elements, and
architecture reminiscent of what is intended for Minto West. Using red and green stickers, residents were asked
to express their opinion of site elements, areas of the plans, architecture, etc. that they liked or disliked. This was
an effective and measurable way to gather public input.
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The project team also prepared a series of bound 11”x17” sized books that included graphic images, maps,
development plans, and other exhibits. These books were approximately 10-15 pages long and include all of
the crucial project exhibits. The entire book was visual in nature and lacked text, which made it reader friendly
and easily discernible to the average person. When meeting with stakeholders, resident groups, or perspective
employers, these books proved extremely helpful in communicating the overall project vision.
[WORD COUNT 191]
TRANSFERABILITY
How does the project have potential application for others and how does use of the entry’s components and methodology would further the cause
of good planning?
There are many areas throughout the State of Florida that can be characterized as antiquated subdivisions or
urban sprawl. These areas contain largely a single-use land use, which causes increased number and length of
vehicular trips, traffic congestion due to highly directional traffic patterns, and inefficient uses of infrastructure.
Incorporation of appropriate residential and nonresidential uses helps such a community move towards
sustainability. Nonresidential uses, like the ones proposed for Minto West, create employment opportunities,
provide consumer services, and offer recreational opportunities. Rebalancing single-use land use areas is an
essential means of creating sustainable communities within our state.
[WORD COUNT 98]
COMPREHENSIVENESS
How have planning principles been observed, especially in consideration of the entry’s effects on other public objectives?
The Minto West property was established as an Agricultural Enclave in the Palm Beach County Comprehensive
Plan in 2008. Agricultural Enclaves are required by State Statute to “include appropriate new urbanism concepts
such as clustering, mixed-use development…” The property was given the zoning designation of Traditional
Town Development, which is intended to facilitate new urbanism through the development of a combination of
traditional development districts. The proposed TTD will include Traditional Neighborhood Developments, a
Traditional Marketplace Development, Planned Unit Developments, and a Multiple Use Planned Development
/ Economic Development Center (see attached Conceptual Plan). Each development pod has been organized on
the Master Plan to facilitate compact development, a mixture of uses, accessible open space and recreation areas
and pedestrian connectivity. Each residential neighborhood will also allow a mix of employment opportunities
and housing choices within close proximity to the commercial, civic, and recreational amenities of the traditional
neighborhoods.
As depicted on the Master Plan (see attached), the nonresidential uses have been concentrated along the major
arterial roadway, which bisects the property. The residential neighborhoods surrounding these nonresidential uses
have the highest density concentration. As development extends to the outer areas of the property, the densities
decrease substantially.
[WORD COUNT 198]
IMPLEMENTATION
What steps were taken to build momentum and public support for following and implementing the project?
Due to the size and scale of the project, extensive public outreach was utilized, which went well above the
requirements of the jurisdiction. A mix of mailings, online material, and in-person meetings were utilized to keep
the residents informed of the project’s progress and garner input on various aspects of the development. Before
the first application was submitted to the County, a mailer was sent to 18,000 surrounding homes introducing the
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new property owner and the initial intents of the development program. Subsequent postcards and newsletters
were mailed to residents within the surrounding area on a monthly basis.
A project website for the project was created to keep residents informed of progress, public meetings, key
documents/plans, important dates, and a means for residents to voice comments/concerns/input.
Minto West also constructed a “community center” on the affected property where numerous informational
sessions were held. The informational sessions were aimed to educate, dispel rumors and untruths, and garner
input. The input from each meeting was compiled using image boards and verbal and written comments. In
addition, the development team attended meetings with surrounding recreation groups, professional organizations,
and municipalities to discuss the merits of the project.
[WORD COUNT 198]
ENGAGEMENT
How were various public interests involved and what was the extent of that involvement? How does the project demonstrate a strong effort to
solicit input from those who historically have been left out of the planning process? How were those affected brought into the planning process?
How did the project obtain public and private support?
In order to involve the residents and stakeholders in the area, a variety of communication outlets were employed.
A mix of mailings, online material, and in-person meetings were utilized to garner input on various aspects of
the development, as mentioned in the Implementation section. The success of these efforts is evidenced by the
hundreds of residents who attended the informational sessions at the Community Center, which were held in the
evening times for the residents’ convenience. The success of the outreach is also evidenced by the hundreds of
letters of resident support received throughout the process.
The construction of the Community Center on the subject property greatly impacted the amount of input and
participation received. Locating the Community Center centrally on the site provided a convenient place for
residents of the western community. Informational meetings were also held in the evening and multiple times
per week to make it as easy as possible for people to attend a meeting.
The approved Master Plan was altered numerous times in response to the comments and suggestions discussed at
the Informational meetings.
[WORD COUNT 179]
ROLE OF PLANNERS
What was the role, significance and participation of planners? Was there a connection between the effort’s success and increased awareness in
the community of planners and planning?
Planners guided the project from its inception through the entitlement process. Prior to an application being
submitted to the County, a team of Land Planners collaborated to create the overall project Master Plan.
Collaboration with local planning bodies, such as the Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council, provided
positive feedback and innovative design concepts that were incorporated into the plan. After submittal to the
County, planners from the County provided additional input on the Master Plan design. Over the entitlement
process, which lasted one year, the Master Plan evolved to increase clustering towards the urban core with the
lowest densities around the project perimeter. Planning staff from the County required transect zones to be
included in the project design to ensure appropriate density transitions were occurring within the overall project.
The planner-led Informational Sessions, as discussed above, were highly effective in creating awareness about the
current condition of their community. Educating residents about the failing roadway system, drainage concerns,
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and overall unsustainable nature of the community, resulted in support for the project. Residents now see Minto
West as a means to help alleviate these regional issues and transform the western communities into a sustainable,
thriving place to live.
[WORD COUNT 197]
EFFECTIVENESS
How did the project address the need or problem that prompted its initiation? How have the results made a difference in the lives of people
affected? What level of effectiveness has the project had over time?
The Comprehensive Plan amendments and Master Plan for the project was approved in 2014. Currently, the
first residential site plans are under review with the County. The construction of the roadway improvements will
begin in 2015. The project has a 25-year build out.
[WORD COUNT 43]
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3. GR APHICS
Captions- 5 Images (Word Count: MAX 25)
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CO NCE PTUA L PL AN |
The Conceptual Plan graphically depicts general locations of the Transect zones, establishes density and
intensity, and demonstrates the properties compliance with new urbanism concepts.
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M AST ER PL AN |
The Master Plan depicts locations of residential and nonresidential pods, identifies densities and number of dwelling units,
civic sites, and roadway and perimeter buffers.
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TR AN SE CT PL AN |
The Transect Plan graphically demonstrates compliance with new urbanism concepts, clustering of density, and the
provision of substantial greenspace.
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ST RE ET NET WO RK PL AN |
The Street Network Plan identifies the hierarchy of the roadway system within Minto West. The plan
also shows the proposed lineage and ROW widths.
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ROADYWAY CROSS-SE CTIONS|
The roadway cross-sections identify the various elements of the streets within the project.
5. PROJECT TEAM
COTLE UR & HE ARING
1934 Commerce Lane, Suite 1
Jupiter, FL 33458
Ph (561) 747-6336
Fax (561) 747-1377
•••
CONTACT
Kate DeWitt, AICP (Cotleur & Hearing)
Land-Use Planner
kdewitt@cotleur-hearing.com
(561) 747-6336 ext. 110
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