Ten More Years for Sebastian Inland Harbor? You've got to be kidding

UPDATED 4/25/2016:

From Lee Geanuleas:

Apologies for a lengthy post, but there’s a lot to address regarding the San Sebastian Inland Harbor PUD amendment that is coming up for First Reading at tonight’s City Commission meeting at 5:00 PM. 

The PUD was originally approved in 2004 and was supposed to be started in 2007 and completed in April 2017. The new owners (as of 2014) are requesting an amendment to the PUD to state that construction must commence by April 23, 2022 and must be completed by April 23, 2027.

A critical question is with all the development in downtown St Augustine since 2004, particularly on the west side, does the PUD still make sense for the city? Does the already approved Flagler College parking garage on Malaga St necessitate a reevaluation of a project that includes another large parking garage.

What’s in the PUD you ask? The Site will be developed as follows (site map in the picture below):
• Residential condominiums - up to 70 units
• Hotel - up to 225 rooms, with all typical hotel accessory uses allowed including, but not limited to:
o Banquet Facility and Meeting Rooms
o Spa and Exercise Facilities
o Restaurants and Lounges
o Gift Shops
o Retail
• King Street Retail - up to 27,000 square feet
• Sebastian Harbor Drive Retail - up to 9,060 square feet
• Lorida Street Lofts - up to 15 units
• Marina with up to 65 slips (including 4 public slips) and a water taxi station;
• One 6 level parking garage and surface and subsurface parking lots;
• A public river walk connecting the marina to King Street
• Outdoor amphitheater, sculpture garden, and scenic water fountains.

Parking: The total number of spaces provided will be a minimum of 636. Parking for the PUD will be provided within surface and subsurface parking lots and the multi-level parking garage in the general location depicted on the map. Angular parking will be provided outside of the public right-of-way along Sebastian Harbor Drive as depicted on the map.

Maximum Building Height: The maximum building height allowable within the PUD shall be 50 feet (50') as measured in accordance with the Zoning Code for the existing RGO category, with an allowance of an additional fifteen feet (15') above the roof for mechanical equipment and architectural elements as described in the Zoning Code (to allow roof line variation). Additionally, one architectural element (such as towers, cupolas or icon) may exceed the roof of the Hotel. One tower may extend up to ninety feet (90').

Question: Is this the right intensity of use for St Augustine 11 years from now and beyond? Should the Commissioners use the leverage they have now to renegotiate the PUD to possibly re-shape it and de-scope the intensity?

Unlike the Madeira PUD extension of a few weeks ago, there are no families already living at San Sebastian Inland Harbor. Now might be our last best chance to make changes.

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CORRECTED

Monday, APRIL 25, 2016, St. Augustine City Commissioners will be asked to consider on first reading ten more years for the Sebastian Inland Harbor Planned Unit Development. Come speak during general public comment at 5 PM. The City sold the land to a developer, which lied, broke its promises, refused to provide documents on its claim to have signed up for a Westin Hotel, and then went bankrupt.

The project is now owned by a Limited Liability Company (LLC).

Full disclosure and transparency.

Now.

Enough Bolesian corruption -- when I asked about the Westin that lawyer GEORGE MORRIS McCLURE promised, Mayor JOE BOLES refused to ask for the paperwork, taking brother lawyer McCLURE at his word.

That was absurd -- McCLURE was a crook, as the FBI tapes of him and Sheriff DAVID SHOAR establish beyond peradventure in the Manuel case.




San Sebastian Inland Harbor sold for $4.75 million
Aug 19, 2014, 7:31pm EDT Updated Aug 20, 2014, 10:27am EDT
Andrew Thurlow
(Former) Reporter
Jacksonville Business Journal

A long-vacant site on the San Sebastian River in St. Augustine that had once been slated for high-end condominiums and a hotel has been sold for $4.75 million, according to records filed with St. Johns County.
The St. Augustine San Sebastian Inland Harbor was purchased by SA Marina Holdings LLC, a Sanford-based company. The managing member of SA Marina, formally Humphrey SA Holdings, is Gulambbas Abdulhussein, according to state records. Abdulhussein and the Abdulhussein family partnership are involved in a number of property investment projects throughout Florida.
The riverside land has been sold for $4.75 million.
The seller was represented in the transaction by Tarik Bateh of JLL Capital Markets Group. The property was owned by Redus Florida Commercial, an affiliate of Wells Fargo, which took over the property after it was foreclosed on in 2007.
The sale of the property could have a significant impact on St. Augustine. “It’s a big deal for this city getting this property developed,” said City Manager John Regan said.
The 10.4-acre property, located at 159 King Street in St. Augustine, is being considered for a mixed-use development, including a marina, hotel, retail center, and perhaps residential housing, a source familiar with the project said.
Jacksonville Beach developer The Devlin Group Inc. had proposed a hotel, condo and spa development in 2006 that was to carry the Westin flag. The site never saw any vertical construction, but several floating marinas were added in 2007, as an effort to attract investors to the project.
Last year, members of the Urban Land Institute spent two days brainstorming the best possible use of the site.