I just love this witty, incisive column by retired architect Robert Olsen about the latest effrontery from dodgy developers seeking to destroy our environment. I like my crooked developers well done -- stick a fork in them, they're about done.
St. Augustine Record Guest Column: Watermarke: Desperately seeking plausability
Posted: August 14, 2016 - 12:04am
By ROBERT OLSEN
Vilano Beach
At the Aug. 4 hearing of the St. Johns County Planning and Zoning Agency board members grasped for any possible rationale to justify changing Vilano Beach’s Comprehensive Future Land Use Plan to accommodate a large commercial complex called Watermarke.
The vote was 5-1 to recommend it. This matter now goes to the County Commissioners, where the struggle to find reasons will likely continue. Based on what was said at the PZA hearing, the following are some suggestions for anyone who has not yet found a reason:
■ Too Big for the Town Center — But Not Too Big For Their Beaches: The Watermarke project must be built on land along A1A because it is too big to fit into Vilano Town Center. (This is an actual statement made by Watermark’s attorney at the hearing!). We can easily believe this, since just the Watermarke’s commercial component (70,000 square feet) is over twice the size of the Vilano Publix (34,000 square feet) and almost three times the size of Serenata Beach Club (26,000 square feet). And this is in addition to the hotel, resort villas and marina.
■ Making Vilano Classy: Vilano is too beachy-casual. Watermarke will bring a “five diamond” resort to Vilano, finally creating opportunities to put on a tuxedo for dinner every night!
■ Being Socially Conscious: Watermarke will create lots of low-wage service jobs. For those who must work multiple jobs to afford the high cost living in St. Johns County, it will be a rare chance to regularly enjoy seeing the ocean.
■ Hells Angels Not Allowed: Watermarke’s attorney also assured attendees at the Aug. 4 hearing that there will absolutely be no “biker bar” anywhere in the complex — only a “lounge.”
■ Helps Emergency Preparedness: Watermarke will have a concrete walkover bridge to access the beach. This might keep A1A from washing away in the next hurricane — plus it could also double as an elevated storm-surge refuge when A1A gets too jammed to allow emergency evacuations to the mainland!
■ Extra Points for Conservation: Developers revealed that there will be no car wash at Watermarke. Parking valets will be instructed to wipe away sea scum from Bentleys and Aston-Martins before delivering them to their five-diamond owners.
■ A Bit of Tough Love: As a PZA board member indicated, Vilano Beach generates too few taxes for the state and county because it is too residential and not sufficiently commercial. Our deadbeat Vilano community must now pay its fair share by forcing more big commercial projects onto land now designated in the comprehensive plan for residential.
■ A Dynamic Development Adaptable To Change: During the “Now You See It, Now You Don’t” portion of the hearing, Watermarke brought forth new information that moved, removed, resized, and re-labeled key development components from those of the official pre-hearing submission.
In any proper proceeding this would have required a “time out” with no final PZA recommendation vote taken. However, the PZA had another solution: Give the developers unlimited floor time to reveal and expound upon each and every change.
PZA’s recommendation to proceed with the process of changing Vilano’s Comprehensive Plan to allow Watermarke goes to the County Commission Sept. 20. Concerned citizens wishing Vilano to retain its low-density residential character and to avoid added traffic congestion on A1A are urged to make their opinions known with their County Commissioners.
Olsen is a retired architect, urban planner and a former senior officlal with the U.S. Department of Commerce.
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