The Royal Palm Beach Planning & Zoning Commission granted site plan approval last week to the Village of Royal Palm Beach for an RV storage lot on a 13.97-acre parcel north of Southern Blvd. on Lamstein Lane that would replace the current RV storage lot, located at the former wastewater treatment plant site.
“It will consist of 305 RV storage spaces, and there will also be a wash-down area located at the south entrance to the facility,” Development Review Coordinator Kevin Erwin said at the March 24 meeting. “There will be two basically paved areas under the power lines… the site will also be fenced with an 8-foot-high, vinyl-coated chain-link fence. The perimeter of the RV storage lot will be landscaped with shrubs and trees, with the exception of the access gate area.”
Staff recommended approval of the application.
Land Planner Donaldson Hearing of Cotleur & Hearing spoke on behalf of the village.
“This will be a very, very secure facility,” he explained. “It will have cameras, it will be lit. Those will be high-resolution cameras to ensure that all of the equipment inside will be well-protected.”
Hearing added that there will be an electric entrance gate to log when individuals enter and exit, plus motion-sensor cameras for additional security.
The parking facility is intended to meet a need for the village, Hearing explained, to provide an additional asset for residents of the village with land that the village has the right to use.
Commissioner Jackie Larson, whose RV has been broken into numerous times at the current facility, questioned the security precautions, noting that the 8-foot fence at the current facility does not deter crime.
Hearing explained that the technology has gotten better and more advanced, allowing for better security lighting, motion sensors, camera recording and card swiping.
“The security is basically being dealt with through the lighting and through the security system that is being utilized by the village,” Hearing said. “It’s going to be whatever the state-of-the-art system is today.”
Planning & Zoning Administrator Bradford O’Brien addressed a question from Commissioner Michael Axelberd regarding the hours of the facility, noting that it probably would close at 10:30 or 11 p.m. and re-open in the morning.
Larson made a motion to approve the application, with a provision that staff look at the cameras and location of cameras regarding security, given the past history of the current lot. The motion passed 5-0.
Also at the meeting, a presentation was made regarding CubeSmart, formerly Safe & Secure Self Storage, at 8970 Belvedere Road.
The applicant, Erwin said, is requesting approval to replace the monument signage, wall signage and a new awning. Staff recommended approving the signage but denying the proposed awning with cherry red lettering and a white background, in favor of the hemlock green and China red coloring that is standard in that planned industrial development.
CubeSmart District Manager Tom Rosati explained that the company’s colors include cherry red and their main competitor uses hemlock green.
“It should match the roof, if you’re going to have an awning, and then the lettering should be red, to match the other signage, the China red,” Erwin said.
Staff recommended the awning as China red lettering on a hemlock green background.
Vice Chair Joseph Boyle made a motion to approve the CubeSmart application with the recommended changes by staff, to make the awning hemlock green with China red writing, which carried 5-0.
