A long-vacant commercially zoned lot in a prime location on Southern Blvd. could soon become a CarMax used car dealership, if developers get the approvals necessary from the Village of Royal Palm Beach.
The 13.5-acre parcel is located at the northeast corner of Southern Blvd. and 105th Avenue North, directly east of the existing Al Packer Ford West car dealership.
The proposal was submitted to village planners by Kimley-Horn & Associates on behalf of CenterPoint Integrated Solutions in December and updated last month.
According to Village Manager Ray Liggins, the developers have been working with village planning staff to make the project fit the requirements of Royal Palm Beach’s code.
“This is a fairly large company that builds CarMax locations,” Liggins said. “They initially started out with their blueprints of the dealership, and then our staff provided them with comments about it.”
Liggins explained that the initial proposal included more and bigger signs than what is allowed by the code, as well as some landscaping issues.
“In the beginning, this company thought about the variance route, but after dealing with the plans for a while, I think they have come up with something that is pretty close to meeting our code,” he said.
Compliance with the village’s code is the simplest way to get the proposal approved, Liggins said. Generally, village staff supports projects that are in line with Royal Palm Beach codes and regulations.
“If things meet our code, and staff supports them, then we welcome the project,” Liggins said.
Director of Planning & Zoning Bradford O’Brien said that the applicants are actively responding to his staff’s comments, and that he is in the process of evaluating whether or not the application meets the village’s standards.
The CarMax project has not been put on the official public meeting schedule as of yet. However, O’Brien said that it is likely headed to the Royal Palm Beach Planning & Zoning Commission in either April or May, before heading to the Royal Palm Beach Village Council for review.
CarMax is one of the largest used-car retailers in the nation. The company has more 180 locations in 39 states, employing more than 24,000 people.
CenterPoint Integrated Solutions aims to transform the land in Royal Palm Beach into an efficient dealership that would bring revenue and employment to the village, as well as enhance the aesthetic of what is currently an empty lot. The proposal states that the integration of the future dealership is a positive and logical growth for the village.
This particular property has been of interest to others in the past, but nothing has moved beyond discussions. However, its location next to one car dealership and nearby several others could work in its favor.
“There are serious conversations about moving forward with CarMax,” Councilman Jeff Hmara said. “It is an interesting compatibility. We have talked about that property for a number of years and, in the past, we’ve heard some concepts that were not particularly interesting to us. This one seems like something that might actually work in that area.”
Hmara was pleased to hear that the developers are actively working to conform the project to the village’s code. “They appear to be willing to work with our staff, and hopefully, we will not have variance requests, and this piece will come together nicely,” he said.
