The Royal Palm Beach Planning & Zoning Commission on Tuesday recommended approval of changes to the Commons Park Master Plan that have arisen from the past year’s discussion and debate by residents, council members, consultants and staff.
The proposed improvements include a new dog park, a flying disc golf course, great lawn lighting, a pedestrian connection to Heron Parkway, great lawn bathroom facilities, a great lawn stage, a three-hole golf course, a new perimeter trail, future community gardens, future expanded parking areas, a future miniature golf course, a future fitness area, future driving range netting and a future assisted-living facility.
Site Plan Coordinator Kevin Erwin said the boundary had been changed to include the adjacent Kevin M. Harvin Center.
Erwin noted that the park’s first year is now complete. “People have been enjoying phase one for the last year or so,” he said.
He explained that park items not listed as “future” would be completed in one phase, and those listed as “future” would be completed as financing becomes available.
Erwin added that the dog park would not be completed in one phase, but would be completely functional after phase one.
The new great lawn stage area will be in front of the existing bathroom area, and two new bathroom areas will be on either side of the great lawn, he said. A location for a community garden and new walking trail have been identified north of Poinciana Blvd., the main entrance to the park.
The walking trail will have a connection to Heron Parkway at the northwest corner of the park.
Commissioner Jackie Larson asked about completion of the dog park in phase one, and Erwin said the three fenced-in sections of the dog park will be finished, and future improvements will be added as money becomes available.
Village Engineer Chris Marsh said phase one of the dog park will include dog watering and washing facilities in each section. A water fountain and handicapped parking will also be installed as part of that phase, as well as additional landscaping, trees and benches.
Marsh said village staff would move forward immediately with the design of phase one upon council approval. “Actually, we are currently designing and putting together packages,” he said. “We want to get this thing out to bid as soon as possible.”
Additional amenities, including pavilions, will be rolled into the five-year capital improvements budget, Marsh said.
Commissioner Joseph Boyle asked about the future of the Harvin Center, and Erwin said the area has been identified as the future site for an adult assisted-living facility, which would come back through the approval process.
Erwin added that the area identified as the future adult assisted-living facility currently has no specific plans. “It would be approved by you at a future date, if and when we find somebody who wants to work with the village and bring that about,” he said.
Village staff received direction at the last meeting of the Royal Palm Beach Village Council to include the Heron Parkway connection and pedestrian path after it was approved by a large margin at a recent residents’ workshop, Erwin said.
Marsh said workshop participants went out in golf carts, and staff took the tracks from those golf cart rides and created a best fit for those paths.
“Our consultant came up with that pathway, the way it looks, based on what people in the charrette had identified as favorable to them,” Marsh said. “A good portion of the people at the charrette were residents who lived around the park, so it was a good exercise for what people were comfortable with as it related to the distance the pathway would be from the back of their homes.”
Erwin added that the master plan up for approval that evening did not include details, which would come back to them for future review.
Marsh explained that identifying the future phases gives staff the opportunity to apply for grants.
“When you have approval on something like this, it’s a lot more favorable on the application,” he said.
Larson made a motion to approve the site plan modification but to eliminate the word “future” from before “dog park,” and the motion carried 5-0.
