Are you aware that a 5,982- square-foot, 20-pump RaceTrac gas station, operating 24 hours a day, is proposed for our entrance to the village on the northwest corner of Royal Palm Beach and Southern boulevards?
The Royal Palm Beach Village Council had intended to vote on this “Special Exception Use” at their Oct. 15 meeting. But as concerns were raised regarding the ability of the audience to hear and to meaningfully provide comment during the proceedings, the council wisely moved to hold a special meeting in the larger Royal Palm Beach Cultural Center. This meeting will be on Oct. 29 at 7 p.m.
As a resident of Royal Palm Beach, a certified planner and a former planning and zoning commissioner, I would like to highlight why I feel this project does not fit into the fabric of our community, and why you need to come to this next meeting to support the council’s action in denying this project. The issues are focused on traffic, quality of life in the neighboring residential community and the village’s Strategic Plan.
Traffic congestion is already a problem in this intersection, with Royal Palm Beach Blvd. being listed as Service Level D. This is a dangerous situation that will only get worse from such a large project. The remedies that the developer has suggested will permanently alter the character of our village entrance to look like a major thoroughfare (four lanes exiting to Southern Blvd.). This is not what we, the residents, intended when we spent millions to beautify this boulevard as our southern entranceway to the village, as well as significant investments made to Lakeside Challenger Park, Veterans Park and the new Royal Palm Beach Commons Park.
This project will also be detrimental to the adjacent properties, and the neighboring residential property values. In fact, few residents in Royal Palm Beach will benefit from this station. The majority of the users will be commercial vehicles, such as large dump trucks and semi-tractor trailers that frequently use Southern Blvd., as well as Wellington and Loxahatchee residents, who will not be subjected to the negative impacts. In fact, the only letter of support for this gas station to the Town-Crier was from a Wellington resident.
Finally, and probably most importantly, this project does not fit into the fabric and character of what we, the residents of Royal Palm Beach, have determined for our future. The principles we laid out in our 2015 Strategic Plan included: maintaining and enhancing property values; having a well-maintained neighborhood infrastructure; and having attractive, distinctive entrances signifying your “Home in Royal Palm Beach.” A 20-pump gas station at the entrance to our village does not meet our strategic plan and is not compatible with the character and living conditions of the existing neighborhood.
Let the council know that this is not the right project for this location. Please come out to the Oct. 29 meeting.
Barbara Powell, Royal Palm Beach
