The Stuart News
Posted September 30, 2009 at 1 a.m. , updated September 30, 2009 at 8:38 p.m
By George Andreassi
PALM CITY � A Fort Myers company wants to build a massive agricultural and industrial project west of Interstate 95 and north of Martin Highway, featuring a new road and bridge to Port St. Lucie.
The Interstate 95 Agricultural and Employment Center would cover 1,782 acres and include a 5-million-square-foot industrial park, 1 million square feet of office space, 200,000 square feet of retail space and 500 hotel rooms, Martin County records show.
Turner Groves Limited Partnership submitted the proposal to Martin County on Wednesday as part a request to change the Comprehensive Growth Management Plan to allow a mix of uses on agricultural land where 20-acre ranchettes are currently the only type of residential development permitted.
The proposed Interstate 95 Agricultural and Employment Center would have a land use designation of it�s own, county records show. The new land use category would allow some of the citrus grove to continue to be used for agricultural purposes while the industrial park and the offices are being developed.
The project would still pale in comparison to the proposed Southern Groves Development of Regional Impact across the C-23 Canal in Port St. Lucie.
The Southern Groves plan envisions about 2 million square feet of office space, 2 million square feet of industrial space, 2 million square feet of retail space and 7,388 houses, state records show.
A new north-south road linking Martin Highway in Palm City to Becker Road in Port St. Lucie would be constructed parallel to I-95 and relieve traffic on the expressway, county records show.
The proposed Interstate 95 Agricultural and Employment Center would be designed to be environmentally friendly by utilizing a variety of methods to conserve water and energy, reduce air pollution and preserve native habitat on the property.
�The goal is to be a leader in environmentally sensitive economic development initiatives,� Turner Groves said in its application.
Keeping the land in citrus production in the future is not an option, Turner Groves said.
�Citrus canker and international pricing has destroyed the grove�s economic viability,� Turner Groves said in its application.
The request for a land use change was among 20 applications submitted to Martin County seeking to amend the county�s master development plan. The comp plan amendment process takes about a year.
It was a dramatic increase in requests for growth plan amendments from 2008 when just two land owners sought to change the way their land can be used. The low number of amendments in 2008 was attributed to the decline in the economy and the construction industry.
�This is a large number of amendments, but I don�t know if it means that the development industry is back,� said county Growth Management Director Nicki van Vonno.
The requests will be reviewed by county planners during the next three months and then presented to the county�s Local Planning Agency in January and February during public hearings.
The County Commission will vote on the proposals in April, deciding whether to send them to the state Department of Community Affairs. State planners will review the proposal and send them back for more work or approve them.
That sets the stage for adoption by the commissioners during a public hearing in August.