Notes from Port Saint Lucie City Council Meeting January 27,2025 On January 27, 2025, the Port St. Lucie City Council addressed the ongoing issue surrounding the Rivella development, specifically a parcel that had been rezoned by a prior Council, which prevented the construction of a previously approved assisted living facility. The current Council had spent nearly a year reviewing a request to build a 150-unit facility, with half of the units designated for independent living. The developer had initially sought to change the land use from a combination of limited commercial, general commercial, and low-density residential to institutional and medium-density residential. This request faced opposition from neighboring homeowners who were concerned about the potential for higher density. However, a subsequent review revealed that the developer already had the right to build the facility, and the proposed land use change was not necessary to proceed. Planning & Zoning Director Mary Savage-Dunham explained that the original approval for the 150-unit assisted living facility, including a child daycare, had been granted in 2017. However, a 2021 decision by the city to exclude institutional uses had caused the project to be incompatible with current zoning. The current application aimed to correct this incompatibility, not to alter the project itself. The City Council was advised by legal staff that failure to resolve the zoning issue could result in potential litigation, with associated costs and damages. After further discussion and clarification, the City Council voted unanimously to approve the necessary land use change and the 10th amendment to the Planned Unit Development (PUD), which included the revision to the facility’s unit composition and the removal of the daycare use. |