About AgTEC and our First Project

About AgTEC and
our First Project
This is the first time a project application
has been submitted to Martin County
to implement the AgTEC Land Use
Category since it became part of
the Martin County Comprehensive
Growth Management Plan in 2011.
The challenge and opportunity for this
first, Planned Unit Development (PUD)
application is to show how it conforms
to the vision for the property as a whole
and provides clarity about how future
development will occur on the site over
the long-term.
The AgTEC Land Use Category is
located along the I-95 corridor just south
of the biotech and medical industries
in Tradition in St. Lucie County. The
property currently consists of agricultural
land, converted from citrus crops to
cattle grazing.
Since the summer of 2014, we’ve
been working diligently on this
application, and with County staff
have been creating new planning
tools, including a Conceptual Master
Plan for the 1,717 acres within the
AgTEC Land Use Category and a
Development Tracking Form, so
County staff and future applicants
will have clear guidance and tracking
methods to ensure future AgTEC
PUDs adhere to the vision set forth
in the AgTEC Land Use Policies
and understand the requirements
and obligations.
Our first project, (AgTEC PUD-1) is
a 7.66 acre PUD located on Martin
Highway in western Palm City. In
AgTEC-1
PUD
this first PUD, we are proposing to
develop about 32,100 square feet
of professional office space in four
buildings that could become the
location for uses such as regional
headquarters, agriculture, biotech
industries, support facilities and
other permissible uses along the
I-95 corridor.
This first project offers an opportunity
to add jobs and increase the tax
base without negative impacts to
surrounding environmental lands or
residential communities. It also serves
to re-purpose a former citrus grove,
that had been farmed for several
decades before citrus greening
destroyed it, while also beginning to
incorporate environmental restoration
elements into the development.
Since 2011, well in advance of
submitting this first application, we’ve
taken many steps in furtherance of the
AgTEC policies in the Comprehensive
Growth Management Plan (Comp
Plan): obtaining water and sewer from
the City of Port St. Lucie as required
by The Comp Plan; defining a canal
reservation (Western Buffer Area) with
the South Florida Water Management
District; providing financial assistance
to the Martin Grade Scenic Highway;
and securing a service agreement to
provide on-site high speed fiber.
Why this first small
project matters
concurrent with future development
projects. Below are some highlights of
the key benefits:
During the last several years, we’ve
had numerous inquiries from potential
end users about AgTEC - from
small aquaculture facilities to large
distribution centers. The recurring
theme from these entities is that
they need shovel-ready sites, or at
least assurances they will be able
to successfully navigate through
the County’s review process in a
predictable and timely manner. We
could not make those assertions
without taking this first step.
•Western Buffer Area. Through an
agreement with the South Florida Water
Management District (SFWMD), a canal
reservation has been put into place
along the entire length of the western
boundary of the AgTEC Land Use
Category (100+ acres within a 300 foot
wide area) exceeding minimum policy
requirements by 250%. The canal is
part of Comprehensive Everglades
Restoration Plan (CERP) projects that will
help to improve regional water quality.
While this first project is small –
representing less than .5% of the
total land within the AgTEC Land Use
Category - it is important. If approved
it will:
•provide the framework for future
projects to follow
•demonstrate that Martin County is
open for good, quality business
•Conservation and Creation of Open
Space. More than 800 acres (almost
half of the property) has been identified
for continued agricultural use and
common open space. Specifically for
FUTURE LAND USE –
CONCEPTUAL MASTER PLAN
the PUD, nearly 40% of the 7.66-acres
will be kept in open space. This is a
300% increase in the amount of open
space required by the AgTEC policies.
C23 CANAL WHICH FLOWS TO THE
ST. LUCIE RIVER
REGIONAL CONTEXT MAP
•offer something to market to
potential end users and site selectors
•create the potential to help diversify
our local economy and tax base.
Community Benefits
The policies in the AgTEC Land
Use Category of the Martin County
Comprehensive Growth Management
Plan (Comp Plan) provide specific
performance standards that exceed
minimum County code requirements.
Our first project is designed to meet
or exceed the performance standards
within the AgTEC Land Use Category.
AgTEC-1
PUD
There are many community benefits
that are secured through the PUD,
and importantly, the additional planning
tools that have been created will
ensure that these community and
regional benefits will be provided
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Extensive public outreach efforts
were conducted to ensure
meaningful feedback on the
proposed new land uses. It was
approved by Martin County in
2010 and, after legal challenges,
the amendment was ultimately
approved by an administrative
law judge and the Department
of Community Affairs (under
the leadership of Tom Pelham),
formally becoming a part of the
Comp Plan in 2011.
A VIEW OF THE MARTIN GRADE SCENIC HIGHWAY.
•Support for the Martin Grade
Scenic Highway. Also known as
Martin Highway, County Road 714,
or simply “The Grade”— this beautiful
and historic, 12-mile stretch of road
is shaded by a canopy of hundredyear-old oak trees. Surrounded by
pastures, groves, swamps, and
woods, a drive across the Martin
Grade is a drive through the splendor
of Old Florida. Located between
Allapattah Road (State Road 609) and
Warfield Boulevard (State Road 710)
this irreplaceable tree canopy corridor
has now been designated a Florida
Scenic Highway.
With AgTEC located just 5 miles
west of the Martin Grade, we were
among the original supporters of the
efforts to achieve the scenic highway
designation, providing financial support
and incorporating language into
our AgTEC Land Use Category that
includes various landscaping, setback
and buffering requirements. Our first
project honors these commitments,
including enhanced landscaping
reflective of the corridor, increased
setbacks, and a refined signage plan.
History and
Background
The Property. AgTEC (Agriculture and
Targeted Employment Center) is the
name used to refer to the Land Use
Category on 1,717-acres in western
Palm City that was formerly a citrus
grove. Its borders are Interstate 95
to the east, State Road 714 (Martin
Highway) to the south and the Martin/
St. Lucie county line at the C23 canal
to the north. The property is uniquely
located and has the following features:
a mile and a half of direct frontage
on Interstate 95; a large employment
base around the property; existing
interchanges to the north and south.
The AgTEC Land Use Category
AgTEC is an innovative land use
category in Martin County that was
first proposed as an amendment to
the county’s Comprehensive Growth
Management Plan in 2009. It is
site-specific and only applies to the
1,717-acres with the AgTEC Land
Use Category.
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The AgTEC Land Use Category
combines three key elements
– economic development
opportunities, continuation of
agriculture and environmental
restoration – which are the
foundation of a healthy and
sustainable Martin County. The
AgTEC Land Use Category is the
only location along the Treasure
Coast that allows for these three
uses to coexist.
•Economic development, job
creation and diversification
of the local tax base. The
AgTEC Land Use Category
creates opportunities for targeted
businesses to locate in Martin
County. These industries require
significant acreage in a campuslike environment, access to
major transportation corridors
that have plenty of road capacity,
proximity to other similar uses,
and no incompatibility issues
with residential neighborhoods or
environmental resources. AgTEC
meets all of these criteria.
A wide range of non-residential
uses are permitted within the
AgTEC Land Use Category with
a focus on what is referred to as
“primary targeted employment”
uses as defined by Martin County
and the state of Florida. Potential
types of entities that could locate
at AgTEC include, but are not
limited to: research and biotech
development laboratories and
facilities; educational institutions;
business and professional offices;
distribution centers; medical labs
and recreational uses.
•Protect agriculture and help it
remain viable. The AgTEC Land Use
Category specifically contemplates
significant areas of open space, which
would allow for the opportunity for new
forms of agricultural uses in the future
that could help support a recovery/
transition from the loss of large
amounts of citrus due to greening.
Through this approach, agriculture has
an improved opportunity to remain a
viable part of the land including the
potential to have alternative energy
crops as well as infrastructure, facilities
and ancillary uses to support the
future agricultural ventures. As per the
AgTEC policies, nearly half the property
must remain in agriculture or used as
common open space.
For more information contact:
Mitch Hutchcraft
[email protected]
or 239-210-9040
AgTECTreasureCoast.com
facebook.com/AgTEC
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•Environmental restoration and
enhancement. The AgTEC Land
Use Category creates opportunities
for reestablishment of wildlife habitat,
creation and preservation of open
space and improvements to water
quality in the C23 canal which flows
to the St. Lucie River by allowing
for water treatment, cleansing and
filtering onsite. It also supports
the protection of the beautiful oak
canopy along the Martin Grade
Scenic Corridor to the west of the
property. Additionally, the policies
set high standards for the use of
sustainable, environmentally-friendly,
energy efficient elements in planning
and design of the built elements.