ST. LUCIE COUNTY — A proposed mixed-use development near Indrio Road that would include retail, restaurants, offices, parks and residential homes has advanced to the St. Lucie County Board of County Commissioners after receiving recommendations for approval from the county's Planning and Zoning Commission.
Known as the Indrio Town Center, the project is planned as a large-scale development divided into three primary areas, according to project planner Leah Heinzelmann of Cotleur & Hearing.
Heinzelmann said the first section, known as the "core" zone, is intended to serve as the project's commercial and activity hub.
"This area is positioned along the primary transportation corridors and internal street network where access, visibility, and connectivity are the strongest. The core is envisioned to accommodate the most active uses within the project, including retail, restaurants, workplace opportunities, professional services, and potential mixed-use buildings. The goal is to create a vibrant destination that provides goods, services, employment opportunities, and gathering spaces for both existing and future residents of St. Lucie County," Heinzelmann said.
The second section, referred to as the "center" zone, is designed to provide a transition between the more active commercial areas and lower-intensity portions of the development while allowing flexibility as the project evolves.
"This area provides flexibility for office, professional services, workplace uses, retail opportunities, and potential mixed-use development depending on future market conditions. The center is intended to function as a bridge between the highest intensity commercial activity and the lower intensity areas of the project and maintain a walkable relationship with the commercial core," she said.
The third section, the "fringe" zone, emphasizes open space and recreational amenities intended to preserve the site's natural features.
"Consisting of approximately 26 acres of passive open space, trails, lakes, and preserved vegetation, the fringe provides a recreation amenity while creating an appropriate transition between future development and surrounding properties. In the near term, this area is intended to function as a passive recreation space, offering opportunities for walking, nature observation, and community gathering while maintaining the natural character of the site," she said.
County planner Don Arellano said the development is expected to significantly increase traffic in the area based on the applicant's analysis.
"The analysis provided by the applicant states the development will generate the following new external trips of 10,980 daily trips with a peak a.m. hour of 465, peak p.m. hour of 1,102 trips, and the proposed development will generate the following driveway trips up to 14,203 daily trips peaking at 631 in the a.m. and 1,405 in the p.m.," he said.
Arellano said the project also would be subject to several environmental reviews and planning requirements before it could receive final site plan approval.
"Prior to final site plan approval, ERD will require an environmental impact report, a wetland waiver, a survey of wetland boundaries and buffers, tree mitigation plan and survey, a detailed landscape plan, and an updated supplemental document with all approvals and exhibits," he said.
Because of the project's size, Heinzelmann said construction would occur in phases over an extended period.
"Given the size of the property and the flexibility provided within the PRW framework, full buildout could occur over many development cycles and may take decades to fully materialize. The phasing plan has been structured to ensure that the foundational elements of the town center are established first," she said.
Members of the public who spoke at the meeting were largely supportive of the proposal, although one resident urged county leaders to carefully consider how future growth is managed in the area.
"I'm pro-development. I just think that we need to be smart about what we're developing up in that area. You know, it's the last frontier in the county," he said. "We don't want it to look like what they have going on out in Tradition."
The Planning and Zoning Commission recommended approval of rezoning the property to planned retail and workspace and approval of the preliminary site plan. The proposal will next go before the St. Lucie County Board of County Commissioners, which will make the final decision on whether the project moves forward.