The Mark at CityScape has been criticized for its appearance.
File photo
By Mary Hladky
Dissatisfied with the appearance of The Mark at CityScape and concerned that more buildings with design flaws will sprout up downtown, the Boca Raton City Council is considering a major change to how developers’ proposals for new projects are vetted.
The idea is to replace the city’s downtown design consultant with either an architectural consultant or hire an architect who would be part of city staff.
City Manager Leif Ahnell will analyze this and other recommendations made to the council, sitting Nov. 9 as the Community Redevelopment Agency board, and report back — possibly by the end of the year.
The city’s downtown design consultant, Urban Design Associates, recommended itself out of a job as one of its proposals to improve the process of overseeing downtown development projects.
UDA was brought in to do a downtown design overhaul after residents complained of monolithic and unattractive buildings going up. Its interim design guidelines allowed developers to build taller buildings provided their plans included pedestrian-oriented streets, public spaces and landscaping, as well as building setbacks and a varied skyline.
But the guidelines have come under strong criticism this year. Eric Osth, managing principal of UDA, told council members an architectural consultant could better help the city meet its goals.
An architectural consultant would review all downtown projects, make recommendations, keep a record of the effectiveness of downtown design guidelines and hold design review meetings, Osth said.
Osth also proposed adding design criteria for streets and landscaping, reviewing downtown design guidelines every two years and replacing the interim guidelines with a “pattern book” that spells out what developers can and can’t do. Some council members took Osth’s recommendation for an architectural consultant one step further by suggesting hiring a city architect instead.
“I think hiring a city architect is a wonderful idea,” said Mayor Susan Haynie. “That is where we are going to ensure we meet the goals we set up.”
Deputy Mayor Robert Weinroth agreed, adding, “There is a need for us to go to the next step now that we see UDA is probably eager to hand this off.”
Council member Jeremy Rodgers didn’t say if he liked the idea, but remarked that residents are “more trusting” of city staff than consultants.
Two other council members voiced reservations.
A city architect would need an office and staff, said council member Michael Mullaugh. “We don’t need that,” he said.
Council member Scott Singer said he had “concerns” about adding more staff to oversee downtown development.
Ahnell didn’t voice an opinion, but said “there would not be a lack of work” for an architect and the money spent on a consultant could instead be used to pay for this position.
Concerns about how well the city was riding herd over the design of new downtown buildings was heightened upon the completion of The Mark, a mix of retail, offices and 208 apartments at the southeast corner of Federal Highway and Palmetto Park Road.
The Mark was the first project approved under interim guidelines implemented in 2008 that allow buildings 40 feet taller than the 120-foot limit in much of downtown as long as they are aesthetically pleasing.
But many residents speaking at an April 30 meeting to assess how well the guidelines worked for The Mark found fault with its appearance, saying it was bulky and unappealing. They called for the interim guidelines to be overhauled, if not scrapped.
UDA was tasked with making recommendations to the CRA on what changes should be made, and Osth did that at the Nov. 9 meeting.
He also largely repeated his April assessment that the interim guidelines largely worked as intended on The Mark, producing a good-looking building.
But he reiterated that there were some problems with how the project turned out, including tinted windows that prevent people from looking into the shops, sidewalks that are not pedestrian-friendly and the lack of varying paint colors on the exterior that would make the project look better and less massive.
The review has highlighted another problem: The Mark’s design was approved by UDA and city staff, but changes were later made by the city’s Community Appearance Board that turned out to be not for the better.
That spurred discussion at the Nov. 9 meeting that perhaps the appearance board should be eliminated. The idea that gained more traction, however, was that projects should not come to the CRA for approval until after the appearance board weighs in.
Another lingering issue is that the city has approved three other projects under the guidelines even though The Mark had not been completed and the results assessed.
Haynie asked that two projects under construction — the Hyatt Hotel located immediately west of The Mark and the Via Mizner multi-use development at the corner of East Camino Real and Federal Highway — be evaluated now to catch any design problems that might have crept in after they were approved before it is too late to make changes.
Although much remains up in the air, several residents said they liked what they heard at the meeting.
“I think this is the best meeting at City Hall I have ever attended,” said John Gore, president of BocaBeautiful.org, which wants to maintain a beautiful downtown.
“If the CRA follows through on what was said today, it will be a great step forward,” said Al Zucaro, chairman of the city watchdog website BocaWatch.org.
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