Guest AuthorThe proposed State Road 7 extension in Palm Beach County north to Northlake Boulevard has sparked many stories and much debate.
The debate pits residents in the rural northwest against a gated golf community, so the demographic polarization keeps the discussion lively and interesting. Both camps, though, would be wise to join forces against looming developments that will make the S.R. 7 project seem a bike path by comparison.
I recently discussed with County Engineer George Webb the traffic implications of two large developments planned in and around the western communities of northern Palm Beach County. They’re about the same size as Minto West, approved earlier this year. Those two projects – GL Homes and Avenir – together would bring about 22,000 new residents to that rural area in addition to about 14,000 approved at Minto West.
From a traffic planning perspective, the facts are disturbing on many levels.
The relatively small number of people who chose the pineland tranquility and dirt roads dozens of years ago say the State Road 7 extension is an overdue relief that can’t be built soon enough. But those earlier residents may not realize that when estimates are done on additional traffic those two new huge developments will generate, the reliever road they crave is already being used to justify and soften the projects’ stated effect.
The Ibis Community says the road project will threaten the environmentally sensitive lands to their east, and the city of West Palm Beach is a powerful ally because that sensitive land is an important part of the city’s water supply. They may not realize, though, that a 12-lane-wide Northlake Boulevard through the heart of the Grassy Waters Preserve is a far greater threat to not only the water within these pristine wetlands, but to quality of life in northern Palm Beach County.
The S.R. 7 debate is a distraction dividing two communities with a much larger common enemy they must fight together.
The county’s traffic engineers have determined the road improvements necessary to maintain the established minimum level of service on the effected roadways when the traffic from Avenir and GL Homes joins Minto’s and is then inserted into the now-rural western enclaves.
The realities are head-spinning.
Northlake Boulevard west of Ibis now carries about 28,400 trips per day. That grows to 109,000 daily trips, or a 384 percent increase in traffic, if those developments are approved. East of Ibis, the 109,000 trips combine with the existing trips generated by Ibis and a staggering projection for the future of Northlake Boulevard to the east plays out. Twelve lanes through the Grassy Waters Preserve lead to massive flyovers at the Beeline Highway and Military Trail.
Though the 12 lanes through the Grassy Waters Preserve is the most shocking, the effects of the proposed developments are more far-reaching. A 12-lane section will be needed on Southern Boulevard; 10 lanes on the Beeline Highway; 10 -lanes on Okeechobee Boulevard with a flyover at State Road 7; six lanes at PGA Boulevard and Indiantown Road west of the Turnpike; and much more.
Probably the most interesting thing I learned from Mr. Webb is that none of these improvements have to be put in place by the projects’ developers. They simply have to contribute their “proportional share” of the estimated cost to make all of the projected roadway improvements their projects will make painfully necessary down the road.
One result of dismantling Florida’s Department of Community Affairs to make us a more developer-friendly state was to remove the logical connection between development and the transportation upgrades they require. Our state leaders saw that as too onerous for land developers and too restrictive to the population growth, job-creation and tax revenue that take too much of our focus.
Although developments and their associated roadway projects were joined for decades, today a developer only has to write a check for their estimated share of a hypothetical set of road improvement that may or may not ever be built. Worse, the higher first-costs of developing alternative transportation aren’t even considered even though they will have to be a considered where Grassy Waters meets Northlake Boulevard. There simply isn’t enough land within the existing right-of-way to build 12-lanes of traffic, unless it’s expanded horrifically deep into the scenic preserve.
So, please, turn your attention away from the State Road 7 sideshow, and become aware of a much greater, and more imminent set of problems. Minto West is already approved. Avenir and GL Homes will be seeking approval in the coming months. If approved, and since nobody in power is talking about alternative transportation methods, we the people will have two regrettable car-centered choices.
Either build a massively expansive system of roadways at the expense of much of the remaining scenic beauty of our county (and any hope of a smarter transportation network), or get used to roadway congestion and spending a lot of time in our cars.
Timothy Hullihan is an architect and freelance writer living in North Palm Beach.
