The Palm Coast City Council last week approved a 66-home development, phase 1 of a gated development that will eventually total 161 houses and duplexes in what’ll be called The Retreat at Town Center, on land just north of the Publix on Central Avenue and east of Belle Terre Parkway.
The 40-acre project is north of where Market Avenue dead-ends for now, though the road will be extended and branch out onto roads with names like Mahogany Way, Mulberry Road, Magnolia Point and Huxley Avenue. The roads bordered by 5-foot-wide sidewalks will be built by the developer and remain privately held and maintained by the homeowners’ association. There will be no access point from Belle Terre Parkway.
The subdivision master plan was submitted and approved by the city’s planning board last year. The preliminary plat was approved and the engineering and construction plans completed. Most of the infrastructure is in place, and construction has started, leaving a final step in the development process–the final plat–which the council approved with no discussion and no public comment last Tuesday.
Fort Washington, Penn.-based Toll Southeast acquired the land in 2020 for just under $1.5 million. The development foresees two future construction phases–yet to be platted–further filling in the tracts, whose northeastern portion abuts the city’s evolving tennis courts and Southern Recreational Center.
The development had previously been called the Palm Coast Tennis Pod when it was presented to the planning board in April 2021, with 65 single-family homes and 96 duplexes (which the developer is calling “paired villas) on 96 acres, as a city planner described it to the board. The single-family homes are to be on 50-foot-wide lots, the paired villas on 38-foot-wide lots per unit (or 76 feet for both). The plan at the time proposed three amenity areas, including a boardwalk to the tennis center and a canoe and kayak launch into a lake.
Toll brothers are national builders with “a pretty high end product,” as an engineer on the project told the board. So it is not workforce or affordable housing. The houses will be between 2,000 and 3,000 square feet, in what is presented as a walkable development, buffered from its surroundings.
James Albano, one of the planning board members and a Palm Coast resident for 48 years expressed his disappointment at the smaller lots in plans that appeared before the board monthly. “It’s hard to create good architecture when you can build a 30-foot wide house,” he said. “So I really urge staff and future developers to kind of rethink. Palm Coast is a great place to live, but we just don’t need to be on top of everybody. And then, on top of this, today I’ve learned a new name for a duplex: a ‘paired villa.’ It’s a duplex.”
But Albano’s plaint was a cry in a diminishing wilderness: planning and development in Palm Coast as in much of the nation has moved on from the large single-family home lots toward smaller, denser developments as older homeowners downsize and prefer less property to maintain.
The planning board voted 6-1 to approve the application. The council last week was unanimous in approving the final plat.
Dennis C Rathsam says
What happened to affordable housing Mr Mayor????? Take the knife out of the seniors back!
The Sour Kraut says
“Paired villa”, these guys are unbelievable. Call it what it is, a DUPLEX. Then they will say we need these as affordable housing…until you see the selling price.
TR says
cram em in Alfin and the council. Just more of something the city councils (of previous as well as this one) have no clue. The previous council (s) said that if we build the Town Center area with city hall then more businesses will follow. Well that didn’t work, just look what’s getting built all around city hall? Housing. Does anyone in the city of authority to make decisions have a lick of sense? Apparently not.
Charles says
All the years we heard that City of PC is building a Town Center and what it ended up being is another strip mall. Some Town Center, what a joke.
cheryll murphy says
RETREAT??? How about over crowding the city. Cut all the trees down for tax money. We have enough traffic. I moved from PALM COAST TO BUNNELL…..BUT IT AFFECTS US ALL . This is not Orlando. You don’t have enough businesses to handle the influx of people. But that is what you always wanted. Sad.
Bee says
We could have gotten something like this as was proposed. https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=UDTS4S2BDm4
But they sold the community out to residential developers rather then deal with the commercial entities.
Mike says
They are ruining what could have been a better planned Town Center. This area should be laid out more like the European Village than just housing after housing. I guess once these politicians can’t get anymore under the table money or lose in an election, they won’t be staying in this area anymore!
Wow says
I thought Town Center was originally supposed to be a commerce hub. Kind of like a real “downtown” which Palm Coast sorely needs. Maybe stores, sidewalk café, shopping.
Now it’s dedicated only to more and more housing????
jeffery c. seib says
The Town Center when originally proposed, which was before Palm Coast was incorporated, was sold as a shopping, both high end and regular, professional office, educational, and arts and cultural center. How times have changed. People need to look at homes that have been built in California, Texas, and most other states in recent years to see what we are going to get, if we let it happen. Large homes built on matchbook lots where you can hear the neighbors TV from inside. Opening a side door, if you even have one, will hit the neighbor’s house. We don’t want this. The more lawn, the more trees, the more open spaces we have, the better we feel and are. Town Center is morphing into the apartment, duplex, and tiny lot home center. This is the place the mayor wants to build the new YMCA. With all the apartments and homes there, we know who will be going there. I hope when the election comes next year people aren’t swayed by national politics, or all the fancy ads sent by candidates in the mail.
Rodriguez says
I just wanted to give my sincere opinion to all apartments or duplex that they’re building around.We need parks, recreation centers,by seccion L ,we just have a General store ,if we need to go shopping for clothes food, even gas,for our car( because there’s not transportation, like busses for seniors)we need to drive to the center of the town,Parkway,but not much around Matanzas road ,now ,more duplexes, more apartments, more traffic & more increases in property taxes,besides higher increases in home insurances, it’s getting worse for all residents seniors.
Vital divi says
Agreed, already hundreds of houses on sale in town
Rick says
Lets see what the politicians Bank Accounts look like after all these lousy real estate Deals ? Think
Greg says
Town Center! Where are all the business’ that usually make up a town center? That’s why most go to Daytona or StAugustine to shop and dine.
Celia M Pugliese says
I believe the Town Center CRA was created and partially funded by PC taxpayers and named as such simply because Jon Netts then Mayor, decided to build on it and (against our opposition by referendum} his Palm Coast City Hall there. The city hall was the main reason in reality…the so called business hub was secondary. Holland added the Mednexus medical professional franchise hall of the UNF North Florida University futuristic building still to be seeing there…https://flaglerlive.com/unfs-mednexus-entrance/#gsc.tab=0, https://evolve-success.com/medical-nexus-project-offers-palm-coast-room-to-grow/. If the North Florida University plans to build here a medical/mainly nursing students profession school in Town Center as planned, then rental housing will be in high demand there… As a Palm Coast resident near Palm Coast Parkway crowded area already, I am not inclined to oppose apartments, condos, town houses or villas in Town Center as is were they are supposed to be close to all commercial an services areas there at walking distance from those residences. I see plenty land still to be developed around town center, and thou the lots keep getting smaller for approvals, I hope then will be rental fee affordable to many. Maybe our council and mayor should request from developers a clause on which that affordability for service lower income workers will be provided in some way. I am not a lawyer in these matters but there should be a way, considering than all land close to our coasts is normally much more expensive than inland. In few words I may be the only one here in agreement in general to these housing proper location approval.
Celia M Pugliese says
Hi all my neighbors Palm Coast residents posting here…I sure understand you opposition to the ever reduced size lots to cram more housing on it…but in Town Center is the right place for these smaller housing that should be able, given the smaller size, to be afforded with less expensive rent…hopefully. Lets keep in mind that the UNF Mednexus project was presented to us and maybe materializing and then all these med nursing students attending classes here will need rentals. https://flaglerlive.com/palm-coast-unveils-unfs-futuristic-mednex/#gsc.tab=0. Town Center is the perfect location for these type of housing as is walking distance to shops and services and away from already crowded Palm Coast Park and adjacent areas. Please do not kill the messenger…
Mark says
“The single-family homes are to be on 50-foot-wide lots, …” and “The houses will be between 2,000 and 3,000 square feet,…”
Utterly Crazy, nothing like cramming them in, is that the “Quality of Life” that I keep hearing from the Council.
What can you do? says
When we moved to PC 14 years ago I asked the real estate agent, “Is there a downtown?” He said, “Oh they’re building it now,” and he drove us around the landscaped vacant ground of Town Center. Only in PC is a gated community of houses a downtown.
Lorraine says
Agreed! Vote them all out! A band should be in place that states “NO” real-estate brokers on the counsel! The real-estate brokers on the counsel only see $ for themselves! They don’t give a dang about the community as a hole, just their own
wallet!
TR says
You might be able to save some time if you go to the gas station for your gas by the round about on US1 and Matanzas Woods Pkwy. I believe it’s an Amaco and it will not have you stop at all the traffic lights on Belle Terre to get to the center of town. Also there will soon be a Publix up there as well from the last I heard unless that idea was scrapped because it was about a year ago I heard that was happening.
Lol says
there isn’t one strip mall in town center
scott says
why are we building lots of gated communities here? what are we afraid of ? 55plus only does that mean if I’m 45 or 50 years of age and I walk into a model home and offered to buy a home with cash they are going to refuse me would’nt that be considered housing discrimination.
are we allowed to have our grand children stay at our house in that type of community or will we be fined I Purchased my property over here in the F s over 20 years ago 19,000 ft.² for under 25,000 things have changed when I leave I will not be going to any 55+ stuck up snobbish communities Palm Coast is a mess traffic over building and nothing with hamburger joints, and dollar stores never shopped here never well
Dave says
Town Center, give me a break there is NO town center. A town centre is the commercial or geographical centre or core area of a town. Town centres are traditionally associated with shopping or retail. This is NOT the core of Palm Coast. The fleecing of Palm Coast continues by POOR planners and greedy city leaders.
jeffery c. seib says
Ms. Pugliese, yes, there is a place for tiny lot homes and Town Center could be that place. But that’s not the way things operate around here. One development of that type essentially opens the flood gates to Niagara Falls of tiny lot homes everywhere. Six homes to an acre, or even eight, they will be in our backyards before long. When the builder/developer/attorney goes to the Planning folks to change the numbers, it’s a done deal. Somebody needs to vote no.
Bill says
Town center is going to be moved up to the new sawmill home area north of US 1
Celia M Pugliese says
I sure agree with you regarding your ” When the builder/developer/attorney goes to the Planning folks to change the numbers, it’s a done deal. Somebody needs to vote no”. Yes they need to vote NO to rezoning or special exception to the original zoning or spot zoning, all around us in the city specially located in our already crowded areas like was the disastrous approval of the Harborside! I was only referring to Town Center location. I also have to thank you Mr. Seib for being involved…including attending city council meetings. You should be running for city council seats…
Celia M Pugliese says
Hope not Bill!
MANUELA B CARVALHO says
The town is turning into a non desirable place to live, because the one’s inside they only care for money and I bet kickbacks from this big developers. People move to Palm Coast for the larger lots, nice ranch homes, now we are going to get what NJ is full of it from the Toll Brothers lots of 50 x100 or less on 55+ community , high maintenance and in the end high taxes for the size of homes
MANUELA B CARVALHO says
Who vote them in???? You all bought homes with a real estate broker one time or the other, it is a shame what is happening to Palm Coast , the traffic is already unbearable. Forget it about the speed , no one respects the signs anymore , the theft ,etc. The new Town center should had been stores, restaurants , gym’s a place where the residents could go and enjoy
MANUELA B CARVALHO says
Agreed , is time to vote them all out, and get a team that cares for the people and the city
Ken says
I’m not sure where you are from or have lived, but most people in the United States live in homes that are 2,000-3,000 sq. Feet…Maybe try Wyoming or Montana…You may not enjoy the weather or terrain, however…No perfect locations…