The Community Redevelopment Plan
The “Original” Plan
Adopted by the City Council on June 11, 2001, the CRA Master Plan was the culmination of an extensive community-driven planning process which included design charrettes and workshops. Based on hundreds of hours of input from citizens, business owners, property owners, elected officials, city staff, professional consultants and other community stakeholders, the CRA Master Plan serves to set forth the vision, goals, objectives, policies and critical projects of the CRA. As voiced by the community throughout the creation of the CRA Master Plan, the CRA will be:
…a central gathering place that creates an identity for the city as well as provides entertainment and economic opportunities. The area will include a variety of development districts and connective open space to better s
erve Port St. Lucie’s current and future population.
Adoption of the CRA Master Plan signaled the beginning of a comprehensive long-term approach to redevelopment which will span the next twenty to thirty year period. The CRA Master Plan provides a flexible framework to guide the Agency in its redevelopment efforts; and it addresses near-term and long-term development scenarios and options, identifying realistic projects for implementation which are based on the opportunities, needs, and fiscal resources of the community. The CRA Master Plan strives to: account for the needs of citizens and business interests, enhance the community, encourage smart growth and acknowledge the existing economic conditions of the region. Like the City’s Comprehensive (Master) Plan, the CRA Master Plan is a “living” document which must be evaluated and amended from time to time in order to accurately reflect changing conditions and community objectives.
The CRA Master Plan calls for the development of a town center at US 1 and Walton Road (City Center) and for a variety of mixed-use, commercial, office, residential and recreational districts.
The CRA Expansion Master Plan
While it references the “original” CRA and the Plan, the CRA Expansion Master Plan is truly a stand alone document and provides the redevelopment plan for the CRA Expansion Area. Written by the same consultant who authored the Plan, the CRA Expansion Master Plan very much mirrors the Plan, providing similar analyses and formatting. The important differences between the CRA Expansion Master Plan and the Plan are the vision, goals and objectives. The CRA Expansion Master Plan has a unique vision, goals and objectives for the Expansion Area. As excerpted from the CRA Expansion Master Plan:
Extending its reach across Port St. Lucie Boulevard to the North Fork of the St. Lucie River, this expansion addresses the City’s aspirations of developing an economically viable riverfront area to complement a downtown or central business district…An important attribute of the redevelopment expansion plan is its mixed-use approach to future development and redevelopment within the CRA, especially the creation of a Riverwalk and associated development on the St. Lucie River. Three character districts make up the CRA Expansion Area: the Port St. Lucie Boulevard Gateway District, the Riverwalk South District, and the Riverwalk North District. The major themes of the CRA Expansion Master Plan include:
- Protect residential neighborhoods
- Improve aesthetics of Port St. Lucie Boulevard
- Increase pedestrian and bicyclist safety
- Create additional recreation and open space
- Increase residential options and affordability.