Vero Beach motorists may face Turnpike Feeder Road congestion

Vero Beach motorists who use Turnpike Feeder Road as a shortcut when traveling to and from South Florida could face additional traffic when a North Palm Beach developer starts building a new recreational vehicle park.

The proposed MMR RV Park would cover a 17-acre site on Turnpike Feeder Road/State Road 713, just north of the Cypress Bay Mobile Home Park and south of the Thelma Motel.

An average of 5,000 vehicles per day travel on the Turnpike Feeder Road’s southbound ramp from U.S. 1, which is about one-third of a mile south of the Indian River County line.

But the additional traffic won’t worsen congestion on nearby roads, according to a report prepared by Deanna Foriere, of Engineering, Design & Construction, Inc., Port St. Lucie.

The recreational vehicle park is expected to generate 410 trips per day, including 40 during the evening rush hour and 21 during the morning rush hour, EDC’s analysis determined.

“EDC believes this development will cause mostly de minimus impacts on surrounding roads,” EDC’s report concluded.

Developer Dean Rosenbach and Friends I LLC of North Palm Beach proposed establishing a single two-way access drive on U.S. 1 for the proposed MMR RV Park and an unpaved emergency entrance on Turnpike Feeder Road, county records show. 

Traffic counts on Turnpike Feeder Road reach an average of 12,400 vehicles per day near Indrio Road, a thoroughfare connecting to Interstate 95, St. Lucie County records show.

The developer proposed building a gated recreational vehicle park with 80 lots, a 2,690-square-foot clubhouse with a swimming pool and a 2,176-square-foot office, county records show. The lots would cover 2,800-square-feet.

The trapezoid-shaped property is owned by Kings Commercial LLC, of Boca Raton, county property records show. It has a market value of $717,000.

The new construction will be limited to a 10.6-acre tract between Turnpike Feeder Road and U.S. 1, county records show. A 6.4-acre parcel west of Turnpike Feeder Road will be designated as a preserve area.

A 25-foot landscape buffer will be installed on the north, east and west edges of the site and a 20-foot buffer will be provided to the south along the mobile home park, county records show.

St. Lucie County commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday (Dec. 7) to postpone a public hearing until Jan. 11 on rezoning and preliminary site plan applications for the project.

The county’s Planning and Zoning Commission had voted unanimously on Nov. 18 to recommend the county commissioners approve the developer’s requests.

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