Luxury apartments and commercial space are in the works for a 17-acre wooded tract in southeastern Port St. Lucie between U.S. 1 and Morningside Boulevard.
Six Diamonds Realty LLC, of Palm Beach, plans to build commercial plazas on two or three acres along U.S. 1 and a 253-unit apartment complex on the rest of the property.
The property just south of Lyngate Drive is one of the last undeveloped tracts on U.S. 1 in the sprawling city’s original southeastern section.
The project site is about 2/3rds of a mile south of the Civic Center and 1.6 miles south of the Crosstown Parkway Bridge.
Florida Department of Transportation plans to start a $6.3 million resurfacing project next summer on U.S. 1 between Port St. Lucie Boulevard and Rio Mar Drive.
The city also plans to spend $1.5 million beautifying U.S. 1 south of the bridge in 2021, city records show.
“It’s a key part of the city,” said Michael Houston, a land planner representing the developer.
“The City Center has been developed, but some of the other pieces are still missing. This is one of the pieces.”
The Planning and Zoning Board voted 6-1 to approve a land use change for the property to allow high density residential development as well as commercial. The proposal goes to the City Council on July 22.
The developer will be required to establish a 50-foot-wide conservation and open space area along the sidewalk on Morningside Boulevard, as a condition of approval.
A rezoning request and site plan application for the project will be submitted to city planners later this year, Houston said.
The project will share a driveway on U.S. 1 with the Altria Port St. Lucie adult living facility, Houston said. There will also be a second access point on U.S. 1.
“There are some good changes occurring to the south of us and with some of the commercial (properties),” Houston told the board. “With the bridge opening up, we’re hoping there will be some new users in there.”
