Master plan for downtown Vero Beach is unveiled; passing a November referendum is the key

VERO BEACH — The ball is in the city's court, as urban planner Andres Duany Tuesday unveiled his final downtown master plan.

"I am now transitioning the plan to the city," Duany told the City Council. "This is a 90-page report which answers most questions."

DPZ CoDESIGN, Duany's firm, had been charged with developing the plan. The process began in February, with a week of fact-finding sessions. It was from those meetings that Duany developed his ideas for the future of downtown.

Future visions

Duany's plan outlines a potential path the city can take if it wants to improve its downtown area.

"For example, a lot of the frontages are from the '70s and '80s," said Duany. "That gives the impression that the shops or restaurants are not good."

The epicenter of the project is four blocks of 14th Avenue, with development expected to eventually spread as far north as the airport, south past Vero Beach High School, east beyond the Florida East Coast Railway and west to 20th Avenue.

Development, however, cannot spread without increasing the city's allowable density, currently 17 units per acre, according to Duany. It needs to be at least 60 units per acre, he said.

To get to that point, voters need to pass a ballot referendum in November.

"Without the referendum passing, this is dead," said Duany. "The wind is in our sails now. Don't let it die."

Councilmembers, though, are worried that state law gives them only 75 words on the ballot to explain the issue.

"Seventy-five words is not a lot of space to convey how important this is to the future of the city," Vice Mayor Linda Moore said Tuesday. "It is a daunting task to squeeze such a big idea into so few words."

Increasing the density would allow more studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments in the downtown area, something the city sorely lacks, according, to Duany.

Those smaller rental units provide affordable housing for young people, who pioneer downtown.

"You fundamentally need to prioritize street and nightlife," said Duany. "Get people moving and excited."

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Seven residents took the opportunity to express support for the master plan with comments ranging from slightly cautious to gung-ho.

"I plan to take this to our board and support this referendum," said Dori Stone, of the Chamber of Commerce. "We support making downtown alive again."

A few stressed the importance of including the city's largest employer — Piper Aircraft — in downtown's revitalization.

"We do not want this to sit on a desk somewhere," said Matt Haines. "Let's start doing stuff that Piper wants to invest in.

"Their biggest complaint is losing employees because of lack of housing," he said.

There's no timeline for when a downtown makeover could be accomplished.

"I want to see an organization structure," said Barbara Ruddy, an active civic participant. "Let's get this organized and moving."

The City Council unanimously accepted Duany's master plan with the 60-unit-density.

"I hope this moves fast, and that this is simple," said Duany. "Pass the referendum and let's make downtown great."

Nick Slater is TCPalm's Indian River County Watchdog reporter. You can reach him at Nick.Slater@tcpalm.com and 224-830-2875.