The St. Johns County Planning & Zoning Agency voted 4-0 on Sept. 21 to recommend approval of the Planned Unit Development (2023-02) concerning the Ponte Vedra Inn & Club and The Lodge & Club.
Agency member Meagan Perkins made the motion to recommend passage. Greg Matovina, Elvis Pierre and Henry Green agreed, and with no further discussion voted in favor without any amendments or suggested changes to the PUD. Agency members Richard Hilsenbeck and Jack Peter were absent.
The Planning & Zoning Agency is an advisory group that makes recommendations to the St. Johns County Commission about property that falls within the purview of the St. Johns County Land Development Code.
Of the 80 acres included in the PUD, a small portion near The Lodge and a proposed parking garage on the southwest side of Ponte Vedra Boulevard next to The Carlyle condominiums are under Planning & Zoning Agency jurisdiction.
The PUD seeks to allow the resort to commence with a 30-year master plan to renovate and expand its facilities.
The matter now goes to the St. Johns County Commission, where a final decision to approve or deny the PUD is scheduled Nov. 7. The meeting is scheduled for 9 a.m. in the auditorium at 500 San Sebastian View in St. Augustine.
The Ponte Vedra Inn & Club is at 200 Ponte Vedra Blvd. and The Lodge & Club is at 607 Ponte Vedra Blvd. along the Atlantic Ocean.
The zoning agency meeting took about 2½ hours, compared with the Ponte Vedra Zoning and Adjustment Board meeting Sept. 11, which lasted 11 hours.
At that meeting, the Zoning and Adjustment Board voted 4-3 to recommend denying the PUD, despite approving 29 of 31 waiver requests.
On Sept. 6, the Ponte Vedra/Palm Valley Architecture Review Committee recommended approval of the architectural components of the resort’s projects. The committee also approved architectural plans for a new fitness center and Surf Club.
However, the Architecture Review Committee did not recommend the Unified Sign Plan because it was incomplete.
During the Planning & Zoning Agency public comment portion, four speakers representing The Carlyle and nearby neighborhoods spoke against the PUD. They were followed by eight county residents who also opposed the PUD.
Agency discussion focused on height limits of buildings and front yard setbacks.
The new PUD would limit floor-to-roof height of oceanside guest residences to 35 feet. The new fitness center and parking garage at The Lodge can be up to 55 feet.
It also would reduce setbacks from 20 feet to 5 feet to bring into compliance buildings constructed before the 1995 comprehensive plan.
