Village Council Workshop

Village of Wellington 12300 Forest Hill Blvd Wellington, FL 33414 Action Summary - Final Monday, February 12, 2024 3:00 PM WELLINGTON VILLAGE (K-PARK) PRESENTATION Village Hall - Conference Rooms 1E & 1F Village Council Workshop Anne Gerwig, Mayor Michael Napoleone, Vice Mayor John T. McGovern, Councilman Michael Drahos, Councilman Tanya Siskind, Councilwoman While this is a public meeting, there will be no opportunity for public comment at this workshop. This workshop will be Iive streamed, recorded and posted to the Village website for viewing. Village Council Workshop Action Summary - Final February 12, 2024 1. CALL TO ORDER Mayor Gerwig called the meeting to order at 3:01 p.m. Council Members in Attendance: Anne Gerwig, Mayor; Michael Napoleone, Vice Mayor; John McGovern, Councilman; Michael Drahos, Councilman; and Tanya Siskind, Councilwoman. 2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Mayor Gerwig led the Pledge of Allegiance. 3. WELLINGTON VILLAGE (K-PARK) PRESENTATION Mr. Barnes introduced the item. He stated that this is the Wellington VIllage (K-Park) Presentation. He said that the team from Related Companies is here to present their proposal much like the Village did with the Ward proposal. Kenneth Himmel, President and CEO Related Urban introduced himself and the Development Team: Lynn Conley, Max Cay, Senior Analyst, and Kevin Ryan, Partner. He discussed Related Urban projects developed, the importance of the project being mixed use, and building public realm . He said that they are here to talk about a project that just might give Related Urban the chance to deliver a location and platform for a great private school. He mentioned that they are doing a lot of work with the Roosevelt and the Henderson Schools in Boca Raton; trying to bring that into North Palm Beach County along with attracting great private schools . He said that because of Wellington's demographic and the good school system, Related Urban thinks what is called for is a great private school. Mr. Ryan presented a PowerPoint Presentation Wellington Village. He discussed the Location and Proposed Wellington K-Park Development. Mr. Himmel noted that Related Urban is not speculating on a school. He said that they have very serious interests from a number of private schools. Ms. Conely said that the private school is very similar to London North Collegiate, but at a higher level. She noted that they were here last week to see the site. She said that they should have more intel if it is the selected site within six weeks. Mayor Gerwig asked if the school would have on-campus housing. Ms. Conley answered a question from Mayor Gerwig. Village of Wellington Page 1 Village Council Workshop Action Summary - Final February 12, 2024 Mr. Ryan said that their offer is structured in two separate pieces; to purchase the private development and preserve the school campus. He said that after a period of three years, if the school does not materialize in a way that is acceptable to the Village, Related Urban has an option of purchasing the balance of that property. He noted that there is an offer component within the proposal to address this. Mr. Himmel discussed the best interest of the Village. He said if the Village is tired of looking at the mall, Related Urban can develop a lifestyle Center that has beautiful public realms, great retail tenants and restaurants. Mayor Gerwig asked about the components being shown to the Council. Mr. Ryan and Ms. Conely answered a question from Mayor Gerwig. Mayor Gerwig commented on the Mall. She asked how do they see the mall proceeding. Mr. Himmel responded to Mayor Gerwig's comment and question. Councilman McGovern asked if the component would leverage the mall forward if the Village were to proceed with this project. He asked Mr . Barnes to clarify what the Council is doing. He said that all the Council is discussing today and tomorrow is an agenda item that says, do we want to allow staff to have negotiations and discussions with one of the two people that have said that they are interested. Mr. Barnes responded to Councilman McGovern's question. He noted that the Village received the Ward's proposal several months ago and Related's proposal the last quarter of 2023. He said that staff wanted to get direction from the Council. He said that there is nothing binding and that the staff is not presenting a contract before the Council. He said that this is to make a determination if Council wants staff to keep moving forward with either of the proposals for the property. There was discussion and comments about the mall, ownership and the tenants. Councilman Drahos commented on why the Village is interested in the mall. He mentioned that the residents' first reaction to any discussion about K-Park is to solve the problem with the mall before talking about K-Park. He said that as a forward-thinking Council, they are trying to figure out how to make the two work. Village of Wellington Page 2 Village Council Workshop Action Summary - Final February 12, 2024 Mr. Himmel responded to comments from Councilman Drahos. There were comments and discussion regarding the opportunity for Wellington, traffic and mix use. Ms. Conely said that Wellington has the number one developer in the country wanting to build in Wellington. She mentioned that they build to hold. Mr. Himmel discussed The Square project in West Palm Beach and the transformation. Mayor Gerwig commented that the Village is missing the work centric element. Councilman Drahos asked why is Related Urban hot on the school component. Mr. Himmel and Ms. Conley answered a question from Councilman Drahos. Mayor Gerwig asked how many residents from Wellington take their kids to school in Delray Beach. Mr. Ryan said 200 kids from Wellington attend American Heritage. There were comments and discussions regarding the quality of a school initiated project in Wellington, a program for office space in a mixed-use development and the development taking place in the western communities. Mayor Gerwig asked Mr. Barnes how much commercial and office space was built in Westlake. Mr. Barnes answered a question from Mayor Gerwig. Mayor Gerwig said that the Village needs to review this. Mr. Ryan noted that this is an early stage concept. He said that they are still refining the program and Related Urban would evaluate whether commercial use makes sense on a scale that is appropriate for Wellington. There were comments and discussion regarding the traffic and the Village of Wellington Page 3 Village Council Workshop Action Summary - Final February 12, 2024 impact. Councilman McGovern suggested that staff continue the discussion. Councilman Drahos commented that he agrees to engage in the discussion to see where this goes. Vice Mayor Napoleone asked about the future of the rental market. He asked why should Wellington be excited about more apartments and multi-family homes versus single family homes. Mr. Himmel answered questions from Vice Mayor Napoleone. He said that Related Urban looks to build the right intensity and density and not over build. Mayor Gerwig asked about structured parking. Mr. Himmel and Mr. Ryan answered a question from Mayor Gerwig. Mr. Ryan showed and discussed the Publicly Visible Streetscape. There were comments and discussion about the mall and the neighborhood site plan. Mr. Ryan presented the Gateway Plazas, Main Street, and Village Square. Mr. Himmel said he looked at the Village Square as an alternative to a mall. Vice Mayor Napoleone commented on the building downtown and The Square. He said that it is perfect for West Palm Beach but he does not know that duplicating that experience in K-Park is the right solution. He does think that duplicating it on the mall footprint is a good solution. There were comments and discussion regarding what the residents want to see. Mr. Ryan and Ms. Conley responded to comments from the Council. Councilwoman Siskind commented that more green space would sit well with Wellington. She said that she agrees with continuing the discussions and noted the community input meetings held. Mayor Gerwig commented about the school. She said that she wants to Village of Wellington Page 4 Village Council Workshop Action Summary - Final February 12, 2024 see the community attributes. Mr. Himmel responded to Mayor Gerwig's comment. There were comments and discussion regarding the development of programming. Councilman Drahos commented on K-Park. He noted that the Village presumptively acquired a 55-acre parcel of land off of Forest Hill Boulevard that could become a park that the residents would want. Mayor Gerwig asked about the resident amenities. Mr. Ryan answered a question from Mayor Gerwig. Ms. Conley commented on the landscaping. Councilman Drahos commented on the school being a feature that Wellington has not seen before. He said that he does think that it has a community benefit; he sees it as a potential draw to bring new residents to Wellington. There were comments and discussion about the school and the benefits to the community. Councilman McGovern asked about workforce housing and the concern. Mr. Himmel answered a question from Councilman McGovern. There were comments and discussion regarding workforce housing and the school. Mr. Ryan responded to comments from Council. Mr. Himmel said that 50% of their time over the last couple of years have been spent on the K-12 school issue. He mentioned that a top university and hospital will be brought to Palm Beach County to move Palm Beach County into a modern era. He thanked Council and staff for their time. 4. CLOSING COMMENTS NONE. 5. ADJOURN There being no further business to discuss with Council, the meeting was Village of Wellington Page 5 Village Council Workshop Action Summary - Final February 12, 2024 adjourned at 4:03 p.m. Village of Wellington Page 6