Many residents living in Dolphin Cove, just shy of the 330 A1A North parcel, aren’t happy with the new GATE gas station to be built on the property. According to Chief Property Appraiser Dave Darty, almost 22 units, over 85% of the land, is designated as wetlands by St. Johns County.
In a Change.org petition posted after the decisions of the Ponte Vedra Architectural Review Committee and Ponte Vedra Zoning and Adjustment Board granting GATE zoning variances, many are claiming little-to-no notification of these meetings were advertised. The petition to stop the construction gained almost 10,000 signatures.
Residents are scratching their heads as to not only why GATE intends to build on wetlands, but also why variances to “increase” signage size were granted despite prior aesthetic regulations to the area being upheld. Currently, an appeal has been filed in the circuit court by a neighboring property owner who previously appealed the variance before the Board of County Commissioners.
“I think it’s a bit disappointing the way the county has handled it,” said Cornelius Carroll, a Ponte Vedra Beach resident in opposition. “If you look at the tax records it's designated as wetlands and the county otherwise maintains that it can be developed as commercial property. There is a bit of a double standard there. I think it's notable that when a property is designated as wetlands you pay essentially nothing in property taxes.”
Jan Brewer, St. Johns County Environmental manager, said that over time the wetlands developed on the property after commercial use.
“In 1999, these sewage treatment settling ponds were in use,” Brewer said. “Sometime between 1999 and 2002 the use was discontinued and the ponds laid fallow. The ponds have been naturally filling in over the almost 20 years they have been out-of-service and wetland vegetation has been populating the site.”
The St. Johns County Water and Sewer Management agency is responsible for wetland permitting on the project, including the determination of the area with respect to the wetlands.
Brewer did say that under Florida code, “settling ponds are exempt.” However, she also added that she is “unsure” of the possible direction the SJRWMD will take, “since this area has been out-of-use for such a long period of time.”
Christine Wentzel, supervising environmental scientist in the district’s Jacksonville Service Center, said currently the St. Johns Water Management District does not have a permit application for the project so there hasn’t been any formal determination.
“Generally speaking, under the district’s criteria, applicants must demonstrate a proposed project meets conditions under state statutes, such as a requirement to provide reasonable assurances his or her project won’t cause adverse impacts to value of wetland or surface water functions to fish, wildlife and listed species,” Wentzel said.
In addition to environmental factors, residents have voiced concern about variances GATE had applied to with the Ponte Vedra Overlay District that would allow for additional signs. Typically, Ponte Vedra has a relatively strict architectural code that prevents businesses from building too big or bright along the Ponte Vedra Coastal Corridor. Any new structures must adhere to the standards and criteria in order to maintain the aesthetic of the area.
“These variances will be used by nearby businesses and shopping centers to get bigger signs with more colors, bigger buildings, and less landscaping,” Carroll said in the Change.org petition. “Mark my words, if those decisions are not successfully opposed by the community, that stretch of A1A will look like Beach Boulevard five years ago and I believe property values will suffer as a result.”
GATE’s variances were approved in December to allow for additional signage. Currently, the district regulations provide for 24-square-feet wall signs. The variance that was approved for the GATE signs, allows for three wall signs consisting of a 81.8-square-feet GATE sign, a Fresh Kitchen sign consisting of 64.4 square feet and a Yobe Frozen Yogurt sign consisting of 46 square feet.
According to Teresa Bishop, planning division manager, the signs will come down to 24 square feet if the color remains.
“The variance approved two ground signs at 32 square feet, instead of one sign at 60 square feet,” she said.
“The applicant provided the requested variances are needed for the signs to be legible and recognizable, since those signs are set back approximately 200 feet from A1A,” Bishop said. “The Ponte Vedra Zoning and Adjustment Board discussed the size of the signs and the applicant’s hardship in asking for the larger signs. The applicant responded the hardship was related to the property being used as a commercial project, which is set back over 200 feet from A1A, and need for the travelling public to read the signs. The discussed scale of the signs in relation to the building and the need for visible signage.”
The Change.org petition also cites possible drainage issues for those living in the surrounding area and as well as traffic increases to an already congested roadway. It is unclear how GATE may address those issues at this stage.
