RESIDENTS MAKE TRAIN STATION SUGGESTIONS
PALM BEACH GARDENS — A future Tri-Rail station on PGA Boulevard would likely be at the center of redevelopment projects and might relieve commuters sitting in bottlenecks on I-95.
Residents hunched over maps and sketched out their ideas for such a station, on the south side of the road near Alternate A1A, at a workshop hosted by the city and the Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council Thursday at City Hall.
Midtown resident Jimmy Collamore said the station could anchor a downtown the city has never had.
“The one word I haven’t heard is ‘destination,’ ” he said. “This could be a hub. This could be the place to go.”
Their ideas included:
■ A bike-share program with racks at the station and around the city.
■ An elevated pedestrian bridge at Alternate A1A.
■ A meandering bike lane from the Midtown complex to Kyoto Gardens Drive to Alternate A1A to the station.
■ A boardwalk or nature paths around the man-made lake next to the PGA Boulevard flyover.
■ A high-rise hotel.
■ An elevator system connected with the flyover.
■ Trolley or shuttle service connecting the station to Downtown at the Gardens, the North County Courthouse and Palm Beach State College.
■ Affordable housing for police, firefighters, hospital employees and educators.
The planning council will present a work in progress at 6 p.m., Nov. 2 at City Hall, 10500 North Military Trail.
It’s estimated the population of South Florida will reach 7 million by 2040, said Kim DeLaney, the council’s director of strategic development and policy.
Palm Beach Gardens already has determined that PGA Boulevard won’t be more than six lanes, so more transportation choices are warranted, DeLaney said. Traffic that relies heavily on roads is more prone to delay, she said.
There’s been talk of extending Tri-Rail north for decades, but planners say infrastructure for the northern leg of All Aboard Florida’s Brightline has sped up the discussion.
Tri-Rail currently stretches from Miami International Airport and stops at 45th Street in Mangonia Park. More than 14,000 people ride Tri-Rail every day, DeLaney said.
She asked residents to consider millennials and empty-nesters in drawing up their plans. People age 65 or older are the largest growing segment of the Palm Beach Gardens population. People in their 70s and 80s are becoming trapped in their neighborhoods when they can’t drive, DeLaney said.
Jonathan Paul, a mobility consultant for the city, said a lot of people won’t bike or walk to the grocery store because they’re afraid of getting hit by a car. He’s looking at how to make roads and sidewalks more compatible for people and bicyclists.
Palm Beach Gardens alone provides enough commuters to justify the extension of TriRail farther north, DeLaney said. There are 23,000 jobs and 7,500 Palm Beach State College students in the area surrounding the station.
Some local governments buy shared electric bikes or subsidize Uber rides to get to train stations, Paul said.
BBX Capital and Stiles Corporation plan to build a hotel and medical offices next to the future station. That development has space for extra parking in the plan, if and when the station is built, said Natalie Crowley, the city’s planning and zoning director.
The development and redevelopment of huge swaths of property surrounding the station remains a question mark. Florida Power & Light plans roughly 1 million square feet of office space on the north side of PGA Boulevard.
Palm Beach Gardens officials haven’t approved a site plan, Crowley said.