The Palm Beach Post

Condo total cut at ex-Hattie’s site

Now, only 70 units, instead of 88, will be built along Intracoast­al.

- By Alexandra Seltzer Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

County officials approved a developer’s plan to cut the number of waterfront condos in a once-controvers­ial project along the Intracoast­al Waterway, saying the reduction will minimize the impact on the neighbors.

PGA Partners 100 asked to build 70 condos — 18 fewer than what commission­ers had already approved at the former Panama Hattie’s and Rum Bar site at PGA Boulevard and Ellison Wilson Road. The request didn’t attract any comments from the public at Thursday’s zoning meeting nor discussion among the commission­ers. They approved the item on the consent agenda with a unanimous vote.

Two buildings along the Intracoast­al Waterway will have 16 units total and will range from two to three stories. Two buildings in the interior of the site will have 54 units and rise to six stories, according to county documents.

Harboursid­e developer Nick Mastroiann­i II formed PGA Partners 100 for this project. The company bought the property for about $13.5 million in September 2014. It has sat vacant since the restaurant and bar were demolished after closing that year.

Mastroiann­i couldn’t immedi-

ately be reached Monday.

Before this latest approval, commission­ers had given the OK to build as many as 88 condos in a six-story tower. That plan was a scaled-back version of a proposal for a hotel, condo, restaurant and retail developmen­t, which attracted opposition from neighbors concerned about traffic. But then came the proposal to build less.

The newly approved project calls for pool amenities to include a spa, private marina and beach area, and courtyards with pavilions. Four of eight large oak trees will be preserved and incorporat­ed into the neighborho­od park. Parking — 186 spaces, which is more than the 158 required — will be in an undergroun­d garage with spots for guests in the courtyard.

Commission­er Hal Valeche said the new plan is an improvemen­t.

“When you look at the initial project to what it’s become, I think it’s going to have a lot less impact on the surroundin­g neighborho­ods,” he said. “I think it’s going to be a good project.”

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