A proposal to allow significantly larger commercial development on a vacant 10.25-acre parcel along U.S. 1 North was unanimously rejected Tuesday by the St. Johns County Board of County Commissioners following vocal opposition from nearby residents.
The request sought to increase the maximum allowable commercial building size on the property — located at the corner of U.S. 1 North and Abbotts Way within the Las Calinas development — from 19,000 square feet to 49,000 square feet.
The site has been designated for neighborhood-scale commercial use since 2005.
Residents of the neighboring Kensington community turned out in force at the meeting, voicing concerns about traffic congestion, neighborhood character and the overall scale of potential development.
Many argued the proposed increase was disproportionately large for the surrounding residential area and could worsen already busy traffic conditions along U.S. 1 and Abbotts Way.
Commissioner Clay Murphy said the public’s testimony carried weight.
“The opposition came up and described areas of the character of the neighborhood and the density of the development and the increase of traffic in the area that would be considered credible, substantial evidence to not be in support of this increase,” Murphy said.
Project representative James Whitehouse told commissioners the property owners were willing to scale the project back to 38,000 square feet in an effort to address some of the community’s concerns.
That concession, however, did not sway the board.
Planning staff had noted that no specific tenant or building plans were under consideration and that any future project would still require site plan approval, traffic studies and permitting.
Commissioners voted 5-0 to deny the request.
