Delray Beach Approves Townhomes to Replace Shuttered Restaurant Property

‘The Edge at Pineapple Grove,’ Delray Beach, Sept. 2024. (Photo: Boca Daily News)

A Delray Beach property that is currently improved with a shuttered restaurant that has deteriorated into disrepair, plus two vacant residential buildings that date back to the 1920s, will be replaced by a new multi-unit townhome community following an approval by the city’s planning board this week.

The board, after numerous community meetings and revisions, approved “The Edge at Pineapple Grove,” to be constructed at 605 NE 2nd Street. The Edge, located in the commercial core, would fully transform the 0.36-acre parcel to residential use only following decades of mixed commercial and residential uses by the restaurant and two homes that dot the property now.

Future site of ‘The Edge at Pineapple Grove,’ Delray Beach, Sept. 2024. (Photo: Boca Daily News)

The Edge will consist of seven townhomes, each of which will consist of three bedrooms with an open terrace space on the rooftop. Four units will face NE 6th Avenue and three along Hoffman Lane, with individual garages facing an interior drive aisle accessible from Hoffman Lane. The development will also feature “stoop access” NE 6th as well as Hoffman – an alley that was recently renamed.

The site is currently developed with the former La Poulette restaurant, a now-closed French rotisserie establishment whose building was constructed in 1948, and two small residential dwellings that were built in 1925. All three buildings will be demolished. The newly-proposed complex will consist of a single, four-story building that will stand 52-feet tall, with a four-foot parapet atop the structure. It will be set back 10-feet from the street.

The project has been pending for nearly two years, and faced some pushback from neighboring residents thanks to the decision by developers to add more modern architecture to a district that is considered historic, though board members as well as residents praised the improvements to the property as a whole. Board members and city staff also expressed that the modern design of the building fits within the character of the neighborhood in 2024, with several adjacent properties having been developed with a similar style. Seven decorative streetlights will be placed along NE 6th Avenue and NE 2nd Street, consistent with the city’s streetscape style.

‘The Edge at Pineapple Grove,’ Delray Beach, Sept. 2024. (Photo: Boca Daily News)

Future site of ‘The Edge at Pineapple Grove,’ Delray Beach, Sept. 2024. (Photo: Boca Daily News)

Neighbors also raised concerns over the traffic pattern that would have resulted from an initial proposal to locate the community’s sole egress and ingress point from NE 2nd Street – already a busy and relatively narrow roadway. A later proposal, also rejected, created an ingress from NE 2nd and an egress from the alley (Hoffman Lane). The final decision, which drew support from neighbors and board members, modified the proposal to allow ingress by way of Hoffman and egress onto NE 2nd.

“We’re encouraged to see the change in the plan from prior versions, with the ingress and egress solely through Hoffman Lane,” said resident Jill Schifferly, who told board members she leads a neighborhood association. “That is a big improvement from our perspective – we were very concerned with left-hand turns from where the interior drive is now.”

The revised traffic flow configuration forced the developer of the project to eliminate one unit. The total allowable density in the underlying zone would have allowed a maximum of 10 units.

“We’d still like to see more trees … but the main concern that we had was with the ingress and egress,” added Schifferly, the only resident who spoke at the meeting.

Future site of ‘The Edge at Pineapple Grove,’ Delray Beach, Sept. 2024. (Photo: Boca Daily News)

Despite the concerns over greenery, city staff said the site configuration proposes a “well-landscaped streetscape along the primary streets, NE 6th Avenue and NE 2nd Street, and a sidewalk along Hoffman Lane, an alley, that leads to three of the unit’s stoops.”

Further, the majority of the parking for the development is located toward the interior of site, which helps “alleviate the negative visual impact that results from an abundance of visible off-street parking” placed between the buildings and the public-facing portion of the site, staff wrote in the project’s report to the board.

The board voted 5-1 to approve the application, with member Christopher Brown casting the sole dissenting vote after expressing displeasure with modern architectural styles as a whole.