R2022-54 Lane Re-Purposing for U.S. Highway OneRESOLUTION 2022-54
A RESOLUTION OF THE VILLAGE COUNCIL OF THE VILLAGE OF
NORTH PALM BEACH, FLORIDA, APPROVING LANE REPURPOSING FOR
U.S. HIGHWAY ONE AND THE SUBMITTAL OF AN APPLICATION FOR
FORMAL REVIEW OF THE LANE REPURPOSING PROJECT BY THE
FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION; DIRECTING STAFF TO
PURSUE GRANT FUNDING SOURCES; AND PROVIDING FOR AN
EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, U.S. Highway 1 is a historic transportation corridor originally designated as "The
Dixie Highway" as one of the country's trans -continental railroads in the 1920's; and
WHEREAS, when the Village of North Palm Beach was incorporated in 1956, U.S. Highway 1
was the primary north/south corridor in Palm Beach County for both local and long-distance travel
by automobiles; and
WHEREAS, U.S. Highway 1 was widened over time from two lanes to six lanes to accommodate
projected traffic demands based on expectations for use for local and long-distance trips; and
WHEREAS, the segment of U.S. Highway 1 south of Northlake Boulevard is a four -lane
configuration and the segment of U.S. Highway 1 north of the Parker Bridge is a four -lane
configuration; and
WHEREAS, properties along U.S. Highway 1 in the Village of North Palm Beach were developed
with a majority of office and commercial uses that created a business district that was successful
for many years but has declined in the past decade; and
WHEREAS, the role of U.S. Highway 1 in the regional transportation network has changed with
the construction of Interstate 95 and Florida's Turnpike, both of which were designed and function
to carry long-distance trips in the region and state; and
WHEREAS, other office and commercial districts were developed in adjacent and nearby
municipalities such as West Palm Beach and Palm Beach Gardens, which contributed to a rise in
vacancies along U.S. Highway 1 in North Palm Beach; and
WHEREAS, other municipalities in Palm Beach County, including the Village of Tequesta and
the Cities of West Palm Beach, Lake Worth Beach, and Boca Raton, have either completed or are
pursuing lane repurposing of U.S. Highway 1 in their communities that include a reduction in the
number of vehicular travel lanes and the addition of landscaping, streetlighting, bicycle/pedestrian
amenities, transit enhancements, and other complementary features; and
WHEREAS, the Village of North Palm Beach undertook a community charrette process with
extensive public outreach to develop the 2016 Citizens' Master Plan that contains strategies to
improve the economic conditions, sense of place, and quality of life for Village residents,
businesses, and property owners; and
WHEREAS, a primary strategy in the 2016 Citizens' Master Plan Report is to reconfigure U.S.
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Highway 1 from a six -lane roadway to a four -lane "Complete Street" by repurposing two vehicular
lanes into areas for additional landscaping, streetlighting, bicycle/pedestrian amenities, transit
enhancements, and decorative elements; and
WHEREAS, the Village adopted a form -based commercial zoning code to implement the Citizens'
Master Plan that encourages the introduction of residential and mixed-use buildings on the U.S.
Highway 1 corridor with reduced front setbacks, multi -story buildings, enhanced landscaping and
open spaces, active ground floor spaces, and parking locations away from the corridor; and
WHEREAS, new infill development and redevelopment envisioned in the Village's form -based
code would be enhanced with a reconfigured U.S. Highway 1 with Complete Street design and
amenities; and
WHEREAS, the Palm Beach Transportation Planning Agency (TPA) adopted a U.S. Highway 1
Multimodal Corridor Study in 2018 to analyze the configuration, function, and design of U.S.
Highway 1 throughout Palm Beach County, with a focus on improving safety and functionality,
enhancing economic development, boosting health measures, and contributing to improved quality
of life; and
WHEREAS, the TPA U.S. Highway 1 Multimodal Corridor Study also recommended the portion
of U.S. Highway 1 in the Village of North Palm Beach be reconfigured from six lanes to four lanes
as a Complete Street with the addition of landscaping, bicycle and pedestrian amenities, and
supporting design elements; and
WHEREAS, the TPA U.S. Highway 1 Multimodal Corridor Study prioritized the North Palm
Beach U.S. Highway 1 lane repurposing as a "Tier One" priority within the study
recommendations, reinforced with the tentative allocation of $5 million in TPA funding to assist
in funding multimodal improvements on the corridor, including but not limited to the potential
roadway configuration, enhanced lighting and landscaping and other design elements; and
WHEREAS, the TPA allocated additional funding to assist in supplemental transportation analyses
of the recommended lane repurposing as well as coordination with other agencies including the
Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), Palm Beach County, and adjacent municipalities;
and
WHEREAS, additional analyses were undertaken from 2019 through 2022 in coordination with
the TPA and other agencies and concluded that lane repurposing for U.S. Highway 1 in North
Palm Beach is consistent with transportation "best practices;" and
WHEREAS, the potential lane repurposing in the Village of North Palm Beach would maintain
the currently planned configuration from the intersection of Northlake Boulevard to Anchorage
Drive South, which will improve the Northlake Boulevard/U.S. Highway 1 intersection by
lengthening the current westbound turning lane and adding an additional westbound turning lane;
and
WHEREAS, the potential lane repurposing of the "central segment" of U.S. Highway 1 — roughly
0.9 miles between Anchorage Drive North and Anchorage Drive South — would be reconstructed
in a four -lane reconfiguration with the addition of a 5 -foot bicycle lane, 7.5 -foot landscaping strip
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that could accommodate trees and streetlighting, and 12 -foot multipurpose path that could
accommodate pedestrians and bicyclists; and
WHEREAS, the potential lane repurposing of the "northern segment" of U.S. Highway 1— roughly
0.7 miles between Anchorage Drive North and the Parker Bridge — would be maintained in a three -
lane configuration in the northbound direction with additional 4 -foot bicycle lanes and a wider
10.5 -foot sidewalk and reconstructed in the southbound direction with a two-lane configuration
with the addition of a 5 -foot bicycle lane, 7.5 -foot landscape strip, and 12 -foot multipurpose path;
and
WHEREAS, the potential lane repurposing on the northern segment of U.S. Highway 1 would
greatly enhance bicycle and pedestrian access to the Village of North Palm Beach Country Club;
and
WHEREAS, the potential lane repurposing would allow the Village to pursue designated Golf Cart
Crossings across U.S. Highway 1 at key intersections to enable improved access by golf carts and
low -speed vehicles; and
WHEREAS, the potential lane repurposing would maintain all signalized intersections with the
same number of lanes and with the addition of right-hand turn -only lanes that will improve safety,
traffic flows through intersections, and resident access to local streets; and
WHEREAS, the potential lane repurposing will allow the Village to more equitably balance
transportation access among varying transportation users, enhancing the desirability of bicycle and
pedestrian activity, and improving the interconnectivity of the Village's commercial district; and
WHEREAS, the potential lane repurposing will enable the Village to install shade trees and other
landscaping and streetlighting elements on both sides of the corridor, which will provide traffic
calming and visual cues for drivers, especially cut -through traffic, to reduce speeding on a
reconfigured roadway "right -sized" for posted travel speeds; and
WHEREAS, if the Village's redevelopment efforts envisioned in the Citizens' Master Plan were
completely realized by 2040 with the potential addition of 250,000 square feet of new
office/commercial space, 600 new dwelling units, and the redevelopment of an additional 250,000
square feet of currently underperforming office/commercial space and if the Village's annual
growth rate were to increase from the historic 0.8% to 1.25%, the U.S. Highway 1 lane repurposing
traffic study indicates the impact to a driver traveling peak direction/peak season (e.g., afternoon
northbound commute in January) to be only 13.7 -second delay with a four -lane configuration
versus the current six -lane configuration; and
WHEREAS, the potential lane repurposing would create additional stormwater treatment area for
the installation of baffle boxes that could be further complemented by bioswales and rain gardens
to improve stormwater quality prior to its discharge into Lake Worth, thereby providing an
environmental enhancement to Village residents and property owners that could be funded through
agency grant dollars; and
WHEREAS, the addition of multipurpose paths, landscaping, and streetlighting possible through
a lane repurposing would improve the environment for new mixed-use development along the
corridor, which could generate additional ad valorem and other revenues to the Village; and
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WHEREAS, FDOT District IV has reviewed the Village's U.S. Highway 1 Lane Repurposing
Application and has found it to be technically sufficient and appropriate for final review by the
FDOT Central Office; and
WHEREAS, if the Village's U.S. Highway 1 Lane Repurposing Application is found to be
technically sufficient by the FDOT Central Office, the Village would be eligible to pursue up to
$5 million in future grant funding from the Palm Beach TPA through its grant programs or other
project funding through TPA appropriations; and
WHEREAS, Village Council action is required to authorize the transmittal of the U.S. Highway 1
Lane Repurposing Application to FDOT Central Office for final review; and
WHEREAS, the Village Council determines that the adoption of this Resolution benefits the public
health, safety and welfare.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE VILLAGE COUNCIL OF NORTH PALM
BEACH, FLORIDA as follows:
Section 1. The foregoing recitals are hereby ratified and incorporated herein.
Section 2. The Village Council determines that a lane repurposing project on U.S. Highway
One in the Village will allow the Village to implement its Comprehensive Plan, Citizens' Master
Plan and Form -Based Commercial Code and create a setting with enhanced landscaping, bicycle
and pedestrian amenities, transit enhancements and other supporting design elements. If approved
by FDOT, the U.S. Highway One lane repurposing, as designed, would enable the Village to
pursue project funding through grants and other appropriations from the Palm Beach
Transportation Planning Agency and other various governmental agencies.
Section 3. The Village Council approves the submittal of a formal lane repurposing
application to FDOT for the approval of the U.S. Highway 1 Lane Repurposing Project in the
Village of North Palm Beach and requests formal review by FDOT District IV and Central Office,
as required for the implementation of the project.
Section 4. The Village Council further directs staff to begin pursuing grant funding and other
appropriations from the Palm Beach TPA and other agencies to implement this project.
Section 5. This Resolution shall be effective immediately upon adoption.
OF JULY, 2022.
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