A 150-room hotel and retail plaza planned for Neptune Beach's long-vacant Kmart site still lacks answers on fire-suppression water and wastewater delivery, developers told a packed crowd Thursday, Oct. 1.

Residents filled Neptune House in Jarboe Park for a city-coordinated public meeting on Town Center West, the mixed-use project Tribridge proposed for the 17-acre property at 500 Atlantic Blvd., the Beach Gazette reported. Community Development Board (CDB) member Tony Mazzola, who facilitated the meeting, urged residents to engage quickly because the approval timeline is tight.

Tribridge submitted a development order in late August for a three-story hotel on the south side of the property, backing up to the Neptune by the Sea subdivision, and a two-story retail plaza on the north side. The company has also applied for two variances: one for frontage requirements and one for a building larger than 60,000 square feet.

Fire suppression and the 'big green monster'

Water pressure for fire suppression dominated resident questions. Tribridge asked Atlantic Beach for a shared connection to its water supply for fire-suppression use only, but Atlantic Beach denied the request, attorney Steve Diebenow told the crowd.

Diebenow said Tribridge plans to reapproach Atlantic Beach after Neptune Beach approves the site plan. If that also fails, a third option would be another water tank, though nothing is final.

The water-tank idea carries local baggage. A 29-foot tank known as the "big green monster" still stands behind homes on Cherry Street. A developer installed it in December 2022 to supply sprinkler pressure for the smaller-format Publix in the former Kmart plaza. The tank went up without council knowledge. The council fired then-City Manager Stefen Wynn in January 2023 after resident complaints.

Tribridge managing partner Steve Broome said the project could help resolve that problem. "There is a path toward getting rid of the green monster," Broome said at the meeting. He added that if adequate water pressure becomes available, the city would be required to connect and remove the tank.

Wastewater and parking gaps

Diebenow acknowledged the existing lift station connection may not be sufficient to move wastewater from the site to Neptune Beach's treatment plant. The plant can handle 88,000 gallons per day, and the project would generate 44,000 gallons per day. How the wastewater gets to the plant "is still under conversation," Diebenow said.

Parking numbers are disputed. Community Development Director Heather Whitmore said the site requires 463 spaces. The city's count shows 148 on the north side and 138 on the south, plus 100 from a shared agreement with Publix, totaling about 400. That leaves a shortfall of roughly 63 spaces.

Tribridge's own parking analysis claims a surplus of 105 spaces above the code requirement, Diebenow said. City code allows shared off-site parking and valet arrangements.

Density and what comes next

Resident Todd Baxter suggested lower density would make the project a better neighbor. Others raised concerns about light from third-floor hotel rooms overlooking nearby homes.

Diebenow said three plans were initially considered: another big-box store, a hotel-and-townhome mix, or a fully residential development. A late-2017 proposal for up to 313 apartments drew a 6-0 denial from the City Council in August 2018 after hundreds of residents opposed it, Hoodline reported. In March 2021, the council voted 4-0 to strip residential uses from commercial zones, closing the door on housing at the site.

Denver-based Sage Hospitality Group would operate the boutique hotel. Sage also operates the 193-room Dune House Hotel & Spa in Atlantic Beach.

The CDB votes Wednesday, Oct. 21. The City Council is scheduled for a first reading Monday, Nov. 2, and a final public hearing Monday, Nov. 16.