Mira Mar project moves forward with partial sign-off

All 27,500 square feet of storefront and second-floor office suite space have been vacated at the Mira Mar, for now a ghostly presence along a 400-foot stretch of South Palm Avenue.

Concurrent to work underway to stabilize and then rehabilitate the two century-old structures, the entire project that includes twin condo towers to the rear of the historic buildings received partial sign-off from the city’s Development Review Committee on Jan. 7. 

That means enough of the city department reviewers’ comments have been satisfactorily addressed that remaining issues may be resolved individually with staff members. 

Other matters remain, though, which will require granting of two administrative adjustments by Director of Development Services Lucia Panica. Also, owner and developer Seaward Development is seeking a technical deviation because the existing structure is too close to the property line, which is inconsistent with the city’s Engineering Design Criteria Manual.

Courtesy image

The applicant is seeking a reduction of 1.17%, or 2 feet, of parallel facade frontage from 157 to 155 feet, just less than the 90% required. According to documents filed with the city, Seaward proposes no changes to the existing facade.

“The proposed adjustment will not significantly detract from the livability or appearance of the Downtown Core zone district,” reads the narrative provided by project consultant Kimley-Horn. “The facade will remain as existing with updates to landscaping and other decorative features to improve the pedestrian experience.”

Seaward is also seeking an adjustment to use alternative materials along the South Palm Avenue frontage that are inconsistent with the EDCM. According to the application, the materials will be limited to accents on the upper portion of eight decorative arches, the architectural elements used to screen the parking podium openings.

Photo by Andrew Warfield

“The proposed materials, being a mixture of aluminum-type material and plant material, will provide visual interest that is in line with the character of South Palm Avenue,” reads the application. “The use of multiple materials will contribute to the articulation of the facade and harmoniously enhance the design of the proposed building and existing historic structure. Planters will be utilized on multiple stories along South Palm Avenue to bring a vibrant sense of place while providing for ease of maintenance."

The podium will be located behind the historic buildings, which will support the two towers with 70 condominiums above three levels of parking. It will also include a wide variety of amenities, and habitable space on the first two floors along a central courtyard to the west and Mira Mar Court to the east. 

Not enough available width

According to the application, it is not feasible to provide the required building setback on the south side of the historic structure along McAnsh Square and the redevelopment on the east east side at Mira Mar Court, which are 35 feet and 40 feet, respectively. The requested technical deviation will provide relief from the building “shy zone,” amenity zone and total frontage area.

A shy zone refers to the area immediately adjacent to a building pedestrians tend to avoid. 

The application said because the historic building is so close to the property line, it converges with McAnsh Square "at such an angle that the required pedestrian area cannot be provided."

Photo by Andrew Warfield

To mitigate this reduction in pedestrian space on McAnsh Square, Seaward has proposed a new crosswalk across McAnsh Square east of South Palm Avenue to enhance the navigation of pedestrians between Main Street and South Palm Avenue. The new construction portion of the project is also set back from the property line farther than required.

It’s a fair trade, according to the developer, resulting in the delivery of equal or superior streetscape design compared to the EDCM standards.

“The acreage of the site, the existing historic structure proposed to remain and the standard to provide three roadway frontages creates unique site design constraints, which impact developable area,” reads the application.

A portion of the proceeds from the sale of the 70 condos, which start at $3.8 million, will fund the rehabilitation of the Mira Mar, estimated at upwards of $30 million. Completion of the new towers is anticipated by the end of 2028.