The City of Sebastian Planning and Zoning Commission voted 7-0 Thursday to recommend that City Council rezone about 148 acres for Treasure Bay, a planned unit development that would include 180 residential units and public amenities.

The recommendation, made during a public hearing, covers a conceptual PUD plan proposing 110 single-family lots and 70 paired villas on a site west of U.S. 1, west of the FEC railroad tracks, south of Schumann Drive, east of Lance Street and north of Beach Cove Mobile Home Park. The commission’s motion approves the rezoning and the conceptual plan “with the following conditions spelled out by the community development department 1 through 8,” a commissioner said before the roll call vote.

Treasure Bay would use an existing, mined lake as the project’s central stormwater feature. Applicant materials and staff presentations say roughly 85 acres of the site — about 58% of the property — are lake, producing a gross density of about 1.21 units per acre. The developer proposed public benefits including a 30-foot buffer and an 8-foot shared-use path along the east side of the site, a kayak launch, pickleball courts, a dog park, a 0.43-acre public rest area with exercise and bike maintenance equipment, and multiple sidewalk connections to adjacent streets. The applicant also agreed to install an 8-inch sewer force main under the FEC tracks at its own cost for future county tie-ins.

“At this time, we’re not planning on restricting the residents’ access to the lake directly from their own lots,” Mike Dula, representing applicant Doctor Horton, told the commission. “There is no longer any plan for a fence along those rear lots, and it’ll be graded smoothly so that, in theory, you could access the lake.” Dula said the lakeshore and bank area would be owned and controlled by the homeowners association and that permanent structures such as private docks would not be allowed under the developer’s current plans.

Jim Bitter, the project engineer with BGE, told commissioners the plan shows a single-loaded loop road around the lake and outlined how private and public recreation acreage was calculated. Staff said private recreation counts at 50% toward the code-required recreation acreage and that, combining private and public areas, the project proposes about 2.94 acres of recreation where code-required minimums total about 1.8 acres for 180 units.

City planning staff emphasized that the commission was reviewing a conceptual plan tied to a PUD rezoning; the developer will still need to submit a preliminary plat with detailed utility, drainage and engineering plans. “This is the conceptual — the kind of master plan,” staff member Dory said. Staff also noted technical items that will be addressed at the preliminary plat stage, including off-site road improvements if the traffic analysis shows turn lanes are needed, final sidewalk centering within the 30-foot buffer, and guest parking for paired-villa areas, which staff said is currently missing from the conceptual submittal and will be required on the preliminary plat.

Environmental issues were discussed. Staff entered an environmental report into the record that includes a gopher tortoise survey. The report identified a cluster of gopher tortoises; staff said handling of those animals and required mitigation measures will occur when land clearing begins. Staff added condition language requiring that, after regrading, the shoreline area remain in a natural state with no sod added and that littoral and native shoreline plantings be installed “wherever feasible.”

Commissioners asked about gates, public access and long-term maintenance. The developer confirmed the community will not be gated and that the sidewalks dedicated for public use would be maintained by the HOA; staff said the applicant will dedicate the path for public use on the final plat but not to be maintained by the city. Staff also said the developer offered to upsize the force main to eight inches at its own cost in response to Indian River County utilities’ request.

Action and next steps: The Planning and Zoning Commission recommended approval by a 7-0 roll call vote and entered the staff report and conditions into the record. The rezoning and conceptual PUD will proceed to City Council for final action; if council approves the zoning change, the applicant must return with the preliminary plat and associated site plans, at which time staff and the commission will review detailed engineering, landscaping and parking plans as required by the conditions of approval.

Staff recommendation: Staff recommended approval of the rezoning and conceptual PUD, subject to the eight conditions included in the staff report, which require among other things completion or bonding of public amenities prior to certificate of completion, HOA maintenance of public-use amenities, centering of the sidewalk within the buffer where feasible, additional landscape and parking detail at the preliminary plat stage, and environmental protections for the lakeshore.