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Village of Palmetto BayEconomic Development Strategic Plan · 2024
Delivered work
Village of Palmetto Bay, Florida · Prepared by BusinessFlare®

Palmetto Bay — Economic Development Strategic Plan

A full 2024 strategic plan — market analysis, stakeholder engagement, seven strategies, and two parcel-specific 3D redevelopment concepts — giving 'The Village of Parks' an actionable path to walkable, place-based economic vitality.

$126,383median HH income (1.6× county)
91%of the workforce commutes out
23D redevelopment concepts modeled
Overview

An affluent, built-out village that lacks 'third places'

BusinessFlare® authored the Village of Palmetto Bay's 2024 Economic Development Strategic Plan — a full market analysis, stakeholder engagement process, and implementation roadmap organized around seven strategies and the firm's 'PIECE' framework (Preserve, Invest, Enhance, Capitalize, Expose).

The plan didn't stop at analysis: it delivered tested, parcel-specific redevelopment concepts — 3D fitment models for a Franjo Road 'Downtown' and a 'Little Village' node — to convert US-1 traffic and local wealth into walkable places, housing variety, and tax-base growth.

The central finding

Palmetto Bay is an affluent, built-out 'Village of Parks' with an outstanding residential community but a shortage of walkable commercial 'third places.' The strategy refocuses on commercial place-making — a Franjo Road Downtown, a Little Village node, and US-1 revitalization — done in a character-consistent way.

7strategy areas
1,553units modeled at Franjo
$29M+grants secured since 2005
4.8%residential vacancy (county 10.1%)
Visuals

The Village of Parks

The canal greenways and open space that define Palmetto Bay — the “Village of Parks.” BusinessFlare®.
The canal greenways and open space that define Palmetto Bay — the “Village of Parks.” BusinessFlare®.
The plan

Explore the strategic plan

Seven strategies, a framework, two 3D concepts, and the delivered work. Open each to go deeper.

The plan is built on the PIECE lens — a way to protect what makes Palmetto Bay special while directing new energy toward the commercial places it lacks.

Findings
  • Preserve — schools, parks, family character, natural beauty.
  • Invest — sustainability and a green identity.
  • Enhance — adaptive reuse, mixed-use, and housing options.
  • Capitalize — US-1 markets, affluence, and work-from/near-home.
  • Expose — Deering Estate, Thalatta, Old Cutler Road, and entrepreneurship.

The plan defines seven strategies spanning business, housing, place, corridor, capital, brand, and regulation.

Findings
  • Business Attraction & Retention — attract third places and quality restaurants; engage local entrepreneurs and operators.
  • A Quality Residential Community — add housing variety and 'legacy housing' for young and old.
  • Redevelopment — deliver the walkable Franjo 'Downtown' and activate 168th & Old Cutler.
  • US-1 Corridor Revitalization — 'turn cars into customers' with character-appropriate TOD and aesthetics.
  • Capital & Feasibility — targeted incentives, office/reverse-commute storytelling, and site control.
  • Identity & Brand — a place brand plus a Deering Estate visitor-partnership program.
  • Regulatory Efficiency — simplify zoning, revisit sign/parking codes, streamline permitting.

The centerpiece turns Franjo Road / 97th Avenue into a walkable main street of cafes, restaurants, breweries and food halls. A 3D fitment model (Exhibit C) tested six strategic projects on real parcels.

Findings
  • 6 projects: 1,553 residential units (of 5,661 allowed in the Franjo Activity Center).
  • 105K+ SF commercial, 75K+ SF office, 45K+ SF open space.
  • Named concepts: 'The Shores' (270 units), 'Palmetto Square' (30 missing-middle townhomes), 'The Franjo' (270 units + 30 townhomes).
  • 'Village Center' — a new 40–50K SF Village Hall with up to 288 units (P3); 'The Wayne' — an 8-story flatiron gateway (392 + 203 units).

A lighter node (Exhibit D) connects to the existing Starbucks plaza with adaptive reuse and temporary/semi-permanent structures to keep costs and habitat impact low.

Findings
  • 3 projects / ~17.2K SF commercial on a 1.06-acre assembly.
  • 'Little Village' — 14 tenant spaces (8,750 SF) plus a 'Palmetto Yard' container park.
  • 'Palmetto Street Food' — a former bank (4,195 SF) reused as a 4–6 vendor food hall with bar and promenade.
  • Reactivation of an abandoned drive-thru store (4 tenants, 2,500 SF).

US-1 / South Dixie Highway is the Village's commercial spine but is auto-oriented, without bike infrastructure, and inconsistent in aesthetics — the plan proposes complete-streets and placemaking moves.

Findings
  • 3.38 miles, 6 lanes, 100-ft ROW, ~1.78M SF; part of the SMART Plan / South Dade Transitway (transit facility at SW 168th St).
  • FDOT Complete Streets project and ROW connectivity improvements.
  • Private-property façade/aesthetic incentives and corridor branding.
  • Infill and parking-consolidation placemaking at Colonial Palms Plaza and the BrandsMart site.

The existing-conditions analysis confirmed the diagnosis: high incomes and stability, a bedroom-community commute pattern, and no local incentive tools — but real assets to build on.

Findings
  • Median HH income $126,383 vs. county $78,477; tapestry Top Tier (28.3%) and Savvy Suburbanites (20.1%).
  • Residential vacancy 4.8% (county 10.1%); 75.1% owner-occupied; ~80% homestead; median value ~$549K.
  • 91% (6,539) of the resident workforce commutes out; only 586 both live and work in the Village.
  • Deering Estate: 122,500 visits by 68,000 individuals in a year; 84-min average stay; $91K average visitor income.

The engagement produced a complete strategic plan plus four exhibits — analysis, engagement, and two full 3D concept series — tied to the Village's budget and workplan.

Findings
  • Full Market Analysis & Existing Conditions report.
  • Stakeholder roundtables (May 2023) synthesized through PIECE.
  • Parcel-level opportunity-site inventories with folios, acreages, and density scenarios.
  • Two 3D feasibility fitment concept series (Franjo and Little Village) and a Tactical Plan (Analyze / Engage / Discover / Create / Invest).
By the numbers

Key points