Stuart Costco project likely to move ahead now that the latest legal appeal is withdrawn

STUART — The controversial Costco project is likely to move ahead soon, almost two years after the City Commission approved it, now that a legal roadblock has been withdrawn.

Resident Robin Cartwright — who formally challenged the city’s August 2021 approval of the Costco Wholesale Corp. store, 18-pump gas station, 378 apartment units and retail and restaurant space on South Kanner Highway — has withdrawn her latest appeal filed with the Fourth District Court of Appeal, she confirmed Tuesday.

“It’s been very emotional,” Cartwright said. “People have made it so personal, and it didn’t need to be … We did everything we possibly could to try to limit the negative impact to this community.”

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Land clearing already has begun on the 49-acre property, and Cartwright’s move dispels concerns that the project ever would come to fruition. City officials on Monday signed off on dismissal of the case, records show.

“We’re very pleased that the city and (Cartwright) were able to reach an agreement that withdraws the appeal,” Developer Joe Marino, of M&M Realty, said in a statement to TCPalm.

New state laws, such as the Live Local Act, led Cartwright to end the tedious fight that’s gone before state officials, including Gov. Ron DeSantis, and the court system, she said. Had she won her appeal, the project would have gone back to the City Commission, but with the potential of more apartments added under the new law which, in part, is intended to create affordable housing.

The Live Local Act preempts local zoning and density regulations to a certain degree, and can allow higher density for a project without a public-hearing process, if at least 40% of the rental units are “affordable,” as defined in state standards. It goes into effect July 1.

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Interim City Manager Mike Mortell, who was city attorney during the legal challenges, could not be reached for comment Tuesday night.

The withdraw of Cartwright’s challenge comes after a drawn-out battle focused on the land-use designation of the property, neighborhood special district, which created the development parameters for the project itself. Cartwright challenged this at the state level, arguing it allowed construction too intense for the area.

Her challenge was heard by Judge Francine Ffolkes of the Division of Administrative Hearings, who, in April 2022, ruled in Cartwright’s favor, finding the city failed to show “there would be sufficient infrastructure and service capacity” to support the land use.

Ffolkes’ ruling was overturned almost a year later, in March of this year, by the state Administration Commission, which comprises DeSantis, Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson, Attorney General Ashley Moody and Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis.

The state order had found the land use to be “supported by relevant and appropriate data and analysis.”

That led to the latest appeal, filed a month later by Cartwright. That’s now off the table.

This story will be updated.

Lina Ruiz is TCPalm’s watchdog reporter for Martin County. You can reach her at lina.ruiz@tcpalm.com, on Twitter @Lina_Ruiz48 or at 321-501-3845.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Stuart Costco project: Mixed-use development now free of legal obstacles