Unfortunately, they’re not responsive to the questions most people have about the plans, which call for construction of a high-rise hotel, housing and commercial space at 311 Indian River Drive, across from the Fort Pierce City Marina.
Matteson can explain, in great detail, why his company hasn’t yet begun “vertical construction” at the site. According to him, delays were caused because he didn’t get a clean title to the property. The development review process took longer than expected. There was underground concrete from the old power plant that had to be dug up and removed. And, of course, the COVID pandemic was also a factor in slowing down progress.
All of that may be true. But here are the only two questions most people in the general public care about: 1) When will construction actually begin? And 2) When will the buildings planned for King’s Landing be ready for use?
Making the main thing the main thing
The background on how we got here, five years after Fort Pierce city commissioners selected Audubon to oversee the project, matters little to citizens who can neither use the planned amenities nor work at any of the jobs the project is expected to create.
At a meeting last month, commissioners asked some pointed questions about the project’s status and Audubon’s ability to meet deadlines specified in the developer’s contract with the city.
The city has issued a formal notice of default to Audubon, to which the company’s attorneys have responded with a defense for the delays that have been encountered so far.
It seems like Audubon has already begun preparing for the legal battle likely to ensue if the city cancels its contract for King’s Landing and decides to start the process over.
That’s not an outcome anyone who was supportive of the King’s Landing plans should wish to see.
Audubon says it can move forward, but …
After resolving its legal entanglements with Audubon, the city would likely have to make another request for proposals from developers. There’s a chance this could result in a plan that’s as good, or better, for Fort Pierce than King’s Landing would be.
However, it could also mean years of delay, during which time the 8-acre site will sit fallow.
In an email exchange last week, Matteson assured me Audubon is still prepared to move ahead with the work.
“We can make King’s Landing work and we have a path forward,” Matteson wrote.
While interest rates have more than doubled since the project was approved in 2019, Matteson said it’s still financially viable.
“The question is, now that we have done the dirty work for the City, remediated the site, obtained the proper FDEP (Florida Department of Environmental Protection) certificates and cleaned up all the title issues, will the City reset the development timelines so we can build King’s Landing as planned?” Matteson wrote.
Excuses for delays are wearing thin
The answer to that question all depends on another question: Now that all of those issues Matteson mentioned have been resolved, is Audubon ready ― right now, today ― to get started?
According to Matteson, the last remnants of the concrete removal and fill dirt replacement work were done last fall. He said Audubon isn’t moving forward with construction now because the company wants to do underground infrastructure work in tandem with work the city and the Fort Pierce Utility Authority will be doing along Indian River Drive.
Matteson said he doesn’t want to tear up Indian River Drive more than once. The dates for the planned roadwork on Indian River Drive shouldn’t be that hard to figure out, though.
City and FPUA officials should be able to tell Matteson when that’s supposed to happen. Meanwhile, there’s no reason why work couldn’t begin on other parts of the property, if in fact that’s the only reason for the current delay.
It’s time to call Audubon’s bluff. If the project is “shovel ready,” as Matteson previously indicated it would be after the concrete removal was complete, there should be some visible signs of progress.
This is an important project for not only Fort Pierce, but the surrounding region. Creating new hotel space in the center of Fort Pierce will create new opportunities for tourism and economic development. There should be new jobs created at the hotel, as well as the shops and restaurants surrounding it.
To some degree, how King’s Landing is developed could influence what happens at the Three Corners in Vero Beach. Or vice versa. Whichever development gets completed first is likely to have first pick of trendy shops and restaurants that would consider operating in a downtown seaside environment.
As TCPalm’s editorial this weekend will note, it’s puzzling Audubon is forging ahead with a partnership with Indian River State College to renovate the Coast Guard House in Fort Pierce while King’s Landing remains in limbo.
There are plans to turn the Coast Guard House into an event center and boutique bed-and-breakfast, but only after extensive renovation work is completed. If Audubon is taking the lead on both projects, it’s fair to wonder where its priorities will be.
In choosing Audubon, city officials may have cost themselves a chance to get a Brightline station at the King’s Landing site.
Opportunity costs matter here, too
As I noted last December, Brightline expressed interest in putting a station in Fort Pierce in 2019, but at the time, Audubon’s plans for King’s Landing seemed further along. So the city chose to enter into a contract with Audubon.
We know what happened with Brightline. Earlier this year, the passenger train company chose a site in downtown Stuart for its first Treasure Coast station instead of one of multiple sites proposed in Fort Pierce.
Hindsight, as they say, is 20-20. City leaders had to make tough decisions based on the information available to them at the time and, as a result, are unlikely to get a Brightline station in the near future.
There’s nothing that can be done about that now. However, city officials shouldn’t wait indefinitely on King’s Landing, possibly missing out on other opportunities in the process.
The delays that led to the project being where it is today are worth examining at some point in the future. The more pressing question, here and now: Is Audubon ready and financially able to move forward with this project?
If the answer is no, then it’s time for city leaders to have some tough conversations about what needs to happen next.
This column reflects the opinion of Blake Fontenay. Contact him via email at blake.fontenay@tcpalm.com or at 772-232-5424.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Fort Pierce reaches pivotal moment on Audubon’s King’s Landing project