The Southern Boulevard Corridor: It’s Time to Say What We Want
As you enter Loxahatchee Groves from the south, you're greeted by the Southern Boulevard Corridor—a stretch of roadway that should speak clearly: you are entering somewhere different. But right now, it doesn’t. Instead of evoking a sense of place, pride, or rural charm, the corridor feels fragmented, a product of piecemeal development that doesn’t reflect our community’s identity.
This part of town has
grown in bits and pieces over time. The landowners have rights—and they’ve exercised them. In the absence of clear and consistent direction from the Town, development has taken shape according to what each individual property owner wanted.
- We’ve never firmly said what we want this corridor to be.
- We haven’t required rural design.
- We haven’t prioritized placemaking.
- We haven’t consistently protected the rural vista.
And now we’re looking at the result: a frontage that doesn’t feel like Loxahatchee Groves — the County’s last rural frontier.
Let’s Make the Southern Boulevard Corridor Look and Feel Like Loxahatchee Groves!
We’re reimagining the Southern Boulevard Corridor to be the rural gateway our community has always deserved. The Town is working to turn the Southern Boulevard Corridor (Southern Blvd to Collecting Canal) into a welcoming, rural-style business district that:
- Supports local, community-serving businesses and development
- Protects our tree canopy and adheres to rural vista design standards
- Creates a buffer between our rural community and the continually encroaching development coming at us from all sides
- Improves traffic, road safety, interconnectivity, drainage, and walkability
- Creates a feeling you are in Loxahatchee Groves
What We’re Doing
Partnering with Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council, Palm Beach County, Florida & U.S. Department of Commerce, and FDOT, we are proposing the creation of a Rural Business or Neighborhood District to address:
- Lack of consistent design standards and rural-focused code language
- Mismatch between current development patterns and community values
- Absence of visual gateway or placemaking elements
- Infrastructure limitations (e.g., drainage, access management)
- Pressure from surrounding urban development
Why Now?
Our southern boundary, once buffered by the County’s rural tier, is increasingly vulnerable with development encroaching quickly. If we don’t act now with clarity and vision, we risk losing the very character we’re trying to preserve. This may be our last chance to shape what this area becomes.
We Need Your Voice!
We’re launching workshops, open houses, and visioning events. Stay tuned for:
- Design concept previews
- Rural business district guidelines
- Tree canopy restoration efforts
Together, we can build a corridor that reflects what we love about Loxahatchee Groves: trees, peace, local pride, and rural character.
1. Establish a Cler Vision and Design Framework
- Design guidelines for architecture, landscaping, signage, lighting, and parking
- Standards that support canopy preservation and low-scale development
- Encouragement of live-work, owner-operated businesses
- A walkable layout with pedestrian movement and visual cohesion
- Possible changes to uses
2. Update Our Code to Reflect What We Want
- Update zoning and land development regulations
- Align code with rural-scale expectations
- Incentivize native landscaping and conservation-based design
- Partnership with property owners and tenants so their rights are not affected
- Streamline a fair process for landowners
3. Make Public Outreach the Heart of the Process
- Host visioning workshops, open houses, and pop-ups
- Use visuals, mapping, and polls to engage residents
- Center equity and inclusion in community feedback
4. Create a Business or Neighborhood District
This tool helps shape development in a way that:
- Defines rural commercial character (design, size, landscaping, signage)
- Supports flexible and local-serving business uses
- Encourages live-work options
- Creates a buffer and preserves open space
- Focuses infrastructure investments wisely
5. Partner with Agencies to Strengthen the Vision
Working with:
- Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council (TCRPC) – Design strategy and rural planning guidance
- Palm Beach County – Land use, drainage, roadways
- Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) – Safety, mobility, and corridor enhancements
- Transportation Planning Agency (TPA) – Pedestrian & bike planning integration
- South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) – Canal and stormwater coordination
- Florida Forest Service – Tree restoration support
- Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) – Rural revitalization grants and planning
- Local utilities & nonprofits – Infrastructure and environmental coordination
6. Phase Implementation and Celebrate Progress
- Launch early wins: landscaping, signage, tree planting
- Target key nodes for pilot improvements
- Use grants and partnerships for infrastructure upgrades
- Apply the new vision consistently over time
7. Because This Is Ours to Shape
The Southern Boulevard Corridor is not someone else’s responsibility. It’s ours. With clear planning, updated code, public voice, and strategic partnerships already in motion, we are on the path to creating a corridor that truly reflects who we are.
🌳 You are entering Loxahatchee Groves.
🏡 You are welcome here.
🌾 We take care of what we love.
The Southern Boulevard Corridor Should Say: You Are Here!
It should look and feel like Loxahatchee Groves. It should reflect our love for trees, open space, and rural living. And it should make clear to everyone—residents, visitors, and developers—that this is a community that protects what it values.
This is our last, best chance to say what we want. Let’s not miss it.