The Pasture Near Bridge Road Was Zoned for Industry Long Before Hobe Sound's Rezoning Vote

As Hometown News reported, land use attorney Bob Raynes told the Martin County Commission on Sept. 15: "There's misconception that this is an agricultural piece of property, and it is not. It has a future land use designation of industrial. This is already an industrial piece of property pursuant to the comprehensive plan, so that ship sailed in 1982 when the comp plan was brought into effect."

Raynes was representing the owner of roughly 108 acres of pasture and undeveloped land just south of SE Bridge Road and Powerline Avenue. The point he made applies to anyone looking at Hobe Sound property. In Martin County, what a parcel can become is already written on a map most people never check. The Sept. 15 vote did not turn farmland into industrial land. It updated the zoning so an industrial plan from 1982 can actually be built.

What the Vote Changed on Paper

The parcel is really two pieces. The western 3.7 acres were zoned A-1 Small Farms, and the eastern 104.4 acres were zoned M-1 Industrial. County planner John Sinnott said both are older "Category C" districts. Only the A-1 piece was technically required to be rezoned.

The applicant first asked for General Industrial zoning. On Sept. 3, the Local Planning Agency recommended Light Industrial instead. At the hearing, Raynes said his client is a Hobe Sound resident and would accept Light Industrial "if that's what the neighbors feel is more appropriate." A nearby resident who had filed to intervene then asked the board to follow the LPA's recommendation.

District 3 Commissioner Blake Capps proposed something narrower. He wanted Light Industrial on the small piece and M-1 left in place on the large one. His motion failed 2-3. Commissioner Eileen Vargas then moved to rezone both parcels to Light Industrial, and that passed 3-2. Capps and Chairwoman Sarah Heard voted no.

So the debate that day was never about whether this land would be industrial. It was about which industrial district would apply and which uses would come with it.

Why Pasture Can Be Industrial Land

Martin County's Growth Management Department explains the two-map system plainly. Every property in unincorporated Martin County has a future land use designation, and that designation "determines the type of use, and the density and intensity of use that is allowed." Zoning puts that plan into effect. If the two conflict, "the future land use designation supersedes and controls the use of the land." Changing the designation itself takes a comprehensive plan amendment, which is a separate and heavier process than rezoning.

Martin County's land development regulations explain why a mismatch like this can last for decades. Category A districts were designed to carry out the comprehensive plan. Categories B and C come from older zoning adopted under Resolution 05-09-67. They may be applied only where a development pattern existed before April 1, 1982. The county defines a mandatory rezoning as a Category C parcel that cannot get site-plan approval for new development until it is rezoned to Category A.

That definition ties the requirement to site-plan approval for new development. In this case the rezoning came before the commission because the owner applied. A pasture with an industrial plan designation and legacy zoning looks exactly like any other pasture, and how it looks says nothing about what the plan allows. Anyone who bought nearby would have seen open land.

That explains why the hearing drew strong feelings. Hometown News reported that nearby residents were worried about effects on what the paper called their mostly rural lifestyle. Former Juno Beach Mayor Alexander Cooke told commissioners, "Once you lose Ag land, it is gone forever." Under the county's own planning documents, though, the land had been planned for industry since 1982. Only its zoning was older.

The Data Center Question Is Still Open

The pressure point at the hearing was the data center question. When Capps pressed, staff confirmed that data processing centers are a permitted use in Light Industrial and in most of Martin County's industrially zoned land. TCPalm's Sept. 16 headline asked whether data centers will now look at Martin County, and the story described the rezoning as "potentially opening the door" to one.

That is a possibility, not a proposal. Brian Nolan, the planner for Hobe Sound Business Park, said the applicant has "no intention" of building a data center on the property, WQCS reported on Sept. 18. Hometown News described the owner's plan as a business park.

The county's answer is a moratorium that has not been adopted yet. Here is where it stands as of Oct. 3, 2026:

The draft is narrower than most of the public debate would suggest. It covers only "large-scale data centers," defined under Florida Statute 373.203(4) as a site with an anticipated monthly peak load of 50 megawatts or more. Martin County's draft ordinance would pause the filing and acceptance of building permits, site plans, development orders, rezonings and similar applications for those facilities across unincorporated Martin County. The pause would end automatically after 365 days unless the board repeals it earlier or extends it by a new ordinance. During that year, staff would study setbacks and buffers, noise, water supply, backup generators, traffic and compatibility with surrounding land uses, among other topics.

The draft also states that it does not affect lawful existing uses or previously approved development orders, and that it does not apply to data center applications "submitted and deemed sufficient" before it takes effect. It does not name the Bridge Road site, and it does not say whether a zoning change approved before adoption counts as a protected prior approval for a later data center application. That question will stay open until the board acts or someone tests it.

What to Check Before You Write an Offer

This vote carries a lesson for buyers. Two Hobe Sound homes that look the same can face very different futures depending on the land use designations around them. The listing won't show this and neither will the view. The county's public maps will. Here is the order we use:

1. Look up the future land use designation first. Use Martin County's Future Land Use and Zoning map for the home and every parcel within a few hundred feet. The future land use designation tells you what each parcel is planned to become.
2. Then check the zoning district. If a neighboring parcel still carries a legacy district under an industrial or commercial designation, it may face a mandatory rezoning once its owner files to build.
3. Pull the parcel records. The Martin County Property Appraiser search takes a parcel ID, address, subdivision or owner last name, so you can see who owns the open land next door.
4. Search the commission's agendas. Martin County posts items on Legistar, which is where the moratorium draft first appeared.
5. Know your notice radius. County Attorney Elysse Elder explained at the hearing that nearby owners who receive notice can petition to intervene, provided they file seven business days before the hearing. Depending on the application, notice goes to owners within 500 feet or, as in this case, within 1,000 feet.

None of this replaces advice from a land use attorney on a specific parcel. It does give you better questions to ask than "Is that field going to stay a field?"

Quick Questions

Did the Sept. 15 vote approve a data center in Hobe Sound? No. It rezoned about 108 acres to Light Industrial, a district where data centers are a permitted use. The applicant's planner said there is no intention to build one.

Is the data center moratorium in effect? Not as of Oct. 3, 2026. The first hearing is scheduled for Oct. 13, and staff named Oct. 27 as the target date for final adoption.

Can the county change a parcel's future land use designation? Yes, but only through a comprehensive plan amendment, which is a separate process from rezoning.

If you're looking at a Hobe Sound home near open land and want to know what that land is designated for, Trisha Hutchinson can pull the land use and zoning records with you before you make an offer. Her 15 years in construction and permitting mean she reads those maps the way the county does. If you're thinking of selling nearby, start with Get Your Home Valuation, and she'll factor the surrounding land use into the price.

This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.