JUPITER — The Jupiter Town Council voted 4-1 on first reading Thursday, Oct. 29, to advance four ordinances tied to the Sperry Parcel, the 10.5-acre waterfront site at 961 and 997 N. A1A long known as Suni Sands.
Councilor Ron Delaney was the lone dissenter on each first-reading vote. Mayor Jim Kuretski stressed at the end of the marathon meeting that the votes were not final.
“We did not approve anything tonight,” Kuretski said, in the sense that first readings do not adopt the ordinances. The site plan itself was discussed, but was not before the council for approval.
What the council advanced
All four measures passed on first reading, 4-1:
- Ordinance 30-26: A zoning text amendment changing the location and maximum building-height criteria for the Flex South Subdistrict of the Inlet Village Zoning District.
- Ordinance 31-26: A future land use map amendment changing 1.8 acres of Riverwalk Flex and 8.7 acres of High Density Residential to 5.0 acres of Inlet Village Flex and 5.5 acres of Conservation. As filed, it would also reduce the Riverwalk Corridor component from 535 to 142 linear feet.
- Ordinance 32-26: A zoning map amendment assigning 5.0 acres to Inlet Village Flex South, 4.1 acres to Conservation Preservation and 1.4 acres to Conservation Restricted.
- Ordinance 33-26: A quasi-judicial, large-scale Planned Unit Development (PUD) for a hotel, residential condominiums, restaurant, retail and marina, including multiple waiver requests.
Second-reading dates had not been set.
What would be built
If the project ultimately wins final approval, developer Charles Modica’s plan calls for a 110-key hotel — 100 rooms plus 10 lock-off units — 44 residential condominiums, a restaurant, retail space, a spa and a 17-slip marina for hotel guests and residents only.
The site, north of N. A1A and east of Clemons Street, once held the 130-unit Suni Sands mobile home park. Those homes have since been removed, according to town documents.
Under the framework discussed at the meeting, about 5 acres would be developed and 5.5 acres would be conservation land that cannot be developed. That includes a roughly 4-acre shell midden and historic railway corridor, plus a 1.4-acre view corridor at the site’s northwest corner that the town would have the right to buy for $10.5 million for use as a passive park.
The property is one of Jupiter’s last largely undeveloped waterfront parcels, near the Jupiter Inlet and the Loxahatchee River. Archaeologists have found evidence of Indigenous people living on the site thousands of years ago, and from 1889 to 1895 it was the terminus of the Celestial Railway.
Why the vote was so contentious
The applications follow a Jan. 20, 2026, mediation settlement between the town and the owners, 961 A1A LLC and 997 A1A LLC, tied to Charles and Lisa Modica. To fulfill that settlement framework, the council would have to approve a project by Dec. 31 — a deadline that now sits uneasily alongside the unscheduled second readings.
Town planning staff also told the council the PUD, as filed, was inconsistent with Jupiter’s comprehensive plan, and that the proposed marina and docks could interfere with views of the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse. A marina in the district would also require a special exception decided case by case; the land-use change alone does not grant marina rights.
Public testimony ran heavily against the project. Nearly 40 speakers opposed it, with only one resident speaking in favor, according to Stet News’ account of the meeting. Residents raised traffic, building height, seagrass, shoreline erosion and flooding, and the loss of open waterfront. Several urged the town to buy the land instead.
“I can’t support any of this tonight,” Delaney said, noting that he ran on a pledge to preserve the waterfront.
Vivien McLean-Bunce, president of the Jupiter Inlet Foundation, argued the entire shoreline should be designated conservation, as the Planning and Zoning Commission had recommended. She said the question was not only how much land is conservation, but whether the comprehensive plan is being followed in a way that genuinely protects natural resources.
The youngest speaker against the plan was Isaac Nelson, 13, of Jupiter, founder of The Eco Scouts. “Once it’s developed, we can’t get it back,” he told the council, calling Suni Sands part of the community’s natural legacy.
Modica, who developed the nearby Love Street project, said he was frustrated by the years it has taken to reach this point and by staff recommendations that, in his view, conflicted with what his team needs to proceed.
“I am at my personal extreme limits of what is economically plausible on this site,” he said.
He renewed an offer to sell the property to the town at fair market value — which he recently estimated at $130 million — and said he would be prepared to finance it at attractive interest rates. Kuretski said the town cannot afford to buy the entire property.
Philippe Jeck, Modica’s attorney, countered that under the proposal, for the first time in 125 years, more than half the property would become public under the January settlement.
What is still unresolved
First reading kept the project alive, but left major pieces for staff and the council to revisit before a second vote:
- Riverwalk Corridor: The filed land-use amendment cuts it from 535 to 142 feet. Kuretski wants that figure revised to “less than 250” before second reading. The Planning and Zoning Commission had recommended keeping the full 535 feet, along with less Flex land (4.3 acres instead of 5.0) and more conservation land (6.2 acres).
- Traffic: Staff recommended a trip cap to protect two-lane A1A and its level of service. The applicant’s traffic engineer objected, saying the project returns for review anyway; Kuretski supports a cap, with the number to be set before second reading.
- Waivers and conditions: The PUD includes multiple waiver requests covering items such as floor-to-ceiling heights, setbacks for a parking garage, pool, patio and deck, a second story for the waterfront amenity building, and parking arrangements including tandem spaces. Staff sought council direction on the waivers, and revisions — and possibly more public benefits — are expected before second reading.
- Site plan and marina: The site plan was discussed only so it could be considered in the context of the PUD. Final site-plan and special-exception decisions remain ahead.
What happens next
Nothing is built, approved for construction or finally adopted yet. The ordinances must return for second readings, on dates still to be determined, where the council can amend, approve or reject them.
Residents who want to follow the next step should watch for the second-reading agenda on the Town of Jupiter’s agenda portal and the council’s meeting video archive.
