ORLANDO, Fla. – Neighbors in east Orange County are once again fighting to block a proposed development that would bring nearly 1,800 homes to their rural community.
News 6 has reported for years on the numerous plans to develop ranchland just north of S.R. 50 and west of Chuluota Road near Lake Pickett. The latest effort surrounds the Lake Picket North Community, which is east of Tanner Road and the Econ River.
Orange County commissioners will vote Tuesday on whether plans can move forward for a 1,300-acre development called Sustanee, a project that would bring 1,789 homes, 90,000 square feet of community space for amenities and multi-purpose trails to the area.
For East Orange County resident Kelly Semrad, fighting to protect her neighborhood’s rural character is nothing new.
“We’re back at it again, and it’s just a bad nightmare,” she said. “We’re building growth and development outside of the urban service area into the rural area where there’s no infrastructure to support it. It begins to impact the quality of life of all the residents who live there and the residents who will be there in the future.”
Despite its proximity to the Econ River basin and a conservation area, Sustanee’s website says the neighborhood will be “environmentally focused” and one that celebrates “sustainable practices.”
“They’re telling us they care about the environment, and they’re concerned about the welfare of the wildlife. Well, if you have an illegal borrow pit right next door, you don’t. You’re doing it for money,” Semrad said. “We don’t need more homes on the bank of the Econ River – an outstanding waterway – that leads into the St. Johns where our drinking water is and contaminate it even more.”
At a groundbreaking event for another development on the west side of Orange County, Mayor Jerry Demings said keeping current residents happy in a rapidly growing community is a balancing act.
“I certainly understand the concerns of the residents in East Orange County area regarding Sustanee because they’re used to a rural character,” Demings said. “That’s their way of life. They moved to that area for a reason. They want low density. They want low traffic. They want a high quality of life at the same time. However, the county is growing, and the county will plan and grow hopefully in a very responsible way.”
The area in question is currently zoned as rural/agricultural, which only allows a density of one dwelling per ten acres. If commissioners vote to change the future land use map to planned development, it will open the door for more density.
“We don’t have the jobs out here to support it in the rural area,” Semrad said. “We don’t have the infrastructure. We don’t have the roadways. We don’t have the school capacity. We don’t have fire. We don’t have police. So, yes, it adds more home inventory, but it’s the wrong inventory.”
When News 6 anchor Justin Warmoth asked Demings how he plans to vote Tuesday, he responded, “You know I can’t ever tell you how I’m going to vote in advance until I heard the full deliberation.”
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