Planning Commission - Regular Meeting

Good morning, everyone. We're gonna go ahead and call to order the May 7 meeting of the Planning and Zoning Board of Lake County. We are going to begin with the Pledge of Allegiance followed by a moment of silence. I pledge allegiance

to the flag of The

United States Of America and to the republic for which it

stands one nation under God under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

Alright you can all be seated. Good morning the plant Lake County planning and zoning board is an advisory board to the board of County commissioners. This board is responsible for reviewing proposed changes to the comprehensive plan zoning conditional uses, mining site plans, and making recommendations on these applications to the Board of County Commissioners. The recommendations of this planning and zoning board are transmitted to the Board of County Commissioners for their consideration at scheduled public hearing And in the instance of these cases are scheduled to be heard at the June 3 Board of County Commissioners meeting at 09:00AM. We're gonna go ahead and start with agenda.

Is there any changes changes to to the the agenda? Agenda?

Good morning. Janie Barone, planning manager with the office of planning and zoning. I'll be presenting to you the agenda this morning, which includes seven cases. For the record, I also want to inform you that the cases have been duly noticed and advertised in accordance with state statute. For tab number six, Deep Woods, and for tab number seven, Mount Plymouth Sorrento CRA plan, you should have a memo and you should have an email with opposition correspondence. So staff staff will be doing a full presentation on those two cases for you and those will be moved to the regular agenda.

Okay. And we also have speaker cards for tab two and tab five. So those will also move to the regular agenda.

Thank you.

Okay. At this time, we will review the minutes of the last meeting, which was 04/02/2025. Does anyone have any questions or edits to those meeting minutes?

If not, I'll make the motion to approve.

Second. We have a motion and a second. Any need for discussion? All those in favor, signal by saying aye. Aye. Opposed? All right. At this time, we are going to welcome any public comment for items that are not on our agenda today. So this would be for anything that is not already scheduled for consideration today. If there's any public comment, this would be the time. Okay, seeing none, we are gonna move on to our consent agenda. Is there any need to move any other items or discuss any of these? That would be tabs one, three, and four that are currently on consent.

I move to approve the consent agenda.

Second.

All right, have a motion and a second. Any need for discussion? All those in favor? Aye. Opposed? Okay. All right, so we will now move into the regular agenda, which is going to begin with tab two.

Madam Chair, tab two will be presented by James Fry, planner two.

Good morning. For the record, James Fry, Office of Planning and Zoning Planner two, case number four, PZ2023282, otherwise known as Cypress Creek Farm Conditional Use Permit. The applicant is requesting a conditional use permit on approximately 18.65 acres to allow for the use of an existing barn and dwelling unit as a ceremonial events venue within the Agricultural Zoning District and request a waiver to the road access requirement pursuant to appendix A, Lake County Transportation Planning, Design, and Construction Standards to allow the proposed development to access the property from Corkwood Lane, an unmaintained road. The subject property is located at 13910 Corkwood Lane in the Assatula area. The subject property is currently designated with the rural future land use category agriculture.

The concept plan depicts the existing barn and dwelling unit along with the proposed pervious parking areas, existing wetlands, and the 50 foot buffer around all wetlands. The property is also located within the Yalaha Lake Apopka Rural Protection Area and Lake Apopka Basin Overlay District. Staff finds the CUP application consistent with land development regulations and the comprehensive plan. The applicant is also available here today. Do you have any questions for staff while I'm here?

I have one quick question, and it's really about the access. I know there's a waiver being requested for access to be from an unmaintained roadway. So this isn't county unmaintained or county dirt road. This is and this isn't a county right of way. Correct?

I believe that is correct.

Let me check.

Because this is Corkwood Lane. This was a condition, outlined by Public Works. And I believe Public Works is here if they're available to answer any further questions on that one. But we did put conditions within the ordinance that they will be maintained by the, applicant.

Is that in the ordinance?

Yes. It is in a section e, transportation improvements and access management. Number one, access to the site is by means of Corkwood Lane. The owners shall properly maintain Corkwood Lane from County Road 561 to the site to ensure the road can be accessed by emergency vehicles and by other residents utilizing Corkwood Lane. If notified of an unpassable or, substandard condition, owners shall immediately repair the road.

Do you have parameters stipulate what those words mean?

That would be a question for public works.

Yeah. The the road is an unmaintained road. The county doesn't maintain it. Somebody else may maintain it, but we don't have record of the county maintaining the dirt dirt road.

Is it a county right of way or is there anything

There is some public right of way when you come off 561, but once it turns south, there it's private easements probably. We haven't really done a research like that because it's only in zoning stage right now.

So how would we enforce the standard of properly maintaining a private road? Because it's not a it doesn't have to be made to county standards. So how would we enforce that?

Well, they probably need to enter in a maintenance agreement with

the property owners out there.

So Madam Chair, just to jump in here. So the way that this is worded in terms of it has to be accessible by emergency vehicles, fire department will go out there and they will look at it. They have certain standards they need to meet, tree heights, things like that. They need to be able to get down an unrutted road. So if somebody files a complaint with the county about the condition of the road, emergency public safety is going to go out there and see if they can get their vehicles down there.

If they can, it won't be an emergency issue. But if it's an issue with lower cars or things like that then the owners are going to have to fix it. Mean yes could we get into a debate about what that means we could ultimately but that would be an issue for the code enforcement special master at that point to determine what is passable and what would not be.

So I think I saw in the staff report that their subject, if they're going to have more than a certain number of people there

500.

Was it I thought maybe it was 300?

I know it's 500 under Section C special events that they'll have to get an additional permit.

So it says the fire marshal says a non residential farm building that is used by the owner for agritourism with up to 300 persons at one time, it's subject to annual inspection. So would that mean that at the annual inspection, the fire department is conducting of the structure itself? Would they also be evaluating the ability of their vehicles to get to the property on the private road? Yes, ma'am. Okay.

I interpret it as two different issues, though. We have capacity, and then we have access. Because on the Section E, if they've got more than 500 people, they need a special events permit. But the 300 people for access to buildings, which is a safety issue of another issue.

Yep. Okay. Do we have other questions for staff before we hear from the public at Madam this

Chair, before we go on, Seth, I need you to identify yourself for the record, please.

Seth Lynch, Public Works Department.

Thanks, Seth. Okay. Do we have anything else for staff before we hear from the public? And we'll bring it back for board discussion. Okay. So we have a few speaker cards. Just a reminder that you do have three minutes. So let's let's start with Leslie Griffin.

I'm a

manager So sorry.

I introduce myself just briefly? I represent the applicant, the owner. I thought that was the normal hearing protocol.

Sure. Yeah, you can do that. If you would like to yeah, you can do that. And then you can, of course, present right now if you'd like to. And then we'll call for public comment.

Yes, ma'am. Thank you very much.

Sorry, missed that step.

No, no. Not at all. And I'm going to be very quick. Good morning, planning and zoning members. Madam Chair, my name is Jimmy Crawford. I'm with law firm of Crawford, Monica, and Holt. 702 West Montrose Street, Clermont, Florida, and also an office right here across from the courthouse in DeVarries. And I do represent Cypress Creek Farmhouse. And I don't want to go into a giant full presentation. I do want to try to answer any questions that either the board has or our neighbors may have.

The short version is we've been operating as an agritourism venture since the year 2020, so five years we've been there. 500 people has never and will never happen out there. Our building, everything is enclosed, completely soundproofed and enclosed, and the building will hold about 160, the fire marshal has said. That's the most So our normal event average is around 80 people. We do maybe 75 to 80 events a year.

We came in for the conditional use permit for a very strange reason, because we are operating legally as an agritourism. The county's recognized that since 2020. But we needed a new transformer for electricity upgrade, and CECO, the electric provider, said we had to have a conditional use permit to do that. They would not upgrade our electricity for what they considered to be a commercial building without the county having a conditional use permit. I've never heard that before, but rather than argue with them, argue with everybody, we applied for a permit to continue to operate just as we've been operating since 2020.

And we do maintain the road ourselves. There won't be an agreement between the property owners because we're going to continue to maintain it. Because not only does fire and emergency services have to get down there, but all of our customers and clients do. So with that, I'd be happy to answer any questions, and I'd like to hear from the public and see if I can try to respond to some of their issues.

Anyone have any questions for the applicant at this time?

So there's no actual change of how you're using the building every single day? It's just a matter of paperwork at this time?

None whatsoever. We're not building anything. We're not changing our operation. We're just going to get a better transformer.

Got it. Thank you.

Anyone else for the applicant? All right. At this time, we'll go ahead and hear from the public. As I mentioned, you all have three minutes. And we'll get

get Leslie Griffin, I'm on Corkwood Lane, we are the very first house, to get from 561 to the venue is probably a mile, so there's neighbors, several neighbors all the way down that road. Every weekend we have hundreds of cars that drive by our house when the the event starts and when the event ends, probably Friday, Saturday, Sunday depending on if they do something during the week. We've been very patient, neighborly, but this is the country. It's why we moved out there. Our road started out as a pig trail, and now it's a freeway, and it's a dirt road.

They do not maintain the road. Our neighbors maintain the road. So that's just not not true. And it's it's the country and we just ask you guys not to change the zoning because one thing begets begets something else. It'll just get bigger and bigger and bigger. There's a reason why they want another transformer. Right? I mean, put two and two together. So we just pray that it it we've tried to be nice. We've got cattle out there.

We've got horses out there. We have animals out there. We're constantly having to, repair friend fence where people back into it, and then just leave. We have party balloons that end up in our pasture around our cows feet, around our horses feet. It's just and we've been patient. We've been very nice with the venue, but we just plead for it not to get any bigger and and it's not commercial. It's country and that's the way we'd like to try to maintain it. Thank you. Thank you.

Malcolm Griffin?

I'll just reiterate what she said. We've been there thirty something years. Our neighbors have been there fifty years, and we've been there. And we bought up for a place. We've raised our kids there. We ride horses and all up and down the roads. I have cattle on three different places on that road. And whenever cattle get out and you've got 40 or 50 cars going up and down the road, it's hard to do anything with it. Then they get out on the hard roads and the county contacts us, wanna know why why they're on the hard road. Then we have to deal with what we have to deal with.

We have nothing personal against anybody. We just wanna reserve what we bought and have had. And I don't think that's too much to ask anybody. We just don't want it to get any bigger. It's been going like it has, but there's nothing commercial there now. We would just like to keep it that way. So next thing you know, they'd want to pave the road. And that's just not what we want. We just want people to respect what we have.

Thank you. Dean Dobbs.

Good morning. I have a petition here that all the neighbors have signed against this commercial property or whatever they're trying to do back there. I have lived on Corkwood Lane for fifty one years. And it wasn't in Corkwood Lane when I lived I moved there. I actually named Corcoran Lane.

It was a a service road, actually, like I said, a pig trail to go to the railroad track, which is a quarter mile down the road, down to Corcoran Lane. And it's a it's a one lane sand road. It is not made for so much traffic, forty, fifty cars a weekend. My house gets completely covered in dust. My house is only 60 feet off the road.

And when the traffic just started on one of these events, I can't even go outside. I had to stay inside until the and like my neighbor said, he has cattle. He has to wait thirty, forty minutes for the cars to get cleared out before he could even go feed his cows. And I don't don't want this to happen. I'm gonna try whatever I can to keep it from happening. And we live out in the country. Nobody bothers each other. And it is nice and quiet, and that is the way we want to keep it.

Thank you. So I don't have any other speaker speaker cards on this item. Did anyone else wish to speak before we move on? All right. Do you want to come to the microphone? And if anyone wishes to speak on an item and you haven't filled out a speaker card, there are more in the back of the room. Please make sure that you fill those out. Hi. Hi. I'd just state your name and address for the record, and then I'll ask you to fill out a card with the clerk.

Okay. My name is David Louark. I'm here with my wife, Billy Copeley. Just shooting up from the hip just a little bit. And I'm not sure what has already been said, just the commercial end of it going from from from one classification to another to neighborhood commercial.

You know, not just the paved road, but then the Circle K and then a Tony's Pizza and a, you can't just do one commercial business and not allow others if you're zoning that way. But we just you where do you stop? From Woodrow Wilson and the presidents that created the national parks and stuff? It's like we keep taking nips and chunks away from our parks. And it just makes me wonder, you know, a couple year or last year, we had 40 going into Salt Springs down 19 at '19 and 40.

They they took a chunk away to put in high end housing. So the the we moved out there from Mount Dora because of the smell of asphalt and the and the paved roads and whatnot and and the preserving of the the lifestyle that we've achieved out there is is certainly tantamount, you know. It is what it is. We like it being what it is. The the, you know, it just what comes along with everything that that, you know, allowing, I mean, every riddle to come out there, whoever it might be to increase the the amount of people that are gonna be coming on a daily basis and the upgrades.

So the generally speaking, it's just to preserve the sanctity, not only the forest, but what we have out there and why we're out there to begin with. Thank you.

Thank you. Can you please fill out a card with the clerk? Anyone else on tab two before we move on? Yes, sir. If you could come up and state your name and address for the record, and then just make sure you fill out a card after.

My name is Kirby Walker. I live at 13510 Corkwood Lane. Been there thirty four years. Just to answer the question that came up about Corkwood Lane being an unmaintained road, it is an unmaintained road. It is a non county road.

It is a private property ease easement private driveway. Dirt from 561 all the way back, was there a mile back. And as the other neighbors said, you know, we've been nice, we've been very accommodating, but all the impact, all the traffic comes by us to that point and back out. And with it being private and unmaintained in the top road it is, it's not it's not the road for the impact it receives now, much less more. And, you know, as far as I maintain the road from where I live to the highway and back, just to make it where we can get in and out because the washboarding and the holes, it's, you know, beyond, you know, it's it's never ending.

But I just we just plead to you guys that this is not the setting and not the neighborhood and not the type road for this type event, this type place, especially at any level beyond what it is now, which then if you're asking for a conditional use permit and then a waiver to the road, that's like a major question mark. Like, even you all brought up how do we police, how do we even know. And it's just not the setup for this, and we just plead to you guys, please take that into account. And that's all we're asking. Thank you.

Thank you. Anyone else on this item before we move back to the board? Okay. So we'll ask for the applicant if there is anything you would like to say, sir.

Yes, ma'am. Thank you very much. I would. First of all, we want to get with our neighbors and talk. We had not heard of any issues or problems. Nobody called or contacted my office or them because we could have answered a lot of these questions ahead of time, and we'll try to do that before Board of County Commissioners. We certainly sympathize with the impact of everybody's use. But let me clarify a couple of things. The balloons. The balloons were a problem.

We now ban them. We don't allow the Mylar balloons to be used. People used to tie them to the mailbox and do things, they would blow away. We have cattle and donkeys on our property. And so we understand the issues with that. The most important thing to remember here is that we really aren't asking for the use. The use is allowed by the agritourism statute. That preempts all county regulation. So if this were denied, or if we pulled it because we didn't like the condition, the use isn't going to go away. Expansion of it within the limits of the agritourism statute would be allowed.

We could just do it. By having a conditional use permit, there is a concept plan attached to the conditional use permit. And it shows exactly what we have now. We can't go beyond that, make anything bigger, make anything new, without coming back and amending the CUP and asking for permission. So the county, and by proxy the neighbors, have a lot more control if we do this process than they do under the agritourism statute.

The zoning is not being changed. We are asking for a conditional use permit for exactly the footprint and the use that we have right now. And I'd be happy to try to answer any other questions. I thought Mr. Lore might be here for tab six. I wasn't sure from his speech. Never mind. It doesn't matter. But if there are any questions I did not address, the board wants me to be happy to. I do have Mr. And Ms. Dubak, the owners, here as well. So any operational things that I can answer, they can.

I just have a question about the actual access coming in and out. Right. So you mentioned that you all maintain the road. I'm assuming you only mean the portion from the next furthest neighbor's driveway back to you.

I'm going going to ask Mr. Duboc well, they're saying yes. So that is correct. And I didn't realize there were other owners that maintained it out toward 33561. Wrong highway. But we certainly want to cooperate with them. And like I say, our business cannot operate if the road isn't in decent shape.

I have a question. How long have y'all been operating? Since 2020?

2020, yes, sir. And how

many events? Seventy, seventy five, you said, a year?

Yes, it started with 30 or 40. The first well, the first year was COVID. We had almost none.

Never more than 160?

People? No, sir. Never.

So it's been going on five years already?

Yes, sir. It's been open five years, but the first year we didn't do much. So four of operation.

Is there any sort of this is private road, so every homeowner is participating in caretaking of the road at some degree. Has there ever been a conversation about operating agreements in light of the road issues and the impact?

Not that I know of. We'd be happy to. We certainly want to do our share, and our share is bigger than their share right now. We recognize that. But it is a nonexclusive easement, so nobody can stop somebody from coming down it. But the maintenance, we'd be more than happy to enter into an agreement with our neighbors.

And it boils down to quality of life and good neighborism,

right? Yes, ma'am. Absolutely.

Okay. Are there any more questions for the applicant? Okay. Do we want to bring staff back? Do you have questions for staff? I actually have one question for staff. Might be be two questions, technically. One will then lead to another. Based on the and I'm really not so Okay, first of all, I assume that this business is operating with a business tax receipt within Lake County. They're a legitimate business operation since 2020?

So Lake County does not have a business tax receipt. We did away with that some number of years ago. They do, however, show on the property record card that they have an agricultural exemption for, it looks like cattle, for approximately 12 acres.

So we would not be able to verify how long they have been operating as a business entity at that location?

No, ma'am. Okay. I will tell you though, it appears the last deed of record was 2020, So I'm assuming that's when they purchased it.

So would this use typically require a conditional use? Or would they have just been allowed to continue operating under their existing zoning, and the conditional use is only for the purposes of satisfying the electric utility?

So for the record again, James Fry, Office of Planning and Zoning, Planner two. So generally, the conditional use, we brought them in under a conditional use because they came in prior to having the ag exemption. They've since gotten the ag exemption as well. And so we've put it under as a similar uses because we don't identify wedding venue ceremonial venues under a use. So we just put it under a conditional use. Now as far as under the agritourism use, that I can't speak of if they can just come in and do that. That's more of a we've come back and forth on the agritourism uses.

I'm just trying to determine if the conditional use is actually required under county code for their use, or if we're just doing it to satisfy the electric utility so he can get a new transformer. Just trying to get clarification.

So Mr. Crawford and I differ on how we interpret agritourism uses. The ceremonial venues are specifically listed as an agritourism use. Unfortunately,

it's

one of those where the legislature is not entirely clear. There's not a great body of law out there. So if they continue to operate without this, then I can't tell you whether or not the county would, if receiving a complaint, go a code enforcement route or whether we would be successful. I just simply don't know. Okay.

I have a question. Are there any code enforcement issues?

No. Thank you.

Okay. So that leads me to the question of, they have never had more than 160 people occupying the structure at one time. They don't even think they have capacity for that from a fire standard perspective, which means that they would not be subject to annual inspections by the fire marshal for life safety issues or anything like that. My largest concern is actually about the safety of people attending attending events there and in the event of an emergency, like someone has a medical emergency. And Lake County Fire Rescue EMS needs to be able to get to the property, and they're trying to get there and they're not able to, but this area will never be inspected.

It will only come up if one of the neighbors calls and complains, and then it will be inspected. And I I I am concerned that that may result in safety issues. So is there anything built into this ordinance that protects for those types of situations or where we can require some sort of

So as a CUP, I believe they are inspected annually. They have to pay an inspection fee, and staff does go out there and make sure they're compliance with the CUP.

Okay, great. May add on that?

I'm sorry.

Sorry, go ahead.

Yeah, yeah. So provided by the chief fire marshal, he did include so that non residential building is activity with up to 300 persons occupying the structure. My understanding, he was still going to check on that and inspect it.

Oh, okay. So it's

up Up to to. Correct.

So they would still be subject to annual inspection by the fire marshal?

Yes. And then that site plan as well, we will check access and verify access as well.

Okay.

Does anyone have any other questions for staff or the applicant or county attorney at this time?

No.

All right. Is there any need for discussion amongst the board?

I mean, I'll just disagree with the fact that a wedding venue is agritourism because I think it's completely uses. Wedding venues, period, where you've got Friday, Saturday, Sunday weddings, typically Thursday as well. And that's loud music, people outside, heavy drinking, those sorts of things. It's not necessarily consistent with agritourism. But the Florida State Legislature disagrees. So, you know, we don't have any language to prevent it at this point.

All right. Is there any other discussion? If not, I would entertain a motion.

I make a motion to approve.

I'll second.

I have a motion and a second. Is there any need for discussion? All right. All in favor, signal by saying aye. Aye. Opposed? All right. Motion carries. All right. So our next item on the agenda is going to be tab five, the Triangle Industrial Park.

Good morning. For the record, Leslie Reagan, senior planner with the office of the planning and zoning. I will be presenting tab number five, case number PZ2024254, otherwise known as Triangle Industrial Park. The applicant is requesting to rezone the property from rural residential to light industrial. The subject property is on the West Side Of Bay Road and South Of Old Highway 441 and contains approximately 9.3 acres.

Subject property is currently designated with the high urban high density future land use category and again zoned rural residential. The applicant proposes to rezone to facilitate facilitate the future development of a a storage facility for vehicles, equipment, recreational vehicles, and trucks. The applicant has provided a justification statement that shows the proposed development is not anticipated to impact levels of service. Staff finds the rezone consistent with the land development regulations and the comprehensive plan. That concludes my presentation and I do believe the applicant is present as well.

Are there any questions for staff before we hear from the applicant? Thank you. If you could state your name and address for the record, please.

Good morning. Ted Wickes, Wickes and Engineering Services here in Tavares. We have been providing engineering planning services for Triangle Industrial Park and the Smith family for about, Jean can correct me, but I think about forty years. So we submitted the application and felt that if anything made sense from a planning standpoint, it certainly would be to just include this in an LM zoning district since the Triangle Industrial Park adjacent to them is owned and similarly zoned. We went through several reviews with staff, including looking at this from the Economic Development Overlay District that's in the statute.

And it clearly indicated that this was the appropriate use. If you look at those underlying zoning districts, those are actually pre comp plan zonings that obviously, as we went through amendments and adoption of comp plan, it indicated that this area should be similarly used the way it is now. So we have looked at the ordinance. We have looked at the staff comments. And if any like I say, if anything really makes sense, we're not sure yet whether we will unity the title to that to to the existing Triangle Industrial Park, but maybe keeping it as a separate piece of entity makes sense from a business standpoint.

This will add additional jobs to the area. We're proposing a very low intensity use, simply being able to provide storage facilities, as you know, are very much in demand today. We are just simply in our first step with this. We still have to go through the site planning process, review with all the county agencies. So we would respectfully request that you honor the staff recommendation and approve this.

The Smith family is here if you have any questions regarding their business intent. I think we all know that the Smith family has been a very distinct part of our business community for many, many years. And what they do is what they do. And what they say they will do, they will do. So we're representing that this is the appropriate use based on the staff recommendation. Be glad to answer any question you might have.

Anyone have questions for the applicant at this time?

Thank you.

We will give you an opportunity to speak after public comment. Okay. So, again, I will call upon those who have submitted speaker cards on this case. If you do wish to speak on this case and have not submitted a card, please come up and fill out a card with the clerk. We will start with Lee Stoller.

Hello. My name is Lee Stoler, as you said. I live just inside the neighborhood right by that area. He mentioned creating a lot of jobs. The only jobs will be in the construction when it's built is, what, three people work at a location like that? So there's not many jobs that are created. They didn't really care about the residents. We got a letter excuse me. We got a letter yesterday from them trying to smooth everything over. They cared about us.

They probably would have spoken to us for the months that they were deciding on this project. The problem we have is we have a small community with thin roads that people will be driving through. I mean, not the main area to get there, but there will people be driving through with their RV and their trailers and their big trucks. The road's already not in good shape. I've spoken to DOT.

I've spoken to Lake County, and they've said, yes, that road needs to be repaved. It's not that wide. You go around the curve, and they end up on my lawn because you can't fit two cars between them, much less an RV or a trailer. So they're gonna now, are they gonna pay for my repairs every single time people drive through there? Also, this type of business attracts sometimes less than desirable people. You have an RV? Yes, they're gonna have gates there. They're gonna block people from getting in. But if you own that RV, what's to say that you're not having a business out of that RV? Who knows? Maybe a drug dealing business? So, you get less than desirable people in there. They're not gonna know if someone's inside their RV dealing drugs to another person. They're not allowed

to look in

the person's RV, so they don't know that. There's not much that's gonna go on. Are we gonna have you know, our neighborhood doesn't have any crime. I don't think I've heard of anything ever happening in my neighborhood. Now I'm gonna have less than desirable people roaming through there. I live there because it's a safe neighborhood. I like living there. You know? And I I don't want this at the edge of my property. And I ask all of you, if you guys wouldn't want this at the edge of your neighborhood, then you should vote no to it too.

On the South Side Of 441 at Bay Road, there's two properties. There's couple of businesses right there. Just a couple. And then it's all residential. This is in the residential area. They don't maintain the property now, so what's gonna make them maintain it later? There's another RV park right at the corner of 441 Bay Road. It's not at capacity, so why do we need another one of these? So, that's about all I have to say. Thank you.

Thank you.

Daniel

Tushat? Did I get that to chat. Pardon? Deep Woods. Deep Woods. Oh, so this was for item six, not five. Okay. Adjust that. Thank you. Carla Womack?

If you could state your name and address for the record.

Good morning. My name is Carla Womack. I live on Bay on Laura Lane, is just off Bay Road. We are almost directly behind the proposed industrial park. And I would like to agree with my previous speaker who says that it is a residential area. There are homes across from the street from the park that they want to be in right now. There are homes behind it. There are homes below it. There is an auto detailing plant right in front of it, and there is also another RV park that is not a capacity nearby. In fact, there are two RV parks that are not a capacity nearby.

I live there with my husband and my 10 old son. We grow food in our yard, and I know perfectly well as a former archaeologist just how quickly gasoline from industrial vehicles and farm vehicles, which still carry leaded gasoline, can travel through the ground system when our groundwater is at approximately six feet. We're between Lake Saunders and Lake Dora. There's less than a mile between our house and a lake on each side. Any contaminants can travel extremely quickly.

I don't appreciate the idea of more vehicles there, potentially farm vehicles there to put put those things in our water. And more than that, we are allowed to have quiet enjoyment of our homes. There's already some industrial work there, and I can hear it every morning when I walk my dog. I see burning in barrels on these properties. I will say they haven't been doing it during the burn ban.

I appreciate that. And there have already been dogs hit and killed in the street when they've gotten loose. You know, I always keep my dog on a leash, but terrible things can happen. I really am nervous at the thought of people driving RVs, driving recreational vehicles up and down our Street to get to this park. It's not something that I thought I would have to worry about when I purchased a home almost directly on the beautiful orange grove. So thank you very much.

Thank you. Art Swanton?

Yes. Art Swanton. I'm owner at 525529 with all due respect respect to to the the Smith family, I do, oppose this rezoning. As it's been brought up, there currently are two plus storage facilities within a very short distance of the subject property. And it seems like Lake County is getting overrun with car washes and storage facilities.

And I recommend that you, I know it's not your job, but to do a drive through through the current Triangle Industrial Park and note the current unkempt conditions of the structures and infrastructure of this facility. I realize it was there first before a lot of the homes, but the zoning and such has certainly changed over the years. But allowing the rezoning of the subject likely will allow the spread of this unacceptable condition of the current Triangle Industrial Park to spread over to Bay Road affecting the value of homes existing on the portion of Bay Road from 441 to Lakeshore Drive. In addition, the Triangle Industrial Facility in its current condition and allowing the subject property to be rezoned is in direct conflict with Tavares and Mount Dora's long range plans for the old 441 corridor between the two cities, I e, the rails to trails, improvements to the aesthetics and the streetscape of the old 441 corridor from Mount Dora to Tavares. Would you want to ride or walk along that current industrial park?

I don't think so, and definitely needs to be cleaned up. Lastly, the soils of the subject property to me are prime recharge to our aquifer, to Lake Dora, which is such a short distance to the south, and to allow the acreage of the subject property to be covered in asphalt and tin will harm the environment as well as the peaceful vibe we experience driving Bay Road. I urge the board and the commission to disapprove the zoning change and keep the zoning in its current designation. However, I've heard that it's part of the long range plan, so approved, I strongly include the approval of an attractive privacy wall and landscape and mandate that the landscape be maintained. Thank you.

Thank you so much, sir. Gary Anderson? Anderson?

Hi. Morning. Gary Anderson, 4285 Doorwood Drive. Our property will be in the backyard. Our backyard will be in their property when they move this out to whatever they wanna do. We we moved in eighty nine, nineteen eighty nine. The commercial part of it on 441 wasn't bad looking. Now it's like World War three out there. K? So whoever owns that property maybe clean it up.

I don't know. Right now at 05:30 in morning we got a dump truck dumping stuff wherever it's dumping it, I don't know but it wakes us up in the summertime. I know that's not your department, that's another department I got to see. There's lighting going on by the property of the but it's not the bfw but it's down that way. They got lights a 100 feet high. Okay? 75 feet high and those lights shine in our backyard backyard. Okay? Is this new property coming in? Is that gonna have lighting?

You know, like those lights. Okay? But I disapprove of I hope you disapprove of this also. I got five five signatures from other neighbors and there's other neighbors behind me that are not speaking I think but most of us don't want this to to come through. Okay? Thank you.

Thank you sir.

I agree with everything they said especially right here.

Thank you. Ken Rosen? Rosser. Rosser. Okay. And if you could just state your name and address for the record.

My name is Ken Rosser. I don't know I live at 430 Laura Lane, which is directly behind this nonsense. I my neighbor, Sean, and Courtney, they own 428, and they were not able to come here today because they have a house emergency. They had a flood in their house. So they were gonna be here, but I just like to say we both oppose it. We have currently homeless people coming from their district, their little industrial park invading our backyards, dropping stuff, looting from my neighbor's little garden. We also have burn barrels or burning of pallets that are dipped in chemicals. Sorry. I have Parkinson's. Okay.

They have they're burning barrels and smoking out our neighborhoods in the middle of the night. We are not aware of this. I leave at different hours of the day because I'm a state correctional probation officer. And I leave at 02:00 in the morning, 04:00 in the morning, and I come outside and they're burning barrels and smoking out our neighborhood. I had to go over there and inform the people that burning barrel burning those pallets are highly toxic to anybody that brings them in for more than fifteen minutes because they're dipped in chemicals to stop the rotting. With that being said, they don't keep up the property currently, and we always have to try to reach out to them to clean up their property as it is. We constantly have trees falling in our property. I had to clean that up. We have vines that are growing all over the property. They don't keep it up.

We they sit there and approve this, I don't know if they're gonna sit there and keep it, or they're gonna turn into another industrial park and then move it over. So I don't I don't really trust what they're saying because we've reached out to them. We try to be modest and honest and good people. We keep our neighborhoods pretty clean. If you ever drive through Lake Dora Oaks, you'll see our neighborhood's not some rundown junk.

It's actually a pretty well kept neighborhood, and we can never get a response out of them or them to do anything about it. Like they said, there's multiple facilities within the range of the area, and they they're not at full capacity. And yet here we are trying to add more stuff to it. They had there are plenty of people wanting to build houses and sit there and flip We had a couple houses on Bay Road currently flipped, they're doing a great job turning them over. But, you know, they would buy that property instantly if they wanted to and turn it over and turn it into a nice house.

We me and my neighbors were not notified. We had to sit there and find out through the the hidden signs that were put on Bay Road, and I have a picture that it's hidden behind a palm tree with a cone, and other ones dipped hidden in behind a bunch of weeds. I have Bay Road and Old County Road 440 what is it? Old County Road. So they were both hidden, and we were not given any mail. Me or Sean or a couple other neighbors were not given notification in the mail. I still haven't received mine to this day.

Thank you so much for your time. Is there anyone else who wish wishes to speak on tab five? If so, now would be the time. All right. We'll invite the applicant back up.

Just a quick couple of things for clarification. We are not requesting an RV park. That is obviously covered under a different zoning district. This project, as we've indicated, will be for self storage. However, we need to realize that it is a control situation.

We will not allow Millie anybody to come in and park their vehicles. It'd be a totally controlled in fact, all the parking is done by staff personnel, and it is will be a totally secured site. We are working with Public Works and the Planning Department on our access right now. Both Bay Road and 441 are publicly maintained or they are maintained the county and by the Florida Department of Transportation. In fact, think O-four 41 is a county maintained system.

So, we think that based on what we see within the staff analysis, the comp plan requirements, and what was really intended for that area would be exactly what we're asking for. I'd be glad to answer any questions you might have. The Smith family's here. Jack, Jean, and Ms. Smith, if you want to talk to them, they certainly can verify. I'll just remind you that some of the comments really were not appropriate. You know, remember the old tire advertisements on TV? Tires aren't pretty? Industrial parks aren't pretty. We've got to put this stuff somewhere, folks. And there's a very long history with Triangle Industrial Park being a good part of the community, whether these folks agree or not. Be glad to answer any questions.

I have a question. Just to clarify, this is self storage, so it's not going to become another vehicle graveyard? Because we do have plenty of those on Old 441.

We are not asking for a salvage yard. No, ma'am.

Thank you.

It will be carefully controlled. Obviously, traffic will be controlled. And unless you have an interest in rental there, you won't be there.

Okay. Thank you.

And as you know, we've done traffic analysis on these self storage, and they're very, very low intensity, especially in peak hour traffic.

And to their question about the lighting, and I live in the area, so I'm aware of the other self storage, and they do have higher lighting poles. What is your lighting intention on that? Have you had that conversation? Lighting is important in

that area.

Yeah, no. If we are required to use any lighting, we'll do a photometric plan, and it will be the dark sky type lighting. So it will simply shed light on the areas trying to protect. And

just to clarify, your proposed use that you're considering here is outdoor storage of equipment, vehicles, RVs, boats. Correct? This isn't like interior self storage in small warehouses.

That certainly that district would allow us to do that. But right now, business plan, Smith's business plan, is to do outside storage. We may come back with site plans later for interior, since the LM District allows that.

All right. Are there any other questions for the applicant?

Yes, Madam Chair, I have a question. One of the speakers mentioned possibly a privacy wall or landscaping. Is that something that your clients would be open to discussing with them?

Well, under the Land of open regulation, we are required to buffer our adjacent properties. Okay. And it is especially dense for those off-site, residentially zoned districts. So we've looked at it, and there probably will be. I think right now, I believe that buffer to the adjacent residential areas are 20 feet.

Okay.

20 foot wide buffer with hedge and trees. So that's all part of our next step on this is to go through the site planning process.

Thank you.

All right. If there's nothing further for the applicant, do we want to bring staff back? Any questions for staff?

Thank you.

Thank you.

Move to approve.

Second.

We have a motion and a second. Is there any discussion? Seeing none, all in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. Okay, so we are now moving on to tab six or sorry, tab seven, which it no. Tab six, which is the Deepwoods rezoning.

The record, Leslie Reagan, senior planner with the office of planning and zoning. I will be presenting tab number six, which is case number PZ2025Dash16, otherwise known as Deep Woods. The applicant is requesting to the property from agricultural to the the community facility district and to grant a waiver to section 9.04 to allow the road to remain unpaved. The subject property is located on Deepwoods Road east of Deer Haven Road and contains approximately a 118.69 acres. The current property is currently designated with a rural future land use category and, as mentioned before, zoned agriculture.

The applicant proposes to rezone the property in order to construct a an aviation training facility. The applicant provided a justification statement that the proposed development is not anticipated to impact levels of service. This slide is showing the concept plan that depicts the layout of the aviation facility. Please note that the first phase only includes a paved airstrip. Additionally, the concept plan identifies 80% of this development as open space and then also shows areas of potential future development.

Staff finds that this rezone is consistent with the land development regulations and the comprehensive plan. That concludes my presentation. I'll now turn this over to economic development to present their slide, and then the applicant, I believe, has a presentation to share as well.

Okay. Just one second. Does anybody have questions for staff before we hear from economic development? Okay. Thank you so much. Yes, ma'am.

Good morning. For the record, my name is Meg Brew, and I serve as the director of economic development here in Lake County. It is the intent of the Lake County Board of County commissioners as spelled out in LDR seven 72 to create and broaden a sound business and industrial tax base for the benefit of all of our residents. This is accomplished in part by attracting targeted industries to include aviation and aerospace technology. With 70% of our current workforce leaving the county every day for work, there is an urgent need for high quality, high wage jobs in Lake County.

The aviation industry provides a wide variety of employment opportunities, the majority which pay well over the average salary and many of which do not require a traditional four year college degree. The proposed project supports the county's economic action plan by fostering a diverse local economy with a wide range options. The Office of Economic Development finds this proposed project in alignment with the stated economic development goals of the county. Thank you.

Thank you so much. Is the applicant present?

Good morning. Tara Tedro for the record. 215 North Eola Drive, Orlando, Florida, here on behalf of the applicant. Got a quick presentation to go through. This shows you where the subject property is located.

It's 118, give or take an acre, acres with the current future land use of rural and a current zoning of agriculture. As you heard, proposed zoning is for CFD, which is community facility district, a zoning designation that is consistent with the current future land use. We're not proposing to change the future land use designation at all. Just by way of background, on 08/18/1987, a conditional use permit was issued to the subject property for a private airstrip and supporting structures. So the use of the property to have a private use airstrip has gone on for for decades at this point.

On twentieth two two thousand six, the BOCC approved an amendment to the conditional use permit to expand who was allowed to use the airstrip and to allow the use of a private airstrip facility. The current access roads maintained by the forestry department are unpaved. They would remain unpaved, as you heard in the staff report. And as part of this request, that existing conditional use permit would be revoked. It would be replaced with the CFD zoning to permit Embry Riddle to develop an aviation training facility.

This is not a campus in the college sense. So if anybody thinks Embry Riddle is coming to build a traditional college campus here, that's not the case. This is very specifically a training facility. In addition, a variance for that unpaved maintenance road would be approved. You can see in the map here that the project site and this probably doesn't go out to a big enough aerial but the project site has access.

It comes off County Road 42 to Deer Haven Road, both of which are paved. Deer Haven then connects to Clay Road. Clay Lake connects to Deep Woods Ranch Road. Clay Lake and Deep Woods Ranch Road are both unpaved. We spoke to our neighbors prior to this meeting, and I asked if we would be able to have the chance to chat with them as well after in some more detail, and you're gonna hear from them after I'm done talking.

And then some any other neighbors who have also showed up, I'd ask for the opportunity to chat with them separately after this meeting, if they don't mind sticking around for a couple minutes, if they'll give us that time. But both Clay and Deep Woods, those areas are going to remain unpaved. They're not county jurisdiction, they're not county maintained. Clay is a national forest system road. We have a meeting coming up, with the forestry service to talk about their, specific requirements.

It's something called an SF two ninety nine form that you would have to complete if you were going to be ever making any improvements, for their access roads. So again, this is anticipated to be a training facility that in the first phase is paving an airstrip, an existing used airstrip, to allow for planes to touch down from our Daytona campus. So again, it is part of a training facility. The use is very similar in nature and under the existing conditional use permits today, structures could also be that are supportive of an aviation use under that CUP could also be constructed. So the only reason that we're requesting a CFD zoning is because the comp plan in your code makes a distinction between a paved and an unpaved airstrip.

So it is not a use issue, it's the paving of the use. And so, again, I just want to be clear that the conditions of what could be constructed under the CUP versus what we are asking, the real difference here is going to be the paving of that existing airstrip. Now you will hear, from some of the neighbors, and again that was a letter that we received yesterday that had been submitted, saying roads are not as wide and may not be safe for access and there could be some accessibility issues there. So we went off of the 40 feet of width with 20 feet of pavement coming off of Deer Haven. The exact condition of some of those forestry roads is hard to determine.

I appreciate one of the neighbors sending us some pictures and or sending to the county some photos, of what they believe the conditions to be, and and I think you're gonna hear that they might say that there are some unsafe or problematic conditions on the forestry roads. That's why we have a meeting with forestry to determine exactly what has to happen in order for us to be able to have that access. Public Works has received the letter of no objection from forestry, so they don't object to us continuing the use of an airstrip or paving our airstrip on the site or the use that is as is proposed. But we have to work with forestry again for impacts or any impacts that the use could have to their site. That is a customary process that we would have to go through after a rezoning rezoning or after any type of conditional use permit is granted, as you all know.

Even in the existing conditional use permit, it provides that any structures that would be constructed have to go through site plan approval. That is the same thing that we would have to do with a rezoning. So if we were going to in the future build a hangar building, for one of the planes, if in order for us to land it, go inside a hangar and come back out, fly back to the Daytona campus again, that hangar's construction would have to go through all of the same review process that the conditional use permit today would have required anyway. So in terms of what we are proposing on the property, let's talk through a little bit on current future land use, as you showed, rural. You could see the zoning the zoning map showing ag.

And then here's the concept plan. So CFD is one of those zoning designations that while it is a straight zoning, right, it's not a PUD, there is a note three in section 3.0103 of your code that says that you need to have a plan approved through a rezoning ordinance that goes along with the uses for the CFD zoning district. So this district requires a plan to be submitted in conjunction, which is why you have exhibit B to the ordinance, which limits what can be done on the site. So it gives you what the maximum amount of buildings would be. Again, our first phase is really just paving the airstrip.

It gives you the max building height, the maximum ISR, which is constrained by the rural future land use. Again, that ISR of 0.19 that we have, the max ISR is 20 to 35% under the rural future land use today. So no difference in the condition in terms of the amount of impervious surface that could be put on the site, regardless of the rezoning that you're looking at this morning. The open space required under rural is thirty five eighty percent open space, and that constraint is under the site plan being approved. Any modifications to the concept plan that you see and again, it's a basic concept plan.

It shows very minimal areas that are grayed out and hashed where potential future development might be able to occur. And if you look in the staff report, the staff report says that that is going to be subject to public works review, study, drainage reports. We're going to have to do wetland reports. We're going have to do an environmental study. We have to go through all of those processes to get us from a conceptual footprint of where things could go to what we can actually build in a true true condition.

So I understand there might be some questions or concerns which get vetted out and trued up during that review process by your staff, but you can see that again 80% of the site is going to remain in an open space condition. If somebody went to develop under the zoning that exists today, they wouldn't be constrained in 80% open space. So I just want to be clear about that. We are going to be constrained to 80% open space by virtue of this binding plan that is attached to an ordinance on the property, and we would be constrained to the ISR that we're showing on the plan. Plan again.

All of those things would still exist even without this zoning. This zoning is to allow us to pave the airstrip. I think you're going to hear some concerns that say paving the airstrip or any building would require dump trucks or construction vehicles perhaps to come out to the site. So even if this is a touchdown facility for planes, we got to talk about vehicles that could theoretically come out here or need to come out here during construction. Completely understood.

Obviously, we can't utilize forestry roads. You'll be surprised to find out the federal government is onerous to deal with, as we are learning. You cannot just go and do these things without us, again, truing it up in a post entitlement condition. So this is just to say you can pave an airstrip. After today or after BCC, we then have to go meet with the forestry department, we have to meet with your public works department, and we're going to have to figure out how we have a safe condition to get vehicles to the subject property.

So again, appreciate and always want to hear what neighbors have to say because they have a different eye than we do. And I agree if there are some different sizes than I laid out in the variance, that was simply because we were going off of data we were provided and some aerial aerial data, not a true surveyed condition of the road. So if something is less, wide than what I put in our variance application, it doesn't change that the nature of the of the variance request is for the road to remain unpaved, that any safety considerations still have to be vetted by both the forestry department and the county as part of a site plan review process. So all of that still remains true. We would then be able to get all of those final widths and calculations for roadways after when we go through that site plan approval process.

Your staff looked at this and found that the rezoning application was consistent with the land development regulations and your comprehensive plan, so we would request recommendation of approval of the rezoning application that variance consistent with your professional staff's recommendations. I know some folks want to talk so I wanted to keep it brief so I can have the opportunity to come back up and respond but happy to answer any questions that you may have now.

Does anyone have questions for the applicant before we hear from the public?

I have a question. Sure. The difference in aircraft that can land on an unpaved versus a paved road, I have concerns about the road whatsoever so far. It's air traffic. So what types of planes can land on a paved runway versus an unpaved runway?

We have representatives from Embry Riddle here. Thank you. I have flown in planes. I have not flown a plane.

And if you could just state your name and address for the record, sir.

Rodney Cruz, 600 South Clyde Morris Boulevard, Daytona Beach, Florida.

Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you for your time today. And the question was, what type of aircraft? The only aircraft that we could that we would land there is our Cessna 170 two's paved or unpaved they could land on either, but paved is obviously what we believe to be a safer condition. I'm not an aviation expert but it's a safer condition.

It's a distance matter with the runway.

I'm sorry sir?

It's a distance matter with the runway.

For the size of plane? Well

distance and again I'm not an aviation expert again Cessna 172s are the only type aircraft and they could land both on paved or unpaved we have a unpaved airstrip up in Jacksonville that we use.

How long is that runway? Do we know?

The one that they have? Yeah. It's on the concept.

Do you know how long that runway is currently? Two thousand eight thousand eight hundred feet. Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you. And I just have one question for you, Tara, before you sit back down. The way that the road, Deep Woods Road, comes through, how do the properties south access their properties?

So and and I want to make sure I let the neighbors answer because I don't know if there's a condition on the ground where they might access differently than the way some of this is shown. But don't know how to point to something that you all can see.

Is it that sort of that dirt line that we kind of see on the South Side going around?

And so I don't know if this aerial view is showing you exactly the limits of the property size versus what's actually there. Sometimes the property appraiser website doesn't get it exactly right. But I do know that one of our neighbors, he'll be able to answer that when he comes up during public comment.

Okay. I just want to make sure I understood what those house. Proper those two parcels to the south that don't look like they have road access other than coming along your property back

And no change to those conditions of access, obviously. Even under Florida law, we you can't landlock a parcel, so we wouldn't be able to stop access today. Wonderful. Any other questions for the applicant before we

hear from the public? Okay. Thank you. All right. Daniel, who I messed up your last name last time, so I'm not even going to try it again this time.

And just state your name and address for the record.

It's Daniel Touche. 961 Village Lake Drive in DeLand. So I simply only have questions this morning. Why this particular airstrip? The access doesn't seem convenient for any students. It doesn't seem convenient for any future development. So I I I'm really just kinda here to ask why this location. And the use seems odd for this area. It's gonna completely change the landscape of the area. And I don't think most people move to Florida, like myself, for concrete.

And I don't think a lot of the neighbors want concrete out there. So I I'm really just curious to hear why this location. Is a number of airstrips surrounding the area that could be repurposed and reused, or is is there old industrial properties that could be used and repurposed that could actually handle future development. We keep hearing about phase one. How many phases? How big will this actually get in the future? How many wildlife will be displaced? I'm just trying to understand why this specific location. Thank you.

Thank you. Kevin Trainer.

Good morning, madam councilman. My name is Kevin Trainer. I live at 980 Canal View, Port Orange, Florida. I'm here to speak on behalf of Deep Woods not having an airport or a paved airport. Being a aviation knucklehead that I have been for twenty two years flying in helicopters, air that airstrip is plenty long enough for a Cessna one seventy two in a dirt format that it is.

Let alone the accesses to the property are very labor intensive at times during our rainy season. I've literally have water coming over the hood of my my race truck. Apologize my cohort here is not very very astute. I'm also standing here as a show of what Rich Graham, Operation Restored Warrior Full Spectrum Warrior does. Three years ago, I was a mess.

I was an alcoholic, used drugs, medication drugs to counter 13 orthopedic surgeries that I had throughout my military time. Excuse me. I'm a little nervous. And I appreciate you all's time. We don't have a lot of places to go for rebuilding and healing.

Some of the stuff that we do, or my good friend here, Richard Graham, does. And it will greatly affect everything that we've accomplished so far, let alone helping other veterans and other men heal through their traumas, I just ask you, please, not here, someplace else. Not here. We we we work hard to conserve our property, the area, the wildlife, and respect everybody's little space. We don't need an airport landing on us all

the time,

an aircraft landing on us all the time. I would appreciate your consideration in voting no for this, rezoning, and, I appreciate your time very much. Have a good day.

Thank you for your service.

Thank you, ma'am.

Thank you, sir. Diane Williams. Good morning. If you could state your name and address for the record, please?

My name is Diana Williams. Three one three zero two Lauren Lauren Street. So I'm a lifelong Florida resident. I have been a resident of Lake County for twenty five years, and the reason why I moved out here was for the rural environment. And that part of the forest is absolutely amazing.

This time of year, there are thousands of fireflies. It is literally like a light show. You could take your children out there, they would love it. Beings that you guys are considering this, it's very upsetting because that's really gonna take away from the environment. And if this is just phase one, what's phase two? What's phase three? Guess what? Fireflies don't like artificial light. They're gonna leave. You're gonna destroy the this most pristine habitat.

If you start approving something like this to be paved over, why can't they go to Bob Lee Airport? What is wrong with Bob Lee Airport? That place has been pretty much abandoned forever. They could probably take over Bob Lee Airport with no freaking problems, but they're going to come out here and destroy our pristine habitat. I support you, sir, in what you do and his work. Support. Oh, sorry. But I support him in what he does and his work and how he helps helps veterans. He has kept his property pristine. He has kept an eye on the forest.

And by you guys considering, even considering, is just blowing me away. The whole reason we live out here is for the rural environment. What is gonna happen to us, the people that wanna live rural when you guys just keep developing and developing and developing? Now, on these last couple of tabs, I see that you guys win against your constituents, everybody who is here opposing, and you went ahead and went against them and approved. I I find I have a big problem with that.

You are not listening to your constituents, you are not listening to the residents, the people that have been here for years, and that's very upsetting. And it does make me wanna get involved in politics even more because none of you, I feel, are going to do anything to protect Lake County against this incredulous development that is just ruining our rural environment that we have lived in for twenty five years or more, and you guys are just ruining it with yeses and it's very unfair. We live here because we appreciate the forest, we appreciate nature, and if you approve this, you are gonna devastate one of the most beautiful areas in the forest. I would take any of you in my four wheel drive because it will take a four wheel drive to get out there. I will take any of you in my four wheel drive so you can see how beautiful and pristine this runway is.

Please vote no. Please vote no. Thank you, ma'am.

Ben Kurth.

Name's Ben Kurth here representing bridge Graham with the woods. So just to touch on a few points if it's considered phase one right now that means that they already have development plans for the future and what they're already scheduling might be a touchdown runway now. There's a lot of environmental impacts that need to be taken into account. There's already flooding issues, not only on Clay Lake, which is a forestry access road, but but the hunting camps that are out on that road and the surrounding areas. But during the hurricanes, there's already water problems around Rich Graham's house and on his property.

The property that is on being developed. The water does go on to Rich's property and the larger lake that surrounds his house. If it is a touch and go runway, what would the use of hangers and all this other building development be for the future. If they are bringing jobs and income to Lake County and what they're saying, then that means that there's gonna be commercial traffic. What is currently at Forestry Access Road is not going to handle it.

When they talk about it being 40 foot wide, Clay Lake Road, it just got leveled as far as smoothing out the road, but as far as widening the road, the road is in some spots nine feet wide. It's not going to accept dump trucks with fill dirt, asphalt, equipment, everything else. So the process of having to widen that and take away from the forest is going to be there. And same thing, if this is a project by Emery Riddle, is this going to be considered a college campus or an extension to a college campus. The hunting camps, if it's gonna be a gun free zone, it's going to impact the activities and everything else that take place at those hunting camps and all the surrounding trails.

And same way, there's multiple airstrips that are currently in Lake County that could be used if it is going to be primarily touch and go. Umatilla is one where planes can land there. I have flown on private planes. We've landed at Umatilla, refueled, taken back off. And as far as the current air traffic, it is a grass runway. And at all my time being out at Deep Woods, I might have seen maybe a handful of small aircraft land and take off from there. So it's not widely used. And that is all the points that I wanted to Thank you.

Thank you. Trevor Rosha? We could state your name and address for the record, please.

My name is Trevor Reschte, 183.

Sorry. I was close on your name,

but It's Rachne.

You're close.

E And

Hundred 83 Durham Place in Longwood. I just wanna thank Rich, Graham, and Kevin for their service. And I really obviously appreciate the people that are here that express their concerns. I wholeheartedly agree with everything they said. I am an engineer by education. And I'm actually an environmental consultant as a profession. So I just wanted to touch on a couple of things and actually provide some calculations about the amount of traffic it's actually going take to build this airstrip and how that's going to impact the road. The application stated that the road was 40 feet. And as Tara mentioned earlier, it's not even close to 40 feet. I saw photos that Rich will be showing you guys, large photos, that this is a one lane road that's been carved out the forest.

It's literally a bathtub with the forest higher than the road itself. So I wouldn't even really call it a road. It's more of a sand trail or a mud trail, depending on the time of the year. Sometimes it's two feet of actual water sitting in spots. So it's almost impassable.

Number of I did a calculation. The number of trucks needed to do an airstrip this size, including leveling the airstrip, base material, and asphalt, is 3,400 and some change. This road cannot handle 3,000 single trips loaded and then 3,000 trips unloaded by these trucks. Unless there is some sort of agreement in advance by the forestry service for this road to be actually maintained and improved by the developer. This road just cannot handle this at all.

It's impossible to go through without having some sort of four wheel drive vehicle at this point. Secondly, the storm water concerns, which is one of my the things I deal with. As you guys are aware, the FTP requires a to address impervious ground covering. And the amount of stormwater that would collect and run off of the airstrip, airstrip, that's 2,800 by roughly 100 feet wide, is a tremendous amount of rain. If you look at the twenty five year rainfall event minimum requirement at the FTP, you're going to need a tremendous amount of underground infrastructure and also storms, you know, catch basins and retention ponds.

And currently, the way I see it, just eyeballing it, of course, going off my eyes, I haven't seen any surveys or elevation studies at this point. But all of the rain from that property flows south onto Rich Graham's property. And he has a wetland. It's an actual protected wetland. And it surrounds not only his home, but that's his access point and also the other neighbor's access point. And the road, it's roughly a foot or two higher than the current water level. So it's not going to take a tremendous amount of rain to actually flood out those two neighboring properties. And that's definitely something that should be considered.

Thank you. Richard Graham?

Okay. If I give you a copy of these?

Yeah. Just if you wanna give them to this the clerk and

One one for each.

Mhmm. Thank you. You could state your name and address for the record, please.

My name is Richard Graham. I live at 46600 Deepwoods Road. I'm the the actual neighbor to the property. Thank you for this opportunity to speak. First thing I would like to say is I I object to the follow on meetings being, not in a public hearing setting, and, we'd like to call for the next meetings to be in a public hearing, if I'm if I'm stating that correctly. Right? So

clarification on that, please.

Can you pause the timer? We're in a public hearing. Yes?

Yes. Okay.

What was the price?

He objected to this

Sir, I'm sorry. If you're gonna speak, you're gonna need to come up. State your name and address for the record. We can do a clarification real quick, but then we're gonna need to get back to comments. My

name is Tai Shen. I live or I'm at 189 South Orange Avenue, Orlando, Florida 32801. What mister Graham is trying to say is that he objects to this ordinance being on the consent agenda and requests that this ordinance be removed from the consent agenda to a full public hearing.

It has been removed from the consent agenda. We are in full public hearing.

Thank you. You.

We can resume the timer. Thank you.

Okay. So like many of my other neighbors in the in the region, I moved to this location to get away from the suburban sprawl. I sold everything I had, and I did everything I could to have, a home that was landlocked by the National Forest so that I would not be in a position to where the city would catch up to me. And then here we are looking at this project that's getting ready to come through. As mentioned, one of the points contention is this access road.

And although it may not seem like a big deal, it's a very big deal. I feel that the Forest Service should be here and speaking on behalf because they've said that they do not want the road paved or widened. There's no way we can do this project without the road being paved and widened. They say it's a touch and go landing strip. That doesn't make sense. If there's a touch and go, there's lots of other places you can do that. In the actual official paperwork that was submitted, it spoke about this being a training training facility. Facility. They're saying it's not a campus. They want a classroom.

Right? They want access to a 50 foot hangar. In the email thread that I got from the records request, it says after we get the the zoning approved, we're gonna put in for the waiver for the 75 foot hangar. What type of aircraft are they gonna be bringing in that needs a 75 foot hangar? Right? This landscape is beautiful. There's giant oak trees. There's tons of wildlife. All this stuff is going to be, taken away, and, the paperwork that was submitted says that this is going to be a drone training and autonomous vehicle training center. Right?

And not one mention mention of the word drone autonomous vehicle or, classroom has been mentioned in this entire thing. The only thing that's been mentioned is the fact that they're gonna land Cessnas occasionally, but they're already the Cessnas already can land there, so there's reason to justify a rezoning, right, and to change this when if the what they're stating they wanna do can already be done. It doesn't need to be paved. And yes, there's coverts that go from that property into my lake. Right? And during storms and the rain season, my roads already flood. So once we put that pavement in, right, the there's gonna be tons of flooding and other issues with hazmat and runoff put into these protected wildlife areas.

Can I ask for clarification? Where is your property located in

In relation to this site? Are you on the South Side?

It's South. And the the the photos that were provided are accurate. The easement road comes down the edge of the property, and in their drawings, they're stating that they're not changing the easement. That's not accurate. Their drawings show that not only are they going to need to widen the roads, but they plan on blocking my easement. Right? And they wanna cut a new trail through the woods at the southwest corner of the runway, and there are drawings that they submitted to the county. It shows that they're gonna cut a new easement road into the forest to come around that corner because the expansion of the runway is going to block my 40 foot easement to get access to my property.

So hang on just a second. So thank you for that clarification. Did you have another question for the applicant?

No. Have another question for

For this gentleman? Okay.

Paving this roadway runway block access to your property, easement or no easement? Does it block access?

Yes.

So you will not be able to access your property anymore?

Based on the current models that they've sent in, unless they cut a trail trail through through the the National Forest and make a new route, which is why if the National Forest is opposed to them touching the road coming in that's already there, how can we put in a new easement road and cut through forest and not have the forest service here to chime in on this? And that's why there's already runways that can handle what they're talking about doing a touch and go. Why do we need to pave this? You can already do a touch and go with a Cessna, and there is probably 10 other airports within the same radius that they could go to and just do touch and go training. So I don't think for phase two and three and four or however many, I don't think that's the long term goal here.

I think that's what's being said so they can get their foot in the door to have

everything I I I'm sorry to cut you off. I wanna stick back to the fact that you have deeded legal access to Yes, ma'am. Via this road to your property?

Yes, ma'am.

Okay. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you for your time.

All right. Joseph Helguay?

Yeah. It's all right.

I'm gonna try.

That's all right. You tried. Thank you.

Alright.

Alegua. Probably the only one in a 100 mile radius, if not more.

I wanted to say it that way too. Well, you get it

how you

get it next time. I have I have faith. I wanted to thank the board for being here.

Address. I know you already did

your Yes, ma'am. Joseph Alegua. Address is 45717 Deer Haven Road. I am in Paisley. I am a neighbor not only to the proposed site, but to Rich Graham. So I'm speaking as a neighbor that would be affected by both the plan, but I'm also speaking as someone who cares about a man who's been a good neighbor to me and does great work out there. And I'm concerned for how this might affect him. That's who you just heard from. For me and for Lake County, I think when I first heard the news, Embry Riddle wants to bring, you know, a campus here. Great news.

Great for the county. Great for me. I'd probably benefit. But is this the right place to do it? And I don't think the answer is yes. And the reason why they've been stated here three, four times already. The access is a question. I invite all of you to come with me. I've got a nice air conditioned truck. We can ride that road together. It doesn't take an expert to tell you they're gonna need to cut that road three times the width of what it is now. How they're gonna do that? I have no idea. On each side, there's water. It's protected land.

It's beautiful land. How are they gonna bring in that concrete? I want nothing more than MB Riddle to bring jobs to this area. I just think they need to look elsewhere. Umatilla Airport, there's last I looked, there's land for sale there. It wasn't last year, but the year before, I don't know. There probably still is. You know? Why not look there? Have they looked there?

I also think that I would like to see this board delay a decision on this, if not fully deny, until the applicant can clarify a bunch of these things. Have they considered other sites? And if those aren't suitable, why? Because what they're planning on doing here would drastically change the current use of this property. So I live two miles away. I used to live two miles away. I lived there for eight years. I own the property still. I have not seen one plane land on that airstrip ever. I'm sure there have been a few.

I'd like to hear from the applicant or from Rich, how many planes actually land there right now? I've not seen one. What they're planning on doing, I'd imagine it'd be planes every day or drones. So it's a significant change of use, whether it technically is or not. You know, facts on the ground, that's a change. So I'd be concerned about that. I think we need more clarification from the applicant to see what this is actually gonna look like. I think there's really good people that are probably not here today, some are here, that live in that community that are gonna be greatly affected by this if it goes through. Like I said, I'm probably one that'll benefit. My property value might go up as a result of this, but there's more important things than that.

And I I ask that the board take that into consideration. Thank you.

Thank you. Cindy Newton? And if you could just state your name and address for the record, please?

Cindy Newton. 19025 Lakes Ontario Drive, District 4. A lot of my questions have been answered, and I appreciate all that's been said. I made a map of the floodplain and wetlands. You'll see here without all the noise of you can actually see how much this property is covered.

I don't understand when the property record is showing 51 acres of wetland, how they could have 80% open space without being counting the wetlands as open space. Also, this is in the Ocala Wekiva Rural Protection Area. It's not the place for this. Opening this up is opening it up for future development, not just what they're asking for today. Emergency vehicles getting in and out of here is also an issue.

It's just not the it's not the right place for it. You've If ever hiked in the forest and you've gone down these access roads, they're wonderful to be able to hike on. You run into bear tracks constantly and run into bear quite a few quite often as well. And our wildlife corridor that everybody is currently pushing, even Lake County's new referendum, We're pushing to get more property up through this corridor. It leads him right to this property.

That's why there's so many bears there. It's one of the places they are currently allowed to be without the development around them. So thank you for your time.

Thank you. Vicky Shipley. And if you could state your name and address for the record, please.

Hi. My name is Vicky Shipley. 31442 Plank Lane. My husband and I moved to Northeast Lake County over thirty years ago just for the rural aspect, the peace, the tranquility of the environment. A couple of things I'd like to point out.

Emory Riddle, in their plan, it's proposed for a 10,000 square foot auxiliary hangar and two additional maintenance hangars, a 2,500 square foot classroom building with break room and vending machines, a drone pilot training facility which I don't think anyone has mentioned today, Also, autonomous vehicle and AI testing facility. That's not just an airstrip. So, there are extensive expansion for this area. We are absolutely opposed opposed to this. It doesn't align with our community interests, as they said in their article that was printed on March 15.

There's camping, hiking, hunting, trail riding, riding, all of these things in that area, it's all going to be affected by this zoning change. One of the things I'd like to point out is the increased traffic. State Road 44 is a very dangerous road as it is. We see a lot of accidents. We've had a lot of deaths on that road recently.

And that is going to increase, I'm sure. I want to talk about the air and noise pollution that's going to affect the area, particularly these drones. It's going to affect the animal life, affect the bears, it's going to affect our birds, fireflies, all of this. We all of the neighbors in this area oppose this, and we hope that you will definitely decline their request. Thank you.

Thank you. Cheyenne Shouse? You could state your name and address for the record, please.

Hi. My name is Cheyenne Shouse. I live at the residence 44025 Jesse Avenue. I miss most of the briefing because my son was packing it up. So to clarify, you're just trying to

If you can if you can please address the board.

That's Okay. To clarify, the thing that's being addressed is just adding to the airship, right? It's not going to be building of a college or anything like that?

At the moment, we are considering rezoning of the property to Community Facility District, which would allow for the airstrip to be paved.

Okay. And that's it?

It would allow other things in the future, should they decide to go through site planning and do additional things. But at the moment, the reason they're seeking this is to pave the airstrip.

Then I do have Because that's what's in front

of us at the moment.

Okay. Then I do have some concerns for additional use. One thing that we are worried about is the wildlife in that area because it is right next to Ocala National Forest. According to Penn State University, trees help reduce storm water in Deerhaven, the surrounding communities. We already have a flooding issue.

In fact, I could show you a photo from Hurricane Milton that this was our community. They were underneath water pretty much. Another thing is the nesting season too. So, like, I'm not sure when this development is planning on happening or, like, in future uses that they do choose to build on something. The nesting season in Florida is from the March 3 to the fur to to, July 15.

So if you do any future use, just be please be conscious of that because we don't want any baby birds dying. According to Fish and Wildlife, the median natural average of bird deaths from building building collision is fifty nine five hundred ninety nine million. From electric lines, they die over twenty five million. Collision from vehicles over two hundred and fourteen million, and electrocution's five point six million. So I ask that, please, if you do add on to additional do do additional things with that property to please keep that in mind. And, currently, the destruction of birds' habitat contributes to those overall losses. And, that is my piece. Thank you so much. Brittany Reedy?

If you could state your name and address for the record, please. Yes.

Hello. My name is Britney Reedy. I live at 29525 Central Court, peaceful with such a good well rounded community, tight community being able to have access to the national forest right there and all of that implies with the wildlife and the just the access to our beautiful environments. I don't want to see that change I understand that we're just talking about paving the airstrip here but it is my concern for the future development what it would you know potentially bring beyond that I just would like to see this maintained for me and future generations after me as well. Thank you.

Thank you. Kyle Frizzell? If you would please state your name and address for the record.

My name is Kyle Frizzall. I live at 29525 Central Court. I've lived in the community for a while. I agree with what everybody else has said so far. I have a couple other concerns, some of them being safety concerns.

For example, if this runway were to go in as is and there were a crash, those roads are really bad. If we have really bad storms, they wash out. How would they be able to have emergency response if there's a fire out there? It's a lot of woods to burn, and when it gets dry, that opy produces a lot of material on the ground, and that fire is really close to where we live, that whole community could burn down. My second concern comes in with the expansion.

Will it stop there, or will they be looking to buy other properties that are in the community, like their neighbors? And once they buy the neighbors, would it be the campgrounds? And then after the campground, would it be the Deerhaven community itself? I'm not sure how far that would go, and I appreciate the land that I've worked really, really hard to keep track of and the land that I work, and I would just like to see it be kept as is without you know, all the other disturbances that would be happening in that in that meantime. And that'd be it. Thank you, guys.

Thank you. Kathleen McQuery or Macquarie? If you would state your name and address for the record, please.

Kathleen McQuery. 30222 County Road 42, DeLand, Florida. Thank you. Good morning. I just wanna let you all know I moved out to Lake County on County Road 42. Me and my husband purchased the home ten years ago. We lived in Orlando, Maitland, Oviedo, Winter Park before buying our house. We bought it because beautiful and pristine and just gorgeous it is out there. And when people come to visit me that live in the city, they go, oh my gosh. It's like I step back into time.

It is so I've had friends purchase property not far because they come out to my house and they go, wow. Look at this beautiful land. It's such a County Road 42 is such a small there's no street lights out there at night. It's pitch black. If you turn off your car, it's pitch black. You can see look up in the sky. You can see every star. You can see fireflies. There's so much beautiful wildlife. I've never seen hummingbirds anywhere in Florida, but it at my home.

And we're just really we're there's no words to describe how upset we are and nothing against my father was an Embry Riddle graduate. He's a retired Delta pilot. We love Embry Riddle. We love aviation, but it's not the place. We don't want we don't none of my neighbors, we don't want it.

When I look up at the stars at night, I thank god how lucky we are to be where we are. I don't wanna see drones night and day flying over my house. Night and day. And like like they said, this is phase one. Bless I just beg you all, please, please don't let them come out to our beautiful country and just it's gonna ruin our quality of life.

When I work in the city and I come to that County Road 42, I feel peace come over me. There's it's such the traffic, it's gonna be unreal. It's gonna be unreal. We've had double digit fatalities on 42 this year, one right in front of my house. And to think of, you know, college kids racing to get to their campus and what's next?

They're gonna need town my father has five acres in Orlando and I watched what happened to that beautiful Country Road, it's destroyed. They're putting a 100 townhomes directly next door to my father's beautiful five acre country. It's one of the last roads in Orlando that they're taking over. They're doing it. Please don't let it please don't let them do it to our our neighborhood and our area. We love it so much. We don't want it to change. It's people cut they they it's like stepping back into time. We don't want it to be Orlando. We'd live in Orlando if we wanted this. We'd live in Daytona Beach. Thank you. Thank so much. I appreciate you all. Thank you.

Thank you. Faith Attinger?

Oh, it's nice to meet all of you.

Hi. If you would state your name and address for the record.

My name is Faith Attinger, and I live at 31316 Ines Street. Do you mind if I ask a question of everyone in here? All of you. All of you.

While you're addressing the board, please.

Okay. I am a Lake County native. I was born and raised in this county. Is anyone else here a Lake County

native? Anyone? Again, ma'am, I'm gonna ask you to please address the board. That's who's

Okay.

So I'm

addressing the board right now. This proposed site for Ambre Riddle is not just in the heart of the Ocala National Forest. The Lake Tracy unit Seminole State Forest is directly across the street from 42. We've got the Wekiva River Basin. If you look at your future land use map, that is a rural protection zone for a reason.

It is the buffer between the national forest areas and the urban areas. When you have bear incidences in these urban areas, like Apopka, Orlando, and they trap the wildlife, do you know where they take them? They take them to the Ocala National Forest and the Seminole State Forest. That's where they get dropped off. There are coyotes, bears, armadillos, raccoons, thousands of birds that all of us enjoy.

It is a national force. Now, as miss Tedro came up here and said, dealing with the federal government is rather onerous. So why aren't there any forestry present here voicing us? Because to me this is not just up to the county. This isn't just a zoning issue with the county.

This affects government land. It affects state land. I mean you can clearly see how many people here today are very much against this because we actually love our wildlife in our rural areas. My grandparents moved here in 1950 because they were a farming family and they bought agricultural land that was zoned for their intended use. Embry Riddle can do the same.

And it's already been brought up by multiple people that have come up here today. That there are plenty of other options that they can explore. They have the money to do so. They do not need to set foot in our state forest and destroy the atmosphere for everyone that lives here. I myself have been paying property taxes to this County for twenty six years on the property that I own that was a family property since 1950.

This County changed the zoning on my property I was I didn't request it. I wasn't notified that there was a proposed change and I had no opportunity to come in here and address my property that I own live on maintain and pay taxes on. Why was my zoning change. By this County. Without my knowledge without my request without my consent.

Because I know my neighbors, who are all sitting right here right now, none of them requested it either. We were not given an ish a point that we could say anything about it. I'd like you all to consider this though. Very seriously consider this because a lot of your constituents are not happy with this county and with the proposed developments.

Thank you, ma'am. I appreciate you. Taishin. If you would, please state your name and address for the record.

Yes, ma'am. My name is Tai Shen. I'm at 189 South Orange Avenue, Orlando, Florida 32801. I'm a combat veteran, former army ranger. I served in Afghanistan in 2005, served twenty one years in the Florida National Guard.

I've been to Rich's property, mister Graham's property, five or six times. And listen today and just wanted to point out one thing is that the post office used to deliver mail to Rich's gate, mister Graham's gate, but because they said that Clay Road was unnavigable and unsafe to travel, they had they forced mister Graham to move his mailbox to the main road so that the post office could deliver mail there. Just want to point that out. I know the the width of that road is a dead horse, but I thought that was relevant to point out. I also appreciate Lake County's economic development desire to get more high paying jobs, high technical high paying technical jobs in the county.

Every county wants that. But if this airfield is a touch and go and where planes will just land and take off, I don't see the economic development or or bringing high paying jobs to Lake County that way. Applicant also stated that Cessna one seventy twos would only be landing and taking off from this airfield. Well, if that's the case, you don't need a paved airfield to land and and take off Cessna one seventy two. The final thing I'd like to say is that if you block if the applicant blocks Mr.

Graham's only access to his property, that's probably in my opinion tantamount to taking or an eminent domain or condemnation issue. Don't unless there's other some other proposal to allow Mr. Graham access to his property, I think the commission and the board should reconsider or take some time to investigate some of these inconsistency that the applicant has proposed and also take some time to do additional due diligence on whether the airfield is right for Lake County. Thank you.

Thank you. Ian Smith. If you would, please state your name and address for the record.

Ian Smith, 3590 Lone Wolf Trail. I'm here on behalf of my good friend Rich, but also the surrounding community because it is a community that obviously cares quite a bit. No other proposal here today has had as many people come forward, and especially on short notice. I know Rich was only informed about this a week ago, and you already see this many people here objecting it. So I think that that should really be taken into consideration.

I think really all the points have been made that there are a lot of inconsistencies with, what we're hearing from the applicants, and I would really like to point just one of the many out. There is no 40 foot road. That's the road that leads in. At some point, it gets maybe one and a half of that. How you're going to get concrete trucks up there to to build this airstrip or to, to pave this airstrip is, an impossibility without damaging the surrounding environmental area.

That road is not wide enough for any construction vehicles at all. It's barely big enough for my Ford f two fifty. So there's no way that that can be done without going into the environment around there and destroying it. And that's only concrete trucks trucks for an airfield or an airstrip for phase one. We already know that there's more.

If you're looking to build hangars, if you're looking to build classrooms, the volume of construction going through there is only going to get bigger and bigger and bigger. I think that the board really needs to reconsider this. You've heard from residents who are in the area who love this area. There are plenty of other places to go and, you know, I think I think that this needs to be put on hold and put on hold fast. We're seeing this all throughout Florida everywhere and this is just one of many examples.

This place project does not fit here and there's a million other places in the state that it could go. For a touch and go aircraft landing strip, it already works. If that's if that's the if that's the proposed use and they're just landing Cessnas there, they can already do it. There's no need to come in and pave it. There's no need to come in and build classrooms. And again, we've got applicants, who on their application are talking about autonomous, drones. Nobody wants that over their homes. I don't think anybody on board would like that. Drones flying over your house, air traffic coming to your house. If that was in your backyard, you would be here, probably in the stands saying the same thing. So I hope that you all consider that in your vote.

Thank you. Joe Colon Colon. If you would state your name and address for the record, please.

My name is Joe Colon. 2902 Red Alder Boulevard. I'm a first sergeant, retired from the United States Army Special Forces Ranger, just like my fellows here. And I currently hold for the last fifteen years a private pilot's license. Okay? According to Western dictionary, the definition of a touching goal is execution of a landing immediately followed by power and taken off. That's what Embry Rideau eau is proposing to do. If you do wanna touch and go, there's no need for hangars. There's no need for a pay street. They already said in part of it that they want a lander and bring students and build hangars to what?

Store planes. Well, that's completely the opposite definition of a touch and go. So what is this going to involve? Not only the construction, not only the environment impact. Now when you put a school, as you guys are aware, there's a thousand feet of Gomfrizon.

You have a hunting camp not even 300 feet from the proposed school. Then you also have have the facility where Rich Graham works at, which by the way is a Navy SEAL, you know, just like us serve our country, that helps soldiers and veterans that have suffered consequences of PTSD and all that. On the walk here, you very proudly have a statue of a soldier, and you have a billboard that goes through the names of service members. We don't have enough places that we can go to get the help that we need and to do the activities that we enjoy. But you guys are proving the service trip.

You're hindering their own veterans and their own people that fought for this country. I just think that that is a very steep price to pay for a couple of jobs and for a couple of, you know, schools that really not need it. As you are aware, if it's a pilot, you wanna do a touch and go, you can go to any freaking airport and do a touch and go, you don't have to pay. Why it has to be this facility? You know? So I really do appreciate your time and I hope you take that in time and consideration. Thank

you, sir. Chris Lucas? You could state your name and address for the record, please.

Yeah. Chris Lucas, 2569 Saint Michelle Avenue. I won't take up too much of your time. More for me, it's just kind of a safety concern. With all of these hunting cabins that are around in this thousand foot range or or foot range or whatever of a gun free zone. You know, I think mister Chen pointed out that, the mailbox was moved be basically because of the safety of the the post office. You know, they didn't wanna drive down due to the hunting cabins. How is that safe then for emergency vehicles? And then furthermore, how is that even safe for college students to go back and forth if the post office isn't willing to, you know, deal with that? So that's just my main point. Thank you.

Thank you. Yeah. On on the I'm sorry, sir. He has the floor, and he has Yeah. Concluded his comments. So unless you're gonna continue

Sure. I can continue. So this is the map that I'm essentially talking about as far as, like, the Clay Lake Hunting Cabin. How is that again? How is that safe? You understand what I'm saying? Like, if I don't know. I guess my main point is if the post office deems it unsafe, how is that safe for emergency vehicles? How is that safe for college students? You understand what I'm saying?

Yes, Thank you. John Ridley. And if you would, please state your name and address for the record.

Good morning. John Ridley. Three one six two two another and road I'm directly on the south side of this proposed settlement I'll be able to see and hear these drones and aircraft. Like everybody else here said. I'm here to strongly oppose it this is not good for our area we don't want it I have a nephew at and we're really appreciate what they're doing I have a construction business. I appreciate economic growth and what you're trying to do there. It's a terrible idea to terrible location for it. Does not fit into. The environment. I've already moved twice to get away from sprawl.

I would probably move a third time to get away from the urban sprawl. There's plenty of construction going on. As I said, I'm in the industry. You can see across Florida, all of Volusia County, sprawling out of Orlando. Every direction you look, there are trees being cut down, there are roads being paved, storage units going up, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. Life is not all about the almighty dollar. There are other things to consider. As people said, there are a lot of birds in this area. This is an area I my property is has a lake I have back up to. It's filled with dozens of species of birds.

These birds are gonna be impacted by drones flying around, aircraft flying around. I also do tour those back roads with four by four like a lot of other people do to get the peace, to get the quiet, away from the hustle, away from the bustle, away from the sprawl, away from the sirens, away from the airplanes, this would have a profound impact on our area. This is not the area for planes to be flying in. It's a natural area. So Califoris is Seminole State Forest.

People like me, we look for these areas. These areas are disappearing across the country. There are people who still appreciate nature. There are animals that rely on it for their livelihoods. I can tell you that you what what happens when you're building these construction projects, when you're enhancing the the traffic, what you see is animals living on the sides of the road, sandhill cranes with their one foot tall babies, six inches from roadways, trying to find a place to eat and to live, and they're getting hit by cars lining the roads with roadkill.

We also do get more traffic. We have we got a a guy was hit and killed on right off of 42 about two weeks ago. Me, like a lot of these other people here, we're we're kinda tired of it. We've seen enough of it. There has to I'm here to hold the line against this never ending expansion for the almighty dollar. Thank you.

Thank you.

Is there anyone else who wish wishes to speak on this matter before before we proceed? Ma'am, if you would just come up, state your name and address for the record. Oh, are you gonna you're gonna speak. Yes? Yes. Okay. If you would just come up and please state your name and address for the record, and then make sure you fill out a speaker card with the clerk.

Okay. My name's Billy Copeley. I live at 43413 Bear Lake Boulevard. I agree with everything that everybody here has said. Expansion won't stop. Phase one, I was I wasn't even aware that there was more than one phase. I mean, what else are they going to do? What else is going to be put in there? And this is right slap in the middle of the forest. It's surrounded by the Ocala National Forest.

The trucks that are gonna come in and out, the diesel that's gonna go into the forest, into the water, I thought it was protected out there. There are 36 federally listed animal species and a 136 species that are endangered or they are threatened in the Ocala National Forest. So what's gonna happen to them? What's gonna happen to our forest? It's just it's just not gonna stop.

I I oppose this because because it's supposed to be protected. And if this starts, it's not gonna stop. It's phase one. And that's that's that's my concern isn't my house. It isn't my peace. My concern is this supposed to be protected. And if this starts out there, it's not gonna stop planes? Planes in the forest. The last time I checked, they don't run on rainbows and sunshine, do they? So, when they land or when they touch down, what's touching down in that forest with them?

I mean, if if they can make a plane run on fluffy bunny rabbits and butterflies, I'm all for it. Land there all you want. But last time I checked, it's fuel, which is gonna be in our forest. So I am opposed. Thank you.

Thank you for your time. Okay. So we have no more speaker cards unless anyone else from the public intends to speak. We are gonna take a five minute break before the applicant rebuts just for the board to be able to use the restroom, take a moment, but we're only gonna take five minutes. So we will reconvene at fifteen.

And then if you can give me just a moment, Tara, for them to get the recording started. Alright. We will reconvene the planning and zoning board meeting of Lake County County at 11:15.

Tara Tedro again for the record. So I appreciate the comments that we have today and and want to talk about a couple things just so we set the table and maybe I didn't do enough detail my first presentation about this, as to what exists today versus what we are asking. So just so our neighbors understand, the way that the comprehensive plan designates the property is it gives it a rural future land use. We're not changing that rural future land use. The rural future land use designation is what constrains the amount of concrete, that impervious surface that we can put on the property.

So because the rural future land use is not changing, the zoning is not giving us permission to do any more building than you can do today. So I can appreciate any time folks look and say, hey, the property doesn't have anything, therefore it will never, or should never. But if they have a rural future land use designation, they would have permissibility to have the same amount of concrete on their property, subject to site plan review, of course, wetland studies, environmental studies, etcetera, which we are still subject to. But it doesn't change that impervious surface ratio between our zoning and the existing zoning. So that is one thing for everybody to understand.

We're not changing that comp plan designation, and the comp plan is what's going to restrict that buildable area that we can have on the property with or without Embry Riddle doing anything on the site. In addition, the comprehensive plan sets forth under the rural future land use category a certain amount of open space at 35%. We are providing and restricting our site per an approved plan to be attached to an ordinance at 80%. So if somebody wanted to go today under agricultural zoning, which if you look under the allowable use table in the land development regulations, agricultural zoning is not simply farming in Lake County. In ag zoning today, you could go construct the same amount of buildable square footage for a public safety building, buildings, for family day care homes and family residential homes, which are, you know, Department of Children and Families and state agency run, you could do veterinarian clinics, and you could do a host of other agricultural uses in the true ag sense.

And if I did any of those uses I just listed under the zoning today, it's the same amount of building square footage that you could do under CFD zoning. So I just want everybody to understand that you all voting, if it was to approve with a recommendation for approval and if the Board of County Commissioners approves the CFD rezoning, there is no net change in the amount of open space. There is no net change in the amount of building square footage. In fact, the only net change is that we will have more open space because we're restricting it under our plan, and we will also have a less ISR. The comprehensive plan says under a rural future land use series, it goes goes from a range of a 0.2 to a 0.35 ISR.

Agricultural and civic uses can have a 35% ISR. Our site plan restricts us to a 0.19, so a 19%. So we're actually going to have more open space and a smaller impervious surface ratio than you would otherwise have under the existing ag zoning today. You heard a lot of folks talk about the Wekiva Ocala and the forest area that you're in. The Wekaiva Ocala RPA policies are embedded in 01/2002.

They specifically say what type of land uses you can have. So it restricts the future land use series and it restricts the open space. It says the open space has to be 35%. Again, we're not just complying, we're doubling. It also says the allowable future land use series include public service and facility district and rural.

We're not changing that either. So there is nothing about the comprehensive plan, Wekiva Ocala RPA, that prevents in any way or restricts what we are proposing today. We still have that same future land use series, and I may be going into way too much detail, but I just want to give those folks in the audience who don't spend their time reading the comp plan at night, and God bless you, I wouldn't recommend it, but these are the policies that are set forth, these are the policies that we as the applicant work within, these are the policies your professional staff looks at, and these are the policies that you all are supposed to evaluate when you get an application like ours.

I have a question before,

but I

don't mean to interrupt, but to put it in simple terms. If they wanted to build a 75 foot hangar today, they could.

Well, there already is a hangar there today.

So if they wanted to land and take off drones today, they could without making any changes. And if they want

to do

touchdown, touchout, they could.

Correct. There's a FAA permit for that.

Yeah. And the only reason that they're wanting to pave it is because they are a school and it's for safety purposes and it makes the landing and takeoff safer.

Yeah. And I appreciate you simplifying that because that is it, right? The use itself for phase one, and just so everybody understands, there's nothing nefarious in terms of what we're proposing. We're not trying to hide the ball. The CFD zoning is very different than normal zonings in that it restricts what we could ever do in the future based on the plan.

So the reason that we listed those additional things is because we were told, hey, look ten years down the road, would you ever do anything else? But us saying we might want to have a 2,500 square foot classroom building doesn't mean we're doing that today. It's that we thought maybe in the future we would do that. Phase one is truly paving the runway and allowing for us to have a new hangar as opposed to the existing one they already have on-site. And remember, the use for an airstrip is there.

The FAA has permitted it, it has been for decades a conditional use permit allowed by the county. Denying a CFD rezoning does not take away the use of this property as a permissible airstrip. That's one of the reasons it was attractive, not just because Lake County is an attractive place, but also because it has an existing allowable FAA permit for use as a single use private use airstrip, which is exactly what we are looking to do. And it's still private. It still remains private.

Excuse me. Folks in the audience, I'm going to ask you, they respected your time when you spoke. Please respect theirs so that we can get all of the information to make informed decisions. Thank you.

It is still a private use airstrip. This does not become a public use airstrip. Those are FAA classifications. Classifications. That's in our application, too. We put in there that this is a private use airstrip for our, again, training facility. It is not a college campus. It is not meant to be a college campus. I would assume maybe the great work that our neighbor Mr. Graham does might have more cars go into his house every day in his property than ours will.

We are not intending for this to be a high intensity use, and quite frankly, we cannot because we're constrained by buildable area under the comp plan. So I just want the neighbors to not believe and again, there's a lot of rezonings where the nature of the use is fundamentally different when we rezone. But this is allowing what's there today, and it also is constrained on buildable footprint this exact same as it would be if you didn't approve this. So I just don't want anyone to leave with the feeling that it's a victory of no one can do anything if the CFD zoning goes away, because it's still going to be what it is. Embry Riddle could go in today, have an unpaved airstrip, build a new hangar under our conditional use permit, and not come back to one public hearing.

And so that's why we put all of And this out there

to I am going to ask those of you in the audience to please remain quiet. We cannot hear what the applicant is saying when you are hollering out, please. Ma'am, please. Am We get a rebuttal. Great. I am going to ask again for you to please allow us to get all of the information. Thank you. So

on the whole site that's about 118 acres, the calculations that our engineers looked at is about 1.5 acres total is where a building footprint in total could possibly be dispersed. So this is, again, a very small endeavor that we're looking to do. I appreciate that the neighbors don't feel like that's the case and that perhaps there's some fear around what it could mean. The reason that we added, you know, more than just the paved airstrip was so nobody would wonder. We didn't want there to be fear, I guess maybe there was going to be anyway, but again, I really feel like the core focus of what can be built on this site, I just I hope everybody understands that our request doesn't change that amount of concrete that can come out on a piece of property, and we certainly can't circumvent wetland requirements, permitting requirements, stormwater requirements.

Your staff report very clearly said that we are going subject to that exact review and we have to do a flooding and a draining analysis and future development will require a flood study by an engineer to determine base flood elevation for zones so that development construction doesn't adversely affect surrounding properties. I mean all of this, we're just at this preliminary stage of really getting some clarity on paved versus unpaved, and what could be done there. And again, if anybody wants assurances of what might happen on a property, we have a concept plan that cannot be altered without doing all of this over again, and we still have to go through a site plan review process, we still have to work with the forestry department on those roads, and if we can't make safe access work, we don't just get to do projects, right? I mean concurrency evaluations evaluations by by the the county and permitting agencies require that we have to be able to show that we can have that safe access, otherwise we don't get to do anything. But this is a chicken and an egg.

We need to be able to go to the FAA and work with them once we have our zoning and can invest that time, the money, the effort to know we're moving forward with this project. So that's where we are today. We are excited to be part of community, and we are hopeful because we think that utilizing a site that already has this use today, and based on your professional staff's recommendation of approval, we would ask for the same one, and again, happy to answer any questions.

All right. Who would like to begin with questions for the applicant? Anyone? I have just one. Yes. Sure, ma'am.

I want to address, I guess, the elephant. And I think you did, but I want to be real clear that I understood. I think I understood what you said. Several people have questioned why that particular I realize that you have that right and I respect that, but I think what I heard you say was that one of the reasons it was selected is because you're not asking to do anything that couldn't already just be done there. Is that correct?

Yes. We went through this process with Melanie where I said, you've got to be kidding me. It says unpaved only. Techno I mean, it's an airstrip, an airstrip's an airstrip. So you pave it and it changes everything. And so we came to, yep, go through this process even though the conditional use permit allows the use otherwise.

Okay. And one last thing, I think I hear you assuring us that you're going to work with them in terms of the width of the road when it is the right time for those things, correct?

That's correct. The entitlement stage is where we're at now. Technical engineering, site plan, again, flooding on our site, drainage on our site, wetlands on our site, all these comments that you heard today, all of that has to get addressed so we don't get to circumvent it simply by you all saying, yes, you're allowed to pave an airstrip and do your phase one under your site plan or build the ancillary hangers, again, we can already do today under our conditional use permit.

Thank you.

I had a follow-up.

Yeah, go ahead.

One of the comments mentioned, why not Umatilla, which is a public airstrip. And correct me if I'm wrong, that would require a public private partnership. And with the school setting, there's additional liabilities that might be incurred

And for the liability, too, is why we want to pave it. Right? This is a safety concern. So we just want to have the paved airstrip. This is a private use for our students and our training purposes. We don't want to open this up to the public. We don't want to commingle on the public airstrips. We just want this for our purposes, you know, from our Daytona campus to fly in, fly out, maybe park into the hangar, pull back out. The classroom we propose is 2,500 square feet. I've seen barns bigger than that, right? I mean this, again, the footprint cannot be big because of comp plan restrictions, and it is not intended to by virtue of the site plan in those future areas that you see.

Gentlemen, do either of you have questions for the applicant?

No. I mean, basically, what I'm hearing is any future development's going to require additional site plan review. It's going to require if any other uses outside of this, it would require County Board of County Commissioner approval. It's going to require additional wetlands reviews and all that stuff. I mean, like you said, you guys are here just to pave the runway.

The only thing I feel pretty strongly about this. I'm going to vote.

Okay. Well, hold on. Do you have any questions for her?

No. I just I wanna I'm I just think it's the wrong wrong thing to do. I I don't think this is the right place. My

I I have a couple of questions, and they are really exclusively about access. So I understand you're going to work with the Forestry Service to try to figure out how you can improve the access situation or make it more stable for the purposes of getting in and out. But even down the road, into the future, whatever, if y'all do end up building a 2,500 square foot classroom or something like that, is the intent for your student population who would be in such classroom to be coming to the site by car? Or is this a situation where your intent is they would fly in, essentially navigate the in a plane, and then go into a classroom, do training, and then fly back. I'm trying to figure out if this would be a student led thing on the ground.

That is our primary intent, is to have those students coming from our Daytona campus if they came in. And once they flow in, park in the hangar again, a hangar that exists today and then be able to have a small classroom setting if there was going to be any training. We hope to train and be able to provide that educational training for high wage jobs, and also for folks who are our students who also do the great service that the military does. So we have a lot of students that go on to serve this country, too. And so, you know, we want to have these opportunities in a safe environment for that paved condition on the runway.

And in the event I know that the U. S. Forestry Service has provided a letter that they're not objecting to the project with the roads remaining remaining unpaved. If in fact the roads are, you know, we've seen photos and evidence of the condition of those roads, if they are too narrow and the tree canopies covering over are too low for things like construction vehicles and fire trucks and things like that to come in. And because these are forestry service owned roads, if they prohibit you from being able to change those roadways or clear the tree canopy, you understand that would mean that you don't have safe access to your site, and therefore your project no longer works.

Correct. Okay. I just want to make sure we're all on the same page there.

I I want clarification on one particular issue, if Two it's commenters addressed a Second Amendment right issue, in that this is a airstrip and access to their property. They correct me if I'm wrong there would be a firearm issue if they were traveling on their deeded legal easement with firearms. Is that what I'm hearing? Was I

concern. Yeah. I think the concern that was raised and that had been mentioned to me outside of the hearing this morning was that there is a gun free zone with college campuses. From our internal discussion, that doesn't apply to this training facility. We're designating this as a university college campus. So there should be no implication. That is something that we will confirm before BOCC, just to make understand the full legality. Just quite frankly don't know all the nuances, but that's something that we will have confirmed before BOCC.

Okay, thank you.

So just to reiterate, there is no intention now or any time in the future for Emory Riddle to establish this as an actual campus?

Correct. It's supposed to just be a training a limited training facility, and that is it. And that's what's in the staff report, too. I mean, they're calling it our aviation training facility for a private use airstrip and a It's syndicated

been here since 1987.

Since 1987, I mean, same use. And by the way, if Embry Riddle comes in under the existing CUP and builds, we're still going to use the same roads. It's just there's a paving requirement because we're asking for CFD and that's where the waiver came in. But the same thing's still going to happen. Still going to drive the same roads, still going to be able to go build a hangar, still going to do all of that, still requires SR two ninety nine form evaluation by the forestry service. I mean, that's why there's really such a limited distinction between what we're talking about in the current condition under our CUP and in this post CFD CFD zoning condition.

Are there any other questions for the applicant?

Yes, ma'am. I'm sorry.

That's fine, no. That's why we're here.

The gentleman with the property, is his access to his property in what you know now? Will it be in any way inhibited?

No, we legally cannot. I mean, there's a reason that all of your ordinances don't say nobody can take away legal rights of access to other property owners because that's probably just because it's Florida law that we can't go landlock properties and remove deeded legal access. So if there is any issue, and we will get with the neighbor too to make sure perhaps there's not something unrecorded that I haven't seen about access or a handshake agreement with the owner, but his access, he's going to have access to his property, we cannot take away access to his property. So if there is a specific area that has to remain the same, it will remain the same under any existing agreements. You know, we will not be able to change unilaterally his legal access to his right based on whatever his deeded legal access is today.

And that will have to be refined and documented within your site plan whenever you bring that

That's correct.

To staff for consideration, correct?

Yeah. All of those get put on to a site plan. If there's legal access routes that exist according to OR book 24 page five, all of that would be shown on a site plan.

All right. Are there any further questions for the applicant at this time? All right. So do we have any questions for staff? Is there any reason to bring staff up? Okay. I would entertain a motion.

So I would encourage the applicant and Mr. Graham to come to some sort of mutually beneficial agreement because it sounds like Mr. Graham is doing incredible work and I want to thank you for doing that. I am a mother of a veteran who's in aviation. So had he not had an outlet after his service and he was very fearful of after sorry, he was aviation ordinate. Not a lot of jobs out there for that. So having that aviation career and being a veteran, I have a lot of appreciation for the work that you're doing, and I hope that you really can come to a mutually beneficial agreement because I think it's a wonderful partnership. With that said, I move to approve this

tab. All

right, I have a motion. Is there a second?

I second.

All right,

we have a motion and a second to approve the rezoning. And does that include the waiver for paved access?

Yes.

Is there any discussion?

Yes. Yes, ma'am? Is there a way to amend her and I understand that, you know, we have gentleman's word of honor. But is there a way to amend that such that it includes that there will be some kind of at least attempted negotiation with the opposers to ensure that access is not denied? And I understand legally it can't be, but I also see the faces of the audience and I'm very concerned because we saw drawings that didn't depict actually what is, so I'm very concerned that that might not happen. So is there a way we can do that? Is that allowable?

Melanie, how would we go about maybe factoring in anything like that? Would we just make it part of

our

motion? Because this is an ordinance that you can condition, you could add language in here that, you know, they

Cores all access

Legal to access to adjacent property owners.

Be maintained? Correct. Okay.

Well, I don't wanna say maintain, but because I don't know that they have to maintain that legal access, but they have to make sure it's not impeded.

Right, so how would we, I guess, word that?

You

can revise your motion. So instead of saying maintain it, it would need to be that they don't inhibit impede on any established legal access.

Yes, so you can generally add that language and then we can do it more formal for the ordinance.

Okay, so I'll revise my motion to approve provided that they do not inhibit or impede any other associated private access. Thank you.

Do I have a second?

Second.

Okay. Is there any need for further discussion, or is there anything that anyone would like to discuss on this item before we move to a vote. I would just like to say one point of clarification I know that we heard from some folks that they felt like. We were not listening to the public. I assure you that is something that we take very seriously.

However, I do want to clarify that this board, as the Planning and Zoning Board, is an advisory recommending entity. Our role is to review applications that come consider how they work with our existing comprehensive plan and land development regulations within the county, and then to make recommendations to the Board of County Commissioners. The ultimate approving entity, even though you hear us make motions to approve, the ultimate approving entity is the Board of County Commissioners as your elected body. No one sitting here today, with the exception of our school board representative, is an elected official, that we are all appointed into these positions by the members of the Board of County Commissioners. So with that said, I would welcome a vote.

All those in favor, please signify by saying aye.

Aye. All

opposed, say nay. All right. So we have four and one opposition. So motion passes. Okay. So moving on to tab seven.

Guess I won't go hiking on the bars.

Seven is gonna be long?

No. I don't think No?

She asked if tab seven was gonna be long. Don't think so.

Did have a couple people on the den.

Do we have conversation on? No. We have one guard on tab seven. We're just gonna wait for everybody to clear out so it's quiet. Alright. So we are now moving on to tab seven, is the Mount Plymouth Sorrento CRA

plan updates. Good morning. I had to check

the time. For the record, again, my name is Meg Brew. I serve as the director of economic development here in Lake County. So a community redevelopment plan serves as the guiding document for redevelopment work in a community redevelopment area. It is a best practice to update CRA plans every five years so that they can best reflect the changing needs community.

Our current plan was last updated in 2018. The plan update has been reviewed by the CRA advisory committee at their March 18 meeting but state statute requires the local planning agency to review the plan updates as to their conformity with the comprehensive plan. The LPA recommendation will then go to the CRA board on May 20 and the CRA board will consider the content of the plan and make a recommendation for adoption with any requested edits to the Board of County Commissioners and that will be heard on July 1. So your role today is to decide whether or not the proposed plan update aligns with the current comp plan. The CRA board will then consider matters related to content implementation at their May 20 meeting.

Public comments submitted regarding the content of the plan will also be provided to the CRA board in advance of their meeting for consideration. So with that, it's my pleasure to introduce Mr. George Kramer with Inspire Placemaking. They were the consultant who did the plan update for us, so they'll walk you through the plan update stages. Thank you.

Thank you, Meg. Again, my name is George Kramer. I'm a planner and president with Inspire. Placemaking Collective, really appreciate, the opportunity to to work with county staff on this update and community at large. We have a brief presentation.

As Meg pointed out, the the role today is really to evaluate the plan update with consistency for the comp plan. Just for context, I did, and I and I think you received this in your packet. I did wanna go through, just some highlights of the plan update. I'll conclude with some slides, that demonstrate that consistency with the comprehensive plan. And so I'll I'll go through relatively quickly.

You know, we had a scope that included five tasks. As you can see here on this time line, it was about a year ago that we started in June with that kickoff meeting. Our process includes, both quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis. So, you know, looking at GIS and and the numbers from from that last plan update to see what things have changed. Also, through, conversations with the community, that included in person, public engagement efforts as well, as as an online presence that I'll go through.

And, again, through that, you know, data collection analysis process, a lot of that policy and strategy formulation is based on answering those questions, you know, what what are those gaps in data, and how do we take what we're hearing from the community and what we're seeing within that data, and developing a plan, you know, that that that reflects, those new conditions and and and things that are brought forth. Part of the data we reviewed is is some of the demographic and socioeconomic data. Again, I'm gonna go through this quickly to to to get to the consistency part. Again, from a lot of GIS analysis that went in to looking at those existing land uses within the redevelopment area. As you can see, there is a significant component of agriculture and vacant land uses within the area.

From a regulatory context, you know, we look at the future land use designations as well as the zoning. This highlights that there is a TDR overlay within area that we looked at. Infrastructure, and we did did receive some comments about that. So there is a lot of private wells and septic systems in use currently within the area. You know, a policy decision in in, you know, your comprehensive plan talks about, you know, the extension of central water and sewer in appropriate areas.

You know, there's there was some concern about the committee or, excuse me, from the community about whether that was the best expenditure of funds within the CRA if there were other areas, more pressing need. That's a fair comment, and so we can talk more about that through there. I mentioned the community engagement, that's an important component of this. You know, we we did have the the in person workshop, but we also got input through an interactive public website. So as you can see, that Open House was held on November 18, and then that interactive project website was up for the majority of the project life cycle.

Again, we look at funding priorities. I think one of the strategies we use with the redevelopment plan is at one level we wanna be broad in the development strategies and and capital improvements that can be employed within the district that provides flexibility over time. If it's not in the plan, you can't, you know, make investments with it. So so those that broad language is important. At the same time, you know, we wanted to go through and understand those community priorities and and recommend some strategies as well.

So it's kind of a two pronged approach, you know, as it relates to that, and this is focusing on some of those transportation environmental priorities. I talked about that strategy formation, and we use a SWOT analysis there to kind of organize that community feedback that we're hearing, hearing, as well as some of the conclusions from the data analysis. We also then organize from that strategy into, and in this case, we identified five goals that you see there. I think one thing important to point out is that you can draw a straight line of these five goals to goals and policies that are that are within your comprehensive plan, and so that that's important. And, again, through this plan development, we can identify those funding priorities.

And as I talked about, there's some broad language, but then there are also some specific programs and projects that are identified on pages forty eight and forty nine. And then we also look again at specific parcels and some specific projects. In this case, looking at adaptive reuse possibilities with the industrial site. Obviously, Main Street And 46 is such an important part of this area and district, as well as, the potential to, you know, enhance some of those existing, trails, through the internal loop. But, again, what we're here today is really to look at that consistency with the comprehensive plan.

We're directed by that at 163. As you can see there, shall submit such plan to local planning agency for review and recommendations as to its conformity with the comprehensive plan. So starting right off the bat into that future land use element policy, 1.1.1, when it talks about the elements of innovative planning, you can see on the right there, this plan embodies those through a variety of ways, protecting that character, addressing public lands and natural resources, the water resources, parks and trails that I had mentioned before, maintaining that rural character that speaks to the viewscapes and gateways there. Business and employment opportunities, again, within context, but those are addressed and certainly maintaining that rural area and lifestyle of the area. The next policy down, you know, talks specifically about urban infill and sites community redevelopment agencies.