Keeping an eye on development in Winter Springs

Amidst calls for increased communication efforts between the city government and its citizens, residents can now more readily access information regarding development in Winter Springs. 

The Winter Springs Development Tracker, which the city’s community development department launched on Nov. 1, allows residents to learn more about current development projects within the city through an interactive map guide. 

According to a Winter Springs press release, the map’s data will be updated monthly and “is intended to provide individuals with a more current and comprehensive view of the projects being undertaken within the City.”

Residents and city officials alike have expressed their desire to improve information access and distribution within the city, especially for pervasive, hot-button issues like new development. 

During a Oct. 28 commission meeting, Commissioner Victoria Bruce shared during her report that she herself had had issues with readily accessing information related to development, specifically details regarding a community workshop hosted on Oct. 15 at Indian Trails Middle School to discuss the controversial new Chick-Fil-A development.

“I’d like for public hearings to be more appropriately noticed so that the Commission can attend and ask questions,” Bruce said. “I learned that the Chick-fil-A isn’t a done deal, and they will be asking for a variance for the ordering window, and so that’s something definitely to consider.” 

The proposed 5,576-square-feet restaurant is located on the southeast corner of the intersection of East State Road 434 and Michael Blake Boulevard across from The Savoy, a senior-living center whose residents have consistently voiced their concerns to city officials in recent months regarding their proximity to the project, citing senior safety.

Janet Pannell, a resident of The Savoy for two years, told the Commission in early October she had collected 110 signatures from her fellow residents opposed to the new development’s location. 

“The increased traffic flow will present increased risk of personal harm to our residents,” Pannell said, during the Oct. 14 meeting. “Michael Blake [Boulevard] was not constructed as a commercial street. This is not suited to handle the increased traffic pools.”

With the new development tracker, residents can now more readily find information pertaining to the Chick-Fil-A project and its ongoing development status, which it states is still currently under staff review. 

Other Winter Springs projects currently being tracked include:

• Excelsior Parkway Townhomes, a proposed 27-unit townhome development located on the East side of Moss Road. The project is currently under staff review and its public hearing date is yet to be determined. 
• The Human Bean, a 692-square-foot drive-through coffee shop located on the North side of State Road 434 across from Costa Rica Drive. The project is currently under staff review and its public hearing date is yet to be determined. 
• Phase two of the Chau Medical Plaza, a 48,810-square-foot, 47-unit independent living facility located on the South side of State Road 434. The project was approved by the City Commission on Feb. 12, and is currently awaiting its building plan submittal. 
• Living Life, a four-story, 140-unit independent living facility located on the North side of West State Road 434 along the shore of Lake Talmo. The project is currently under construction. 
• Elliano’s Coffee, an 800-square-foot drive-through coffee shop with a walk-up window located on the Southwest corner of State Road 434 and Vistawilla Drive. The project is currently under construction. 

The City of Oviedo has had a development tracker on their website for years. Find it here. Winter Springs’ tracker isn’t the only advancement related to the city’s development, as Winter Springs begins the next steps for its 2050 Comprehensive Plan this month. 

The Comprehensive Plan primarily deals with community functions such as transportation, recreation, land use, infrastructure and housing. It sets development density limits throughout the city, planning where growth should occur in the future, which must accommodate state population projections for that time period.

Any development orders or land development regulations are required to be consistent with the city’s plan, which will soon be heard through a series of three public workshop meetings, the first of which will be held on Nov. 20 from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the Winter Springs Civic Center, located at 400 N. Edgemon Ave. 

Though the plan won’t be finalized until next June, city officials like Mayor Kevin McCann are stressing the importance now of residents contributing their ideas to the future of the city’s development, citing residents often speaking to the commission regarding their concerns on development matters in Winter Springs.

“This is your opportunity for anyone that’s interested,” McCann said, during the commission’s last meeting. “Whether you’re a developer, a landowner, resident or a family member to have your voice heard of what you’d like the city to look like in the decades coming before us.” 

Planning and Zoning board member Gina Shafer also spoke during the meeting with a similar call for fellow residents to offer their ideas, highlighting the importance of doing so for the city’s future development. 

“I mean, 2050 is a long way away everybody says, but not really,” Shafer said. “From infrastructure to turn lanes to whatever, you really need to plan. There’s not a lot that’s left to be planned out.” 

Though efforts like the Comprehensive Plan surveys and the city’s new tracker might improve information access and the sharing of ideas for the city’s future, development is still a contentious topic for both residents and city officials. 

The Commission most recently debated a “commitment” to not provide utilities to a controversial three-story Tuskawilla Road storage facility, a project which Mayor Kevin McCann said appeared to be “moving forward” as of the commission’s Oct. 14 meeting. 

Though no formal action or vote against the project was taken, discussions are expected to continue once the city’s newest commissioners take the dais. And with three on the way, Winter Springs may see a shift in its continued approach to development as information becomes more available and new voices weigh in. 

Want to contact your elected leaders and weigh in on this topic? Find their contact information here. Have a news tip or opinion to share with OCN? Do that here.