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City Balks At SR 19 Development Proposal

    A proposed home development along SR 19 between Eustis and Umatilla has received a cool reception in front of the Eustis City Commission.  The proposed development would be located on land that formerly housed the Powers dairy, just north of CR 19A, but questions about setbacks, traffic, amenities, and more has brought about a delay on any votes regarding the potential development.
    Calling for 59 detached homes and 216 townhomes, the development has been going through the application process in Eustis since last November. After several months of back-and-forth discussions with the city's development review committee, the proposal was before the commission last Thursday, and was met with little support.
    As currently conceived, the development would have a 5.7 unit per acre density. on just under 52 acres.
    Questions over a needed waiver regarding setbacks in parts of the development, from 20 feet to 10 feet, drew concern from members, as did concerns over increased traffic in the area as well as an apparent lack of recreational amenities within the development.
    “That’s a lot of density,” said commissioner Willie Hawkins of the proposal.  “I’m concerned about the traffic.”
    Turn lanes are proposed at the development’s main entrance, further north in the area of the Bay Street Baptist Church, but the development’s impact on the CR 19A intersection just south is also a concern.
    “I don’t want to make a decision or talk about it until you know what you are doing,” Hawkins said.
    Mayor Mike Holland said the plan needed to be updated before he would feel comfortable discussing it.
    “I won’t vote until there is another waiver,” he said, referring to the request to reduce certain setbacks from 20 to 10 feet.
    The development is projected to generate an additional 2,216 vehicle trips in the area once fully built out.
    Residents in the area voiced concern over the development, also. Questions arose from a variety of public speakers about rising traffic congestion, any potential fencing that would be installed to keep residents off of surrounding property, and additional pressure being placed on area schools.
    No timeline was set for the proposal's return to the commission.