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Divided Commission Approves Large Lake Yale Development

    The Lake County Commission on Tuesday again took up a proposed development along the shores of Lake Yale.  Proposed by to include around 1,400 living units and 50,000 feet of commercial space, the the long-discussed project was again a topic for nearly three hours on Tuesday, with presentations and public input both for and against the proposal speaking on the issue.
    A central topic of the debate stemmed over a believed 1,200 home possibility as the land is currently zoned, versus approximately 1,450 as a planned development with the developer paying for road and other improvements beyond the development.
    “The growth will happen,” said commission chair Leslie Campione.  “The question is whether it will be high quality or not.”
    Sean Parks, who also ultimately supported the measure, said growth in South Lake in recent decades shows what can happen when developments are built in a piece meal fashion.
    “The mistakes of piece meal growth are all over the place,” he said.   
    Anthony Sabatini spoke strongly against the measure.
    “Lake County doesn’t need another city,” he said, in reference to the population and commercial attributes of the plan.
    In the end, the vote was 3-2, with Tim Morris joining Campione and Parks in favor, and Kirby Smith voting with Sabatini. 
    “I think the benefits outweigh the 250 homes,” he said.
    The development calls for an overall density of just over three units per acre, with developers, the Whittaker family, agreeing to place road and other infrastructure improvements around the site before construction to mitigate expected increases in traffic surrounding the development and beyond on CR 452 and CR 44.
    Before the vote, property owner Cliff Whittaker, third generation farmer on the property, said conditions in agriculture have made it nearly impossible to farm profitably, a situation that has led to the family seeking to develop the estimated 450 acres in the proposal.
    Additionally, this past weekend’s weather wiped out this year’s crops on the property.
    “I’ve lost my entire citrus crop. I’ve lost my entire blueberry crop,” he told the commission on Tuesday.