West Seminole residents alarmed by plan that could bring high-rise tower to neighborhood
When Steve Carnes bought his home off Balmy Beach Drive in west Seminole County more than a decade ago, it was generally a quiet area with little traffic and noise.
But as commercial growth continued to sprout along nearby State Road 436 — including a new Walmart Neighborhood Market that opened in March at Balmy Beach — Carnes and his neighbors began to see more cars and trucks speeding through their community.
Now, he and scores of other area residents are alarmed about a developer’s request to rezone roughly 26 acres at the southwest corner of the busy intersection that could allow a residential tower of up to 120 feet or 12 stories high, making it one of the tallest structures in the county.
“If you add that many more people, it’s just going to make this whole area very dangerous,” said Carnes, 55. “We’ve got two schools — one is an elementary school less than a mile away — and a lot of kids walk to school every day using this street and other streets. A lot of cars use this area as a cut through to get to Maitland Boulevard.
On Tuesday, Seminole commissioners are scheduled to consider the request by Taurus CD Limited Partnership of Maitland to change the land use on the mostly vacant property just east of Border Lake. If approved, the change would allow a developer to build a 300-unit building for apartments, condominiums or assisted-living. It also would allow additional commercial buildings of up to four stories, according to county documents.
By Thursday, Taurus officials had not yet responded to questions about the project from the Orlando Sentinel.
Seminole staffers and the county’s planning and zoning commission recommend that county commissioners approve the request, saying it is compatible with the county’s land-development plans for that area. Planning and zoning commission members in October recommended that commissioners approve the zoning request but with the condition that any structure on the property not exceed to exceed 100 feet in height but no more than eight stories.
Taurus officials agreed, but the zoning request being proposed to commissioners would still allow up to 120 feet.
No matter the height, the proposed development doesn’t sit well with residents. Nearly four dozen homeowners from the surrounding area sent letters to county officials voicing their opposition to the project, citing the amount of traffic it will bring to their neighborhoods and surrounding area.
According to the state Department of Transportation, about 54,000 vehicles on average travel through the S.R. 436 and Balmy Beach Drive intersection daily.
“The volume of cars, and the speed of cars, is off the charts in the morning and the late afternoon and early evening,” resident Brian Dalrymple said in an email to county officials. “How was it possible that staff supported and recommends approval. …This does not make any sense at all.”
Many residents said they’re not opposed to development in that spot. But they said commissioners should hold off on the request to give county officials time to study ways to improve the intersection to accommodate the additional vehicles.
“The county needs to conduct the appropriate traffic studies and see how to modify that intersection,” said Marissa Williams, 33, who has lived in the area for five years and described the traffic as “horrendous.”
“The quality of life in my neighborhood has already been heavily affected, and I am seriously concerned about additional future impacts,” she said.
Seminole commissioners will discuss the request shortly after 1:30 p.m. during a public meeting at the county administration building, 1101 E. First St., Sanford.