A request to carve 67 acres of former farmland out of Seminole County's protected Rural Area goes before the county Planning and Zoning Commission at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 7, in the County Services Building at 1101 E. First St. in Sanford.
The property, at the northeast corner of Deleon Street and Florida Avenue in the Black Hammock area, is the former Pappy's Patch strawberry farm. The applicant is Strawberry Lane LLC, whose manager is developer Chris Dorworth. The land is made up of 14 parcels.
What the commission is deciding
The application asks only that the land be removed from the Rural Area and that the Rural Boundary be redrawn. It does not seek new zoning or a new land use designation. The commission acts as the county's local planning agency and will make a recommendation to the Board of County Commissioners on whether to send the change to state reviewers.
The Rural Area is written into the county charter. Under the charter, commissioners can remove land only by a supermajority vote, and the comprehensive plan requires an applicant to show a need for the change, analyze the location and demonstrate consistency with county and regional plans.
County planning staff concluded the application does not meet those standards and recommends denial, citing insufficient data and analysis, according to the agenda report. The Rural Area covers about 67,114 acres, roughly 46% of it publicly owned.
