Editors Note: This meeting has been rescheduled for September 25 at 6pm.

A community meeting will be held for a request to rezone 262 acres of the Shingle Creek basin to planned development. The developer is requesting approval for 1,266,000 square feet of commercial, 2,790 hotel rooms, and 5,300 apartment units. In addition, eleven waivers are being requested regarding open space, bicycle parking, building and paving setbacks, impervious coverage, building height, and building coverage. The development would obtain road access through an extension of Westwood Blvd.

 

Shingle Creek, known as the headwaters of the Everglades, is the northernmost source of water to the everglades along with Reedy Creek and Bonnet Creek, which are highlighted on Disney’s Skyliner when traveling between Hollywood Studio and Caribbean Beach Resort.

Additionally, Shingle Creek is used to alleviate flooding from other Orange County bodies of water. When Big Sand Lake reaches an elevation of 95.4 ft‐NAVD at the I-4 culvert, it will start a flow eastward down the Valencia Water Control District C-1 Canal to Shingle Creek. After Hurricane Ian in 2023, Big Sand Lake required additional pumping to lower lake levels from 97.03′ NAVD to a normal lake level of 93.0’ NAVD.

The community meeting will be held on Tuesday, August 29 at 6pm, located at Bay Meadows Elementary School. Residents with an interest in the request should plan on attending to provide feedback. Anyone not able to attend can provide written comments, including full name and address, to Case Planner Jason Sorensen at [email protected]. Additional comments can be emailed to the Mayor and Commissioners at [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected].

The project is being developed by Kobo Development. More information on the community meeting is available online at orangecountyfl.net.