As first reported by Central Florida Public Media, the Central Florida Expressway Authority has quietly escalated its plan to repurpose some protected green spaces for a toll road project, which is already slicing through the (supposedly) protected Split Oak Forest. And it’s made some big noise.
On August 14, CFX’s governing board voted 7–3 to declare roughly 44 acres of land in Orange County, including nearly 3 acres from Eagles Roost (Website), a park safeguarded under the county’s Green PLACE programme, as “necessary for acquisition” for their State Road 534 project (also known as the Osceola Parkway Extension). The toll road is designed to link SR 417 near Boggy Creek Road with Nova Road in Osceola County in an effort to boost east–west connectivity, as shown above.
Eagles Roost, home of the recently reopened Back to Nature wildlife refuge, was meant to remain untouched. As Commissioner Nicole Wilson put it, “Eagles Roost is not just another parcel of land. Just like Split Oak Forest, it was set aside with a promise to our residents: that this land would remain protected for future generations.” Wilson stated that, as the park is labeled as “protected lands,” it can’t be used or changed to another use without a supermajority vote from the County Commission, per the charter. But easements aren’t absolute, and under Florida law, they can be modified or released if a state agency agrees there is a net conservation benefit elsewhere that they can swap in or out.
In 2020, an overwhelming 86% of Orange County voters backed preserving Split Oak Forest, but the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission approved trading 60 acres of Split Oak Forest in exchange for 1,550 acres of alternate conservation terrain and restoration funding. Proponents like Osceola County Vice Chair Brandon Arrington frame the project as a practical response to regional growth.
Click HERE for more information on the evolving project.
