HOPEFUL DEVELOPER CHRIS DORWOTH ADDRESSES SEMINOLE COUNTY PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION
The Seminole County Planning and Zoning Commission voted Wednesday to recommend rejecting developer Chris Dorworth’s request to remove about 67 acres near Oviedo from the county’s rural boundary, according to Central Florida Public Media.
The commission’s role is advisory, though, and the Board of County Commissioners will make the final decision at a hearing set for December 8. Dorworth, a former state representative, wants to build a 136-home subdivision on the former Pappy’s Patch strawberry farm, just north of Oviedo’s city limits.
County planning staff recommended denial, writing that the request is “not expected to serve a public purpose.” Staff said the plan would amount to urban sprawl and would require land use and zoning changes for “approximately a 700% increase in the allowable number of residential units.” News 6 reported that staff cited insufficient data and analysis.
Dorworth told the commission the project is “really, it’s the exact opposite of urban sprawl.” He said, “It’s compact. It’s across the street from existing subdivisions.” Staff said about 85% of the site borders land with rural designations, and only about 15% faces two residential subdivisions.
Dozens of residents spoke against the request, raising concerns about wildlife habitat, traffic safety, and flooding in a wetlands-heavy area, Central Florida Public Media reported. “A rural boundary has to have a boundary. It has to border somewhere,” neighbor Kevin Littwin said. Oviedo Deputy Mayor Natalie Teuchert, speaking as an individual and not for the city, said, “The rural boundary wasn’t created to stop growth. It was created to guide growth responsibly.”
Seminole County voters approved the rural boundary in 2004. A 2024 charter amendment requires four of the five county commissioners to approve removing any land from it.
The Board of County Commissioners will hear the request at 1:30 p.m. on December 8.
