{"id":417691,"date":"2026-10-03T12:26:26","date_gmt":"2026-10-03T12:26:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/417691\/"},"modified":"2026-10-03T12:26:26","modified_gmt":"2026-10-03T12:26:26","slug":"if-we-lose-this-we-lose-a-lot-neighbors-react-to-tuscana-approval","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/417691\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018If we lose this, we lose a lot\u2019: Neighbors react to Tuscana approval"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. \u2013 Homeowners near Shingle Creek say they fear a newly approved development could change their neighborhoods, raising concerns about flooding, traffic and wildlife after Orange County commissioners allowed the Tuscana project to move forward.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">After years of debate over the proposed development, commissioners voted 4-3 to approve the Tuscana land-use plan.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">For some nearby homeowners, the debate is personal.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">\u201cThis area means everything to me,\u201d one homeowner said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">Another homeowner said the wildlife surrounding the community was one of the reasons they chose to live there.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">\u201cThis area with all the deer and wildlife here are why I bought this house,\u201d the homeowner said.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"\"  loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" role=\"presentation\"  src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/BQKNCR3EWBH47BHHQ46CZBRDQU.png\"\/>Map shows the area between Central Florida Parkway and State Road 417 where Tuscana would be built if approved. (Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando &#8211; All rights reserved.)<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">Commissioners voted 4-3 Tuesday to approve the Tuscana land-use plan after unanimously rejecting the proposal in May 2025. The Tuscana plan calls for more than 4,800 apartments and around 1,000 hotel rooms across nearly 230 acres in the Shingle Creek Basin, of which includes close to 59 acres of wetlands.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">One homeowner described the commission\u2019s decision simply: \u201cI\u2019m mortified.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">When asked about their biggest concerns surrounding the development, another homeowner pointed to flooding and the potential impact on wildlife.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">Supporters of the proposal, including Shingle Creek Co-Owners LLC and Geyer Development LLC, say the project includes measures intended to address flooding and protect wetlands, including partially elevated access roads.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">The commission reconsidered the project after a Special Magistrate recommended that commissioners revisit the landowners\u2019 application. Some commissioners who supported the project also expressed concern about the county\u2019s potential financial exposure if the property owners pursued litigation<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">Shingle Creek Co-Owners also says the project would create thousands of jobs and generate more than $600 million annually for Orange County once fully built out.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">In a statement following the vote, S. William \u201cBill\u201d Moore of Moore, Bowman &amp; Reese, speaking on behalf of Shingle Creek Co-Owners, said:<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">\u201cShingle Creek Co-Owners appreciates the Orange County Commission\u2019s careful consideration of the Special Magistrate\u2019s findings and its decision to approve the Tuscana Land Use Plan and Conservation Area Impact Permit.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">\u201cFor years, the 176 individual property owners have worked through the county\u2019s public review process and have sought a reasonable use of privately owned property that the County has long designated for high-density development. The Special Magistrate\u2019s independent review confirmed our belief that the previous denial was not supported by competent, substantial evidence and unfairly burdened the use of the property. This rezoning comes with specific conditions requiring the developers to guard against flooding and to provide for wetlands protection.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">\u201cTuscana has been thoughtfully designed to balance environmental considerations with private property rights and the need for housing and economic opportunity in one of Orange County\u2019s most important tourism corridors. Beyond providing protection from flooding, larger wetland buffers and significant environmental mitigation and preservation, this plan also provides thousands of jobs and over $600 million annually to Orange County at full build-out.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">\u201cWe appreciate the Commission\u2019s willingness to reconsider the facts and follow the process established under Florida law. We look forward to continuing to work collaboratively with Orange County as Tuscana moves forward.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">Opponents, however, say Tuesday\u2019s vote does not end their involvement.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">Lee Perry with Protect Shingle Creek said the group plans to meet with candidates running for Orange County Commission as it considers what comes next.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">\u201cWe\u2019re in an election year, so having a new county commission come in, they can rescind the decisions of the existing board,\u201d Perry said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">For homeowners living near the basin, the focus now shifts to how the development moves forward and what a project of this size could eventually mean for their daily lives.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">\u201cIt\u2019s just too much,\u201d one homeowner said. \u201cIf we lose this, we lose a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-dLMFU sc-fHjqPf jbiTJv kYFPaL article-text\">Neighbors say they plan to keep a close eye on the project as it moves through additional steps before construction.<\/p>\n<p>Copyright 2026 by WKMG ClickOrlando &#8211; All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. \u2013 Homeowners near Shingle Creek say they fear a newly approved development could change their&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":417692,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[2152,2161,2156,1335,139,141,140,165314],"class_list":["post-417691","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-orlando","tag-development","tag-government","tag-growth","tag-orange-county","tag-orlando","tag-orlando-headlines","tag-orlando-news","tag-tuscana"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/417691","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=417691"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/417691\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/417692"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=417691"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=417691"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=417691"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}