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Resident urges strict enforcement of Planned Development guidelines, warns new construction undercuts resales
Summary
Resident Charlene Bennett told the commission that exceptions granted to the Hunt Club development's Planned Development (PD) guidelines produced substandard results and that new construction with builder mortgage branches is harming resale markets for existing Lake Wales homeowners.
Charlene Bennett, speaking during public comments, criticized the commission's prior approval of exceptions to Planned Development (PD) guidelines for the Hunt Club project and warned that similar waivers are being granted in other developments.
"Hunt Club didn't need aspirations for you to make it a desirable place. All it needed was for the commission to require that the project meet the PD," Bennett said. She listed PD elements she said were not followed, including avoiding a strict grid format, creating neighborhood-scale designs and adding creative green spaces and landscape islands to reduce monotony.
Bennett told commissioners that the exceptions granted to the Hunt Club developer produced a development she described as "ticky tacky" and not resident-friendly. She urged the commission to require compliance with PD guidelines in future projects rather than granting waivers.
Bennett also said new construction is affecting resale values in Lake Wales because large builders with in-house mortgage branches can offer lower down payments than local banks, making it difficult for sellers of existing homes to compete. "The new construction, those big builders have their own mortgage branch, and they can offer lower down payments than our banks offer," she said.
Commissioner Gillespie said the Hunt Club approval occurred before he served on the commission but agreed that future waivers should be limited. "I certainly do hope that we don't have all of these waivers that deprive our citizens of the protections that they should have," Gillespie said, and he said the commission should avoid waiving impact fees or other protections going forward.
The commission did not vote or adopt new PD rules at the meeting. Bennett's remarks were presented during the public comment period as a request for stricter enforcement of existing PD guidelines.
Meeting transcript excerpts: Bennett described PD guideline deviations and outlined concerns about resale competition from builders offering in-house mortgage products.
