Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Stormwater Flooding topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Miller Lake neighbors urge county to seek revocation of 2017 Royal Oaks permit as flooding grows
Summary
Residents near Miller Lake told the Volusia County Council that a 2017 permit for Royal Oaks stormwater is diverting runoff into the basin, causing long-term flooding that has damaged yards, trees and driveways. Neighbors asked staff and the council to request the permit be revoked and to take immediate action.
Peggy Hill and a string of longtime Miller Lake residents told the Volusia County Council on April 15 that water from a commercial development permitted in 2017 has filled Miller Lake and pushed the shoreline into back yards.
The speakers described a years-long rise in water levels and asked the county to seek revocation of the Royal Oaks permit issued to the developer in early 2017. “Please ask to revoke this permit from 02/2017,” Peggy Hill said during public comment, and Dave Hill said, “I want my dry land back and I don't agree to this water.”
Residents presented aerial photos and videos showing the lake’s footprint from 2008 through 2025 and said the change accelerated after the county issued a letter of no objection that allowed the permitted system to route runoff into the Miller Lake basin. Several speakers said the permitted system is collecting suburban runoff from Tremont Drive and the Big Lots shopping plaza and delivering that water into the lake and adjacent cleared parcels.
Speakers described property damage including dead trees, submerged yards and docks, and a road that was temporarily overtopped after Hurricane Milton. Dave Kramer said his home, built in 1967, was surrounded by water two weeks after the storm and that the lake level had not returned to published FEMA flood elevations.
Residents suggested county staff intervene with St. Johns River Water Management District and the permit holder, saying the permit authorizes conditions that could be revoked. “The 2017 Saint John's Water Management Permit for Royal Oaks is a disaster for Miller Lake,” Hill told the council. Several speakers urged the county to request a revocation or remediation and to pursue immediate measures to protect homes before the summer rainy season.
County staff did not announce an immediate formal action at the meeting. Council members acknowledged the concerns and asked staff about the permitting and monitoring history, but no vote or directive to revoke the permit was recorded during the session.
Council staff has previously briefed the council on stormwater and flood mitigation work planned countywide; residents asked the board to prioritize Miller Lake. The issue was raised during the public comment section at the council’s April 15 meeting and will likely return to staff for follow-up contact with the water management district, the permit holder and county engineering staff.
Residents may expect separate technical follow-up from county stormwater staff, including whether temporary pumps or other emergency responses are feasible and what authority the county has to request permit changes from the district.
