Ormond Beach commission rejects Little Tomoka Village rezoning and DRI amendment after flooding, traffic concerns

The Ormond Beach City Commission on Tuesday rejected, by a 5-0 vote, a three-part application that would have removed about 30.46 acres from the Hunters Ridge development of regional impact and rezoned the parcels for a planned residential development called Little Tomoka Village.

Why it matters: The proposal would have swapped existing entitlements that allow up to 50 multifamily units on two parcels for a lower‑density plan with 31 single‑family lots, an amenity building and a house of worship. Neighbors and several commissioners said the site’s wetlands, existing drainage paths and recent extreme storms created too much uncertainty to approve the changes without additional technical review.

Planning director Steven Spraker told commissioners the applicant sought three separate actions: (1) a fifth amendment to the Hunters Ridge DRI to remove two parcels and associated entitlements, including the right to extend Hunters Ridge Boulevard; (2) a zoning map amendment to change four parcels from SR (suburban residential) to PRD (planned residential development); and (3) a development order establishing the subdivision’s standards. The planning board recommended approval 4-2; staff recommended approval with conditions.

Applicant attorney Mark Watts said the plan would ‘‘reduce the maximum potential density from a residential standpoint, add a use that’s already a special exception under the existing zoning, and basically put in some other standards that really exceed what your current standards are in the Land Development Regulation.’’ Watts and developer Howard Lefkowitz described engineering steps intended to limit off‑site impacts, including designing stormwater facilities to the 100‑year standard rather than the city’s customary 25‑year baseline.

Residents and technical witnesses pushed back. Hunters Ridge residents presented photographs of past flooding in the Little Tomoka River corridor and described what they said was a long history of under‑maintained drainage channels north of the project site. Several speakers told the commission that culverts and a dragline‑dug ditch to the north convey substantial runoff toward the parcels at issue, and they questioned whether the plan’s stormwater design and proposed mitigation would prevent higher downstream water levels during heavy storms.

Project engineer Luke Kulich (Zevco/Ze vco in materials) told the commission the design team had modeled flows and would retain on‑site the larger 100‑year runoff volumes under the proposal; he also said the team would follow St. Johns River Water Management District and FDOT permitting requirements and that some affected receiving areas could be cleared as part of the permit work.

Commissioners who opposed the measures cited the unresolved questions about upstream drainage, the lack of a finalized Water Management District approval and neighborhood safety at the nearby Shadow Crossings/Granada intersection. Deputy Mayor Lori Tolland, Commissioner Travis Sargent, Commissioner Kristen Deaton, Commissioner Harold Riley and Mayor Jason Leslie all voted no on the three separate ordinances.

What happened next: City clerk roll calls show the three separate items failed unanimously. The planning director and city attorney told the commission that, if the measures remain unapproved, property owners retain existing entitlements in the DRI and suburban zoning — a fact several commissioners cited as rationale for negotiating stronger, lower‑intensity outcomes if the owners return with revised proposals.

What’s next: The applicant may revise the plan and could return with additional technical documentation and permit responses. St. Johns River Water Management District review and any FDOT requirements for turn lanes or culvert upgrades would be part of any future submittals.

Ending: Commissioners said they were open to proposals that reduce risk to existing neighborhoods and address drainage and traffic more completely, but they concluded the record before them did not yet meet that standard.