Resident warns commissioners Botanic stormwater plans may violate county standards, raise liability

Steve Young, a Miramar Beach resident, told the Walton County Board of County Commissioners on Jan. 28 that the Botanic major-development project’s certified stormwater plans do not meet the county’s land development code and that county staff and consultants failed to stop the project. Young told commissioners that Dewberry, the county’s reviewer at the time, “refused to answer the question, does Botanic uphold the land development code?” and that the Florida Board of Professional Engineers later found some submitted plans “negligent” and not compliant. He urged the county to notify the developer and to suspend the development order until a viable stormwater plan is submitted. Young also cited an event on Sept. 25, 2024, when ponds tied to the project did not drain within the 72-hour period required by the county code. “They were still wet 10 to 12 days later and then it rained again,” Young said, describing the ponds as “supposed to be dry” and warning of public-safety and health risks if a child were hurt near the wet basins. Core Engineering, representing the developer, told the commission the project is under construction and that the development will not receive a certificate of occupancy if the stormwater system does not perform as designed. “There is no reason to stop this project right now,” said Ed Stanford of Core Engineering; he added the site is still under construction and that the jurisdictions reviewing the work will withhold final approval if the system fails. Commissioners asked county staff and the developer to meet and follow up; staff offered to schedule a meeting with Young to review the documentation he referred to. The commission did not take any vote to suspend approvals during the meeting; county legal staff later advised the board that, if a party claims it did not receive required notice of a land-use action, that party may pursue relief in court and that the county should not unilaterally set aside adopted actions without legal cause. Ending: Young said he had submitted multiple complaints and filings to state reviewers and the county server, and asked commissioners to formally notify the developer that submitted plans failed the land development code and to halt further approvals until an acceptable stormwater design is filed.