Planning commission approves Tuscawilla United Methodist Church preliminary subdivision; daycare special-exception to follow

Seminole County Planning and Zoning Commission on Oct. 1 approved a preliminary subdivision plan to divide the property of Tuscawilla United Methodist Church into two lots, one to retain the existing church and one to accommodate a proposed daycare facility.

The approval allows the property on the south side of Red Bug Lake Road, west of Dodd Road, to be platted as two lots totaling about 5.35 acres: Lot 1 of roughly 2.94 net buildable acres to contain the existing church and Lot 2 of roughly 2.41 net buildable acres intended to accommodate a daycare. Staff said the plan complies with Chapter 35 of the Seminole County Land Development Code and the property’s A-1 zoning.

Staff and the applicant told the commission the plan includes a shared-parking agreement to address a parking shortfall at the church. Under the plan the church — which staff said is required to provide 83 parking spaces but currently has 31 — may use 54 spaces on Lot 2 on Sundays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., when church services occur. Staff said Lot 2 contains 84 parking spaces and the proposed daycare would be required to maintain 64 spaces, leaving 19 surplus spaces under the current calculations. Each new lot would be served by a private 75-foot-wide ingress/egress easement with public access onto Red Bug Lake Road; Seminole County will provide water and sewer service.

"What we're asking for tonight is simply to start the process of dividing 1 lot into 2," said MacGregor Love, attorney for the applicant, describing the PSP as a technical step that does not itself authorize the daycare use.

The commission heard questions from staff and a neighbor concerned about how the daycare would operate. Chris Farago, engineer of record for the applicant, told the commission there has been a school on the site in the past and that the present request would extend services to preschool-age children: "There has been a school on the site and so that may be where the confusion is... they're just dropping the age to include preschool in addition to... what has been present for some time."

Neighbor George Carl, who said his home backs up to the property, raised concerns about an earlier development order dated Jan. 28, 2019, and questioned whether that order remains valid for the site's proposed use. Carl also said changes to on-site play areas have resulted in children accessing adjacent yards, creating safety concerns for his in-ground pool. "I recommend that they not approve the request until the board of the church and the acquiring agency submits their special exemption that they claim they're going to submit after you have approved their PSP," Carl said.

County staff and the applicant said the special-exception review that would set the daycare’s operating terms — including any student counts and site-specific conditions — is a separate process. "This is a technical review item," Annie Silaway of Development Services told the commission. Deputy County Attorney Nessa Borchert said the special-exception and site-plan reviews would be required before final platting and that if the special exception is denied the property must remain in compliance with the current recorded development order.

After discussion the commission voted to approve the preliminary subdivision plan. The applicant indicated it will pursue a special-exception application and follow the county’s site-plan and final-plat processes as required.

Next steps: the applicant must complete the special-exception application and site-plan reviews; the final plat and any conditions related to the special exception will return to county staff and, if required, to the Planning and Zoning Commission and Board of County Commissioners for final approval.