Lake County tables Hartle Road rezoning, approves PUD amendment, agricultural rezoning and a hog-farm conditional use permit

The Lake County Board of County Commissioners on Aug. 5 tabled a proposed Hartle Road land-use and rezoning application and approved several planning and zoning items, including a planned-unit development amendment in Bella Colina, a rezoning to agriculture in Groveland, and a conditional-use permit for a hog farm in the Green Swamp area of critical state concern.

County Planning and Zoning Director Mike Fitzgerald told the board the Hartle Road application would change about 10.5 acres from regional office/urban low density to urban low density and rezone the property to a medium suburban R4 district; the developer’s concept plan shows 26 single-family lots at about 2.5 dwelling units per net acre with 25% open space and a proposed minimum lot width of 75 feet. Commissioners voiced concerns about compatibility with adjacent lots, traffic, school concurrency and whether the City of Clermont should process the project because the site would rely on Clermont for water and sewer. The applicant said the city had refused to process an earlier submittal and that Clermont requires at least 75-foot lot widths to grant a utility service agreement. The board voted to table the Hartle Road items until the applicant can provide more documentation and coordination with city staff.

The board approved an amendment to the Bella Colina planned-unit development ordinance (Ord. 2020-6) that repositions certain allowed uses within the PUD, converts a neighborhood-commercial tract to two residential lots, converts two residential lots to expand the clubhouse, transfers about 2.5 acres of open space to neighborhood commercial while preserving minimum open-space requirements, adds an entry ground sign with a reduced 5-foot right-of-way setback, and allows irrigation wells at three locations for the golf course. Staff said the irrigation wells have Saint Johns permitting (St. Johns River Water Management District) and water and sewer are provided by a community system; the board approved the amendment 4–0.

The board approved a rezoning of about 6.17 acres in the Groveland area from urban residential R6 to agriculture to formalize general agricultural uses on a parcel developed with a single-family residence and a livestock barn. Staff noted the rezoning is a downzoning and that the city of Groveland provided a letter of support; the board approved the rezoning 4–0.

The board also approved a conditional-use permit on roughly 19.5 acres for Herterberg Schwine Farms to continue hog production, slaughtering, processing and on-site retail sales. Staff said the parcel has an agricultural exemption; the operation is inspected by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Lake County Water Resource Management tests the well water. Commissioners and members of the public pressed applicants on setbacks, potential water recharge/connectivity in the Green Swamp, odor and operational scale. Owners Heidi Adams and Shane Adams described pens that keep animals confined, said animals do not free-range toward nearby wetlands, and said current on-site practices (sand-based pens, feed additives to reduce fly larva and regular USDA inspections) reduce odor and flies. The board incorporated a staff-recommended condition providing Lake County Code Enforcement authority to conduct two required annual site inspections under the conditional-use permit; staff told the board it had not added a hard numeric cap on the number of animals but left any numeric limit to board discretion. After debate the board approved the conditional-use permit.

Votes at a glance - Consent: Tabs 1 and 5 — approved (motion passed) - Tabs 2 and 3 (Hartle Road: future land use change and companion rezoning) — tabled until applicant provides additional materials and coordination with City of Clermont - Tab 4 (Bella Colina PUD amendment; Ord. 2020-6 replacement) — approved 4–0 - Tab 6 (Rupert Neuren rezoning, 6.17 acres to agriculture) — approved 4–0 - Tab 7 (Herterberg Schwine Farms conditional-use permit for hog farm) — approved (board adopted requirement for two annual code-enforcement inspections; no numeric cap specified)

Why it matters: The decisions preserve the development-review process for the Hartle Road site while approving amendments and permits that will affect land use, open space and agricultural activity in Lake County. The Hartle Road tabling reflects unresolved coordination with the City of Clermont and outstanding questions about lot size, public utilities and traffic. The hog-farm permit prompted detailed public comment and a condition giving county enforcement staff routine inspection authority.

Background and next steps: The applicant for Hartle Road said they will engage further with staff and the City of Clermont and will return with supplemental materials; the Bella Colina amendment will proceed under the new PUD ordinance language; the hog-farm permit will be subject to the two annual site inspections and any code-enforcement follow-up if inspections find violations.