Orange County commissioners deny Orlando Torah Center expansion in Sand Lake Hills

The Orange County Board of County Commissioners on Oct. 26 denied an appeal by the Orlando Torah Center to expand its Sand Lake Hills synagogue to a three‑story, roughly 12,000‑square‑foot building, voting unanimously to uphold the Board of Zoning Adjustment's earlier rejection after a public hearing that drew 97 entries from residents and congregants.

The decision follows months of neighborhood meetings and a BZA hearing in which the BZA concluded the proposal failed to meet one or more of the six variance criteria required for the special exception. Commissioner Martinez Semrad told the congregation the BZA's vote “was that you didn't meet the 6 criteria of a variance,” and that the panel's denial was not a rejection of worship or religious practice but a technical finding under county land‑use standards.

Supporters of the expansion, including Rabbi Menachem Kramer and several congregants, told commissioners the existing building is too small for religious services, youth and family programming, and private pastoral work. Rabbi Menachem Kramer said the expansion is about “space to connect and space to serve” and described caregiving and youth activities that cannot be accommodated in the current structure. Ian Rowe, who said he visits regularly from New York for business and worship, urged the board to view the request as a house of worship, saying, “The request before you is not for a stadium, not for a concert hall, and not for a business development. It is for a house of worship.”

Opponents, including multiple Sand Lake Hills residents and neighborhood representatives, raised concerns about scale, parking, and code compliance. Nancy Goodwin, a long‑time resident, said support for the project appeared artificially inflated in public records and argued the proposed building “just does not fit” the character of nearby properties; she urged commissioners to “deny this appeal.” Rusty Lasker presented county permit records and photographs that he said show unpermitted expansion of impervious parking and stated a magistrate hearing on code violations had been scheduled following the BZA proceeding.

County staff confirmed a permit was opened to address flooding complaints tied to recent site changes and that the inspection for that permit remains open. Staff also noted the property operates under prior conditions of approval; commissioners and multiple speakers referenced a 2020 special‑exception approval that included conditions meant to limit impacts, including a condition prohibiting on‑street parking in association with the use.

Applicant counsel (Mr. Bruce) told the board that the proposed height and setbacks comply with county rules and that the only reason the matter required the board's review was the religious nature of the use; he said the applicant was not seeking variances for height or setbacks. Commissioners and staff clarified that religious institutions can be permitted by right in some non‑residential zoning districts but that single‑family zoning typically requires a special exception or variance to host an institutional use.

After public comment, Commissioner Wilson moved to deny the appeal; a second was called and the motion passed unanimously. The final vote sustained the BZA finding that the application did not meet required variance/special‑exception criteria and denied the requested expansion. The motion and its text are recorded on the public record as the denial of public hearing item C‑3.

The board did not adopt additional enforcement actions on the record at the meeting beyond noting existing county permit and code‑enforcement processes remain active; staff said the magistrate hearing concerning older code complaints remains scheduled. The county's next formal steps are administrative: the denial resolves the appeal before the Board of County Commissioners, and outstanding code‑enforcement permits and magistrate proceedings will continue under county processes.

Votes at a glance: the Board voted to deny the Orlando Torah Center's appeal (public hearing C‑3). The motion to deny carried unanimously.

A wide range of residents and congregants spoke during the hearing, presenting competing views on religious freedom, neighborhood character, traffic and pedestrian safety, and compliance with prior conditions of approval. The transcript and county records on permits and the magistrate case remain part of the public file for anyone seeking further detail.