Orange County commissioners find Fiddlehead Corner rezoning inconsistent with county plans, approve family‑care zoning text changes

The Orange County Board of County Commissioners on March 6 rejected a proposed comprehensive plan and zoning change for a 100‑unit master‑plan development known in paperwork as the Fiddlehead Corner (also referred to by some speakers as the Morrow Mill proposal), finding the application inconsistent with the county's adopted land‑use framework, and adopted a formal statement of inconsistency. The board separately approved two UDO text amendments to permit family care facilities and related zoning language.

The board's action came after a public hearing during which the applicant described the proposal as a conservation cluster neighborhood aimed at older adults, and after neighbors and tribal descendants raised concerns about water, wastewater and the site's proximity to the Harrah/Hard River. The commissioners voted 6‑0 to adopt the statement that the rezoning and related comprehensive‑plan amendment were inconsistent with the county's plans and to deny the proposed expansion of the rural neighborhood activity node. The family‑care zoning text amendments passed on a separate vote, 6‑0.

County staff and the applicant emphasized the project's technical protections for water and wastewater, while several commissioners expressed concern about long‑term water availability, applicability of the county's rural node policy and precedent for changing the node's intended character.

"What we are proposing for you to review tonight is a…