Winter Springs P&Z approves 7 Brew drive‑through at 1248 E. State Road 434 with conditions

The Winter Springs Planning & Zoning Board on Nov. 6 approved a site plan, aesthetic review, three waivers and a development agreement for a proposed 7 Brew drive‑through coffee shop to be built at 1248 E. State Road 434 in the recently platted Blake Commons, staff said.

Janelle Garnett, senior planner with the City of Winter Springs Community Development Department, told the board that the application covers roughly 0.5 acres and includes a small coffee structure, two drive‑through lanes and an attached cooler/storage space connected by a 5‑foot breezeway. Garnett said the applicant submitted site‑plan, aesthetic and development‑agreement materials in March 2025 and later applied for a setback waiver (Sept. 18, 2025) and other waivers; public notice letters were mailed Oct. 13 and a site sign was posted Oct. 20. "Staff does recommend the Planning and Zoning Board approve the site plan, aesthetics, and the 3 waivers, and the development agreement subject to the following conditions," Garnett said.

Why it matters: the parcel is zoned Town Center District (T5 transect), and the board's approval advances the project to a city commission public hearing. The P&Z decision included three explicit conditions that must be met before the city commission hearing: execution of the development agreement, use of Bahia grass (no St. Augustine or other low drought‑tolerance grasses), and completion of an economic impact analysis.

Project details and operation: Staff described the primary building as a compact coffee shop (staff presentation described the retail portion as approximately 510 square feet and a cooler/storage area of about 262 square feet, connected by a 5‑ft breezeway) with no indoor or outdoor seating. The operation is modeled as drive‑through first: orders are taken at a service door and staff may take orders on an iPad while walking to customers' vehicles, according to staff and the applicant's civil representative. The site plan shows employee parking, an enclosed and heavily landscaped dumpster area, pedestrian access from the Seahawk Cove extension and bike racks.

Board concerns and clarifications: Board members asked whether pedestrians would be able to place orders, how the menu/order board is located relative to vehicle circulation, and whether the 8.5‑foot overhang clearance is adequate for taller SUVs and pickups. Andrew McDaniel of CI Engineering (civil designer for the applicant) said he was the civil designer and would need to check the architectural set for any posted clearance; he offered to return that information before the commission hearing. Garnett said staff would verify the photometric (lighting) plan and that site lighting and parking lighting were reviewed and found to meet required standards.

Operational details the board discussed but that were not resolved at the meeting included whether the business will refuse pedestrian customers (staff said the design is drive‑through oriented and the company’s operational policy was not provided), whether online order pickup will require dedicated short‑term stalls (not confirmed), and whether additional signage should be required to make the service door appear as a pickup window for safety and clarity.

Vote and next steps: A board member moved to approve FEDP202400129 (site plan) along with the aesthetic review, three waivers and the development agreement subject to the staff conditions listed above; another board member seconded. The board recorded a unanimous vote to approve and advanced the item to the city commission public hearing, where the required economic impact analysis must be on file.

Context: During later reports a board member asked whether recent comments by the city commission that town‑center codes are "antiquated" had produced specific direction for staff. The director of community development said commissioners had not provided specific guidance but staff will track trends (for example, frequent waiver requests) and bring code revision recommendations when appropriate.

Documentation: Staff noted the pre‑application meeting was Jan. 7, 2024 and that the applicant on record was listed as Aaron Dudley of CI Engineering; Andrew McDaniel, CI Engineering, answered technical questions during the hearing. The application materials included site plan, aesthetic review, development agreement and three waiver requests (setback, service window and streetscape). No monument or pylon sign is proposed for the site.

What remains unresolved: Operational policy regarding pedestrian customers and whether short‑term pickup stalls or clearer signage will be required; architectural drawings should show posted overhead clearance and staff will re‑check lighting photometrics before the commission hearing.