Clay County denies Fleming Island Preserve PUD after hours of public testimony raising traffic, flooding and safety concerns

Clay County commissioners on Dec. 10 voted 5-0 to deny a rezoning request that would have allowed Miranda Homes to build the Fleming Island Preserve planned unit development, a proposed 156-unit subdivision on about 63 acres along Old Hard Road.

The applicant, represented by Alex Moldovan, outlined a revised plan that reduced an earlier proposal and added stormwater measures, a 20-foot perimeter landscape buffer, additional tree plantings and roadside turn lanes. Moldovan said the project team had engineering letters — including one from FDOT — indicating the development would not cause “significant adverse effects” to nearby intersections and that they had scored more than the points required by county density rules.

But more than two dozen residents who live along Old Hard Road and in adjacent neighborhoods told the board the corridor is already overburdened and unsafe. Mike Burns, who lives on Old Hard Road, told commissioners, “The subject corridor in its present condition does not lend itself to an increase of over 300 trips per day that this subdivision would generate.” Other speakers described narrow lanes with fragile shoulders, frequent school drop‑off backups, chronic flooding and long emergency response delays during peak congestion.

Public-safety staff and the fire marshal also flagged access issues. Fire Chief Dave Motak told…