Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Rezoning PD 26 05 topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Planning commission recommends rezoning 26.6-acre parcel near US 27 for commercial and conservation uses
Summary
The Winter Haven Planning Commission recommended approval of a rezoning request for about 26.64 acres at Cypress Gardens Boulevard and US Highway 27, moving the southern portion from Planned Unit Development to Commercial Highway (C-3) and Conservation (CN); staff recommended approval and the applicant said commercial uses would reduce traffic impacts compared with additional multifamily units.
The City of Winter Haven Planning Commission on Jan. 6 recommended that the City Commission approve rezoning roughly 26.64 acres at the southwest corner of Cypress Gardens Boulevard and U.S. Highway 27 from Planned Unit Development (PD) to Commercial Highway (C-3) and Conservation (CN).
Senior planner Heather Reuter told the commission the undeveloped site contains approximately 26.64 acres, with about 20.43 acres of uplands and about 6.21 acres along Peace Creek. Reuter said the 2035 future land use map designates the upland portion as a regional mixed use hub and the creek corridor as conservation. She noted current PUD ordinance O-2223 permits up to 313 multifamily residential units on the parcel and that the northern portion of the parcel was subject to a PUD amendment in July 2025 under PUD ordinance O-25-19. "Therefore, staff does recommend that the planning commission recommend approval of this request and its forwarding to the city commission for final action," Reuter said.
Tim Campbell, representing the applicant on the record, described plans for the southern portion of the site to accommodate an automobile dealership with an accessory service department and commercial outparcels. Campbell said the property owner has worked with engineers and the Florida Department of Transportation on the potential for a signalized access point if warrants are met. "There's a kind of a a glut of new multifamily residential units in Winter Haven," Campbell said, arguing that "this commercial retail use will actually generate less impacts, especially traffic, in this area." He did not identify other potential C-3 uses beyond the dealership and outparcels.
After the public portion closed, the chair moved to recommend approval of Case PD-26-05. The motion was seconded on the record and approved by voice vote; the transcript records "Aye" with no opposition noted. The transcript also records that the staff presenter stated earlier she would recuse from discussion and vote due to a conflict of interest; that statement appears in the hearing record and creates an internal inconsistency regarding who participated in the motion and second on the record.
The planning commission's recommendation will be forwarded to the City Commission for final action. The record does not include a roll-call tally or names attached to the recorded voice vote.
