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Developer updates council on Deering Park progress, hydrology and phased buildout
Summary
Ernie Cox of Deering Park told the City of Edgewater council the first 7,500 sq ft building has walls up, site stormwater measures are being installed and detailed hydrologic modeling will precede any work that could affect culverts under I‑95; initial home, retail and industrial phases are planned over years.
Ernie Cox, representing Deering Park, told the City of Edgewater council that construction of the community's first 7,500‑square‑foot building is underway and that the project team is working to manage stormwater on site as it prepares parcels for future development. “The concrete block walls are up. We have to have trusses soon. The goal is to have that building CO'd and ready for activity next summer,” Cox said.
Cox described ongoing excavation of lakes, berms and perimeter ditches designed to retain excess water on site rather than channel it under I‑95. He said the development connects to some historic culverts under I‑95 but that the master plan, permits and operations are designed to reduce post‑development flow through those culverts. “So we're basically holding more water. Now we're not holding all of our water, but we're holding more west than was before,” Cox said, noting that site engineers are collecting data for a detailed hydrologic model.
In response to a council question about New Smyrna work, Cox said engineering and data gathering are underway and estimated that, realistically, earthmoving for New Smyrna development is about three years away after modeling, review by city staff and permit applications. He also outlined land‑use plans: roughly 1,500 acres are in active work (about 2% of the family's 70,000 acres), of which about 800 acres will be converted to pasture, while initial phases will include single‑family homes, retail, offices and an industrial area.
Cox invited council members and staff to on‑site tours to view both development and conservation areas, saying roughly 175–200 people had taken tours in the past six months and that the project team intends to be responsive to community questions and criticism. “If there's anything we can do to help the community that we're in, we're not just gonna be some group out there on the West Side Of 95...be open to criticism and listening,” he said.
The council acknowledged the project's heavy emphasis on conservation and coordination with city and county staff but did not take any formal action on Deering Park during the meeting. A staff review, hydrologic model results and any required permit applications will be the next procedural steps before additional development activity near I‑95 or New Smyrna proceeds.
