New Urbanist Plan Approved In Rural Florida Despite Opposition By Planners and Public

A controversial DeLand-area development was approved in a rural portion of Florida's Volusia County to allow 200 homes and a public bicycle path near a potential future commuter rail stop. As the plans for the commuter rail system have not yet been approved, the County's Planning and Land Development Commission voted against the project last month, finding that it was too high-density for the rural area.

Before the meeting, residents of nearby rural Hontoon gathered more than 500 petitions of opposition, urging the council to reject the plan. But council members praised the proposal, describing it as a well-designed mix of clustered homes and open space that will make good use of the future commuter rail stop. Council member Carl Persis, who cast the lone dissenting vote, said the developer's four-homes-per-acre plan will strain roads and the environment, and force residents to live "all shoe-horned together."

"If this is smart growth, we should ask for smarter growth," he said.