Orange County’s buildings and neighborhoods will look different throughout the next quarter century, or at least officials plan on it. In a 5-2 vote, commissioners Tuesday approved a long-awaited comprehensive redesign to the county’s future growth management plan. New zoning plans were approved in a mix of 6-1 and 5-2 decisions. It’s the county’s first new zoning code since 1957, although tweaks have been made to the original plan.
The blueprint for growth, dubbed Vision 2050, is a sweeping overhaul of the county’s comprehensive plan. The 615-page document will guide future land use and work with the newly adopted Orange Code, which makes changes to zoning districts, to push growth away from rural areas and toward already developed land.
Vision 2050 includes three place types: centers, neighborhoods and corridors. Each type is then classified into further subdivisions and future land use map categories.
Commissioner Nicole Wilson, a staunch supporter for the protection of rural boundaries, said the board could take up any citizen concerns and address them through amendments. All through the meeting, county officials referred to Vision 2050 as a “living, breathing document.”
“This isn’t coming down from the mountain of tablets,” Wilson said. “We get a chance to continue to be the board that hears from the community and adapt to things that we maybe have not been able to address yet.”
A majority of those speaking during Tuesday evening’s public comment expressed support of the extensive changes. Still, some spectators and commissioners were not on board with the new blueprint.
Outstanding worries
Some members of the public feared for the future of their rural residency and its surrounding land, but county officials affirmed that growth will be pushed to already urbanized, highly-populated areas. “Targeted sectors” include areas near the University of Central Florida, downtown Orlando, along Semoran Boulevard and around the I-Drive tourism corridor.
Commissioner Mayra Uribe, the consistent dissenting vote Tuesday evening in the five Vision 2050 and Orange Code adoption motions, said the county needs to provide more incentives in the plan that protect local businesses and allow them to thrive and develop. And she wanted more tangible protections for rural residential enclaves.
District 5 Commissioner Kelly Martinez Semrad was the other dissenting vote in the 5-2 decisions.
Beyond elected officials, climate advocates believe Vision 2050 and the new Orange Code do not intertwine enough and the pair need more sustainability-based initiatives.
Most in attendance agreed that the county set a much-needed new framework for its comprehensive plan, despite their criticism. “Not perfect,” was a term tossed out throughout the night by attendees and commissioners alike. Twenty-one-year-old Orlando resident Valeria Menendez said it was about time the county adopted a plan, and any fixes can be worked on down the line.
“Perfection is the enemy of progress. There have been enough delays,” she said during the meeting’s public comment portion.
Working hand in hand
All counties and incorporated cities and towns in Florida must have a comprehensive plan that directs the local government’s future land use. The county’s current development plan, Destination 2030, was adopted in 2009.
In 1991, the county adopted its first comprehensive plan without making changes to the zoning map. Now, the county attempts to fix inconsistencies brought by the different roadmaps. The new comprehensive plan and zoning overhauls aim to guide the county toward denser development while protecting natural places, rural spaces and established suburban neighborhoods.
The new Orange Code will create form-based zoning districts, which moves away from the county’s current use-based land development code. These zoning districts will be based on what buildings look and feel like, not what their intended use is.
Its adoption would make Orange County the only county in the state to use form-based zoning throughout its entire county limits. The code also tackles building heights and stormwater standards, among other responsibilities.
Commissioners and information from the county about the new plans outline other priorities, too, including the development of walkable neighborhoods, preservation of open space and support for housing.
Eyes on the future
More than 2 million people are expected to live within the county by 2050 – a driving factor for the county to reach its long-term goals, which include the expansion of middle housing types like townhomes and live-work units to alleviate urban sprawl.
A looming contingency to the plan's implementation lies in a bill awaiting Gov. Ron DeSantis’ signature. Senate Bill 180 would block local governments from making “restrictive or burdensome” changes to comprehensive plans like the transition from Destination 2030 to Vision 2050.
Deputy County Administrator Jon Weiss said the county had internal discussions on the bill’s potential impact, but everything depends on timing.
“It is a bill that has a dramatic – would have a dramatic – impact on the county’s ability not just to implement Vision 2050 and Orange Code, but any regulatory amendment for a substantial period of time,” he said. “And perhaps indefinitely into the future.”
The changes will become effective in about two months, barring any complication.
