WINTER SPRINGS, Fla. – As commissioners in Winter Springs plan for future development, the topic of what should be done with the old Winter Springs Golf Course has come up once again.
The property, located on the north side of West State Road 434 includes a public conservation easement that covers 133 acres. The city doesn’t own the land, but they can decide whether or not to release any portion of the public conservation easement for development.
At the first meeting of the year, commissioners briefly discussed the closed course in The Highlands area as they consider what properties throughout the city are at risk of development, and how decisions made locally and in Tallahassee could impact what residents believe is best for their community.
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“I’m just concerned that we’re going to have some projects coming up, especially towards our open land, where it’s going to be high density wherever they can,” said Commissioner Cade Resnick.
For over a decade, there’s been proposals regarding the future of the Winter Springs Golf Course. In 2023, Pulte Homes proposed preserving the fairways and lakes as open space or parks, adding townhomes, bungalows, cottage homes and commercial space. Their plans were ultimately withdrawn.
Monday, our News 6 spoke to residents in the Highlands who said they would like the city to protect the conservation easement.
“Traffic will be a problem,” said one woman. “The whole idea of this residential area will be totally changed.”
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There’s also talk about the future of the land on Facebook, where one woman wrote in part, “My house actually backs up to the easement, and I cannot imagine businesses and apartments being my literal backyard.”
Commissioner Victoria Bruce said she would like to see a map that shows all properties that are at risk for development.
“I mean, there’s property that is for sale that I didn’t even know could be developed,” said Bruce.
The city is currently working on a project right now to design the future land use map, which is one of the reasons why the old Winter Springs Golf Course was brought up.
Commissioners also brought up how decisions made at the state level may impact what they can do locally to prevent land from being developed in a way the city doesn’t want to. Commissioner Resnick mentioned the Live Local Act that was passed in 2023, and other bills that could be considered by committees this year.
Mayor Kevin McCann said he had “mixed emotions” about it.
“We do have zoning maps. There are maps out there that say what is allowed, and there are clear definitions,” said McCann. “Basically, if it’s open, people eventually are going to want to develop it -- unless there’s some cost prohibitive things like it’s so wet that they can’t do land mitigation.” He continued, “The Florida legislature is absolutely doing the bidding for development.”