Leesburg Commission approves major development despite traffic concerns

The Leesburg Commission has approved the controversial Oak Ridge subdivision in a 4-to-1 vote.

The Oak Ridge development is located on County Road 48 and south of the Florida Turnpike

The plan calls for 910 single-family attached and detached units, consisting of 642 detached units and 268 villa units on a 596-acre parcel with substantial wetlands.

No residents offered any opinions during Monday night’s commission meeting. Prior to the vote to approve the Oak Ridge development Commissioner Jay Connell told his fellow commissioners that the traffic at the intersection of County Road 48, County Road 33 and County Road 470 are “horrible and that adding 1,000 more homes on those roads should be delayed until intersection improvements are made.’

Connell cast the sole no vote.

In July, the Leesburg Planning Commission recommended denial of Oak Ridge on a 5-2 vote, citing concerns about water consumption, nearby wetlands, density, and the impact on area schools caused by the size of the development. Several residents who appeared at the planning commission meeting urged the denial of the project and expressed concerns of another large subdivision’s impact on traffic on County Road 48 which they say is already overcrowded. During the first reading of the plans for the subdivision on Aug. 25 before the Leesburg Commission several residents who had appeared at the Planning Commission meeting also urged the Commission to deny the project because of their concerns of another large subdivision’s impact on traffic on County Road 48 which is already overcrowded.