DELTONA, Fla. — Deltona residents are hoping to convince a developer to pause an already approved project until stormwater infrastructure can be improved. Commissioners are scheduled to approve the final plat for the Vineland Reserve community off Doyle Road on Tuesday night.
Residents said in the short time they’ve lived in the community; they’ve noticed retention ponds holding water during storms. After hearing those concerns, the city paid for a peer review and an engineer discovered stormwater issues and added that there are discrepancies between the developer’s original plans and the actual site conditions.
Commissioner Dori Howington said because landowners have rights, the city can’t legally stop the work from happening, but she hopes the developer can be convinced to make some changes.
“We need them to commit to fixing the stormwater problems. Unfortunately, you typically don’t know you have a problem until a hurricane hits and no one wants to pray for a hurricane to see if their stormwater system doesn’t work,” said Howington.
She added once the community is built, and HOA takes over and the city ends up covering any damage costs, not the developer. It’s a cycle she hopes to end.
“Those 200 homeowners are not going to be able to afford millions of dollars in stormwater damage and what elected official is going to say sorry, we’re not going to help you,” said Howington.
The city commission meeting is scheduled to start at 6:30 p.m.
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