A developer wants approval to build a large mixed-use complex with hotels, commercial space, and thousands of apartments near International Drive on the eastern portion of Shingle Creek Basin, but the project’s density and proximity to sensitive wetlands have generated substantial opposition from residents across the county line in Osceola.
Geyer Development, LLC, an entity associated with Israeli developer Zari Kovo, wants to rezone 227.5 acres east of the Westwood Boulevard and I-Drive intersection from agricultural to PD to allow for 653,400 square feet of commercial space, 1,231 hotel rooms, and 4,814 multifamily dwelling units on the site. The request also aims to reclassify 36 acres of wetlands as developable land.
A preliminary site plan of the Tuscana PD property indicates that the planned development would have around 27 multifamily buildings of varying sizes and five hotels with incorporated commercial and retail space. The applicant is seeking to build multiple hotels as tall as 20 stories, which would be close to the approved height limits of 200 feet for hotel properties.
However, the proposal also calls for a waiver from county code to construct multifamily buildings as tall as 150 feet, more than double the approved 65-foot height limits for multifamily properties. According to the plans, the commercial space could consist of a mix of office uses, restaurants, and retail.
The property has a future land use of Activity Center Residential (ACR) and Activity Center Mixed Use (ACMU), which allows for high-density tourism-related development and supportive residential uses.
The Tuscana project went before the Orange County Development Review Committee on March 5, where Jennifer Stickler of Kimley-Horn and Andrew McPhee of Make Design Studios represented the applicants. However, county staff received the current proposal the night before the meeting, which didn’t give committee members enough time to review the revised application. As a result, the DRC will consider the request again on April 2 before it goes before the Planning and Zoning Commission.
The previous rezoning request proposed reclassifying 58 acres of wetlands as developable land and allowing up to 1,631 hotel rooms, 5,244 multifamily units, and 653,500 square feet of commercial space on the property. Alberto Vargas, Orange County’s Planning Manager, said during the meeting that the planning staff was concerned about the density and height of the proposed project, despite the most recent application’s reduction in requested entitlements.
“The height limitation that you have in place today versus what you’re requesting to wave away from is, of course, a very high concern to us,” he said.
More than 500 homes in the Good Samaritan retirement community at Kissimmee Village were destroyed or left uninhabitable in 2022 after Shingle Creek flooded in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian. Critics say that large developments such as the Tuscana project will only exacerbate flooding in the area.
County staff from the Environmental Protection Division also indicated that they are not convinced the applicants are doing enough to minimize impacts to the surrounding wetlands, even with the revised application.
“EPD does not agree that wetland impacts have been avoided or minimized to the greatest extent practicable,” a staff report read. “Removal, alteration, or encroachment within a Class I Conservation Area shall only be allowed in cases where: no other feasible or practical alternatives exist, impacts are unavoidable to allow a reasonable use of the land, or where there is an overriding public benefit, as determined before the Orange County Board of County Commissioners.”
Land planner and water policy consultant Dan DeLisi of DeLisi Inc., who is working on the project, told GrowthSpotter that the development team is committed to making the project as sustainable as possible.
“State law does not allow for development to create offsite flooding. Our plan not only complies with state law, but it also helps the surrounding area become less susceptible to flooding because modern, innovative techniques will be deployed. We are committed to making this project both environmentally beneficial and compatible with neighboring uses,” DeLisi said.
DeLisi also claimed that most of the wetlands impacted will be used for paving a road to access the future development.
“Those impacts need to be placed in the context of the overall plan for conservation of this designated development area. Our project provides a unique opportunity to eventually preserve and restore over 300 acres of sensitive land surrounding the development instead of leaving it fractured, not managed, and potentially open to future development, as it is today,” he said.
The plans also call for 59.5 acres of stormwater ponds, which would account for over 30% of the project’s square footage, to help offset the effects of flooding.
“Our goal has been to consolidate the development into a compact footprint so that we could permanently preserve and restore the vast majority of this historic development plat. As a result, it will allow public agencies to better manage the land, restore it to its natural condition, and provide better natural functions,” DeLisi said.
Architecture firm Baker Barrios, surveyor Leading Edge Land Services, environmental engineer Bio-Tech Consulting, and law firm Shutts & Bowen complete the development team.
The latest plan, while still high-density, is a scaled-down version of what the developer originally proposed. Kovo’s team submitted an application to Orange County in 2022 requesting permission for 4,485 hotel rooms, 5,114 multifamily units, and 653,400 square feet of commercial space on the site.
The owner of the land is Shingle Creek Co-Owners LLC, an entity associated with a conglomerate of property owners that assembled the acreage over several years, including some through land swaps with the South Florida Water Management District. Geyer Development, LLC is under contract to purchase the site and is represented by Raj Goyal of Sotheby’s International Realty. Listing agent Ray Turchi of Marcus & Millichap represents the ownership group. While the property consists of roughly 600 acres, only 227.5 acres are considered developable.
“I brought the buyer into the deal, and they’re still working with the sellers and the county to get things approved before they close on the land,” Goyal said.
Zari Kovo is best known for developing Camden Market in London, England, which attracts about 28 million visitors annually. He also previously developed other high-profile projects in Belgium, Hong Kong, and Israel, and once owned the Opa Lacka Flea Market near Miami.
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