Zoning board recommends denying 503‑acre Parkland Place North rezoning after hours of public opposition

The Santa Rosa County Zoning Board voted 7–1 on Sept. 10 to recommend denial of a developer’s request to rezone roughly 503 acres for a mixed residential and neighborhood commercial development known as Parkland Place North.

Steven Tatum, the applicant’s representative, told the board the proposal could yield about 1,500 homes over a 15‑ to 20‑year horizon and about 80,000 square feet of neighborhood commercial. “We are looking at developing approximately 1,500 homes,” he said, describing a phased project he said would provide water and sewer connections and low‑intensity commercial space intended to serve future residents.

Residents who spoke at the public hearing urged the board to deny the rezoning. Bill Hayden told the board the area’s roads and drainage could not absorb the proposal’s traffic, saying planned daily trips could rise “from 2,374 trips daily … to 17,000” at full build‑out and raising stormwater and safety concerns. Multiple speakers described long rush‑hour queues on Berryhill Road, overloaded intersections and fears that tree removal and new streets would worsen flooding.

Board members said infrastructure and timing weighed heavily in their decision. The motion to deny passed, 7–1, with Howard Steele recorded as the lone dissenting vote. Chairperson (Speaker 1) summarized the board’s concern that the county’s road and drainage projects were not yet sufficient to accommodate development at the scale proposed and noted the resolution is a recommendation to the Board of County Commissioners, which will make the final decision.

Next step: the zoning board’s recommendation will be forwarded to the Board of County Commissioners; the staff noted that the BOCC will take up the final decision at its next public meeting schedule per staff notice.