Orange County commissioners voted 4-3 on September 29 to approve a modified version of the Tuscana mixed-use development near Shingle Creek, reversing their own rejection of the project from May 2025. The plan calls for 4,814 apartments, 1,291 hotel rooms and 653,400 square feet of commercial space on a 227-acre property that sits beside one of Central Florida's most sensitive wetland systems.
The flip came after developers Geyer Development LLC and Shingle Creek Co-Owners LLC, associated with Zari Kovo, filed for relief under Florida's Land Use and Environmental Dispute Resolution Act, a law that lets property owners challenge local denials they believe unreasonably burden their land, as reported by the Orlando Sentinel. Under Section 70.51 of the Florida Statutes, owners can request mediation and a special magistrate hearing within 30 days of a denial, and the county and developers attempted mediation three times before agreeing to a two-day hearing before special magistrate Igmedio Pantaleon.
A Magistrate's Ruling Changes the Math
Pantaleon concluded on September 3 that Orange County's denial was unreasonable and unfairly burdened the owners' use of their property, and he recommended commissioners reconsider and approve Tuscana with additional protections. The board was left to accept, modify or reject that recommendation, and the version it ultimately approved reflects a long bargaining history — developers submitted 11 different versions of the plans between 2022 and 2025, each shrinking the build footprint, according to Central Florida Public Media.
Pantaleon's recommendation requires a 25-foot buffer beside wetlands, mitigation for indirect effects across an additional 50-foot area, and more detailed floodplain and stormwater studies before any further development approval. Developers also agreed to elevate 300 feet of each of two access roads over northern wetlands, a change the Sentinel reports will cost an estimated $7 million.
Wetlands and Wildlife Still at Stake
The 2025 version of the plan would have affected more than 22 acres of wetlands, though the full Tuscana property encompasses roughly 59 total acres of wetlands overall, which is why Orange County's Environmental Protection Division maintained its objections even after the road-elevation offer, per Central Florida Public Media's reporting. A technical study commissioned by the county had previously identified 64 wildlife species of concern in the Shingle Creek watershed, including protected bald eagles and sandhill cranes, the outlet's earlier coverage noted.
Shingle Creek runs roughly 24 miles through Orange and Osceola counties before emptying into Lake Tohopekaliga, according to the Sentinel, serving as the northernmost headwaters of the broader Everglades system that stretches some 350 miles, per the South Florida Water Management District. Before the magistrate's ruling ever entered the picture, both the county's Development Review Committee, in a 3-2 vote, and the Planning and Zoning Commission had recommended denying the project, and Orange County received more than 1,000 emails from residents urging commissioners to reject it ahead of the May 2025 vote.
The Price of Saying No
What ultimately moved the board was money. The property owners' appraiser valued roughly 150 developable acres at $800,000 per acre with Tuscana's approvals in place, compared with just $20,000 per acre without them — a gap that formed the basis of the owners' claimed loss of roughly $115 million. Assistant County Attorney Lee Bernbaum warned that the county's own litigation valuation could differ from that appraisal, but the risk calculus still weighed heavily on commissioners.
Orange County carries no insurance for liability tied to a potential judgment in the case. County Administrator Byron Brooks said any judgment would have to come out of the general fund or other available revenues, and warned it could wipe out the county's fiscal 2027 reserve. Commissioner Mayra Uribe said those same dollars support housing, social services, environmental programs and other county obligations, while Commissioner Mike Crabb said he opposed placing taxpayers at risk for a potentially substantial judgment.
A Board Divided, Conditions Attached
Mayor Jerry Demings led the 4-3 majority — joined by Uribe, Crabb and Commissioner Mike Scott — in supporting the modified plan, while Commissioners Nicole Wilson, Maribel Gomez Cordero and Kelly Martinez Semrad voted against it. District 1 Commissioner Wilson, whose district includes the parcel, argued that developing Shingle Creek wetlands compounds long-term flood mitigation costs for taxpayers, according to Central Florida Public Media. Scott, for his part, recalled the severe flooding Orlo Vista residents have suffered, a reference to the kind of stormwater strain the county has been working to address through other projects along the same watershed, including Hoodline's $23M flood fix coverage. Martinez Semrad argued the county should instead have taken its chances in court.
The approval covers a land-use plan and conservation-area impact permit subject to new conditions, but it does not clear the way for construction. Tuscana still must pass detailed engineering, drainage calculations and other development reviews, the Sentinel reports, meaning the fight over how the project ultimately reshapes this stretch of the Shingle Creek basin is far from finished.
