- May 2, 2024
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With protecting the Ormond Scenic Loop and Trail on more residents’ minds following the proposed Plantation Oaks amendments, two locals have come up with an idea to expand the 175-foot buffer in one part of the development.
Ormond Beach resident Suzanne Scheiber and Spruce Creek High School student Natalie Pilipczak met with developer Parker Mynchenberg on Oct. 22, and they asked him to place the buffer in a conservation easement. Additionally, Scheiber and Pilipczak asked if he would be willing to sell the land for 76 lots in the northeast portion of phase 1 as conservation, since the land backs up to the buffer and has not yet been cleared.
Mynchenberg was open to the idea and gave Scheiber and Pilipczak a period 90 days to negotiate for the land, according to the residents. The Ormond Beach Observer reached out to Mynchenberg for comment, but he was not able to be reached in time for publication.
The residents are hopeful that through a city, county and nonprofit partnership, along with grant assistance, the land could be purchased. If this comes to fruition, a maintenance program would also have to be established.
“I’m really happy that this is a possibility," Scheiber said. "It may not happen, but longterm even if it doesn’t happen now, I don’t see us giving up because this was possible when many people said it wasn’t, and I think longterm we agree that there’s still possibility.”
Scheiber has presented the initiative to both the Ormond Beach City Commission and the Volusia County Council at their most recent meetings. She asked elected officials to consider adding a conservation easement overlay to the comprehensive plan.
City Planning Director Steven Spraker said in an email that Mynchenberg has yet to submit a new site plan for Plantation Oaks with the conservation easement, but noted that the meeting between Mynchenberg and the residents was recent. A conservation easement would further enforce the buffer be left in its natural state, he explained.
Pilipczak began a petition titled "Help Save the Ormond Loop" back in June and it has since been signed over 61,000 times. The Loop, a Florida and National scenic byway, is loved by residents all over Volusia, she said.
“It’s one-of-a-kind," Pilipczak said. "There’s nothing in this area for miles that’s anything like the Loop.”
Scheiber said Mynchenberg has been "extremely kind and gracious" toward them, and appreciated his willingness to work with them.
“This isn’t about stopping [development]," Scheiber said. "It’s about making something work for the community and making the property more valuable in a sense and helping the wildlife.”
