Sustanee developers sue to build 1,800-home project in rural east Orange
Persistent developers who lost a fight to change land-use rules to build 1,800 homes on idle ranchlands east of the Econ River have sued to set aside the Orange County commission vote against them.
Lake Pickett North LLC, which had proposed the so-called Sustanee development on the former Rybolt cattle ranch in rural east Orange, filed the action this week asking a judge to order the county to transmit the land-use change for a state review.
A judge has not yet been assigned to the case. County lawyers haven’t yet been served the lawsuit.
Commissioners voted 4-3 in January against sending the plan to Tallahassee, a mandatory step in Florida’s process to make large-scale land-use changes.
The vote capped a marathon board meeting which started at 9 a.m. Jan. 23 and ended after midnight.
Filed by lawyers Brent Spain and David Theriaque, the lawsuit alleged Commissioner Emily Bonilla’s final-hour oration against the project “introduced incorrect or incomplete information” that developers were not permitted to rebut.
Bonilla did not immediately reply to a request for comment. The County is not discussing pending litigation, spokesperson Kelly Finkelstein said Friday.
Bleary-eyed opponents cheered the January vote, though some were wary the fight wasn’t yet finished.
A similar but higher density development, Lake Pickett South — also known as “The Grow” — overcame an administrative court defeat several years ago by appealing to Gov. Rick Scott’s Cabinet, which greenlighted the project.
In an interview with the Orlando Sentinel before the board vote, Sustanee developer Sean Froelich recalled an earlier version of the project, then known as “Sustany,” and insisted the updated iteration of the plan was greatly improved.
Developers also want to be reimbursed for attorney fees.
