Whether a large residential neighborhood can co-exist next to a long-time Wildwood industrial business was an issue Tuesday at a meeting of the city Planning and Zoning Board.
The Twisted Oaks development would have 650 to 1,210 homes on about 387 acres. It would be adjacent to Primus Pipe & Tube west of U.S. 301 and south of County Road 462 West.
The Twisted Oaks project also would include up to 165,000 square feet of commercial and industrial space.
Special Magistrate Lindsay C.T. Holt denied a request for a 30-day continuance from a Primus representative to work out buffering and other details with the residential developer.
She also recommended approval by the City Commission of a revised amendment for the residential project planned by KL Twisted Oaks, LLC, and represented by Kolter Group Acquisitions.
Formerly known as the O’Dell Planned Development, the residential project was approved in 2008. Like several other major Wildwood residential projects, construction was postponed due to the recession and the plans were amended several times in 2014 and 2017.
The latest plans feature 735 single-family homes buffered from Primus by wetlands and a recreational area. They also include 248 town homes and 277 multi-family housing units.
At Tuesday’s meeting, Ron Noble, a Primus representative, said the plans call for putting town homes next to the Primus industrial property. He called it the definition of a bad zoning decision that would be “setting up the area for disaster.”
He said Primus officials met with the O’Dell family in the past to work through the proposed residential project and asked for the continuance to work with the current developer.
John Curtis, representing the Kolter Group, acknowledged opposition to the project.
“We’re committed to working with our neighbors,” he said.
A manufacturer of steel pipe with about $40 million in annual sales, Primus Pipe & Tube was incorporated in Florida in 1990.
In 2018, Wildwood commissioners approved a site plan for Primus to build a 146,583-square-foot addition to its plant on 93 acres.
