Charlotte County to vote on scaled-back Harbor Village plan

Maronda Homes is requesting zoning changes for Harbor Village, a 1,174-acre mixed-use development in western Charlotte County, and county commissioners are expected to vote on the plan at their July 22 land-use meeting.

The development, renamed Harbor Village from West County Town Center, was previously approved by the board under landowner Dennis J. Fullenkamp in 2009 and was made part of the county’s Comprehensive Plan.

The Charlotte County Planning and Zoning Board on Feb. 10 approved Maronda Homes’ amended changes that reduce the number of residential units and commercial and light industrial square footage while increasing preservation acreage.

The proposed changes reduce the number of residential units from 3,960 to 3,475 and scale back commercial and light industrial space from 1.5 million to 1.4 million square feet. At the same time, preserved land would increase from 92 acres to 163 acres.

The property is located north of Delamere Boulevard, southeast of McCall Road, east of Gasparilla Road and west of Butterford Waterway in the West County area near the South Gulf Cove and Village of Holiday Lake communities.

Maronda Homes took over the project with new plans to decrease base density from 1,187 units to 1,790 units and reduce the residential development. “The market demand and conditions have changed since the project was originally approved and adopted,” the company’s application states.

Plans for Harbor Village include a 200-room hotel and marina with boat docks near the Myakka River. According to the application, all docks will be located in the marina basin and are prohibited along the Interconnector and Butterford waterways. Final slip counts will be determined by state and federal regulators.

Residents of South Gulf Cove and The Village of Holiday Lake attended the Feb. 10 Planning and Zoning Board meeting to voice concerns over the development, among which were destruction of wildlife habitat and water runoff onto nearby properties.

To address concerns, Maronda Homes officials met with residents of The Village of Holiday Lake in March and with South Gulf Cove residents in June and July.

Included in the application are plans for enhanced buffers to the Holiday Lake community south of Harbor Village.

The developer also will conduct a traffic study, and its findings will undergo review by the county and Florida Department of Transportation prior to approval of any developer’s agreement.

The company states in its presentation that Harbor Village’s vision “is for an environmentally-sensitive, mixed-use waterfront community with less homes and nonresidential uses than permitted today.”