OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. — Osceola County commissioners unanimously denied a plan that would have rezoned rural land to allow for more urban development.
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It came after intense public comment where some residents attacked commissioners for their hand in traffic congestion across the country, saying they were fed up with traffic in the county.
Nearly a dozen residents showed up to the commission meeting to oppose the development. However, residents say there’s still a bigger battle to fight.
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“There are roadways projects that haven’t even been started that we’ve been promised since I was a student at Poinciana High School in 1997,” Renee Levender said. “But yet the growth continues.”
Officials said the county has lots of educating to do about projects currently in the works, and that $500 million in county funds will be going to road construction projects this year alone.
“I’m not sure that the public really understands all that is happening,” deputy county manager Tawny Olore said. “We’re going to widen Simpson Road from two to four lanes.”
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Crews are already out on parts of Simpson Road with four other projects, including widening Poinciana Boulevard, out for bid.
Traffic relief will be staggered over the next few years, with all five of those projects complete by 2026, with more than $5 billion in funds coming to the county to make this possible.
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