J. Bryan Nicol, a member of the Orange County Planning Commission, will speak to the Lake of the Woods Democratic Club on March 8. Nicol, who represents District 5, which includes Lake of the Woods, will address the pending Wilderness Crossing project rezoning.
The meeting will take place in Classroom 2 of the LOW Community Center. A social hour will begin at 1 p.m. and the program will start at 1:30 p.m.
Nicol will discuss the status of the Wilderness Crossing project, which would have major implications for our neighborhood, affecting traffic and water use among other things. The project has also raise environmental issues related to mining operations on the site long ago.
KEG III Associates has proposed rezoning more than 2,600 acres of land across Route 3 from Lake of the Woods in order to construct a large residential, commercial and light industrial development. The property is currently zoned for agricultural, industrial, residential and commercial use. The applicant has asked that it be rezoned in the category of planned development — mixed use.
The total timeframe for the project is intended to be from 30 to 40 years and would be broken up into phases, including up to 4,750 residential units, commercial retail, financial institutions, offices, hotel, medical or assisted living facilities, and/or light industrial.
It was the first major planned mixed-use development project proposed under the Greater Wilderness Area Plan, planned to sit north of Route 3, west of the Route 20 intersection, wrapping around the Locust Grove Post Office and behind Locust Grove Shopping Center across from Lake of the Woods.
Nicol and his wife, Traci, have been homeowners in Lake of the Woods for almost 15 years. He is a former deputy attorney general and commissioner of transportation in Indiana and currently serves as chief strategy officer for an architecture, engineering, and consulting firm.
All are welcome to attend the meeting and presentation. If you can’t attend in person the presentation will be streamed live on Facebook.
Learn more about wilderness Crossing at the links below:
Orange County rezoning application