TRINITY - The neighbors won't move in for months, maybe years, but already residents in Nature's Hideaway are concerned about the traffic.
That's because much of the construction equipment to build the Townhomes of Cypress Walk will cut down Hideaway Trail to get to the site.
On Tuesday evening the County Commission approved plans for the 146 townhouses over the objections of dozens of residents, who worry about truck traffic on the neighborhood streets where their children play.
"We already have a problem with people coming into the neighborhood who are speeding," said Heather Price, a Nature's Hideaway resident who said she lets her 21/2-year-old son play only in the back yard.
Other neighbors feared the that townhomes could worsen flooding in Nature's Hideaway by paving over an area that used to absorb rainwater.
Developer Steve Gordon agreed to send his fill trucks down Perrine Ranch Road instead of through Nature's Hideaway. He also said the project's stormwater drainage plan passed muster with the Southwest Florida Water Management District.
County Commissioner Ann Hildebrand said the 26.27-acre property has been zoned for multifamily use for more than 20 years, and the project meets the standards set by the county and Swiftmud.
