A proposed 276-unit rent-restricted apartment complex at U.S. Highway 27 and County Road 25A has city officials worried about traffic and density.

Dominium, headquartered in Dallas, touts itself as one of the nation’s leading affordable housing and management companies, with 40,000 apartments.

The company wants to convert a19-acre spot west of U.S. 27 at the CR 25A intersection into 10 three-story apartment buildings with a pool, club house and community center.

The city Planning and Zoning Commission voted 4-2 last month against rezoning the property to planned unit development from low-density and commercial. It came up for discussion on Dec. 8.

City Commissioner Mike Pederson recalls meeting with school principals years ago on a chamber of commerce committee where he learned that there is a need for housing that teachers, police officers and others can afford. Teacher candidates sometimes move on when they can’t find an affordable place to live, he said.

“But I don’t like the egress and ingress” he said of the plans.

“That’s our concern with it,” said city Planning director Dan Miller.

The proposal also calls for a ratio of 1.6 parking spaces per unit. The city prefers 2 per unit, but a lower ratio would give the developer a chance to increase the buffer between the complex and homes on Palm Drive, part of an older, tree-lined neighborhood in Ravenswood, Miller said.

People living in adjoining Lake Denham Estates and Ravenswood cannot turn left onto U.S. 27 because of the high traffic volume. The Florida Department of Transportation made sure of that with its design.

Anytime a new development is proposed along the busy highway you can count on residents to show up and complain about heavy traffic. New subdivisions are coming, including more homes in The Villages, and there are already several large, gated communities lining the road.

Pederson, who generally supports developments, now says, “I feel like it’s time to start slowing things down.”

That’s not to say that he won’t go ahead and vote yes ono the apartments when it comes up for a vote in January. He is not saying.

City Commissioner Jay Connell could not be reached for comment. City Commissioners voted 4-1 in April against imposing an annexation moratorium on new homes touted by Connell. He has consistently voiced concerns about the impact of unchecked growth.

Residents also voice concerns about school crowing.

Included in the file is a letter from the Lake County School District that projects an additional 74 students from the apartments.

Leesburg Elementary is at 119 percent capacity, Oak Park Middle School at 93 percent and Leesburg High at 89 percent.

“Currently, the district’s five-year capital plan does include the conversion of Leesburg Elementary and Oak Park Middle into a new K-8 school,” the letter stated. Work is scheduled to be completed in 2030, “and will provide relief at the elementary level.”

The manager and at least one resident from the 55-plus Corley Island Mobile Home Park on CR 25A have expressed concern about traffic, noise and crime.

“When Lake Denham Estates was developed, there were significant consequences for some of our residents. Many homes were damaged by the drainage and runoff created by the development,” managing member Carol W. Kropp wrote.

“We value our peaceful, safe and private community with no extra noise, no loose pets or children coming around,” one resident wrote.

The largely vacant property is not exactly upscale Brentwood, Calif. Pictures in the file show dilapidated or abandoned structures, including one that appears to show a homeless campsite.