City commissioners Monday will square off on the hot-button issue of growth in a proposed resolution that would freeze annexation for new homes.

“There are already 35,000 home sites to build on,” says Commissioner Jay Connell, who has proposed what he calls “a temporary stay” until January 2027. Those 35,000 homes will double the number in the city now, he said.

The city has moved the 5:30 p.m. meeting to the Venetian Center to handle crowd size.

Residents frequently complain about traffic, the impact on schools, and the end of quiet lifestyles. Several homes have been approved along U.S. Highway 27, including 3,000 at Bella Vista at Whispering Hills on 1,000 acres.

Commissioners, even those opposed to a moratorium, agree there is a need for road improvements, but that is a county and state issue.

Lake 100, a business leaders association, has been pushing Lake County to boost its road budget by more than 3 percent, says Commissioner Mike Pederson.

Joe MacDonald, a resident at Legacy, said one day he could not even get onto U.S. 27. Jay got a favorable response when he spoke to the Legacy Republican Club, Joe says.

Not everyone is on board.

“We don’t need to be doing this,” Commissioner Jimmy Burry says.

Economic growth, including jobs for the next generation, is a city goal. “There are three hospital systems fighting for space in Leesburg. Who would have thought that a few years ago?”

Growth is the state’s goal, too. It was the Legislature that came up with homestead tax exemption, no state income tax, and a push for affordable housing. More than 1,300 people per day move to Florida.

The state is not concerned, Jimmy says. “As long as there is enough water. We’re told we have enough.”

As for schools, developers pay impact fees and homeowners pay taxes.

Jay says developers and builders will claim that a moratorium will ruin their business, but there are enough projects to keep them busy for years.

People can still buy land in the unincorporated portions of the county, Jay says. They just won’t be allowed to build with the same density. “They know what they’re getting.”

There are 25,638 homes approved in planned unit developments, plus 14,185 in The Villages. “Not all are entitled,” City Manager Al Miner says. They will still have to get various permits from other agencies, including the county. The planning staff probably has a handful of pending requests, ranging from 50 to 1,000 homes, he says.

For Jimmy, growth is inevitable. Citrus, once king with its packing houses and Minute Maid plant, is gone. Old grove sites now sprout rooftops.

“It’s not the same place it was even 20 years ago,” he says.

The meeting will take place on April 14 at the Venetian Center. The meeting is scheduled to begin at 5:30pm. You can view the agenda with the proposal here.