The Indian River County Board of County Commissioners opened a quasi‑judicial public hearing Oct. 21 on a proposed developer’s agreement between the county and Pulte Home Company LLC for Emerson Oaks, a planned subdivision of 171 single‑family lots.

Deputy County Attorney Susan Prado told the board the hearing was the first of two required under Florida Statute Section 163.3225. The development is planned in three phases, she said: Phase 1A would place seven model lots and the entrance on 13th Street Southwest; Phase 1B would include 70 lots, an amenity center and infrastructure; and Phase 2 would add 94 lots and the project’s Seventeenth Street entrance.

The developer’s agreement would require Pulte to dedicate multiple right‑of‑way segments and build several traffic improvements, Prado said. Those include 0.94 acres of right of way along Thirteenth Street Southwest to align that road with an existing alignment to the east; 100 feet of right of way on Seventeenth Street Southwest; and 50 feet of right of way along the 40th Avenue Southwest frontage to allow future widening. Traffic work the developer must provide includes turn‑lane improvements at the project entrances and a Seventeenth Street bridge contribution equal to a 3.7% fair‑share contribution as calculated by the developer’s engineering estimate.

Acting Planning and Development Services Director Ryan Sweeney told commissioners that items the board has already described as “public benefits” — such as any dedications or improvements that exceed what code requires — were negotiated and were reflected in the planned‑development approval the board adopted on Dec. 3, 2024. "This is merely a contractual exchange of making those things happen through the developer's agreement," Sweeney said.

Logan Wellmeyer, an attorney for Pulte Homes, told the board the company understands HOA maintenance responsibilities will be disclosed in recorded documents and buyer closing materials. He also said Pulte expects the planned turn lanes and right‑of‑way dedications to address traffic impacts and provide connectivity benefits to the county beyond what the project strictly requires.

Commissioners pressed staff on several points during the hearing. Commissioner Moss asked whether stormwater treatment would be held to the minimum required by the St. Johns River Water Management District and raised enforcement concerns about privately maintained stormwater facilities that will be the responsibility of a future homeowners association. County counsel and staff replied that the county cannot require more than the minimum required by the applicable district but that HOA maintenance obligations and maintenance responsibilities will be recorded and disclosed in plats and HOA documents.

The board closed the public comment portion and agreed to schedule the second public hearing for Nov. 4, 2025 to consider final approval of the developer’s agreement. County staff noted there is an estimated budgetary cost to record the agreement ($171.50) and publication costs for the two hearings (listed in agenda materials as $372.48). Prado confirmed county staff will admit the agenda materials into the record and that the applicant had provided its evidence to the clerk.

The hearing was procedural and no final adoption of the agreement occurred Oct. 21; the board voted to close this first hearing and continue the matter to the Nov. 4 meeting.