By Jesse Phillips
Winter Springs Water Quality Initiative
There was a time when Winter Springs felt different.
We weren’t just another exit off the highway. We were a close-knit, proud, and intentional community—a place where people moved to escape the chaos of overdevelopment and the sprawl of cities that stopped planning and started surrendering.
But if you’ve looked around lately, you may be asking: what are we becoming?
In the last few years we’ve seen:
- A public storage monstrosity approved just outside our control—because the mayor played politics and failed to secure the pre-annexation agreement recommended by the county, abdicating our right to shape the project.
- Outlets like Chase Bank, Ace Hardware (coming soon), Starbucks, Wendy’s and Taco Bell added to the gateways of our community—not bad in themselves, but far from the highest and best use and character of our community.
- And now, a second gas station pushed through with an unprecedented tie-breaking vote by the mayor—taken while one commissioner was absent and before the full board could deliberate.
This isn’t progress. This is autopilot. Our big box Mayor (who incidentally is a restaurant shift manager) is transforming our quaint small town into just another highway exit.
Welcome to Anytown, USA, friends.
This is what happens when leadership lacks vision. When no one is fighting for the long-term character of our city. When the bar is simply “whatever wants to build,” instead of “what’s right for Winter Springs.”
To be honest, I like Taco Bell and may frequent a Wawa if we get one. But if the best we can offer—at the most prominent intersection in our city—is the same formulaic lineup you’ll find in Anytown, USA, then we’ve already conceded what makes Winter Springs special.
And when the mayor breaks a tie to approve a project as controversial as this one, without full commission attendance, it’s more than tone-deaf. It’s disrespectful to the democratic process and to the residents who are watching this city slip away from the values they moved here to preserve.
We can—and must—do better.
We need leadership that isn’t afraid to say no to mediocrity. Leaders who will demand excellence, negotiate from a position of strength, and plan for community spaces and small business vibrancy which reflect the character we’re trying to keep—not erase.
Here is the fundamental question: What kind of community do we want to be 10, 20, or 50 years from now?
Winter Springs deserves better than whatever fits in the next empty lot. It’s time for a vision that restores our identity, protects our charm, and builds smartly—not generically.
Let’s get to work.
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If you believe Winter Springs is worth fighting for, share this with a neighbor, post it in your HOA group, and join the conversation.