BARTOW, Fla. — More than 2,000 single-family homes may be coming to Bartow. 

If approved by city commissioners, 900 acres located on State Road 60 and Peace Creek will become the site of Emillie at Bartow, a large-scale community. However, community members hope to block the development through a new petition.

The growing number of signatures on the Change.org petition has placed a smile on Bartow resident Marie Carvajal’s face. 

What You Need To Know

  • A petition seeks to block the Emillie at Bartow development, fearing it will strain infrastructure and disrupt the town’s small-town feel

  • Developer David Waronker argues the project will generate funding for schools and have minimal impact on the community

  • Bartow city leaders are expected to vote on the project in the coming months

“We’re a community here,” she said. “We’re very strong on family and friendship, and it just feels...when you go downtown or just go to the grocery store, you know, you see people you went to high school with or people that are your neighbors, and it’s just a great community feeling. And I don’t want that to go away.”

Carvajal moved to the area with her family 34 years ago. Since then, she’s seen a lot of growth. But before the city welcomes new development, she said leaders should address the ongoing issues the community faces.

“We have our infrastructure that can’t support more people," Carvajal said. "Our roads are in dismay, our schools that this neighborhood wants to put all these children in the same schools, we already have. Just doesn’t make sense to me. There’s flooding in 60. The list can go on."

However, David Waronker, owner of CBD Real Estate, said his single-family homes would help alleviate some of the problems, not add to them.

He said the project would generate over $30 million for schools near State Road 60 and Peace Creek. Waronker said his team also has conducted extensive studies over the past four years, which show the project will have a minimal impact on the community.

The proposed 900-acre community called Emilie at Bartow would be located north of State Road 60 at Peace Creek (CBD Real Estate)

“I am very sensitive to the concerns of the residents and the city," Waronker said. "Traffic, its drainage and flooding, and every other impact that’s scary, including impacts on schools.

“But the way our application is planned out, I think when you look at the core of the application and study it, you’re going to say, wow, this is a well-planned community.”

If approved, Waronker assures that construction will be gradual. He says the first tenant wouldn’t move in for at least three years. While Carvajal understands the need for change, she believes now isn’t the right time.

“In the last five years, we had three developments come to Bartow, and nothing has changed,” she said. “Things are getting worse. We’re just stuffing more people into a small area, and like I said, I feel like it’s just ruining and taking away from the small town that I love.”

Bartow city leaders plan to vote on the proposed project in the next three months.