DOVER, Fla. — Terri Froment doesn't know if her new home will be her forever home.
"I came here thinking this was my forever home, and at this point, I'm wondering when I need to put the for sale sign up," she said.
And it's all connected to the future use of a stretch of land, Dover.
This comes after two recent proposals to change how this former phosphate mine and waste dumping ground can be developed.
Those who own the eastern part of this land—Turkey Creek Preserve LLC—are asking the county to change the rules around what they can build first.
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Those who own the western chunk of land—University Energy Park (UEP) LLC—put in a recent request to put homes on the land.
Right now, the land is zoned for things like energy production and commercial and manufacturing uses.
Both requests have people who live nearby upset—but they're especially concerned about the second request since part of that land is being monitored by the EPA for contaminants.
"Is it safe for us who are living and breathing and driving past here, walking, whatever we're doing? You know, is that safe for us?" said Froment.
ABC Action News took those questions directly to an attorney representing UEP, Jake Cremer.
"That part of the land would not be touched," said Cremer.
Cremer said the group would also have to work with state and local environmental officials on land development.
"One of the requirements of the EPA is to require some of the wetlands on site to be preserved forever. So that helps act as a buffer to make sure homes can't be close to that site," he said.
We also took those concerns directly to the EPA. In an email, a representative told us that they do testing at the site every 5 years—with the last one being in 2021.
That representative added that while there are restrictions in place for using groundwater from the section of land that they're monitoring for contaminants. A 2010 study showed that the soil "did not pose health concerns" because of "cleanup efforts" that were done in the past.
That said, Froment and her neighbors are still hoping to get more answers out of both landowners before any construction begins.
"We really need to have a voice, and they need to listen to us. And we're concerned about our environment, our safety, our roads," she said.
According to representatives with UEP LLC, they're looking to schedule community meetings to discuss this change in April and May.
