A Longwood immigration attorney wants to build an 11-acre cultural venue north of Vihlen Road in Sanford designed to host multi-day Indian weddings, traditional ceremonies and major performances, but the two wooded parcels he’s eyeing are legally unbuildable in their current state, according to county planners. The site lacks access to a public road, sits partly within a FEMA floodplain, and carries a residential land-use designation that conflicts with the commercial event space envisioned in the proposal.
Ramachandran Balaraman submitted the Pandal Events Center proposal along with Sujatha Gangadharan and Niyanthri Ramachandran, according to the Orlando Sentinel. Balaraman is not listed as an owner of either parcel involved in the plan. The 1550 Freer Lane parcel, covering 5.55 acres, is listed under Bradley E. Hemann, while the adjoining 1570 Freer Lane parcel, covering 5.62 acres, is listed under Thoa N. Nguyen and Si Van Le. Together the two lots have a combined 2026 market value of $274,425.
Two Parcels, One Landlocked Problem
Seminole County planners, in pre-application review notes submitted in late July, reported that the proposed venue lacks public road access, sits on unbuildable parcels and conflicts with its residential land-use designation. County staff also found that an event venue is inconsistent with that designation, which currently allows primarily single-family housing up to four units per acre. The property carries A-1 agricultural zoning and a Low Density Residential future land-use designation, spanning 11.17 acres total.
Part of the trouble traces back to 1985, when the property was divided through quitclaim deeds without county approval, according to the pre-application notes cited by the Sentinel. Before Balaraman can request building permits, the parcels must be formally recombined through county approval. Planners also determined that private access easements currently serving the property are legally inadequate for a commercial assembly facility of this scale. Under Chapter 163 of Florida Statutes, shifting the land’s future-use designation from residential to commercial would require a full Comprehensive Plan amendment, including public notice, planning board review and a vote by the Board of County Commissioners.
Wetlands, Floodplain and a Missing Road
The site itself adds further complications. It contains wetlands requiring a minimum 15-foot and average 25-foot undisturbed buffer, and part of the property lies within a FEMA floodplain, where county codes prohibit fill without equal volumetric compensation elsewhere on site. Sanford and Seminole County subdivision rules also require that private roads exceeding 2,000 feet have a secondary connection to a public road, and any nonconforming access points would need to be rebuilt to city or county standards…