Michelle and John Lux wake up every morning in their one-story home in Kissimmee and gaze out over hundreds of acres of tranquil pasture land. But that picturesque view may soon be covered — by 3,000 homes.

The Luxs have lived in this house for two years but still own their first home nearby, purchased 25 years ago. Their old home now sits in a cramped subdivision, where development and traffic surged as the area grew. Thinking they could escape the crowded living, Michelle and John bought a second place on a few acres of land off peaceful Hilliard Isle Road.

They didn’t count on the construction of one of the largest master-planned communities in Kissimmee, near Buena Ventura Lakes, complete with a marina just a few feet from their backyard.

“We’re not anti-development,” John Lux said. “We just want it to be respectful of the people that live in the area already… and be thoughtful about everything that comes with putting 3,000 homes in an already cramped area.”

Across Osceola County residents complain of mushrooming development, filling public hearings to let city and county commissioners know they’re angry over traffic, crowding and visual clutter. The Luxs took a different approach.

Banding together with fellow residents in their neighborhood of one-acre lots and half-million-dollar-plus houses, they are asking local government and the developer to let them purchase a half-acre or more behind each home to ensure a buffer from the proposed subdivision. The neighbors said they are willing to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars if that’s what it takes to buy the land.

As intriguing as their proposal may sound, it’s a longshot. The neighbors have been attending city and county meetings for years, and despite their pleas, city and county officials continue to move ahead with plans for the subdivision.

“I’m concerned you’re changing the fabric of the neighborhood,” complained Tina Wybrial, one of the Lux’s neighbors, at a recent Kissimmee City Council meeting.

At that meeting the council approved annexing land from Osceola County and changing the zoning to allow a proposed 3,000-home master-planned community by Pulte Homes. The Luxs and their neighbors live in unincorporated Osceola County, not Kissimmee, which they believe limits their influence with the city council.

The city requires a roughly 20-foot buffer between new development and an existing home said Craig Holland, Kissimmee development services director.  But that is not enough space in the minds of the Luxs and their neighbors. Instead the neighbors asked the city, Plaza Lakes LLC, which owns the 800-acre land, and Pulte Homes to entertain their offer to buy a portion of the land to increase that buffer.

Holland said despite the city’s annexation of the land, it does not have the authority to force a sale of any land to the residents.

While the developer and land owner have not responded to the residents’ request directly, Pulte is open to discussion with the residents but it’s just now being looked into, said Tim Chatlos, director of communications.

“It’s just too early to really give you an idea one way or another when it comes to that,” Chatlos said.

Currently Pulte plans to include a privacy fence in between the proposed subdivision and the residents’ homes in addition to the  20-foot buffer, Chatlos said.

“We’re always open to discussion and I’m sure it’ll be an ongoing conversation,” Chatlos said.

Plaza Lakes LLC declined to comment.

Eugenia and her husband Brian Agard are also fighting for a bigger buffer. When they purchased their home near Hilliard Isle Road 15 years ago they started every morning watching the sun rise over a serene field with wandering cows.

They knew development might come some day, but say that officials assured them it would be low-density. Now they feel betrayed.

“That little buffer that they’re offering is really poorly acceptable, almost insulting,” Eugenia Agard said.

The Agards moved to Kissimmee from New York, and said there builders and the city worked closely with neighbors — in a manner very different from how development happens in Osceola County.

“We feel like we have no voice,” Brian Agard said. “They are just going through protocol saying, ‘Oh we listened to your concerns,’ but the system is already set.”

The Luxs, Agards and many of their neighbors said they have considered leaving the area. The Luxs said they might even leave Florida altogether because of how crowded it has become.

“It’s dangerous driving in this area already because there are so many cars and everybody is sitting in traffic,” John Lux said. “It’s unbelievably short sighted and irresponsible what they’re doing with the land usage right now.”