Pasco County Commissioners approved a rezoning that will allow a 1.95-acre lot to be split, to allow two single-family homes — despite strenuous objections by neighbors.
The property is on the north side of Country Club Road, about 550 feet west of Old Pasco Road, in Wesley Chapel.
Attorney Barbara Wilhite, representing the applicant, told board members that her client merely wants to allow two dwellings, instead of one, on the property.
Her client has agreed to a deed restriction that would limit the use of the property to two dwellings and also would prohibit access through the property, to Sienna Cove, the development behind it.
Carl Stone, who lives on Country Club Road, asked the board to reject the request, noting that the subdivision’s zoning was set in 1986 by the County Commission.
He also noted that some of the lots didn’t comply with the area’s zoning at the time and were grandfathered in. And, he said a similar request was rejected by the board in 2005.
Other area residents raised concerns about drainage, and the potential precedent the rezoning could set.
Cynthia Lunghofer put it like this: “We want to make sure that there isn’t a precedent being set that could lead to larger parcels being broken up, and potential for townhome or multifamily development.
Neighbors also noted the character of the area, which they described as peaceful and beautiful, and urged commissioners to protect it.
County planners and the Pasco County Planning Commission recommended approval of the request.
And, despite neighbors’ objections, the county board approved the request, pending the filing of the deed restrictions regarding the maximum number of dwellings and prohibiting access through the site.
In other action, commissioners approved:
- A rezoning to allow 415 single-family detached and/or attached townhome units on approximately 69.18 acres in the Mango Hills master-planned unit development southwest of the State Road 52 and Old Pasco Road intersection. The rezoning was approved on the board’s consent agenda, with no public comment from the audience.
- A rezoning to allow boat and RV storage on a 4.9-acre site on the east side of Kittyhawk Drive, about 700 feet north of Freefall Avenue, near Zephyrhills. The rezoning was needed to bring the use into zoning compliance. The request was approved on consent, without public comment.
In other action, commissioners directed the county attorney to work with the Pasco County Commission on Human Trafficking to ensure a bathhouse ordinance is in place when the Super Bowl comes to Tampa in Feb. 7, 2021.
The ordinance would ban illegal massage parlors, which serve as fronts for prostitution and human trafficking, said Commissioner Ron Oakley, who raised the issue and asked for board members to approve, making the issue a priority for the county attorney’s office.
Finally, a request for a conditional use permit to allow a residential treatment center in Wesley Chapel has been dropped.
The request would have allowed a facility for up to 30 residents on Pomello Trace in Wesley Chapel.
The applicant, Jordanes Hippolite, wanted to create an elderly care center, on a site at 29436 Pomella Trace, that’s smaller than a half-acre.
Neighbors had objected strenuously and the Pasco County Planning Commission recommended denial.
Neighbors said the facility would threaten their way of life — in a community where residents frequently take walks with their pets, and their children ride bicycles up and down the street.
County planners had recommended approval with a number of conditions, but their recommendation became moot, when the applicant withdrew the request.
Published March 18, 2020
