The Pasco County Commission appears ready to allow boat docks on private lakes to have roofs over them.
Commissioners had a public hearing on March 12 regarding a proposal to amend the county’s land development code that currently prohibits the roofs.
No one from the public spoke for or against the proposed change during the public hearing.
The change would apply only to inland water bodies, not coastal waters, according to Pasco County Attorney Jeffrey Steinsnyder.
Commissioner Jack Mariano wanted to know if the county could allow the protection for boats on canals, if enough people in that particular neighborhood supported them.
Steinsnyder responded: “You really can’t legislate that way with your land development code.”
Commissioners are scheduled to have a final public hearing on the issue on March 26 at 1:30 p.m., in New Port Richey.
Though no one from the audience spoke during the commission’s recent meeting, three Land O’ Lakes residents previously spoke in support of the change at a Feb. 5 meeting.
Joe Steffens, Sandy Graves and Denise Brand, all of Land O’ Lakes, urged commissioners to allow the roofs over boat docks on private lakes.
Steffens, who is a marine contractor, has been pushing for a change — and has been discussing the issue with individual commissioners for the better part of a year to try to make that happen.
Both he and Graves told commissioners that the roofs over boat docks have been a way of life in Central Pasco, and asked them to drop the prohibition against them.
Brand, of Ukulele Brand’s restaurant in Land O’ Lakes, also requested the change noting that the restaurant would like to make changes to its dock and is worried that it wouldn’t be able to replace the roof.
Published March 20, 2019
