The Laker/Lutz News

Serving Pasco since 1981/Serving Lutz since 1964

Pasco County Planning Commission

Selection process set to change for planning board

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The Pasco County Planning Commission has recommended approval of a proposal that will change the way its members are selected.

The planning board took the vote at its Oct. 28 meeting.

The action stemmed from the Pasco County Commission’s previous direction to county planners to pursue changes to the land development code to alter the selection process.

County board members said they wanted to be able to make an individual appointment to the planning board, rather than voting collectively for the entire planning board.

Under the proposed process, each of the five county board members will appoint a member to the planning board, and the board will act collectively to appoint a sixth planning board member.

One seat, which is occupied by a representative for Pasco County Schools, will not be affected by the new system.

The proposed terms of the planning board members would coincide with the term of the county board member who selected him or her.

The recommendation now goes to the Pasco County Commission for final action. Once approved, the new process would become effective Feb. 22, 2022.

While each county board member will be able to appoint one planning board member, there are no restrictions on where the planning board member must live, said Denise Hernandez, the county’s zoning administrator.

Currently three planning board members live in County Commissioner Mike Moore’s district and three live in County Commissioner Christina Fitzpatrick’s district, while no planning board members live in the other three districts.

In other action, the planning board:

  • Recommended approval of a rezoning request that would allow 238 multifamily units on 37.9 acres, within a master-planned unit development on the southeast side of Dale Mabry Highway/U.S. 41 intersection and abutting Hillsborough County to the south.
  • Recommended approval of a change to the county’s land map from a residential designation to a neighborhood commercial category on 4 acres at the southeast corner of the intersection of Foxwood Boulevard and State Road 54.

Published November 03, 2021

Mixture of uses approved for intersections in Wesley Chapel Lakes

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The Pasco County Commission has approved a request for a mixture of uses at three intersections within the community of Wesley Chapel Lakes.

The project has been on the books for decades — and the board’s approval, during its Oct. 26 meeting, gives the developer the ability to pursue entitlements at the intersections of Meadow Pointe Boulevard and State Road 54; Meadow Pointe Boulevard and State Road 56; and Meadow Pointe Boulevard and Beardsley Drive.

The project is located south of, and adjacent to State Road 54, about 3.5 miles east of Interstate 75, and extending south to the Pasco County line.

The proposed uses will not generate more vehicle trips from the development than were previously approved and that have already been addressed through mitigation (which normally includes impact fees and/or transportation improvements), according to the agenda background materials.

Most of the residential component of the project has been developed.

The project originally was approved decades ago, as a Development of Regional Impact (DRI), which allowed an array of uses. In addition to agreeing to allow the developer to pursue entitlements, the county board also rescinded the original DRI.

The nodes had already been approved for commercial development; the change allows residential development, as well.

The property is not within the county’s current multifamily moratorium boundary.

The modification area includes about 166 acres. It calls for up to:

  • 850 single-family attached, townhome or apartment units
  • 420,000 square feet of commercial use
  • 150,000 square feet of office/light industrial
  • 700 hotel rooms

The request also seeks a variation from the county’s land development code to permit a reduction in the standard parking space size of 9-feet by 20-feet to a reduced size of 8-feet by 18-feet, with the condition that curbs and/or wheel stops will be required to prevent vehicles from overhanging required landscape buffers, or sidewalks, unless the sidewalk is 7-feet wide, to keep the sidewalk width at a minimum of 5 feet for pedestrians.

The request had received a recommendation for approval by county planners and from the Pasco County Planning Commission.

The county board approved the request as part of its consent agenda, meaning it was approved along with other items on a single vote, and there was no board discussion or public comment.

Published November 03, 2021

Rural residents applaud northeast zoning change

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Often, during rezoning cases, area residents step up to point out potential problems with traffic, flooding and other negative impacts the new development could bring.

But during a recent case involving a property in northeast Pasco County, two residents made it a point to show up to speak in favor of a request.

The request, by Floyd Philmon Groves LLC, involves changing the zoning on 38.02 acres from an agricultural district to an estate residential district, which allows two homes per acre. The site is at the northwest corner of the intersection of Platt and Blanton roads.

The request had received recommendations for approval from the county’s planning staff and from the Pasco County Planning Commission, and since there was no opposition, was included as part of the Pasco County Commission’s consent agenda.

Items on consent are approved in a single motion, without discussion.

But an area resident asked for it to be pulled from the consent agenda because she wanted to discuss it.

So it was pulled, and Nancy Hazelwood, who has been a strong proponent of preserving the rural nature of Northeast Pasco County, stepped up to the podium to address the county board.

“To me, it’s very important to say that this is something that’s being done right, in the Northeast Rural Area, going from Ag (agricultural) to Estate Rural 2,” Hazelwood said.

“It’s something that’s great for us and we hope that this continues to be done in this way,” she said.

Alma Coston, who owns property nearby, told commissioners: “I definitely approve this subdivision.”

Like Hazelwood, she’s been intensely interested in preserving Pasco’s rural areas in the northeast part of the county.

“I’ve been working on this since Sylvia Young was a county commissioner. That’s a long time to go to all of these meetings,” Coston said.

“I’ve been trying to protect this area. I think this whole Northeast Pasco should be 2 ½-acres (lot size) or greater, because this is a rural area and that’s what we want. We want it to stay rural.

“And, most of the new coming people are from Tampa because they want to get away from the congestion, the box home and they want the freedom to have more land with their homes. “They want to have horses, or cattle, or whatever.

“You know, with 2 ½ acres, I’ve seen them have cattle on it.

“I definitely think this is a good plan and all Northeast Pasco (lots) should be 2 ½ acres or greater.”

After the women concluded their remarks, the county board approved the request, 5-0.

Published October 20, 2021

Traffic concerns cause rezoning delay

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Saying they want to make sure they get the planning right, the Pasco County Planning Commission continued a rezoning request by Darrell A. and Karen Renner for a proposed 108-home development in Land O’ Lakes.

The request was continued until Nov. 4, when the planning board is scheduled to also consider another nearby rezoning request known as the Clark master-planned unit development (MPUD).

There’s a connection between the two because some right of way is available in the Clark MPUD that could help resolve a traffic circulation concern.

The Renners have requested a rezoning that would allow a new subdivision on 50 acres, on the south side of Bexley Road, about 1 mile west of U.S. 41 and Wisteria Loop.

The site presently is occupied by a residence and some agricultural pursuits, and its current zoning allows a maximum of 19 residences, according to the county’s planning staff.

County planners have recommended approval of the Renner’s request.

They said the proposed density is in keeping with the county’s future land use designations for the area. They also recommend a number of conditions. One condition requires improvements on Bexley Road and Wisteria Loop — to bring both of these substandard roads up to the county’s standards.

Under those conditions, the improvements would be required on Bexley Road, from the project driveway to Wisteria Loop, and on Wisteria Loop, from Bexley Road east to U.S. 41.

Area residents, however, urged the planning board to require a different solution to traffic issues.

They want a realignment of Wisteria Loop, which they say is part of the county’s vision road map.

Ray Gadd, who lives on Wisteria Loop, explained the current scenario to the planning board and what area residents would like to see.

“As it stands now, they (motorists) come to the curve in Wisteria (Loop), and they can go right to Tower (Road) or out to Wisteria Loop,” Gadd said.

If the realignment is constructed, the traffic flow would change.

“What it (vision road) accomplishes is that it essentially makes Bexley a continuous road. So that people coming from the applicant’s property, people coming from the Bexley property, or the future Angeline property would hit Bexley and have a continuous route, without a stop sign, until they hit (U.S.) 41, where they would make a right turn,” Gadd said.

Requiring that approach would be “effective planning,” Gadd contends.

If the planning commission wants to recommend approval of the Renner request, it should require the developer to acquire the right of way needed to make that improvement, Gadd said.

That land is within the proposed Clark MPUD.

Gadd is deputy superintendent of Pasco County Schools, but made it a point to announce that his appearance was as a private citizen, not in his official capacity.

Jeremy Couch, another Wisteria Road resident, told the planning board: “I feel that the staff’s conditions are completely inadequate for what they want to do.”

He characterized the Renner’s requested development as being “premature.”

Chris Nocco, Pasco County’s sheriff, also spoke at the public hearing. Like Gadd, he announced he was there as a private citizen, not in his official capacity.

Nocco urged the planning board to take a long view when considering the application.

“We want the community, Land O’ Lakes to grow, but to grow smartly,” Nocco said.

“Start those vision roads,” he said, because without them, existing communities are at risk.

“As we start building out Angeline (a massive development planned in Land O’ Lakes), let’s start seeing how it’s going to affect everything else because we don’t want to destroy the communities that are already in place,” Nocco said.

Matthew McClain, who lives on a 3.5-acre property just east of the proposed rezoning, raised issues regarding compatibility.

“My concern is, this will destroy that rural nature. Everything around it is large lots,” he said.

With the proposed rezoning, McClain said, “You’re going to cram 100-plus homes on 34 (upland) acres, in an area where there’s 3-, 5-, 10-acre plots of land. It just doesn’t make any sense.”

Shelly Johnson, the attorney representing the applicant, said her client can make the improvements required in the conditions, or can complete the realignment that’s being proposed.

But it can’t do both, she said.

Johnson asked the planning board to recommend approval and to send the request to the Pasco County Commission, which has final jurisdiction on land use and zoning issues.

“From our perspective, we’re doing everything that we’re required to do that other developments do. When you have a road that’s substandard, you bring it up to standard, and that’s what my client agreed to do,” Johnson said.

“We are absolutely doing everything that we can, and that the code requires us to do, in terms of doing improvements to Wisteria Loop, which right now is our access. That’s our way in and out to (U.S.) 41.”

Planning Commission Chairman Charles Grey told his colleagues, the board needs to be sure “that when we do this, we do it right — we have the proper things in place.

“We can’t let an artificial date define how we handle these neighborhoods. I think traffic flow here, is extremely important,” Grey said.

Planning Commissioner Chris Poole agreed.

“We need to get the planning right on this. This is a particularly difficult area that we’re dealing with here,” Poole said.

After additional discussion, the board voted to continue the request until Nov. 4, the same day it is scheduled to consider the rezoning request for the Clark MPUD.

Published October 13, 2021

Pasco County approves new mobility fee schedule

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Pasco County has adopted a new mobility fee rate schedule — with fees increasing in some categories, and decreasing or staying the same in others.

The proposed fee schedule calls for a sizable fee increase in the retail category.

It also proposes the addition of two new categories — one that provides a discount for locally owned small businesses and another that establishes a rate for accessory dwelling units.

Northbound traffic on Land O’ Lakes Boulevard, also known as U.S. 41, stacks up and waits for the traffic light to turn green. (File)

Mobility fees are used to help pay for the impacts that new development has on people’s ability to get around — including drivers, walkers, cyclists and transit riders.

The new rate schedule, approved by the Pasco County Commission at its Sept. 28 meeting, was recommended by the county’s staff and was based on a study completed by Bill Oliver, a consultant. Oliver is a registered professional engineer, who has conducted a number of mobility fee studies for the county including this one.

The proposed changes also received a recommendation for approval from the Pasco County Planning Commission, at its July 22 meeting.

“The costs of implementing your mobility system have increased over recent years,” Oliver said, at the planning board meeting.

At the same meeting, Oliver said that costs for implementing improvements to the county’s mobility system have increased in recent years and are expected to continue to do so.

The Florida Department of Transportation has estimated that costs will increase by 3% a year over the next five years or so, he said.

To keep pace with those increases, Oliver said the county needed to increase its fees.

The update:

  • Continues to encourage office, industrial and lodging, and redevelopment and infill development in the West Market Area by charging zero mobility impact fees in those categories/areas
  • Increases most retail fees by 50% over 4 years, divided equally by year, due to cost increases and partial or full subsidy removal
  • Increases rates for apartments by 6% annually, for a total of 24% over four years due to cost increases and full subsidy removal
  • Creates a new category for locally owned small businesses, with a 50% discount in standard fees
  • Continues to charge full rates for mini-warehousing and mining
  • Increases other fees by approximately 3% annually, or about 13% over four years, to address cost increases
  • Creates a reduced rate for accessory dwellings, sometimes known as mother-in-law residences

Accessory dwelling units are defined as an ancillary or secondary living unit, not to exceed 900 square feet, that has a separate kitchen, bathroom and sleeping area, either within the same structure or on the same lot, as the primary dwelling.

Oliver also told the planning board that the schedule changes reflect the changes made in state law during the last session of the Florida Legislature.

The new law establishes that impact fee increases must be limited to every four years, with a maximum of a 50% increase in individual rates.

A 50% increase must be implemented over four years in four equal installments, Oliver added.

Pasco began charging transportation impact fees in 1985.

It later shifted to mobility fees and decided to provide mobility fee incentives to encourage growth in specific categories.

The discount for locally owned small business is based on a concern they could not absorb the increased retail fees, Oliver told the planning board. That change was included after individual conversations he had with members of the county board, he told planning commissioners.

For purposes of the fee schedule, locally owned small businesses are defined as businesses that are not chain operations, that have 25 or fewer employees and that are 51%-owned by people whose permanent household is in Pasco, Hillsborough, Hernando, Pinellas, Sumter or Polk counties

All other fees, such as single-family residential, institutional fees, recreational fees, and other land use categories, will be indexed over the next four years at about an increase of 3.13% per year, Oliver said.

The changes take effect on Jan. 1, 2022.

Published October 06, 2021

Pasco approves apartments off Wesley Chapel Boulevard

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Pasco County’s moratorium on multifamily applications continues, but the county board approved 400 new apartments off Wesley Chapel Boulevard at its Sept. 15 meeting.

The approved development is planned for 43 acres at the intersection of Wesley Chapel Boulevard and Hay Road.

The request had received recommendation of approval with conditions from county planners and the Pasco County Planning Commission.

No one signed up to speak on the issue.

The request was approved 4-1, with Commissioner Mike Moore voting no.

“It’s in the (temporary) moratorium area (for new multifamily applications), but they obviously submitted before the moratorium,” Moore said.

“I will say this, you know previous to the last hearing, a number of residents, people in the community had reached out in concern. But nobody is here to speak today.

“If you don’t come and speak, it is very difficult to convince a board of five why something should be denied,” Moore said, adding that those reaching out to him should show up, sometimes, too.

On another item, the county board approved spending $70,000 to purchase 4.25 acres from J.L. Tucker Inc., to add the property to its Environmental Lands Acquisition and Management Program.

The Environmental Lands Acquisition Selection Committee recommended the purchase, according to the county board’s agenda backup materials.

The property is in Shady Acres along Triple J Ranch Road and is adjacent to the ELAMP-owned Martinez and DeAngelo property.

The property is not within an Ecological Corridor nor an Ecological Planning Unit, but its acquisition would extend the more than 1,700 contiguous acres of conservation land, which extends along the North Pasco to Crossbar Ecological Corridor. Acquisition of the property would also include eliminating an ingress/egress easement, thereby reducing potential future access and land use conflicts, the agenda backup says.

The county board also approved a change order with Blackwater Construction Services LLC, in connection with the Hugh Embry Branch Library renovation. The change order is for the amount of $71,358.11 for fiscal year 2021, bringing the new cumulative not-to-exceed amount to $1,575,939.

The bids for this project were received on Oct. 20, 2020, with seven months elapsing between the receipt of the bid and the award of the contract. The time delay is beyond the required 90-day hold period for prices, and during that time, there were significant increases in the prices for both labor and materials, resulting in the request for the additional funding.

“This has been considered a unique case and does not apply to any other projects being procured by the county,” the agenda backup says.

In other action, board members:

  • Heard a report on a proposal to increase mobility fees in some categories and decrease them in others. The fees are charged to help pay for impacts that growth has on roads and other aspects of the transportation network. A final adoption on the new fee schedule is set for Sept. 28.
  • Found a proposed Property Rights Element to be consistent with the county’s comprehensive plan and authorized transmittal to state agencies for review. Adoption of the element is scheduled for Oct. 26.
  • Continued to a date uncertain a request for master-planned unit development called Dayflower, seeking 1,469 single-family, villas and townhomes on approximately 1,014 acres, north of Wesley Chapel Boulevard and Lexington Oaks and west of Old Pasco Road.
  • Continued until Dec. 7 a request from Acorn LLC, for a rezoning to allow general commercial development on 9.2 acres, on the south side of State Road 54, west of the intersection of River Glen Boulevard and State Road 54.
  • Approved an increase of $515,355 for medical examiner services due to an increased number of autopsies being performed. The increase will cover the final months in this fiscal year’s budget.
  • Appointed Joseph Ward and Rocio Rosie Paulsen to the county’s Jobs and Economic Opportunities Committee.
  • Approved an increase of $13,787.50 in a professional service agreement with Rainey Leadership Learning, to provide leadership coaching and development for the executive team in the public infrastructure branch. The additional funding brings the total not-to-exceed amount to $63,412.50.
  • Accepted a donation of hand sanitizer retailing at $34,524.62 from Joseph Di Sano. Di Sano, of Wesley Chapel, delivered 3,400 bottles of HYGN brand hand sanitizer to the administrative offices of the Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources department in July. Each 12.6-ounce bottle retails at $9.56.

Published September 22, 2021

County clears way for 350 apartments

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The Pasco County Commission has approved a rezoning to allow an apartment development of up to 350 units at the southwest corner of State Road 52 and Old Pasco Road.

The 23.1-acre site currently is occupied by pastureland, some residences and some outbuildings. It abuts the Mango Hills master-planned unit development district, which has been approved for a maximum of 415 single-family detached and single-family attached townhomes.

Properties to the north and the northeast, adjacent to State Road 52, are zoned for general commercial, light industrial and retail, office and residential land uses.

In recommending approval of the request, county planners said the proposed apartments are a logical transition from general commercial and industrial uses.

The request also received a recommendation for approval from the Pasco County Planning Commission.

In addition to approving the rezoning, the county board also granted a variance regarding the number of parking spaces required for the project.

The property is next to where Pasco County will be building the Orange Belt Trail, and the project is planning to construct a bicycle and pedestrian access to that recreational trail.

During the planning board’s public hearing, Attorney Barbara Wilhite, who represented the applicant, said the maximum allowable density, under the county’s comprehensive plan, would be 24 units per acre. But the proposed project calls for a maximum of 15 units per acre.

Wilhite said the proposed apartments would have access to a portion of Old Pasco Road that has four lanes.

She also noted that the proposed apartments are close to the State Road 52/Interstate 75 interchange, and nearby properties are planned for industrial development.

The access to the project is from Old Pasco Road, Wilhite told the county board, during its Aug. 24 public hearing on the request.

Commissioner Kathryn Starkey noted the planned access to the Orange Belt Trail.

She told Wilhite that her client should consider using a small piece of land near the trail to create a business that would serve trail users.

Starkey said the county wants to create opportunities for entrepreneurship along its recreational trails, such as a coffee shop, or an ice cream shop or somewhere “that would be a fun place to go, if you’re using the trail.”

She encouraged Wilhite: “Be thinking creatively about a retail or a small commercial experience, next to that trail.”

Wilhite said there is property nearby that could be used for that purpose.

Starkey responded: “It could be on your property, too. One of the things that we’ve (Starkey and county staff) talked about doing is what’s called an overlay district, all along the trail. You see it done in other places, where you have it zoned that, if you want to do something.

“We would put the uses in. Ice cream shop, coffee shop, lemonade stand, whatever, if you’re within 20, 50, 100 feet of the trail — whatever — the right determination is, you can do it.

“It’s just a great benefit and a really cool thing to have along the perimeters of the trail. Especially that trail.

“I hear from people all of the time that we don’t have enough amenities on our trails.

“Once you leave the Starkey Market and Longleaf, you go all of the way to Hernando County before you can buy a drink or an ice cream or anything along our trail.

“I just want to really encourage some little entrepreneurship along the trails,” Starkey said.

Published September 01, 2021

Office zoning approved on State Road 54, at Meadowbrook Drive

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A rezoning has been approved to allow a professional office to be built on a 1.67-acre site at the southwest corner of State Road 54 and Meadowbrook Drive, in Lutz.

The Pasco County Commission approved the request by Kiddie Campus University Inc., at the board’s Aug. 10 meeting.

The application drew opposition from some area residents, but it was muted compared to the strenuous objections that accompanied a previous request to change the county’s land use map to allow the potential for a gas station and convenience store at the same location.

That proposal fell by the wayside when a divided county board refused to change the land use, which would have cleared the way for consideration of the commercial rezoning.

Instead, Kiddie Campus revised its pending rezoning application — asking for an office use, instead.

“We amended our application to PO1 (Professional Office 1), it’s the lowest intensity non-residential use in your code,” said Attorney Barbara Wilhite, representing the applicant.

“This is the solution,” Wilhite said.

Given the site’s location, at a signalized intersection on State Road 54, its future use will not be residential, Wilhite said.

The PO1 office district is designed to be compatible with residentially developed districts, she added.

That designation allows only office uses. It does not permit commercial uses, such as a hair salon, a nail salon or other personal services, Wilhite said.

She said the applicant didn’t want to bring anything forward that was retail-oriented, so its application calls for strictly office uses.

coming forward with the PO1,” the attorney added.

Additionally, the applicant has agreed to a deed restriction that limits the building height to two stories, Wilhite added.

“I could see the residents’ concerns,” the attorney said.

The voluntary deed restriction is the only thing limiting the building’s height, said Denise Hernandez, the county’s zoning administrator. That’s because the site is located within the county’s urban service area, she explained.

The application had received recommendations for approval from both the Pasco County Planning Commission and the county’s planners.

Some area residents, who had spoken against the plan before said they are confident that developer will work with the community.

But others — far fewer than before — persisted in their opposition, characterizing the proposed development as an intrusion into a residential area and raising concerns about a potential for future flooding issues.

Wilhite addressed the flooding concerns: “We can’t make the flooding worse. There’s plenty of regulations on the books regarding flooding.”

Published August 18, 2021

Planning board recommends rezoning approval for Two Rivers

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Two Rivers, a proposed new community off State Road 56, is approaching its final regulatory hurdle before work can begin to bring the plans on paper to life.

The Pasco County Planning Commission and the county’s planners have recommended approval of a rezoning for the sizable community.

Two Rivers is envisioned as a place that features a mixture of housing types, work opportunities, shopping, recreation and schools, according to county documents and testimony during previous public hearings involving the development.

The proposal, according to county records, calls for creating the new master-planned community on the southern edge of Pasco County. Two Rivers would tie into a community that’s under the same ownership, just south of the Pasco-Hillsborough line.

This land, along State Road 56, east of Morris Bridge Road, is now occupied by trees, ponds and open fields. It is proposed to become the future community of Two Rivers — a place that will feature homes, businesses, recreational options and schools, under proposals going through Pasco County’s regulatory process. (File)

Two Rivers’ master plan, county documents show, includes:

  • 6,400 residential dwelling units, including single-family, multifamily and age-restricted homes
  • 1,335,000 square feet of office/target industry
  • 1,355,000 of industrial
  • 630,000 square feet of retail uses
  • 246 acres of conservation area

The project has been in planning stages — off and on — for more than 10 years, and there have been a number of ownership changes.

The Pasco County Commission signaled support for Two Rivers, when it voted to transmit a proposed comprehensive plan amendment request to state officials for review.

The proposed rezoning for the master-planned community is a companion to that previously review comprehensive plan land use request.

The land use change and rezoning both are needed before Two Rivers can proceed with development.

At the Planning Commission’s Aug. 5 meeting, attorney Clarke Hobby represented Hickory Hills Land Company, the applicant for the Two Rivers master plan rezoning.

The planning board also heard from a handful of residents who raised concerns about potential flooding, increased traffic, possible loss in property value, and the likely noise that would arise from large machinery working on the proposed development.

Hobby told the planning board: “I think we’re all generally aware of Two Rivers and it’s a project that the county really has been planning for, and wants.”

Two Rivers is the largest of three parcels that the county worked with when it created a surcharge to build two additional lanes for the State Road 56 extension, Hobby said. Initially, just a two-lane extension was planned, but the county took out a loan from the Florida Department of Transportation’s infrastructure bank.

There’s $14.8 million in mobility fee surcharges from Two Rivers alone, to help pay back the county’s loan from the FDOT infrastructure bank, Hobby said.

The attorney addressed the concerns raised about potential flooding.

“As you all know, there are SWFMD (Southwest Florida Water Management District) rules and county rules to make sure we don’t flood our neighbors.

“The legal test that we must meet is that we can’t increase the rate of discharge, or the volume of discharge, from the pre-development condition, which we’re in now,” Hobby added.

“We have some of the smartest engineers in the (Tampa) Bay area working on this site, and I’m confident we won’t flood anybody,” he said.

Hobby also noted that the master plan calls for the creation of an 80-acre district park and a 77-acre school site.

While one neighbor expressed concerns about a potential decrease in property values, Hobby predicted just the opposite will occur.

He expects Two Rivers to “be a big benefit to this area.

“I actually believe it will raise property values considerably,” Hobby said.

The rezoning request now goes to the Pasco County Commission, which has final jurisdiction on land use and zoning issues.

Published August 11, 2021

New subdivision recommended in Land O’ Lakes

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The Pasco County Planning Commission has recommended approval of a rezoning for a new subdivision on the southwest corner of Lake Patience Road and Perdew Drive, in Land O’ Lakes.

Applicants Pulte Home Company LLC and Curtis L. Law Inc., are requesting a change in zoning from an agricultural district to a master-planned unit development to allow 240 single-family homes on roughly 80 acres.

The land currently is occupied by a residence and agricultural pursuits, according to materials in the planning board’s agenda backup.

The county’s planners have found the request to be consistent with the county’s land development code and comprehensive plan, and they recommend approval of the request.

Clarke Hobby, an attorney representing the applicants, said the request calls for roughly 240 units, which is far fewer than the 400 possible under the comprehensive plan designation.

He also pointed to other master-planned unit developments in the area and noted that the site is located in the urban service area, where the county is encouraging most of its growth.

One resident raised concerns about traffic on Lake Patience and about any potential impacts the new development would have on an adjacent community’s two private lakes.

But Hobby said, “There’s a dedication of right of way for a future collector that runs along the eastern boundary, and I believe the lady who just spoke lives to the east of that, so our project, per se, will not end up being immediately adjacent to the road that she’s talking about or her subdivision.”

He also noted there is no access to the other community’s lakes.

The planning board voted unanimously, with Planning Commissioner Roberto Saez absent, to recommend approval of the rezoning.

The application now goes to the Pasco County Commission, which has final jurisdiction over zoning and land use issues.

Published August 04, 2021