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2 centers planned for Country Place
By TIM GRANT, Times Staff Writer CARROLLWOOD -- After three public hearings on where to build Country Place's recreation center, county Parks and Recreation officials decided the neighborhood needs two facilities. Residents were split on whether to build the center at Central Park, which is surrounded by homes in Country Place, or West Park, which is at the edge of the subdivision near Hutchison Road. Hillsborough County Parks & Recreation director Ed Radice has announced a plan that will give each park a building and new recreational facilities. Radice said the county will build a $325,000 center in Country Place Central Park within 18 months, and he expects a larger community center within about four years in West Park. "I heard people talk about all the growth on Hutchison Road," Radice said. Two buildings will serve the "additional recreational needs for Country Place and satisfy the population increase along Hutchison," he said. Radice said the area's projected residential growth justifies spending impact fee money to build the center at Country Place West. The recreation center was originally proposed for Central Park at Country Lake and Fox Hunt drives. But some homeowners did not like the idea of traffic coming through the center of the community. "Parks and Recreation recognizes Country Place needs a recreation center," said John Jackson, president of the homeowners association. "The greater Country Place community also needs a community center and they are filling that need too." The main purpose of the recreational building is to house an after-school program in Central Park, which currently has no building. Homeowners who prefer that location said it is a safer place for children. Resident Steve Taub said he thinks Radice's plan is better than any the residents had proposed. "We were worried that we would have a lot of traffic coming into the subdivision from the new housing on Hutchison," Taub said. "But (Radice's) plan seems to accommodate that, so we're not opposed to it." -- Tim Grant can be reached at 269-5311 or at grant@sptimes.com
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From the Times |
