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Publix may replace a mobile home park
By ANNE LINDBERG, Times Staff Writer LEALMAN -- The possibility of a Publix here has this community buzzing. And it appears the rumors may be true. The buzz centers on roughly 5 acres at 2500 54th Ave. N, the southeast corner of 54th and Haines Road, currently the site of the Palace Mobile Home Park. The property is scheduled to go through the first step in the county's zoning process Thursday. The owners want to change the zoning from residential to retail. Retail zoning would clear the way for Publix to build there, and county officials agree that appears to be the plan. "That's my understanding. I couldn't swear to it, but I've heard a Publix is interested in going in there," said Gordon Beardslee, a Pinellas County general planning administrator. The formal information available, he said, is that a shopping center is planned for the land. John Cueva, a development review services supervisor with the county, agreed that he also understood that Publix is looking at the land, but "I don't have anything in writing." And Ray Neri, head of the Lealman Community Association, said Monday that a developer had called him to discuss the possibility of building a small Publix there. According to Neri, developer William Johnson said the location was great because there are no other grocery stores nearby and the nearest Publix is about 2 miles away. Johnson declined to comment. And Publix officials did not return a phone message asking for comment. But the prospect of a Publix coming to the Lealman area thrilled Neri. It would be one of the few grocery stores in Lealman; the other big one is a Publix at 54th Avenue and Park Street. "This is a big enhancement," Neri said. Neri and other Lealman residents may have more to celebrate at Thursday's hearing. Roughly 11/2 acres on the northwest corner of 54th Avenue and I-275 are scheduled for rezoning from residential to commercial. The idea is to build a fast food restaurant and perhaps a drugstore, Cueva said. Neri said he hoped this was an indication that land in Lealman is being seen as a bargain compared to property elsewhere in Pinellas. Still, Neri was concerned that both properties are near St. Petersburg's city limits and hence ripe for annexation -- meaning another tax loss for Lealman. That's what happened with the nearby Cracker Barrel, he said. Neri hoped the County Commission would stand by its decision to hold Lealman's annexation borders firm and prevent any attempt by St. Petersburg to voluntarily annex the land. If you goThe Pinellas County Planning and Zoning Examiner's hearing will begin at 9 a.m. Thursday on the fifth floor of the Pinellas County Courthouse, 315 Court St., Clearwater. The meeting is open to the public. For information, call 464-3888.
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From the Times South Pinellas desks |
