The county reaffirmed its decision to extend Lake Patience Road through Land O'Lakes.
By JAMES THORNER
Published August 2, 2003
LAND O'LAKES - Five hundred signatures, two heated meetings and the jangled nerves of neighbors have failed to derail plans for an extension of Lake Patience Road through Land O'Lakes.
That much was clear from Thursday's meeting at the Land O'Lakes Community Center that drew more than 100. It was a follow up to a June 10 meeting on the same topic.
Pat Mulieri, the county commissioner whose district includes Land O'Lakes, said she couldn't imagine not okaying at least two lanes of the 21/2 mile road.
Mulieri's support of the road is significant: She is typically the least development-friendly among the five-member board.
Still, neighbors, including 480 Oakstead residents who filled an anti-Lake Patience Road petition, seemed to pry loose some concessions.
For starters, county officials agreed to press the state Department of Transportation to raise a traffic signal at the entrance of Oakstead on State Road 54.
And county officials seemed equally agreeable to barring trucks, aside from local service vehicles, from Lake Patience Road.
The county plans to expand Lake Patience, which starts at U.S. 41 and dead ends near Pasco County Animal Control, through Oakstead. Construction would start in late 2006 and cost about $5-million.
Especially bothersome to neighbors is a proposal to widen the road to four lanes once housing growth in central Pasco reaches critical mass, perhaps in 10 years.
Many Oakstead residents complained their developer and builders assured them Lake Patience would be a two-lane local road, not a major thoroughfare between U.S. 41 and the Suncoast Parkway.
County Administrator John Gallagher emceed most of Thursday's meeting with no-nonsense approach that angered some of the crowd. Many felt muzzled when county officials forced them to submit queries on white index cards.
Gallagher explained that Lake Patience is part of a plan to avoid the sort of traffic tie-ups that plague U.S. 19.
"To me, if you're an Oakstead resident, this road is going to help you navigate the community," Gallagher said.
"No way!" a few people yelled.
Gallagher continued by suggesting they'd regret their opposition to Lake Patience once thousands of homes are built.
"You'll be backed up and you'll be in begging the Board of County Commissioners for some relief," he said.
Bob Thurston, one of the leaders of the Oakstead contingent, was the only resident allowed to speak. He's among the homeowners behind a new Web site called www.oakstead.org
He blamed Devco Development Co., Oakstead's developer, for a string of broken promises not limited to Lake Patience Road.
What happened to the quiet tree-lined streets? he wondered. And the promised elementary school? And the 15-acre park?
"Why is it necessary to destroy a piece of a community before it's even completed?" he said, referring to his belief that a four-lane Lake Patience would be a noisy barrier to children and other pedestrians.
Mulieri urged Thurston to wrap up his commentary and tried to take back the microphone. The crowd roared, "Let him finish!" So Mulieri did.
Later this year, county commissioners will probably select a final route for the Lake Patience Road extension. Mulieri urged the crowd to attend that meeting.
- James Thorner covers growth and development in Pasco County. He can be reached at 813 909-4613 or toll-free 1-800-333-7505, ext. 4613. His e-mail address is thorner@sptimes.com
