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Interbay

High-density requests near MacDill may face rejection

Since 1997, builders have received more than 15 rezonings in the area. The city considers slowing the trend. Builders balk.

By SHERRI DAY
Published April 29, 2005

The City Council may soon pass an ordinance that temporarily bans all higher-density rezoning requests near MacDill Air Force Base.

The local builders association opposes the potential ban outright. But individual developers say it will do little to stop growth in the hot south-of-Gandy Boulevard real estate market.

That's because the area in question has long been considered less than ideal for large projects because of already strict land use requirements and infrastructure problems.

Mayor Pam Iorio asked the council this month to ban high-density requests in two areas directly in the path of MacDill's aircraft runways. The first and most dangerous area, called the Clear Zone, is roughly bordered by the base, Himes Avenue and Interbay Boulevard. The other area stretches north and east from Marcum Street, Interbay Boulevard and MacDill Avenue.

This is not the first time that area has generated interest from city officials. Base officials have long lobbied for low density around MacDill's perimeter. The Comprehensive Land Use plan was amended to classify much of the area R-10, which allows no more than 10 units per acre. It is one of the lowest densities for residential areas.

Those rules can only be circumvented by rezoning requests and have soured some developers on high-density projects, such as townhomes, in the area. Developers said the council's impending ordinance breaks no new ground.

"It's a restatement of the old policy," said Stephen Michelini, a land-use consultant. "We're already dealing with it. The limits are there and they've been there for at least 12, maybe 14 years."

Joseph Narkiewicz, executive vice president of the Tampa Bay Builders Association, opposes the plan. He finds the potential rollback of property owners' rights troubling.

"There's dire concern about the city of Tampa's management of its comprehensive plan and its regulatory process, especially in South Tampa," Narkiewicz said. "We hear complaints many times every day."

Some developers say the mayor's request is little more than a political show of support at a time when MacDill is being evaluated for possible closure.

Neighboring homeowner associations say their members have barely reacted to the mayor's request. Jerry Miller, head of Ballast Point's planning board, said he supports the rezoning ban because it dovetails nicely with the neighborhood plan, which supports low-density development.

City officials say the call to slow high-density projects near MacDill is relevant. Since 1997, builders have received more than 15 rezonings in the area, proving that developers are interested, said Thomas Snelling, a city land development manager.

Snelling and his staff have spent the past two weeks surveying potentially affected areas. They expect to finish their study this week and present findings to the city attorney next week. If there's a trend toward high-density zoning requests, the council will likely consider an ordinance to ban rezonings, Snelling said.

If it passed, rezoning requests could be halted for at least a year while the city completes a land use study for communities south of Gandy Boulevard.

Council member John Dingfelder said the ordinance would be good for neighborhoods in the area and for the Air Force base.

"The less density we have in those flight zones, the safer it is," he said. "Developers can look down the road and recognize that most of the land use and zoning in that area will probably be locked down where it is today."

Sherri Day can be reached at 226-3405 or sday@sptimes.com

[Last modified April 28, 2005, 08:33:09]