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Change of owners at 146-acre property

Wesley Chapel Corporate Park's buyer is optimistic that small technology companies will move in.

By JAMES THORNER
Published August 4, 2005

WESLEY CHAPEL - This week's sale of Wesley Chapel Corporate Park to a Clearwater developer could finally kick-start a property known more for its promise than its productivity.

The 146-acre industrial park opened five years ago with its first tenant, a packaging and surgical equipment company called Soule.

Though the park is among the county's most upscale and has masonry construction and the possibility of fiber-optic Internet connections, Soule has remained the sole tenant.

The new owner as of Monday, Haydon-Rubin Development Inc., promises to change that. The company has filed plans to build two office-warehouse buildings, of 66,000 square feet and 42,000 square feet.

President Rogers Haydon said he has "proposed leases" from two "relatively small" technology companies that could move to Pasco with about 20 workers each.

Haydon has also made a pitch for a larger company from East Tampa that would occupy a building of 50,000 square feet.

The corporate park starts on Pet Lane east of County Road 54 and extends almost to the Interstate 75 rest area.

Haydon and his partner bought the land from the owners of Soule. Though they thrived at their main line of work, they lacked the know-how to run an industrial park, Haydon said.

"It's getting ready to roll," Haydon said of the property. "Five years ago it might have been premature."

Wesley Chapel Corporate Park has space for about eight lots and 500,000 to 600,000 square feet of building space.

It's one of more than a dozen parks in Pasco, though county officials complain they lack enough ready-to-occupy industrial sites to satisfy potential demand.

The park's a natural for companies that need I-75 access, want to move closer to their employees in Pasco or have run out of space at their old locations, Haydon said.

"We want to make it Pasco's premier park of that type," he said.

The Pasco Economic Development Council, the county's industrial recruitment arm, has offered help with economic incentives for Haydon's future tenants.

"It's a great location, and I don't think we'll have any problem getting companies out there," said development council director Mary Jane Stanley.

[Last modified August 4, 2005, 01:05:20]