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Zoning

Project calls for hundreds of homes

By LETITIA STEIN
Published August 12, 2005

APOLLO BEACH - Eight hundred homes mark the beginning.

Newland Communities is seeking approval for 813 homes on 402 acres as a step to realizing plans for Waterset, a development of about 5,000 homes on about 2,200 acres between Interstate 75 and U.S. 41, from Big Bend Road to 19th Avenue NE.

Currently, Newland is requesting to rezone 402 acres from agricultural uses to planned development.

The proposal would expand the size and scope of an already approved development called Southbend. It would be southwest of Covington Park, another Newland development.

Newland is considering a mix of single-family houses, duplexes and townhomes. How many of each is not specified, said John Healey, a county planner. Ultimately, the 402 acres would connect to another previously approved development to form Waterset's entirety.

Newland's overall vision for Waterset includes prominent lakes and water elements, playing off the proximity to Tampa Bay. Walking paths would cut across the community, which would feature a social center and limited commercial space.

Newland is the developer behind FishHawk Ranch and MiraBay, some of the most popular new communities in Hillsborough County. Newland aims to bring Waterset online as FishHawk Ranch builds out around 5,000 homes in about two years.

A zoning hearing is scheduled for Tuesday. County commissioners would consider the request on Sept. 27. (PETITION 04-1823).

RIVERVIEW: A developer wants to replace a dairy farm with 241 homes and townhomes off Balm Riverview Road, just south of Symmes Road.

LawDevCo Inc. of Brandon is seeking to rezone 61 acres owned by the Aprile family from agricultural uses to planned development. The property would feature 133 single-family homes on 50- by 110-foot lots, mostly clustered around the perimeter of the property. Another 54 duplex homes are proposed on 35- by 110-foot lots.

The proposed subdivision sits in a region of explosive growth around U.S. 301 in South Hillsborough County. To the south, another dairy farm recently was rezoned for a mix of homes and townhomes. Nearby properties are zoned for agricultural uses and some planned developments.

A zoning hearing is scheduled for Monday. County commissioners are scheduled to vote on the rezoning request on Sept. 27. (PETITION 05-1202).

RIVERVIEW: Imagine 160 townhomes on 17 acres at the southwest corner of Camden Field Parkway and Falkenburg Road, next to newly opened Frost Elementary and Giunta Middle.

West Coast Property Group is requesting to rezone the property from residential zoning that allows six homes per acre to planned development.

Each townhome would have two stories above covered parking. Residents would have access to a recreation center, pool and clubhouse. An entrance with fountains and landscaping is proposed off Camden Field Parkway.

About 68 townhomes proposed for the eastern parcel on Falkenburg Road would develop first. A second phase would see the construction of about 80 townhomes on the western property.

The proposed development sits to the south of an elementary and middle school that recently opened to serve the fast-growing region around the Pavilion subdivision on U.S. 301.

Undeveloped properties adjacent to the proposed townhomes are zoned for agricultural and industrial uses. A county-owned right of way bisects the proposed development, but the developer is likely to request the county to vacate this land.

A zoning hearing is scheduled for Monday. County commissioners would consider the proposal on Sept. 27. (PETITION 05-1245).

RUSKIN: A zoning hearing for a controversial proposal to develop a sliver of land on Mill Bayou and the Little Manatee River has been pushed back to Sept. 7.

Environmentalists and Ruskin neighbors are raising objections over a proposal to develop 30 houses on 15.6 acres at the south end of Seventh Street SW in Ruskin. This represents significantly less development than the original proposal for 67 homes on about 60 acres.

Still, the county's Environmental Protection Commission recommended denying the scaled-back proposal, raising concerns about the potential damage to sensitive wetland and water quality.

The county's Natural Resources reviewers also objected, fearing the destruction of trees and other native vegetation.

A zoning hearing is now scheduled for Sept. 7. County commissioners would vote on the request on Sept. 19. (PETITION 05-0645).

SEFFNER: After two years, what's another month?

Since 2003, Seffner activists have opposed a proposal by Lorton Industries to dig a 39-acre borrow pit at the southwest corner of Pruett and Kingsway roads. In April, a land use hearing officer approved the request to excavate 700,000 cubic yards of sandy dirt.

Opponents have appealed. The hearing before the land use appeals board recently was rescheduled to Sept. 9 at 9 a.m. This delayed proceedings a month from the previous Aug. 5 hearing.

The borrow pit request has a long history. A land use hearing officer originally denied the request, citing concerns over the cumulative effect of another borrow pit in a community that already counts eight ditches and landfills within a mile.

After losing an appeal, Lorton sued Hillsborough County. Last September, a Circuit Court judge sent the matter back for another hearing.

The Seffner Community Alliance and Taylor Road Civic Association both have filed appeals in the case. (PETITION 03-0087)

Hearings of county zoning hearing masters and land use hearing officers, and land use meetings of the County Commission are held on the second floor of the County Center, 601 E Kennedy Blvd. All hearings before a zoning hearing master begin at 6 p.m. on Mondays or Tuesdays; commission meetings begin at 9 a.m. on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month. Both are televised on government access channels. Land use hearing officer hearings, which are not televised, begin at 9 a.m. every third Friday. Basic information about each petition is available online at http://www.hillsboroughcounty.org/pgm/zoning For information, call 276-5920.

[Last modified August 11, 2005, 08:56:11]