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Cedar Lane plan wins approval

The developer improves drainage in its master plan for two subdivisions. But neighbors say flooding will worsen for them.

By DAN DeWITT
Published September 13, 2005

BROOKSVILLE - Last month, it seemed unlikely the county would ever approve two subdivisions along rural Cedar Lane, east of Brooksville.

At the county Planning and Zoning Commission meeting in August, Commissioner Al Sevier listed the problems facing the development, including chronic flooding of nearby yards and increasing traffic on Cedar Lane, a narrow, twisting road.

"I don't know of a solution," Sevier said before the commission voted to postpone hearing the plan for the second time.

But after meeting with county planners and improving the drainage plan, the developer - DAL U.S.A. LLC in Tampa - won the support of the commission Monday.

"I think the developer has gone out of its way to address some of these concerns," Commissioner Anthony Palmieri said.

Because the developer was not seeking a zoning change, only approval for its master plan, it does not need approval from the County Commission.

The plan calls for building 126 houses on 187 acres on the west side of Cedar Lane, between State Road 50 and Powell Road.

Palmieri and Sevier both said they regretted they could not require larger lots in the two adjacent subdivisions - Cedar Woods and Cedar Trails - because the county allowed 1-acre lots on the land 12 years ago.

The commissioners also asked that Winding Creek Drive, which had been considered an emergency access road, not be used by the development in any way.

Commissioner Nick Nicholson said he visited the area to talk to residents and found limited visibility when trying to pull onto Cedar Lane from Winding Creek.

"You almost take your life in your hands exiting Winding Creek," Nicholson said.

The developer previously had planned to build retention ponds on residential lots, which county planners said might result in inadequate maintenance.

New plans call for the retention areas to be built on land owned by the development.

The commission did not allow opponents of the projects to speak Monday because they had done so at two previous meetings. That - along with the commission's vote - angered some of the opponents.

"Hell, no, we're not satisfied," said Pam Ward, a Spring Lake growth management activist.

Ward said that the plans contain several contradictory statements about, for example, the thickness of the asphalt on the subdivisions' roads and whether the roads would be privately maintained.

Residents of nearby neighborhoods, especially those on Winding Creek, have said that runoff from the property causes chronic flooding on their land. The two new subdivisions will only make that worse, Ward said.

--Dan DeWitt can be reached at dewitt@sptimes.com or 352 754-6116.

[Last modified September 13, 2005, 01:45:22]