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Boom: More homes pop up on I-75

A developer plans 2,200 more homes in an area of southern Hillsborough County that is fueling the county's growth.

By ANDREW MEACHAM
Published December 8, 2005

RUSKIN - A developer said Wednesday it plans to build more than 2,200 homes and townhomes in southern Hillsborough County, contributing to a housing boom in one of the county's fastest growing areas.

Metro Development Group said it paid $37-million for 600 acres of land north of Sun City Center, where it plans a community called Cypress Creek.

The well-known design firm Phil Graham and Co. will create a neighborhood with a nature theme with ornamental rocks and as many original trees as possible, developer spokeswoman Anne Duffy said.

More than half the homes will sell from $200,000 to the mid $300,000s. There will be 865 townhomes that will run from $200,000 to $250,000.

The developer expects to break ground by June 2006 and have models on display by July.

Metro Development does not not need a zoning change to build, Duffy said. The land was zoned for residential development under a plan approved for Sun City Center.

Developers plan to tout Cypress Creek's central location, with easy access to Tampa and St. Petersburg.

The project marks the latest in a string of large developments for southern Hillsborough County. Development in the county's unincorporated area accounted for 79 percent of Hillsborough's growth in 2004, according to a Planning Commission study.

Jim Hosler, who directs research for the Planning Commission, predicted more growth for the area. The rural landscape near Cypress Creek will house 20,000 people by 2025 - equivalent to the city of Temple Terrace today, Hosler predicted.

"It's a situation that should not have surprised anybody," Hosler said.

Marvin Rose, a St. Petersburg real estate consultant, said there is no reason to think Cypress Creek will not succeed.

"History has shown that developments like that, in the past two or three years, have done well," Rose said.

Still, questions persist about how long southern Hillsborough can sustain a housing boom.

The Florida Association of Realtors reported that Tampa Bay area prices have leveled off in August and September after peaking in July.

Some residents worried Wednesday that the housing boom would choke roads and crowd schools.

"We see that the county solution is to just keep widening our roads," said Mariella Smith of Ruskin, who is president of the local Sierra Club. "And you really can't pave your way out of gridlock."

[Last modified December 8, 2005, 00:49:13]