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Zoning
Decision on Lake Hutto looms near
Updates from around the area.
By ANDREW MEACHAM
Published November 24, 2006
LITHIA: Pulte Homes and the County Commission may at last be ready to settle the Lake Hutto issue. The proposed development would add nearly 3,200 houses, townhouses and condominiums on 1,100 acres in the FishHawk area south of the Alafia River and west of Lithia-Pinecrest Road. The project has been routed through a zoning hearing master to the County Commission, returned to a zoning hearing master and delayed several times. A zoning decision by the commission is scheduled for Dec. 5. If approved, Lake Hutto would be one of the largest developments in the county. The developer has shaved 268 units from the original total and promises 180,000 square feet of retail space and an equal amount of office space. The property spans three parcels that are not connected. Pulte seeks to amend the future land use map of the county's comprehensive plan, intended as a yardstick to control development. It wants to amend the two northern parcels from Residential Planned 2 to Residential 2, removing a requirement to develop businesses apace with residences and doubling the most populated southern portion from two to four residences per acre. The developer also wants to rezone the property from agricultural and planned development to a planned development, which would include residential, office and commercial use with space set aside for parks and schools. The hearing will include presentations by planners Krista Kelly of the Planning Commission and John Healy of Planning and Growth Management. County staffers have recommended approval of the comprehensive plan amendment. Because of its size, Lake Hutto is designated a Development of Regional Impact, which requires that more than a dozen local and state agencies assess possible effects. As the case has wound its way through hearings, residents of FishHawk Ranch, Mason Oaks and other neighboring subdivisions have voiced concerns about adding more traffic to Boyette Road, according to a transportation study. The population east of U.S. 301 and south of the Alafia River has doubled in less than six years, from 25,000 in 2000 to 51,000 this year, according to county estimates. The special hearing starts at 6 p.m. at the County Center, 601 E Kennedy Blvd. PETITION 05-1104 Andrew Meacham can be reached at 661-2431 or ameacham@sptimes.com
[Last modified November 22, 2006, 09:25:15]
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