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Dade City approves zoning exception

By GINA PACE
Published February 14, 2007

DADE CITY - The city took another step Tuesday evening toward allowing Pasco Motors to tear down a former downtown hardware store and put a car lot in its place.

The City Commission voted 4-1 to adjust a zoning ordinance to allow exceptions so a business can expand to an adjacent property that falls under a different zoning category.

The amendment does not deal specifically with Pasco Motors but would allow the dealership to apply for permission to expand into the space once occupied by Case Bros. Hardware.

Commissioner Scott Black spoke in favor, calling Pasco Motors a good neighbor and citing the tax revenue it brings.

Commissioner Camille Hernandez cast the lone vote against the measure. She said the space would be better used for retail or green space.

"I think we are doing the wrong thing, at a time when visionaries are coming into the city," said Hernandez, whose husband plans to renovate a building on Seventh Street.

David Hernandez's plans were also discussed at Tuesday's meeting. Camille Hernandez excused herself from that discussion.

The commission also surprised longtime Dade City philanthropist Roy Hardy by naming a recently completed 1-mile recreational trail in honor of Hardy and his wife, Martha, who passed away in May 2005.

The trail starts at Eighth Street and Church Avenue, and ends at Fairfield Avenue.

Hardy, now 84, opened Hardy's Department Store in the late 1940s. For more than two decades he helped cancer patients with medical bills through the Roy Hardy Benevolent Trust Fund.

Gina Pace can be reached at 352 521-6518 or toll free 1-800-333-7505, ext. 6518. Her e-mail address is gpace@sptimes.com.

[Last modified February 13, 2007, 23:21:39]