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Buckingham objects to fence

The wetlands barrier is part of the widening of I-75.

By ROBBYN MITCHELL, Times Staff Writer
Published December 21, 2007

TAMPA PALMS - A serene scene of trees springing up from the wetlands is one of the draws of the village of Buckingham.

But in the future, residents will view nature from the other side of a fence - courtesy of the Florida Department of Transportation. Call it the price of progress in an area of relentless growth.

The state plans to widen Interstate 75 from four to six lanes at the Bruce B. Downs Boulevard exit, which is parallel to the wetlands that used to be included in the village.

Some homeowners say the fencing is unfair. David Weekley Homes, a real estate developer, promised those wetlands would be untouched, said Amy Smith, who lives near where the fence would be erected.

"It's going to devalue our homes," she said.

She said some homeowners paid a $45,000 premium to live near the wooded area and that the money should be returned if the promise is not honored.

The homes were built by Buckingham at Tampa Palms LLC, which also owned the wetlands. When Weekley bought some of the homes, the original developer maintained ownership of the wetlands and sold the property.

Weekley representatives say they had nothing to do with that prior developer's sale of the wetlands to the state.

What's more, homeowners should have known about the road-widening plans when they bought their houses, said Steve Ebensberger, local president of David Weekley Homes.

According toEbensberger, Weekly disclosed the widening project in the individual homeowners' sale contracts.

"We haven't heard any complaints," he said. "But we'd be happy to talk to anyone who has an issue."

Powerless to stop the fence, others have taken up weighing in on its appearance with DOT officials. The original fence was regular "cow fencing" - a silver fence with square holes, said Adam Perez, the department's interstate program manager.

But after meeting with the homeowners at Buckingham several times, he has proposed another option that may be more attractive - black vinyl fencing.

The interstate project has not been funded by the state, so it is unlikely that the fence will go up in the next five years, but it is definite on the schedule.

Perez said it's necessary to fence off the nearly 60 acres of wetlands to protect DOT from any liability if a trespasser were to get hurt.

"The fence will be lower on one side," he said. "So the animals won't be fenced in. They can come and go."

blogs.tampabay.com/New Tampa for "Bruce B. Blog."

[Last modified December 20, 2007, 21:36:47]