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Commission passes rules for 'big box' stores
By BRIDGET HALL GRUMET © St. Petersburg Times, published January 10, 2001 INVERNESS -- The County Commission approved a measure Tuesday evening that will force "big box" stores like Wal-Mart and Home Depot to soften their boxy look with architectural features and extra landscaping. The ordinance requires new stores larger than 25,000 square feet to have prominent entrances, parapets to shield rooftop equipment from public view and patterns on walls that are longer than 100 feet. It also requires landscaping along half of the facade and between every 10 parking spaces. The measure sailed through Tuesday's hearing without any opposition from the Citrus County Builders Association and with just a handful of suggested compromises by an attorney for Wal-Mart. The builders association previously complained that parts of the ordinance conflicted with the building code and construction standards, but county planner Larry Frey reworked some of the wording so that the ordinance clearly dealt with aesthetics. "We feel that most of the changes were fine enough to accommodate their concerns while still creating an ordinance that stays with the original intent of softening the look of big box stores," Frey said. The commission tweaked other parts of the ordinance Tuesday evening to address concerns raised by Wal-Mart attorney Timothy Powell. The ordinance originally required large parking lots to be divided into several smaller lots with just 100 spaces each, separated from other lots with landscaping. Noting that some Wal-Mart stores have 1,000 parking spaces, Powell said the requirement for 10 smaller lots would be "going overboard." The county changed the language to require parking lots with less than 500 spaces total to be broken down into several 100-space lots. A store with more than 500 spaces can divide its parking area into several 150-space lots. The county also allowed a way around the requirement for landscaping between every 10 parking spaces, if a different parking lot plan with ample landscaping is approved by the county's Technical Review Team. Frey said he believes other communities will look to Citrus County'sordinance as they create their own aesthetic standards for large-scale retailers. "I just want to thank Wal-Mart and the builders association for working with us to develop one of the finest ordinances in the country dealing with this issue," he said. In a separate matter, commissioners approved a zoning request that will allow developers to build the Sugarmill Station shopping center on the west side of U.S. 19 at W Cypress Boulevard, directly across from the main Sugarmill Woods entrance. The plans for the 107,800-square-foot strip mall include a 40,000-square-foot Kash n' Karry with a liquor store. Two other free-standing buildings, including a Hess gas station, are also shown. Most of the 18-acre project is already zoned for commercial development. Commissioners granted the developer's request to shift the entire project slightly north by rezoning the northernmost 1.4 acres from residential to commercial use. Developers say pushing the shopping center north will make it more visible and accessible to Sugarmill Woods residents. The southernmost 1.4 acres were rezoned from commercial to residential, so there is no overall change in the amount of commercial property along U.S. 19. County planner Lou Phemister said the developer has already agreed to design the shopping center in accordance with the big box standards the county adopted Tuesday night.
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