Developers call new Pasco land rules unfair

The developers are worried that the environmentally friendly changes in county building rules will keep them from developing much of their property.

By JAMES THORNER

© St. Petersburg Times, published March 8, 2001

Last year, environmentalists sued to change Pasco County's growth plan, arguing the county was suburbanizing too quickly and sloppily.

The county dodged litigation in August by handing concessions to the slow-growth activists.

Now developers are sore.

On Tuesday, the county was sued by prominent landowners worried that the environmental concessions in the county's growth plan will render much of their property unable to be developed.

Peter and Nick Geraci and U.S. Home Corp., who separately are trying to develop a couple thousand acres along State Road 54 in Land O'Lakes, seek an injunction from Pasco Circuit Court to stop the county from enforcing the new rules.

Developers object to the county's intention to bolster protection of wells, wetlands and wildlife, all of which threaten to yank some property from the development rolls.

"It makes a big difference in the beneficial economic use of your property," said Lee Atkinson, an attorney from Clearwater representing the Geracis and U.S. Home.

At issue is amendments to the county's comprehensive land-use plan, the document that shows what development can go where. Environmentalists led by the Land O'Lakes group Citizens for Sanity challenged the plan as a recipe for overdevelopment.

Developers, including the Geracis, intervened in defense of the county. But in August, the county settled with Citizens for Sanity, angering the county's former supporters.

"Somewhere along the line the county made the decision to give more credentials to the Sierra Club and Citizens for Sanity than to the people that stood by them before," Atkinson said.

Litigation is nothing new for the Geracis, who have fought in court for years to force Hillsborough County to yield to plans for a large mall at Van Dyke Road and Dale Mabry Highway.

The Geracis could not be reached for comment for this story.

In an interview with the St. Petersburg Times last year, Peter Geraci accused local environmentalists of trying to hijack property rights on land owned by his family since the 1930s.

The brothers' ranch occupies about 1,000 acres southwest of U.S. 41 and State Road 54, land they want to convert into a huge development, Long Lake Ranch.

Plans call for 1.9-million square feet of commercial space, including a mega-mall, and 1,700 houses and apartments.

U.S. Home is trying to build the LeDantec subdivision -- 1,599 homes on 1,166 acres -- across SR 54 from the Geracis.

One of the activists that settled with Pasco last year, Judy Williams, called developers shortsighted for thinking environmental protection is economically harmful to Pasco.

The new regulations will increase property values as Pasco becomes a more enticing place to live, Williams said.

"We are known as Pass-Go for development . . . Developers don't want things to change," Williams said. "I can't say I blame them. They make an awful lot of money here. But the time has come to protect the people."

The county intends to ask the judge to dismiss the lawsuit on the grounds developers missed a Dec. 18 deadline to file such a challenge.

"That date came and left and nothing was filed," said chief assistant county attorney Barb Wilhite.

Meanwhile, Pasco is devoting hundreds of thousands of dollars to creating protection plans for wells and wildlife. The lawsuit won't derail those efforts.

"I'm not planning on changing anything," Wilhite said.

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