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Zoning

Battle over borrow pit plan coming to head by April 22

By LETITIA STEIN
Published April 8, 2005

SEFFNER - A 2-year-old fight over a proposed borrow pit in Seffner showed no signs of abating during a land use hearing Friday.

Lorton Industries wants a special excavation permit for a borrow pit on 39 acres along Pruett and Kingsway roads. In August 2003, a land use hearing officer denied the request. When an appeals board upheld the decision, Lorton contested in court.

The court sent the matter back for another land use hearing. Lorton downsized its original request by 300,000 cubic yards. It now seeks to remove 700,000 cubic yards of fill material. Upon finishing, Lorton has pledged to restore the property as a nursery.

Lorton argued that a borrow pit would make a good fit in the area. Within a 1-mile radius there is an active borrow pit, an active landfill and three closed land excavation sites.

Residents disagreed. About a half dozen spoke against the proposal at the hearing. They voiced concerns about the noise, dust and the danger of trucks running down Kingsway to U.S. 92. Past borrow pits already have gouged holes that remain eyesores in their community, residents said. More activity would further hurt property values and the quality of life.

The Hillsborough County School District also objects because of safety concerns. The borrow pit could endanger traffic around McDonald Elementary, Burnett Middle and Armwood High schools, a district official said. Two children recently died in Pinellas County after getting off school buses and Hillsborough does not want more trucks along its bus routes.

Land use hearing officer James Scarola has until April 22 to make a decision. The county's planning and growth management staff is not supporting the application. (Petition 03-0087)

VALRICO: The hearing over a proposal to place a big-box retail store on Bloomingdale Avenue has been postponed until May 2.

CDA of Florida in December filed a request for a major modification to create a megastore with 175,000 square feet of retail space next to Albertsons at Lithia Pinecrest Road. This marks the developer's second request to continue the zoning hearing to a later date.

The proposal faces opposition from a group called VOICE, Valrico Organization Interested In Controlled Expansion. To stay on top of developments, check out the group's Web site at www.valricovoice.org Petition 05-0340

BALM: A rural village could bring 242 homes to Balm.

A developer is proposing to use a special land use category, known as a rural village, which allows higher densities of development on the fringe of areas slated for urban services in Hillsborough County.

In return, the developer must incorporate a mix of residential and commercial uses and open space in order to create a self-contained community.

In Balm, the proposed village would feature a 2-acre village center with 6,534 square feet of floor space. Nearly half of the project's land would be used as retention areas, buffers and a wastewater treatment plant. Single-family homes would take up 87 acres.

The community is called Winchester Subdivision and the developer is listed as AN Development V, a company registered under Tampa developer Nelson Steiner, according to state business records. A representative for the developer declined to comment about the project.

A zoning hearing is scheduled for Monday. Commissioners would vote on the zoning request May 24. (Petition 05-0503)

RIVERVIEW: Burcaw & Associates wants to build 240 homes in Riverview.

The Tampa developer is seeking to rezone 60 acres on the north side of County Road 672, just east of U.S. 301, from mixed agricultural uses and mobile home zoning to planned development.

Burcaw is calling the subdivision Shady Combo North. Traffic from the community would enter and exit onto CR 672. Shady Combo North will have a homeowners association.

The request is scheduled for a zoning hearing Monday. Commissioners would vote on the proposal May 24. (Petition 05-0545)

DOVER: A smaller new subdivision in east Hillsborough also could carry the Burcaw name.

The developer is proposing to build 60 homes on 15 acres on the south side of Durant Road. The community would be just west of Nelson Elementary. A rear retention pond would provide a buffer between the proposed subdivision and houses along Whispering Leaf Trail, Hickory Grove Drive and Mossy Timber Trail.

Burcaw & Associates is seeking to rezone the property from agricultural uses to planned development. A zoning hearing is scheduled for Monday. Commissioners would vote May 24. (Petition 05-0544)

Hearings of county zoning hearing masters and land use hearing officers, and land use meetings of the County Commission, are held on the second floor of the County Center, 601 E Kennedy Blvd. All hearings before a zoning hearing master begin at 6 p.m. on Mondays or Tuesdays; commission meetings begin at 9 a.m. on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month. Both are televised on government access channels. Land use hearing officer hearings, which are not televised, begin at 9 a.m. every third Friday. Basic information about each petition is available online at http://www.hillsboroughcounty.org/pgm/zoning Call 276-5920.

[Last modified April 7, 2005, 08:55:10]