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Democracy Takes A Back Seat At Public Meeting

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By NANCY HAZELWOOD, Special to the Tribune

Published: December 9, 2007

Is development attorney Joel Tew running Pasco County?

I sat in the Pasco County Development Review Committee meeting Nov. 29 and watched as Tew misrepresented one important fact about the Citrus Ridge project, proposed on 112 acres just west of the Dade City city limits off St. Joe Road, for well over an hour.

To my dismay, no one on the committee corrected him after he said very strongly, several times, that "the county attorney's office assures me that this Uradco property is not in the Dade City Transition Area."

Only after a member of the public stood up and pointed out that this project is in the Dade City Transition Area and, therefore, subject to transitional densities and compatibility concessions, did the committee bother to say "oh yeah." But it didn't seem to matter.

We spent $2 million to $3 million on a new comprehensive land use plan, and it doesn't matter?

The city supported a density of two units per acre on this property, transitioning from city urban to the rural area. They do not want to see the city develop at this density in this area. The city's plan is to have dense growth such as this along the U.S. 301 corridor. Could the county not honor this request?

County staff recommended two units per acre, supporting the city's position and in recognition of the transitioning requirements in the Dade City Transition Area as included in the land use plan.

The neighbors wanted two units per acre for many reasons, including impact to transportation and schools and the unknown impact of stormwater runoff.

The county is already over-allocated as far as residential density is concerned - depending on whose numbers you use, from 260 percent to 600 percent.

Yet, County Administrator John Gallagher announced upon completion of a one-hour presentation from Tew and a much shorter presentation from Dade City, "How about three units per acre?" This is before the public ever got to speak.

Even more interesting: The outcome of the three-hour hearing was 3.2 units per acre.

Without any interest or respect for the concerns that would be expressed in public comment, a density figure was suggested by the county's top administrator. This figure was tossed on the table without any discussion or understanding of the downstream flooding impact to the Tank Lake Basin; without knowing the school board's concerns; and without considering compatibility issues, impact to traffic, property access issues, the amount of land that infrastructure would take or whether there is any real need for approving new development at this time.

It left everyone with the feeling that our opinions did not matter.

After reviewing the official tape of this public hearing, it became apparent from the dialog among them that Tew and the county attorney had talked earlier that morning - before the hearing. We had tried for an appointment earlier in the week but weren't given the courtesy of any prior input.

One final point: This hearing ended with another inaccurate statement by Tew. In his lengthy rebuttal, he claimed he had held "three, four or five" meetings with the public, and "there were no complaints." I know of only one meeting, but I can tell you that there were 1 to 1.5 hours of concerns and complaints expressed to the developers.

After the vote that confirmed what the county administrator had been pushing, he said: "How does everyone like democracy? It's a pretty good thing. It's not always fair, but it's always there."

You are right, Mr. Gallagher. It's not always fair, and this was a very good example.

Florida Hometown Democracy, here we come. I've been skeptical about this proposed constitutional amendment, which would put proposed land use plan changes in the hands of voters, but this experience made a believer out of me. If Hometown Democracy gets on the ballot and passes, thank Tew and others like him.

The writer, a Blanton resident, is a member of Northeast Pasco Concerned Citizens.

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