TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Cypress Creek Developers Face Fines

ADVERTISEMENT

By KEVIN WIATROWSKI, The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 5, 2008

WESLEY CHAPEL - The developers of Cypress Creek Town Center could pay nearly $10,000 in county fines for twice letting muddy water escape their site at State Road 56 and Interstate 75.

The developers agreed last month to pay $4,000 in county fines and face $4,500 more in fines for polluting Cypress Creek with mud.

The penalties stem from heavy rains last fall and again last month that flooded the 510-acre site straddling S.R. 56. Muddy runoff from the site polluted Cypress Creek, which forms the property's western and southern boundaries. During the most recent downpour, on Jan. 22, 5 inches fell on the mall site. The result has been a torrent of activity against the developers - Sierra Properties and the Richard E. Jacobs Group - by county, state and federal agencies that oversee the project.

•On Jan. 29, county code enforcers cited the mall developers for letting muddy water escape their site. Two of the five violations said the developers failed to have proper barriers in place to hold the mud on site.

•On Thursday, regulators at the Southwest Florida Water Management District asked the district's attorneys to consider possible legal action against the mall developers stemming from the runoff.

•On Friday, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers suspended the permit that allowed the developers to fill more than 50 acres of wetlands on the property. The suspension blocks any work where those wetlands were filled.

The developers said Monday that they're working to fix the problems that let muddy water run into Cypress Creek.

"The timing of this rain event was very unfortunate as we were in the process of putting new stormwater control structures in the onsite lakes," said Deanne Roberts, spokeswoman for the developers.

Mall crews used hay bales and other measures to stop the muddy runoff, Roberts said.

"So we were able to fix the problem quickly, but not before some muddy water was released, which we regret," she said.

Jacobs still plans to open the first phase of Cypress Creek Town Center in October, Roberts said.

Environmentalists Keep Watch

The project has been closely scrutinized by local environmentalists since it was approved in 2004. Activist Clay Colson of Land O' Lakes has been one of the people alerting regulators to possible violations on the site.

Asked Monday if he was satisfied with the current response to the project's problems, Colson described the county's and Swiftmud's action as "insufficient" and said the Army Corps of Engineers' action came later than it should have.

Colson and other environmentalists say that the mall threatens the health of Cypress Creek and Tampa's drinking water.

The mall site has been stripped of groundcover since summer, when earthmoving crews began filling wetlands and preparing to build a million-square-foot regional mall and the offices, hotel rooms and apartments associated with it.

The south side of the property is being developed by Jacobs, the Cleveland-based mall builder. North of S.R. 56, landowner John R. "Hi" Sierra Jr. plans to build hotels, offices, apartments and another retail component.

After downpours last month and in the fall, runoff overwhelmed Pond D, a retention pond bordering Cypress Creek south of S.R. 56, said Tom Farrell, an inspector based in the Army Corps' Tampa office.

The pond is designed to hold stormwater and dirt and let impurities settle out. After both downpours, workers pumped standing water into the pond as part of maintaining the construction site, Farrell said. Each time, that pumping left too little room for the deluge that followed and muddy water escaping the pond polluted Cypress Creek, he said.

"Pretty much all these problems were created by themselves," Farrell said.

Cypress Creek, a major tributary of the Hillsborough River, rises in north-central Pasco County. It flows south through the middle of the county in a channel that frequently is more impassible swamp than open water.

Where it borders the mall site, Cypress Creek is about 20 feet across, placid and dark, stained with organic material from the upstream swamps. The creek has been designated an Outstanding Florida Water, a title that requires neighboring landowners to protect the water from pollution.

Agencies Weigh Action

During daily visits beginning Jan. 22, county inspectors reported problems with muddy runoff and a lack of proper containment on both sections of the Cypress Creek Town Center site.

On the north side, inspector Jim Craun noted, one spot had been pointed out as a problem five times. Craun cited the developers for eight counts of illegal runoff and one of missing sediment barriers.

Those citations followed by eight days a deal with the county where the developers agreed to pay $4,000 in fines related flooding in the fall. They have until Feb. 14 to pay the fine, said Assistant County Attorney Kristi Wooden.

The developers are contesting two charges from the fall of not having the property barriers in place. That challenge is set to be heard Feb. 29 in county court in Dade City. A hearing on the most recent charges has been set for April 25 in county court in Dade City.

It was unclear Monday what, if any, legal action Swiftmud officials may take against the mall developers. The district's attorneys will review the file before taking further action, said district spokeswoman Robyn Hanke.

"It's way too early to say what will happen," Hanke said.

Army Corps officials, on the other hand, want the developers to show them plans for a permanent solution to their project's runoff problems.

"It's got to be better than hay bales, because the hay bales didn't work before," said Eric Summa, head of enforcement for the Army Corps' office in Jacksonville.

Summa's office had considered fining the mall developers $27,500 for the fall's pollution problems. But in light of January's repeat of the same problem in the same location, that fine is being re-examined, Summa said.

Summa said his office won't consider lifting the suspension until it sees plans for preventing future runoff.

"We'll either reinstate or we'll revoke the permit based on their information," Summa said.

Reporter Kevin Wiatrowski can be reached at (813) 948-4201 or kwiatrowski@tampatrib.com.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT