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Place Of Harmony Now Source Of Dissent

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BY B.C. MANION, The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 3, 2008

LUTZ - Meticulous care is being taken at Bethany Center to create a place for spiritual retreat and reflection, on a 200-acre plot tucked behind a neighborhood off Van Dyke Road.

Archbishop John Clement Favalora Hall - which opened in April - has rocking chairs on the porch to welcome visitors, and religious art on interior walls helps to set a tone for the center's quest to promote spiritual growth and discovery.

The 18,500-square-foot conference hall, at 18150 Bethany Center Drive, is the centerpiece of a development by the Catholic Diocese of St. Petersburg that by spring will include a youth center, two bunkhouses, five cottages and a 250-seat chapel.

The retreat center is designed to handle small- to medium-sized events, said Dan Allen, its operations manager.

The focus is to serve the needs of the diocese, which includes Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, Hernando and Citrus counties, Allen said.

Gatherings will include workshops and seminars, days of reflection, team building, staff development, marriage preparation and enrichment weekends, educational programs, corporate banquets and business retreats.

Currently, only the conference center is open. It features a large meeting space that also can be used for banquets. It also has a smaller dining room, break-out rooms, a commercial-grade kitchen and offices.

The property - which has two lakes and more than 100 acres of wetlands - sits well back from Van Dyke Road, offering a sense of tranquility.

Nature is in its glory here: Sunshine shimmers on a spider web stretching between two cattails. An eagle circles overhead. Two sandhill cranes, without a seeming care in the world, meander lazily.

It's the perfect spot for people to gather - from the diocese, business and private groups - to reflect, to brainstorm, to build teams, Allen said.

'Rowdy Events' Unlikely

But as activities pick up at Bethany Center, some neighbors worry about losing the serenity that they have enjoyed in their Reflections subdivision.

The subdivision of 224 bungalow-style homes relies on Lake Reflections Boulevard as its single entrance and exit.

So does Bethany Center.

That bothers several neighbors who live closest to the retreat complex. It's an issue of scale, said Bill Panian, of 5108 Pheasant Woods Drive.

"If it's a 20- to 30-person retreat, it's no big deal," Panian said.

But, he added, "This road isn't built for 200 to 300 cars going through there."

Some neighbors are worried about the center becoming a popular spot for weddings and wedding receptions. They also voiced concerns about alcohol being served there.

Allen said the center won't be holding weddings or wedding receptions.

Roy Leonard, of 5110 Pheasant Woods Drive, is skeptical. "Things change," he said.

Steve Zientek, manager of real estate and planning for the diocese, said that the center is unlikely to host wild parties.

"It's a place for spiritual renewal," Zientek said. "We're certainly not going to have rowdy events."

Zientek noted there is limited parking, so hundreds of cars won't be arriving or leaving at the same time.

The center has 84 regular parking spaces, three disabled spaces and 77 spots on the grass, Allen said.

If there are especially large events, or if traffic problems develop, remote parking is an option, Zientek said.

Neighbors Say They Weren't Told

Some neighbors are upset because they were caught by surprise by the retreat center.

Ronnie Leighty, of 5122 Pheasant Woods Drive, feels deceived.

"We were not informed at the time of the purchase of our home in 2004 of the retreat center," Leighty said.

"Only a year later after attending St. Timothy's Catholic Church, did we learn of the construction," Leighty said.

At that time, they were told the center would be a place for priests to retreat from their daily routines, Leighty said.

While neighbors to the project may have been surprised, the diocese purchased the property in May 2001, before the adjoining neighborhood was built, Zientek said. It obtained zoning approval in January 2002.

Still, some neighbors are pushing for the diocese to find a way to get people in and out of the retreat center without sending cars past their homes.

Mark Herwagen, of 5124 Pheasant Woods Drive, suggested the diocese create an alternative entrance by extending Ramblewood Road, which begins at Van Dyke Road and ends near a wastewater treatment plant behind Bethany Center.

The road runs past the Brooker Creek Headwaters Nature Preserve, past the back entrance to Cheval and behind the Lake Carlton Arms apartments.

The diocese considered that option, but deemed it unworkable, Zientek said.

"It would have been a lovely, serene entrance," he said.

But it wouldn't work because the title work revealed it would require striking deals with about 50 property owners, he said.

Beyond the difficulty of working out an affordable deal, there also was the prospect of holdouts because some people would object to more traffic going by their homes, Zientek said.

Even if those obstacles could have been overcome, crossing the wetlands on the Bethany Center property may have posed other problems, Zientek said.

He doesn't expect the problems that neighbors fear to develop.

"I think they will find us to be very acceptable neighbors. That just has to be experienced," Zientek said.

Reporter B.C Manion can be reached at (813) 865-1507 or bmanion @tampatrib.com.

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