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Berry Hill Debate Nears End

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By KEVIN WIATROWSKI

The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 4, 2008

DADE CITY - The fate of Berry Hill, a controversial development proposed for land just west of Dade City, falls to Pasco County commissioners Tuesday after two lower county boards split on recommending the project.

The tie votes by planning commissioners and the Development Review Committee mean Berry Hill goes to commissioners with two strikes against it.

Commissioners will consider the proposal at 1:30 p.m. at the historic Pasco County Courthouse, 37918 Meridian Ave. in Dade City.

Developer Tracy Harris wants to put 266 homes on the 400-acre hillside tract across Blanton Road from Pasco-Hernando Community College.

In a deal with county planners, Harris agreed to preserve more than half the property, including a 100-foot buffer on the perimeter. He also agreed to build below the crest of the hill to preserve the view from Platt Road.

In return, planners would let Harris build quarter-acre lots at the bottom of the hill close to PHCC.

That decision provoked opposition from residents who see Berry Hill as a finger of suburbia jabbed into the heart of rural Pasco.

Opponents say the project defies the spirit of county rules aimed at protecting the rural region. Planners say the project is essentially a conservation subdivision, a land use designed to protect rural land from sprawl.

Harris has said if he can't win approval for his proposal, he'll go ahead under the existing zoning.

That could cover the hillside in 1-, 5- and 10-acre lots. That plan would produce 139 homes, which Harris' neighbors say they prefer.

Reporter Kevin Wiatrowski can be reached at (813) 948-4201 or

kwiatrowski@tampatrib.com.

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