What to know in Manatee: Multifamily housing denied in Tara, housing in Palmetto approved
Manatee County commissioners denied a heavily opposed multifamily housing project proposed for the Tara neighborhood during a public land use meeting on Thursday.
County commissioners also approved plans for a new park in Parrish, denied a proposal for new homes in Parrish, approved a new mixed-use development in Palmetto, modified plans for the Gateway Commons retail center in Palmetto, and approved the creation of a new development district to accommodate construction of new homes.
Also in Manatee: Manatee County tries to figure out how to adjust to almost 70,000 more people by 2035
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Multifamily housing proposal in Tara denied
Commissioners denied a controversial multifamily housing proposal within the Tara Development of Regional Impact with two split votes.
Commissioners Kevin Van Ostenbridge, Jason Bearden and Ray Turner voted against the project, which received significant pushback from over a dozen Tara residents who spoke during public comment at a public land use meeting on Thursday.
The 1,124-acre Tara DRI is located on the southwest corner of the SR70 and I-75 intersection. The Tara DRI was already approved to contain 2,719 residential units and 399,631 square feet of commercial, office, adult assisted living or mini warehouse space. It also includes a 36-hole golf course, a hotel, two clubhouses and two maintenance centers.
Thursday's proposal sought to convert just under 6 acres of land planned for commercial purposes to instead accommodate 72 multi-family units.
Residents who spoke against the project raised concern about changes to the DRI at a late stage of development, said commercial aspects of the project are likely to benefit the surrounding community, and claimed the type of commercial establishments likely to inhabit the space might create less traffic congestion than multifamily housing.
"The issue here is whether or not a preliminary site plan is necessary," said Robert Lincoln, who spoke Thursday on behalf of the Tara Master Association.
"That was the master plan going back to the 1980s when this was first approved, and that's why we feel it's inappropriate to change the use from commercial to multifamily residential at this late stage of the game," he said.
Commissioners split two votes on the matter with differing opinions on the potential impact a change from commercial to residential use of the land could have on the community and surrounding thoroughfares.
New county park in the works in Parrish
Commissioners approved a general development plan for the recreational 190.89-acre Hidden Harbor Park. It is located at 1626 Ft. Hamer Road, Parrish, and will include passive, low intensity, recreational uses and multi-use buildings.
Proposed recreational facilities include pavilions, a playground, a skate park and pump track, sand volleyball courts, trail, a kayak launch and a boat ramp parking area.
The Oaks at Rutland Ranch development denied
Commissioners denied a change in zoning for 53 acres of land in Parrish to accommodate the construction of 108 single-family homes.
The project is known as The Oaks at Rutland Ranch and is located at 15816 CR 675. Thursday's unanimous vote denied a change in zoning for the property from an agriculture suburban classification to the planned development residential zoning district. The change was requested by the Oak Development Group, LLC.
The property would be developed at just over two units per acre and provide 27 acres of open space. However, commissioners expressed concern about the risk of flooding emergencies due to a lack of a secondary means of access to the property.
New mixed-use development headed to Palmetto area
County commissioners approved a change in zoning for 15.66 acres of land owned by EGTHS LLC in Palmetto.
The vote changes zoning for the property, located at 2703 36th Avenue East, from planned development-residential zoning to planned development-mixed use. The vote also approved a general development plan for the property that calls for a mixed-use residential project with up to 187 residential units and up to 150,000 square feet of commercial space.
Gateway Commons site plan in Palmetto modified
Commissioners amended a preliminary site plan for the Gateway Commons retail strip located at the southeast corner of the Buffalo Road and Moccasin Wallow Road intersection.
The property is anchored by the existing Publix. Changes increase the square footage of certain parcels and retail buildings and increase the number of out-parcel units from three to five. Those will accommodate a car wash, a fast food restaurant, a self-storage facility, and a retail restaurant that encapsulates the two remaining parcels.
New development district to facilitate construction of new homes
Commissioners approved the creation of the Paddocks Community Development District at the request of KB Homes Tampa LLC.
The Paddocks Community Development District encapsulates 85.92 acres of land located south of 37th Street East and west of 36th Avenue East.
The district is meant to provide public infrastructure, services and facilities to a master-planned residential development that is expected to contain about 264 residential units. The vote also grants a board to be established and grants its members special powers to manage district operations.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Manatee County denies a project in Tara, approves one in Palmetto
