Richard Baker: County faces test at misplaced Liberty Park

Saturday, May 10, 2008

The proposed Liberty Park development at 66th Avenue and County Road 510 is the second time this year that the public discovered that our county’s zoning regulations have huge loopholes. Developers latch on to these loopholes, but citizens only learn about them when the developments are scheduled for final approvals.

In January, homeowners on 82nd Avenue learned that adjacent agriculture land could become the Wild Turkey Sand Mine. Now, for the second time, we learn that a development that has only 12 percent of the property inside the urban service boundary can build 991 homes on 452 acres owned outside that boundary line (zoned agriculture, with one house per five acres), while putting the retention ponds and parks inside the boundary. The boundary line establishes where our county is required to provide water and sewers.

This ag land grew some of our county’s finest citrus. The destruction of this property will result in a loss of local produce, leading to more imports. Yet little thought is given to protecting exceptional agricultural lands as we do for environmental lands.

The loophole these developers are taking advantage of is in acquiring land that straddles the urban service line. The developers include a planning device called a “density transfer,” which allows a developer to build homes in excess in one area when the density is “offset” by setting aside some open space elsewhere in the county.

Contrary to the purpose of density transfers, these developers propose moving density from inside the boundary area to outside the zone. This is backwards and the opposite of good planning.

Elsewhere, where sprawl is contained more successfully (and agriculture is preserved as a valuable part of the community landscape), density is moved from outside to inside the boundary. Keeping density, and new towns, inside the urban service area is the key to containing unbridled sprawl. Better planning would require all these green-space requirements to be met on that portion of the project that lies outside the boundary.

Certainly, it is hard to see any justification for additional housing, as many approved developments and existing homes lie vacant in the county.

There are other issues this development would impose on taxpayers:

• New sources of drinking water are needed now for houses already approved within the urban service area. All alternatives (reservoirs, desalination of ocean water or drilling deeper into the aquifer) will be a major expense with serious environmental consequences.

• U.S. 1, County Road 510 and 66th Avenue, among others in the immediate area, already require upgrading to handle traffic without an additional 991 homes.

Our county commissioners have the discretion to approve, reject or modify the proposed project. They should:

1. Direct the planning staff to establish better guidelines for transferring development rights within the urban service area.

2. Direct staff to review all zoning regulations for loopholes such as this one.

3. Reject Liberty Park, as it sets a dangerous precedent for unwanted and unneeded development outside our boundary area that burdens our natural resources and taxpayers.

During their election campaigns, commission candidates professed: “I will never vote to approve a subdivision outside the urban service boundary!” Now we have a test to see if Sandra Bowden, Wesley Davis, Joe Flescher, Peter O’Bryan and Gary Wheeler will honor their words. �

Baker is president of Pelican Island Audubon and a member of the county Planning and Zoning Commission.

CONTACT

�Urge county commissioners to stick to their commitment on the urban service line by voting “no” on Liberty Park. Call them at 567-8000, ext. 1490 and/or e-mail them:�

Sandra Bowden : sbowden@ircgov.com�

Wesley Davis: wdavis@ircgov.com

Joe Flescher: jflescher@ircgov.com

Peter O’Bryan: pobryan@ircgov.com �

Gary Wheeler: gwheeler@ircgov.com �