S19 Appeal Update

S-19 Project Update (1/11/23) BCC Denied 1/11/22; BCC Approved 10/11/22; Citizen Appealed 11/10/22; BCC 12/10/22 Response Overdue; Court Finds Basis for Relief 1/9/22; BCC Ordered to Respond by 3/23/23 On 11/10/22 local resident Patrick Mullen filed an Appeal of the 10/11/22 BCC decision to allow SD, LLC to emplace 320 apartments, over 800 residents and their 700 vehicles next to the busy Sam’s Club store, car wash and gas station surrounded by the already overwhelmed SR56/581/Ancient Oaks/Summergate/Amberside/Cashford/Guards roads and intersections. The goal of the Appeal/Relief requested (Case # 2022CA002963) is to return S-19 to retail/office use for the completion of the Seven Oaks Plaza shopping center as intended. Federal and State Appellate law required the County Response to the Appeal be submitted to Judge Daniel Diskey by 12/10/22. Instead, on 12/07/22 the County requested that [the developer] SD Wesley Chapel, LLC be added to the case as an “Interested Party” and submitted a Motion requesting an extension to file the Response on 1/31/23. The Appellant submitted a Motion requesting that if a Response extension was granted, SD would be prohibited from performing any work on S-19 and that no restrictions would be placed on the BCC with regard to this case. On 1/9/23 Judge Diskey issued an Order to Show Cause. It indicated that the Appeal had merit stating it “demonstrates a preliminary basis for relief.” As a result, it ordered the County to file a Response within 45 days “to show cause why relief should not be granted.” And, it offered the Appellant 30 days thereafter to file a Reply to the Response. The Appellant has established a GoFundMe site to help offset Court costs and Case expenses. Contributions can be made online at https://gofund.me/0678133f or by check to Patrick T. Mullen; 2653 Bruce B. Downs Blvd.; P.O. Box #108-PMB138 Wesley Chapel, FL 33544.                                                                                                                                                                        Background On 1/11/22 Stock Development (a.k.a., SD, LLC) asked the Pasco Board of County Commissioners (BCC) to rezone the property next to the Seven Oaks Sam's Club store (a.k.a., S-19) from retail/office to mixed-useapartments. Originally intended for a bank and a WalMart Grocery store, the property lay fallow for years despite its ideal location and multiple realtors/suitors. As evidenced in the sale of S-19 to SD, WalMart’s deed restrictions may have played a role. WalMart retained all sub-surface rights, forbade any Sam’s Club competition there and specified the construction of 300 apartments [a.k.a., 1000 customers] on the Commercial-zoned property and required their approval of all development plans. SD purchased S-19 to build 320 apartments for over 800 residents and their 700 vehicles. Incensed Wesley Chapel citizens wrote letters, called Commissioners, attended meetings, presented legal evidence and dedicated many hours to defeat the proposal. The project was considered a dense-packed traffic hazard unsafe for pedestrians, children, pets, bicycles and local/passing vehicles that would cost the County more to service than it would contribute in taxes. The BCC voted 3-2 to Deny the request (Oakley, Mariano & Moore for; Starkey & Fitzpatrick against). Commissioner Oakley even added that the lot was too small, with too many vehicles and insufficient parking, parks and open space. On 2/9/22 the developer requested Mediation. Unable to sway the community, Mediation ended on 9/9/22. With the election of 2 Commissioners looming, on 10/11/22 the developer presented a virtually identical proposal except it promised to pay any County legal expenses if their proposal was approved, then challenged. The BCC voted 3-2 to approve the proposal (Starkey, Fitzpatrick and [now] Oakley for; Mariano and Moore against). That left only one avenue to preserve the definition of the Master Planned Unit Development, the Comprehensive Plan and Seven Oaks community -filing an appeal with the courts.                                                                                                                           On 1/10/23 a local resident presented a Request to Rescind Resolution 2309RZ to the BCC. There was no discussion or vote, only the County Attorney stating that “time for reconsideration of that item has long since passed.” Pasco citizens should not be subjected to the County’s ongoing disregard of the Land Development Code, Master Planned Unit Development, Comprehensive Plan and State and Federal law. Nor to an unsafe, developer-directed, spot zoning, dense-pack, planning/development Vision we do not share. Remember, “Development is a privilege” not a right. (Trent Meredith, Inc. vs. City of Oxnard, 114 CAL. App. 3d 317 (1981)). To see the citizens’ opposition presentation, go to: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1drW92kTV384A8RwzrEJkp7Ut inDRjZih/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=112181778460629012665&rtpof=true&sd =true To see the Appeal, go to: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1dsjpNfAN5Ghm276tsZlyQ6fFDdifLSO/view?usp=sharing To see the S-19 Deed, go to: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1duHuLZ2jBDHZsDW-5enOqWX0Fkpf9QD/view?usp=sharing To see the Order to Show Cause, go to: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1gYKJPSgYXuc43GoTCfMLbRLgBHREQmh/view?usp=sharing Patrick T. Mullen CIO/CFO/EXO/ENG/GEO/PMP (Ret.) 571-216-2494