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Coronet Land Rezoned

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By RAY REYES, The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 16, 2008

PLANT CITY - Commissioners unanimously approved rezoning 1,367 acres adjacent to the demolished Coronet phosphate plant to allow for an industrial development after a public hearing that drew no opposition from residents. The property was once set to become the city's largest housing development.

Even with little fanfare surrounding Monday's vote, Mayor Rick Lott said it was a "monumental" decision for the city. He called it "one of the most important decisions the commission has made in a long time."

The rezoning paves the way for a proposed industrial park at the site south of U.S. 92 and east of Park Road. Steven Schafer, president of Michigan-based Schafer Development, said the project will feature a mix of light industry, warehouse distribution centers, retail stores, recreational fields and workforce housing.
Schafer said he is in talks with several Fortune 500 companies that have expressed interest in having operations in Plant City.

"That's going to have a huge impact, from development to job creation," Lott said. "It's going to generate a lot of jobs for the community, a lot of good-paying jobs."

At its maximum build-out, the industrial park would be worth about $800 million, providing a huge tax base for Plant City, Schafer said.

The rezoning approved Monday allows industrial development for up to 85 percent of the site, a planning and zoning staff report said.

"We have a lot of confidence in your vision," Lott told Schafer after the vote.

Before the commission's vote Monday, the property was slated to become Lakeside Station, a proposed 2,600-home subdivision that would have been bigger than Walden Lake.

Sunrise Homes, the developer of Lakeside Station, has abandoned the project, and Schafer said he is working out a deal with the residential builder to buy the 1,367 acres.

The downturn in the housing market and the "sheer scale" of the subdivision were factors in the decision against developing Lakeside Station, Sunrise Homes spokesman Bob Appleyard has said.
Schafer is also seeking a special designation for the land through Florida's Brownfields Redevelopment Act. The state statute describes brownfields as land that "may be complicated by actual or perceived environmental contamination." The designation would give Schafer liability protection while offering incentives to attract companies to build and create jobs on brownfield sites.

The site includes phosphate land, but Schafer said he does not think the soil is contaminated. A landfill on the property last used in the 1960s would be capped, and recreational fields would likely be built on top of it, Schafer said.

The final public hearing on the land's brownfields designation will be held at 6 p.m. Feb. 25 in the Trinkle Center at the Plant City campus of Hillsborough Community College, 1206 N. Park Road.

Reporter Ray Reyes can be reached at (813) 865-4433 or rreyes@tampatrib.com.

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