PARRISH – In September, Manatee County Commissioners voted 6-1 to transmit a text amendment of the county's comprehensive land-use plan to the state for comments. If passed, the amendment would have profound consequences, allowing for the transition of 5,000 acres of Parrish farmland into a future city comparable to Lakewood Ranch.

Back then, commissioners noted several times that they were "just voting on whether to transmit it to the state" and that it would still come back to the board for a vote. On Thursday, the amendment will return to the BOCC for that vote.

The Gamble Creek Village project would turn land currently zoned for 1,200 homes at one per every five acres, into 7,200 homes, plus plenty of commercial entitlements. As if that was not a big enough change to consider, the development site is also about two miles east of the Future Development Area Boundary.

As a master-planned community, the developers would most likely use CDDs to pay for internal roads and infrastructure, including a non-county-owned or operated sewage treatment plant. Non-public sewage treatment facilities do not have a great track record, particularly in Florida. At the September meeting, Commissioner Misty Servia (who cast the lone nay vote) expressed deep concerns that the county could be left taking over the cost of the treatment plant should it fail.

In their report, county staff noted that the proposal was not compatible with state statutes, specifically FS 163.3162, which deals with agricultural lands and practices. Florida laws hold agricultural land in high regard and, when addressing sprawl, prescribe that such developments should not "promote, allow, or designate significant amounts of urban development to occur in rural areas at substantial distances from existing urban areas while not using undeveloped (non-ag-zoned) lands that are available and suitable for development."

Former Manatee County Commissioner Betsy Benac, who served from 2012-2020, weighed in publicly on the matter via social media. A former county and private sector land use planner who was decidedly pro-growth, Benac nonetheless found plenty not to like.

"Approving millions of square ft of industrial, commercial and office development and a 'new town' even with the cute name of 'Agrihood' with no plans for water or sewer (the site is outside of the county’s service area) is a very bad plan," wrote Benac on Facebook. "Saying 'the developer cannot provide septic tanks' doesn’t solve the problem. Who’s going to pay for the libraries, the parks, the maintenance of the roads, the EMS, the hospitals, the fire protection? Lakewood Ranch had a plan, a funding mechanism, and capital to build a new community. This family-owned farm has none of these things–yet they have bought the commission."

The item is the only public hearing scheduled for Thursday's land use meeting, which takes place at 9 a.m. in the county commission chambers.

BOCC Should Exercise Much Greater Caution on Parrish Mega-Development