RV Park Looks to Call Rubonia Home

BRADENTON -- At Thursday's Planning Commission meeting, commissioners recommended approval for the proposed McMullen Creek RV Park to be located on Bayshore Road and 61st Street East (Palm View Road). If approved, the rezoning of the 92-acre tract will support 320 park trailer units and 252 recreational vehicle sites. The project is already surrounded by RV parks, and once completed, the Rubonia area will have more RVs than any part of Manatee County.   

The Strictland House

Rubonia has struggled over the years. Residents showed up at Thursday's meeting, not to contest the project, but to make sure some of the development-related mistakes made in the past aren't repeated.

Morris Goff came to speak for Rubonia resident Charles Miller, who recently had surgery, making it hard to talk. Goff told the commission that most of the flooding problems Rubonia has to deal with can be traced back to the 1960's when development pushed through U.S. 41, damming the water flow.

Goff and the other residents were there to insure the proposed project didn't add to anymore problems with flooding. Staff reassured residents that that wouldn't happen, and said they would revisit the area with their concerns in mind.

The project sits on the south side of McMullen Creek, on the north tip of Terra Ceia Bay, with Rubonia to the north of it. High water is in their history. The park is bordered by railroad tracks to the east and Bayshore Road to the west, and a 30-acre lake for fishing and rowboat recreation.

Another concern was brought up by Cathy Slusser, from Manatee's Historical Society. She spoke in regards to the fate of a Mediterranean styled house, built in 1922, that sits on the project's property. The applicant couldn't promise the structurally-challenged historical house (known as the Strickland House) could be saved, but that they would certainly investigate the possibility. 

Slusser attended the meeting with archaeologist Bill Burger, and both spoke to the commission about the historical significance the building might play in Manatee's past. They suggested the applicant try and save the structure by incorporating it into the plan of the park.

Rubonia residents said they were pleased with the proposed park and the possibility it will bring some economic stimulus to their community.