Pasco planners advance tree-preservation code rewrite as builders press for phased fees

Planning Department staff told the Pasco County Planning Commission on July 24 that the county will pursue two related but distinct actions to strengthen tree canopy protections: a land development code amendment updating preservation and mitigation standards, and a separate change in how mitigation fees are adopted and used. The discussion mattered because county staff and the Board of County Commissioners say current fees have not been updated in years and are insufficient to fund canopy-protection programs, while builders say an immediate fee increase could make many projects financially infeasible. David Engel, planning and economic growth director, described ongoing negotiations with the Tampa Bay Builders Association and said the development community sought grandfathering, an acreage cap on mitigation fees and a phased-in schedule. "They…