Commission approves zoning change for Kersey/Winchester site after neighbors challenge lot sizes and flooding protections

The Pinellas County Commission on April 22 approved a future‑land‑use amendment and a companion zoning change covering two adjoining properties at 2281 Kersey Road and 1736 Winchester Road in unincorporated Largo, NVote 6–1. The approval includes a conditional overlay that limits the maximum number of lots to 11 and establishes development standards the board adopted on the floor, including a minimum lot width requirement.

Lede/nut graf: The request combined a 1.02‑acre parcel on Kersey Road (rezoned from residential suburban to residential low) with an adjacent 2.18‑acre parcel on Winchester Road to allow a single‑family subdivision. County staff and the local planning agency found the requested land‑use and zoning changes consistent with the comprehensive plan; neighbors opposed the plan citing flooding, privacy and traffic concerns.

What the board approved

- Land use: Approved change of the Kersey Road parcel from Residential Suburban to Residential Low. - Zoning: Approved rezoning the two parcels to R‑3 with a conditional overlay limiting the subdivision to a maximum of 11 lots, retaining 15‑foot rear and 11‑foot side setbacks, and adding a minimum lot width of 70 feet as adopted on the floor. - Vote: Land‑use vote passed 6–1; zoning with the conditional overlay passed 6–1 after the board amended the conditional overlay on the floor to add a 70‑foot minimum lot width.

Why the measure drew public comment

Neighbors who live on adjacent Lawton Drive and in the immediate area urged the board to preserve larger lots and to require a substantial landscape buffer because parts of the neighborhood have experienced standing water and episodic flooding during recent storm events. Several residents presented photographs they said showed water in backyards after last year’s storms and argued additional lots and driveways would add impervious surface and intensify drainage problems. A number of residents also said the existing dirt section of Winchester Road already channels traffic onto Lawton Drive near an elementary school; they opposed any plan that would increase traffic through that narrow neighborhood street.

Applicant’s case and staff review

Applicant Dushant Gulati told the board he had purchased the adjoining parcel in part to create an access option to Kersey Road and to reduce cut‑through traffic on Winchester Road. County planning staff and the applicant’s engineers said stormwater controls required by county code and by the stormwater manual must be designed and approved at site‑plan review. The public record includes a traffic analysis that concluded the proposed subdivision would generate a small number of new peak‑hour trips and would not degrade the level of…