Pasco commissioners approve taller apartment buildings, require public access through site for Deerbrook–Shady Hills connection

The Pasco County Board of County Commissioners on Feb. 25 approved a conditional use amendment allowing a previously approved multifamily development to increase building height from three to four stories and to include elevators, subject to conditions including a public access easement and county engineer sign‑off.

The change affects an approximately 18.65‑acre site located just north of State Road 52 near the Deerbrook/Shady Hills area. Planning staff said the site is already approved for multifamily dwellings in a C‑2 General Commercial District but that a 2005 conditional use permit capped building height at 35 feet. The applicant asked to remove that height cap and instead cap building height voluntarily at four stories.

Planning staff and the applicant told commissioners they had negotiated conditions intended to preserve neighborhood connectivity and reduce future public expense. Under the board’s approval, the developer must convey a public access easement across the project’s internal access way before certificate of occupancy for the first residential building; the internal access must remain open to automobile, bicycle and pedestrian traffic; and the project may not be gated. County staff and the applicant said the easement will allow residents and motorists to travel between Deerbrook and Shady Hills without cutting through existing subdivisions.

County engineer and staff said the applicant will also be required at site plan stage to construct a right‑turn deceleration lane and a left‑turn lane on Shady Hills Road to prevent backups on the major collector and to meet traffic capacity needs. Commissioners asked that final details of the internal access (width, parking configuration, sidewalks) be approved by the county engineer prior to final project sign‑off; the applicant agreed.

Several nearby residents spoke during public comment, saying they feared the project would generate cut‑through traffic through Deerfield Lakes and worried about wetlands impacts and school traffic. The developer and project counsel said the proposal keeps density below what the future‑land‑use category allows, that the project has been redesigned to reserve right‑of‑way for any future Vision Road alignment, and that the proposed easement would provide an immediate, developer‑built option for through‑traffic without the county having to acquire costly right‑of‑way or build the full Vision Road now.

The board’s approval included explicit conditions read into the record: the public access easement, non‑gated status, a voluntary four‑story height cap, required turning lanes on Shady Hills Road at site plan, and county‑engineer final approval of the internal access configuration (including pedestrian and bicycle accommodations). Commissioners said they expect to review site plans closely and that the county will retain the option to amend the Vision Road alignment through future plan updates.

The action clears the way for the developer to proceed to site plan stage with the stated requirements; commissioners said the conditions seek to balance neighborhood safety and county connectivity goals.

Ending — The board approved the amendment after debate and after the applicant agreed to the access and design conditions; commissioners emphasized that the county engineer’s later review would set the precise roadway and sidewalk details.