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Board amends conditions, allows Keel Farms weekday parking and eases paving requirement
Summary
Hillsborough County commissioners amended conditions to let Keel Farms use its southern lot daily and agreed to remove a hard‑surface paving requirement, citing support for agritourism and operational needs.
The Board approved a modification to the Keel Farms planned development that allows the southern parking lot to be used Monday through Sunday and amended transportation conditions to avoid requiring hardened asphalt paving for the lot.
Victoria Rosenbecker (Real Estate Services) introduced PRS 26‑0612, explaining the application’s request to convert weekend‑only overflow parking to daily use and to remove several transportation conditions imposed last year. Applicant counsel Colin Rice and traffic consultant Michael Yates presented parking counts and turning movement studies showing the southern lot could accommodate weekday parking and did not warrant additional turn lanes. Owner Clay Keel described the farm’s 45‑year history, agritourism operations and employment of more than 100 local workers, asking the board to remove operational constraints that he said were infeasible for a family farm.
Commissioners debated imposing urban‑level improvements in rural settings. Several commissioners said they wanted to avoid forcing small farms out of the county with unnecessary paving requirements. The applicant agreed to a clarification in the record that, if the board approved, conditions would be added to preserve existing surface conditions rather than requiring blacktop.
The board approved the modification and the amendment removing the hardened asphalt requirement; the vote was recorded as 7–0. Staff will add the clarified condition in the approval language.
