Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Traffic And Access topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Commission continues US‑19/Pinehurst rezoning; asks for updated traffic and right‑of‑way proof
Summary
The board continued a proposed commercial rezoning near Pinehurst after neighbors and commissioners raised queuing, safety and frontage‑road access questions. Planning staff had required elimination of Pinehurst access and a north frontage connection; commissioners asked the applicant for an updated traffic study, Swiftmud permit clarifications and documentation of the north‑side right‑of‑way before returning the item to a future hearing.
A proposal to rezone a commercial parcel on US‑19 near Pinehurst was continued after weeks of debate focused on traffic safety, access and the availability of a frontage‑road connection to the north. Planning and the public packet had included a condition eliminating access onto Pinehurst and asking the developer to connect to a north frontage road; several commissioners and residents said the packet and the traffic analysis did not yet reflect the revised site plan and that the study the county had relied on assumed the Pinehurst connection.
County traffic staff and the applicant’s engineers discussed the technical hurdles: the north frontage connection requires addressing a short gap in the existing frontage‑road alignment and modifying a flood‑plain/drainage permit with the water‑management district. Developer counsel said there is a recorded dedication in the adjacent commercial plat and that engineering work shows the connection is feasible, but commissioners pressed for documentary proof and a new traffic study because queuing and collision risks at the nearby signal have been documented in a county road‑safety audit. Commissioner Loco said the hearing packet lacked the updated materials and urged caution: “we’re gonna hear the exact same people who were here the last two times,” he said, and asked for the applicant to return with DOT/Swiftmud confirmations and a fresh traffic analysis.
The board continued the item and instructed the applicant to submit an updated traffic study, material showing the north frontage right‑of‑way or agreements with the north property owner, and to cover costs for re‑advertising the hearing; the continuance will allow staff and DOT to analyze whether the revised plan can meet safety and spacing standards.
