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Planning commission backs Clearview Estates text amendment to allow more commercial space
Summary
The Citrus County Planning and Development Commission voted Aug. 6 to recommend a text amendment that would raise allowable commercial square footage in the Clearview Estates DRI from 450,000 commercial/100,000 office (550,000 total) to 808,600 square feet, keeping existing nonresidential boundaries. The commission forwarded the recommendation to the Board of County Commissioners with standard buffering and access conditions.
The Planning and Development Commission recommended approval of an amendment to the Clearview Estates development of regional impact that would increase nonresidential commercial square footage across the DRI to 808,600 square feet.
Eric Abel, vice president of Citrus Hills Investment Properties LLC, told commissioners the request reflects decades of population growth and the need for modern commercial services, saying, “By this application, we're requesting to increase the square footage of commercial uses in this Clearview DRI by 358,600 square feet, bringing the DRI total to 808,600 square feet.” Staff and the applicant emphasized the amendment is a text change only: no map amendments, no new access points and all development must meet the county’s Land Development Code (LDC) buffering and setback standards.
Resident speakers during the public comment period raised concerns about buffering between the commercial sites and nearby Belmont Hills, private‑gate access and which parcel numbers apply to the plat. Joanna Katu, Deputy Director of Growth Management, told the commission that the parcels in question have been designated nonresidential since 1978 and that any additional access points would require separate review and Board approval. Staff also noted that although the DRI originated under older statutes, contemporary LDC and FDOT access management standards apply to permitting and any future construction.
The commission's recommendation will go to the Board of County Commissioners on Sept. 8 in Inverness. Staff said applicants still must meet buffering, cross‑access and stormwater requirements during permitting; the staff report appended standard conditions and noted no changes to access points are approved by this text amendment.
