DOVER, Fla. — A former phosphate mine and waste dumping ground in Dover is causing a stir in the nearby community—as its two owners are looking to develop the land.
Those who own the eastern part of this land, Turkey Creek Preserve LLC, have asked Hillsborough County to change the rules around what they can build first.
And those who own the western chunk of land, University Energy Park (UEP) LLC, have requested to put homes on the land.
That second request was the subject of a recent round of community meetings.
Those who live close to the land raised concerns because a section of the land is designated as a Superfund site. There are also worries about traffic and wildlife impact—and fears the proposal won't fulfill a county requirement for renewable energy to be produced on that land.
ABC Action News took those concerns directly to an attorney representing UEP LLC, Jake Cremer.
Related:
- Development plans for former Dover phosphate mine met with mixed feelings
- Landowner responds to pushback on request to build homes on former phosphate mine
He told us they have a plan for animals.
"We're going to incorporate wildlife crossing into the residences," he said
And another one for renewable energy production.
"Could we put solar on rooftops? Or is it better to, for some reason, have a solar farm or a solar tree built into this development?" he said.
When it comes to contaminants—in February the EPA told ABC Action News that they test a section of the land every 5 years.
And added that while there are restrictions in place for using groundwater from some parts of the land, a 2010 study showed that the soil "did not pose health concerns" because of "cleanup efforts" that were done.
When we asked Cremer about that concern, he said the proposal pushes the homes to the outskirts of the property as an extra precaution.
"The residential that we're proposing is further away from the closest residential to the Superfund site today," he said.
But there are answers that didn't satisfy everyone at a community meeting Tuesday.
One woman said she wants more testing for more contaminants.
"What would quell my fears is not that we stop the development there but to pause," said Renee Maddison.
And a man we spoke to said he'd like to see the plan scrapped altogether.
"Putting solar panels on people's roofs does not supply the county with energy," said George Niemann. "If they don't want to follow the county's well thought out land they should sell their land and there'll be another supplier that will come in and supply the energy."
Tuesday's meeting was the second of two community meetings that UEP LLC held on the topic.
That said, the process doesn't end there.
Cremer told ABC Action News they're now going to have to go through a series of hearings with the Hillsborough County Planning Commission and then, ultimately, with the Board of County Commissioners before they get a final decision on whether or not they can put homes on this land.
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