Safety Harbor Fights For Apartment Complex

PinellasSafeHouse_Apartment_2013Expect the fight over building a controversial apartment complex on the edge of Safety Harbor to heat up again now that a judge has recommended the project be approved.

In May, Pinellas County commissioners unanimously shot down a needed zoning change for the Richman Group to turn a 34-acre swath of industrial land into a 246-unit apartment complex with 25,000 square feet of office space.

The West Palm Beach developer’s plans to develop the property at McMullen-Booth Road and State Road 590, owned by fragrance manufacturer Firmenich, have drawn considerable opposition from neighbors and sparked a heated debate in town.

The Safety Harbor City Commission approved the proposal in February, to the chagrin of dozens of residents in the area skirting the site, who fear traffic and bad tenants might hurt their quality of life. Those residents staged vocal protests and packed City Hall hearings to fight the plan.

Source: TBO