Firmenich Saga Isn't Over Yet

Attorneys for the prospective developer of the Firmenich property filed a petition Tuesday asking for an administrative hearing to be held in the wake of the county's decision to deny a potential residential development be built on the Safety Harbor site.

The petition, which was filed by attorney Gina K. Grimes of the firm Hill Ward & Henderson, was hand delivered late Tuesday to the affected parties, including the Pinellas County Board of County Commissioners, the Pinellas Planning Authority and the Pinellas County Attorney's Office.

The application states the petitioner, the Richman Group of Florida, is requesting an evidentiary, de novo hearing with the commissioners in their capacity as the Countywide Planning Authority.

The filing states the reason for the hearing request is due to the fact that when the development application came before the CPA at a public hearing on May 7, 2013, "nonwithstanding the various recommendations of approval, at the conclusion of the hearing, the CPA denied the Safety Harbor Application/Comp Plan Amendment."

According to the document, the petitioner has "expended a substantial amount of money for survey, environmental, engineering, planning and consulting fees and costs ... and will directly suffer economic injury if the CPA Denial is not reversed."

The filing contains a list of "disputed issues of material facts," including:

• the petitioner's plan met all of the necessary criteria for approval and should have been approved
• there were contradictory statements/opinions concerning transportation
• it was mistakenly stated there has been a net loss of industrial land in Pinellas County over the past several years. Since 2006 the CPA has approved and both increases and decreases in industrial land, resulting in an overall gain of 80 acres of industrial land

A list of "specific facts petitioner contends warrant reversal of the CPA's decision" contains the following:

• the property is not an appropriate location for industrial land uses
• the proposed development will not have a detrimental affect on property values in the area
• there is no provision in the countywide rules or countywide plan which prohibits the conversion of industrial land
• since the adoption of Resolution No. 06-55 in 2006, the CPA has approved 16 applications for countywide comprehensive plan amendments, all of which converted industrial lands to other uses

According to the filing, the Richman Group is asking the BCC to reverse its decision made on May 7.

When contacted for comment, Safety Harbor Mayor Joe Ayoub had this to say about the Richman Group's decision to appeal the ruling:

"I think it's important that we respect the process and no matter what the outcome, we need to either put the issue behind us or work together to create a plan for the property that is reflective of the vision of our community."

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