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Development wild cards dealt

A pharmacy and a restaurant leave Citrus Park. How their replacements will fit into streetscape plans is unclear.

By JOSH ZIMMER
Published May 13, 2005

CITRUS PARK - They came and went like sloppy guests.

That's a widespread feeling here about a pair of corporate-America giants who closed down cookie-cutter stores that many in Citrus Park never wanted in the first place: the Eckerd Drugs at Sheldon and Ehrlich roads, which CVS vacated after acquiring the chain last summer; and a KFC next door, which closed about a month ago.

"Big business coming in doing what they damn well please," resident Grant Walters said. "They're just leaving the carcass behind."

The highly visible properties are closely tied with the Citrus Park Community Plan, a blueprint for development that grew out of several rancorous years of debate. The process was bogged down in disagreements when the stores arrived. However, the fear of faceless corporate commercialism became a rallying cry for compromise.

The plan created a long list of zoning districts, often calling for a multistory mix of homes and streetfront businesses. The goal is to create a homey village feel, not unlike West Park Village or Hyde Park, where people can live and work.

The two parcels are two important aspects of any future streetscape that unfolds. Now there are concerns about what might replace the former corporate neighbors.

The biggest question surrounds the former Eckerd. The project generated bad feelings when Eckerd cut down many old oak trees to make room for its boxlike building across from Sickles High School. That frustration paled next to the anger that ensued when Eckerd applied for "wet zone" status with Hillsborough County so it could sell beer and wine.

A group of residents challenged Eckerd, spending months in 2002 and 2003 fighting the company's application for a waiver that would allow it to sell beer and wine within 500 feet of a school. After several appearances before a county land use hearing officer and the county land use appeals board, residents lost their battle.

Now they wonder whether the next business at that site will want alcohol sales, too. In Hillsborough, wet zone status remains at the site where it took effect. Walters and others hope beer and wine at that location are a thing of the past, especially considering the availability of alcohol at the Publix and the Louis Pappas Market Cafe across the street on the north side of Ehrlich.

Developers haven't broken ground on new projects. But people involved in Citrus Park real estate say the market is booming in anticipation of future construction - and that the activity includes the Eckerd building and the fast-food site. It raises the possibility that critics could get some satisfaction in the end.

RMC Property Group president Michael Leeds, whose company was hired to find a new tenant for the location, would not comment on CVS's plans. However, local real estate agent Myra Snider, who represents various landowners throughout Citrus Park but not the owners of the Eckerd property, said the property is under contract.

Although she wouldn't divulge any details about the developer, she said she thinks the building will eventually come down. She said there are a handful of other developers "standing in line" to reshape the property if this deal falls through.

"I think you'll see that entire area changing in that quadrant," she said.

As for the fast-food site, the phone has been busy ringing with queries about the property, said Colliers Arnold real estate broker Jim Roberts. The property is going for $1.25-million. He predicts it will sell within 90 days.

"We're awash in offers," from food vendors such as breakfast joints, delis, coffee stores and smoothie makers, he said. Other bidders include people eager for office space or a dry cleaner.

After hearing about the range of potential businesses, Walters softened his criticisms. A dry cleaner or an office tenant would be good, he said.

Josh Zimmer covers the County Commission, Citrus Park, Keystone and Odessa. He can be reached at 813 269-5314 or zimmer@sptimes.com

[Last modified May 12, 2005, 00:28:09]