CAO-26-5106

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1. 1Oct 21, 2025
   Board of County CommissionersRS3ProclamationAdopted

   Approved minutes

   Approved to adopt.

   Open this item →▶ Play from 45:22
   ▶ 45:2216m1/2

   Unidentified speakerVoice A

   45:22Resolution twenty-six-one six of resolution by the Board of County Commissioners of Pasco County, Florida, declaring the month of October 2025 as national community planning month in Pasco County. Whereas the month of October is designated as National Community Planning Month throughout the United States of America and its territories. And whereas the American Planning Association endorses National Community Planning Month as an opportunity to highlight how planning is essential to the future

   45:52of building sustainability. And equitable communities, whereas community planning provides an opportunity for all residents to be meaningfully involved in making choices that determine the future of their community. And whereas by the year 2050, the population of Pasco County is projected to grow by 323,000 residents. And whereas the Pasco County Planning, Development, and Economic Growth Department has created innovative strategies to build successful, meaningful, and economically

   46:23strategic places in the county that people can live, work, and play, doing so with major developments like Spiro's, Connected City, Central Pasco Employment Village. The gateway, double branch, and villages of Pasadena Hills, while maintaining more than one-third of the county's total land area as conserved open or green space. And whereas PASCO 2050 is a multi-year initiative to update the Pasco County Comprehensive Planet Plan, and

   46:53gratitude is extended to the community members and stakeholders that have participated in. Public workshops throughout the summer of 2025 in order for their input to be included in the county's vision for the next 25 years and beyond. And whereas the celebration of NAS National Community Planning Month gives Pasco County the opportunity to publicly recognize the participation and dedication of the members of the Planning Commission. contributions of the professional community and regional planners

   47:24and the passion of the citizen. Planners in the conjunction with the commitment of the Board of County Commissioners to improve Pasco County. Now, therefore, be it resolved by the Board of County Commissioners of Pasco County, Florida, that the Board hereby declares the month of October 2025 as the National Community Planning Month in Pasco County and calls upon all residents to join their fellow citizens across the United States in recognizing and participating in this special observance.

   47:55Done and resolved in regular session with a quorum present and voting this twenty first day of October 2025.

   StarkeyChair

   48:01Move poo.

   Unidentified speakerVoice A

   48:02Second.

   StarkeyChair

   48:03All in favor. Aye. Aye. And this is Commissioner Weightman.

   WeightmanSecond Vice Chair

   48:07Yes. With a few familiar faces. But some are

   StarkeyChair

   48:10missing. Kind

   WeightmanSecond Vice Chair

   48:11of judgment. We'll see them this afternoon. Maybe we should have done it at one thirty. No, uh Whether whether it's Pasco County or Municipality or anywhere in the state of Florida. The job that the planning team and the planning commissions have is an immense one. And, you know. I'd be you know, Chair Gray and Planning Commission can't thank you guys enough for volunteering your time. And uh we know some of those meetings

   48:41are fairly contentious and to work through, you know, citizen comments and working with staff and together collaborating before the items reach the board level. So thank you all for for your willingness to serve and and to the planning staff. You know, you you guys have a big job, especially in a county like ours, growing every day and working to vet which projects and the and the type of use is beneficial to our county while also, you know, having to to thread that needle on land Land

   49:12use issues and landowner rights in the state of Florida. And so, you know, I'm sure there's some fun days in your job and there's some rather challenging days in your jobs. But thank you. And of course to be remiss working through the comp plan. That's that's such a a huge project and uh Thank you for for taking time to go all across this county to engage our citizenry and take their input to help us formulate what our next twenty five years uh will potentially look like. So glad you all are here today and

   49:42uh proud to recognize you, Chair.

   StarkeyChair

   49:46Yep. Um well I think we all want to say something, David. So go ahead, Commissioner Oakley.

   Oakley

   49:51Yep. Um Chuck, thank you for many, many years of serving on the Planning Commission. Uh you've done a great job and uh it's it's been run the right way. David, thank you for coming in with your leadership and guidance for What I call the future of Pasco County that stands behind you that uh means very much to all of us. And the job they're doing is is phenomenal and it's getting better and better as we go. So thank you for that. Thank you, sir.

   Yeager

   50:21So when I think of you guys, your tagline should be planning with a purpose. Because I I really feel like you guys put a lot of thought. You're thinking ahead of how to make the project better. You're very picky. uh which I love. Uh you're designing what our county in the future is going to look like, what we don't want, what we do want. And I really see that in things. And you guys also look for quality development. And I I I can't say I I

   50:52appreciate you guys so much. So thank you for planning with a purpose.

   MarianoVice Chair

   50:57Thank you.

   Yeager

   50:57Commissioner.

   MarianoVice Chair

   50:58Well I tell you planning is so important. Thank you guys for picking that career. Um I want to encourage you in a couple of different ways. The the creativity that you can use to get What you think is the best project that's out there? Um, the strength that you might need to deal with some of these developers 'cause a lot of a lot of these guys are gonna come in, they're gonna give you the biggest heartburn issues they've got, put that in front of you, make you think when you take those heartburn issues away, which they don't care about, they're gonna try to get w get you a different way. You just need to know, especially with land use, you've got a lot of flexibility to make this

   51:28the best project as you can every step of the way. Uh we try to put ordinances for with working with you to bring them forward, but sometimes they don't still capsulate everything we need. You can't you can't write a law for everything, you can't put an ordinance for everything, but your creativity in trying to get the right stuff done. Done is so critically important. Uh Chuck, thank you for serving for all these years. You and the Planning Commission of all volunteers. Um, I remember we first got elected at the time the districts had their own appointments for the Planning Commission. So I hadn't met Chuck at the time, so I drove out to Dade City

   51:59to meet with him and they're appointing him as chairman. I go, Well I guess he's my appointee. And you've done a done a great job leading every step of the way. Uh David Uh your stepping in with your leadership, helping this team go and and and really focus on some great things has been absolutely phenomenal. Uh greatly, greatly appreciate everything everything you're doing. And David Allen. Um What you're what you're doing to help put this great team together and keep it together has been phenomenal. So keep up the great work too.

   StarkeyChair

   52:26And and I um wanna thank you all. Um and I I echo some of my commissioners' words, stand tough. We we know. We know that you are getting uh pushed to go in a direction that maybe we don't want to go here in this county. And we are behind you. We are behind you. And um I and I I'll let you speak too. And um, you know, I listened to all the planning commission meetings. I'm they're they're a little shorter right now. I don't know what's going on there. I've even listened to a few of your workshops. Um

   52:58Although there's i there is one planning commissioner that does lengthen them a lot, but uh

   53:04Jack, I'm gonna go over Robert School's aborta with you. How much time you're really allowed to speak, right? But um Uh and you know, to to the Planning Commission and I think we just have you here today. Oh my gosh. I am so grateful to those guys. They don't get paid for what they do. And and they're giving up billable hours to uh to serve there. I mean they could It's I'm just really grateful and um And I definitely want you to speak and I definitely want you to say how many

   53:34years you've been chair. And I just appreciate all of you. I think we've come a long way. And um I'm real excited for um the ordinances that we have now and the ones that we're strengthening. I think our citizens will really be grateful for the work that this board is doing and what you're doing. So please speak to us both of you. Three of you, maybe Terry.

   David Engel

   53:55Thank you, ma'am. Uh David Engel, economic um well, planning, development, and economic growth. Back in February of twenty four, the board had a special workshop on community planning. And it's an opportunity to benchmark what's transpired since that uh very important moment we had with the board. The board asked us to be more context-centric, smarter in the way we approach our planning projects and our development. also be sensitive to the environment in the community. And

   54:25we've done that. So at that time uh planning consisted of planning department and economic growth. Now the department is quite a bit larger. A week after that workshop, uh our county administrator, Mr. Karbala, said, Whatever you need to make this happen, you're gonna be supported. And right now the planning department has many dimensions that were uh not not foreseen at that very important workshop. We have planning services, they l they do our long range planning. There's uh

   54:56There's a special project team that does the board's projects uh including tre tree prevention, chicken ordinance. Um Standardization of our our trail system. We have an active transportation planner. We also have development review, which was a separate department in February of 24. Now they work with us. And there's a major planning check in their engagement as they review the civil design, they make sh the planning check makes sure that the board's policies and approvals

   55:27are carried out to the letter. We have also platd, we have performance bonds, we have um We have also engineering inspections. When you put that all together, we're being stronger to the developers. But we're also providing amping up the customer service as well. And our team right today is probably one of the best planning departments in the state of Florida. Uh we have people getting their master's degrees, getting credentialed. Uh we have lunch and learns on a monthly basis for for

   55:57um for training and development. And it wouldn't be uh all this wouldn't happen unless everybody came together. And planning is just not a department anymore. There's There's parks, recreation and natural resources. There's public works. There's the transportation engineering department and our utilities folks. We all work together to make Pasco a better place. So thank you.

   StarkeyChair

   56:20Oh. Um, you know, I forgot to have m Mike speak.

   Mike Carballa

   56:23Well I was just gonna add uh you know to that again, thank you, David, for the leadership you've shown to this department. Uh the the growth in it that I have seen and witnessed uh since being in this role has been uh bar non phenomenal. Mr. Gray, thank you too. I'll echo the board's thanks of uh the Planning Commission for Stepping up and taking it some days and and we really, really plan it and and you know into the team, you guys listen, you guys are our visionaries, your implementers, um, you know, oftentimes referees and negotiators. So

   56:54we just appreciate everything that you do uh to make our county great and beautiful and wonderful and uh we have you to thank for that. So I appreciate that.

   StarkeyChair

   57:01All right, Chuck. You're up. I'm gonna take a picture.

   Unidentified speakerVoice B

   57:06Thank you. A few words. Mainly I just wanna tell you that I'm been honored and and humbled really to be uh involved and associated with uh this county. and in terms of planning and zoning For probably I guess it was nineteen ninety four when I got involved and probably chairman since two thousand and uh so th uh a lot of water under the dam. We're

   57:36gonna get your

   StarkeyChair

   57:36gold watch.

   Unidentified speakerVoice B

   57:37Yeah, right. But uh it's been it's been interesting and it's been a passion of mine to uh not only protect the um uh property rights of people who own property, but also to protect the neighborhoods. and to try to put myself in a position where When I see a project come in, I the first one of the first things I think about is Is that something I'd want to have near my home? And If it is, then

   58:08I s you know, I try to support it. But I also want to preserve the opportunity for people who have invested in property and and ha own property the right to to do what they want to w within reason. And uh So I'm very excited to c to uh be involved in this and I'm very honored to work with the team of people that are behind me. They do an amazing job and I know they get A lot of people th that to complain for any number of reasons, but

   58:38they don't really understand what goes on and what kind of pressures there are and what kind of workloads there are associated with what they do. So uh and together with this commission, I think this is maybe one of the greatest commissions we've had. in my lifetime and uh just want to say I appreciate everything that you all do and the support you give us. Um we very much appreciate that and um I look forward to continuing as

   59:08long as I can, as long as I'm able. to be of a of help. So thank you so much and God bless.

   StarkeyChair

   59:16Thank you. Um there's a lot of you so we'll stand behind. This is Commissioner Weightman. So Commissioner, you go down. And uh thank you all so much. Chuck, thank you for speaking up for the trees because I I'm I'm just really grateful that you did that. It gave me gave me a tipping gave us a tipping point.

   Mike

   59:45Mm, uh uh Can some of you go over here?

   WeightmanSecond Vice Chair

   59:55Sometimes

   StarkeyChair

   59:55developments

   Mike Carballa

   59:57have things that really give us

   59:58a lot of things.

   StarkeyChair

   1:00:05Right.

   Mike

   1:00:14Yeah.

   WeightmanSecond Vice Chair

   1:00:17I'm side now.

   Mike

   1:00:19Bay Singing Penny?

   Bay Singing Penny

   1:00:26Thank you.

   StarkeyChair

   1:00:33Um okay let's do the uh animal wave. And take my ass. We're going a little out of order on our um Our resolutions. Next we're gonna do RS six. Yeah.

   1:00:49I don't have a six.

   1:00:53National Animal Shelter appreciation.

   David Engel

   1:00:56Um presentatives of the uh

   Unidentified speakerVoice A

   1:00:58is anyone here? Is anyone here for this resolution?

   David Engel

   1:01:02Yes, they're

   ▶ 1:20:3812m2/2

   Unidentified speakerVoice A

   1:20:38Is anyone coming up at this point? Yeah. Okay. Thank you. Resolution number 26-017, a resolution by the Board of County Commissioners of Pasco County, Florida, declaring October 2025 as Florida Greenways and Trails Month in Pasco County. Whereas greenways and trails conserve native landscapes and ecosystems, link natural areas with communities, and provide Florida residents and visitors of all

   1:21:08ages and abilities with year-round opportunities for free health and fitness activities. activities and a connection with the state's natural, historical, and cultural heritage. And whereas Pasco County completed its Greenways, Trails, and Blue Ways master plan in 2023, outlining a long-term vision for a connected County wide greenway network that enhances quality of life, supports economic development, promotes safe, non-motorized

   1:21:39transportation, and fosters ecotourism and outdoor recreation. And whereas Pasco County Administrator Actively supports greenway and trail programs by hosting events and activities that encourage residents and visitors to explore, enjoy, and make use of the county's trail system. And whereas Pasco County is home to nearly 300 miles of paved and unpaved trails. And more than 80 miles of designated blue ways, including regionally significant facilities such

   1:22:09as Suncoast Trail. Starkey Wilderness Trail with Lacuchee State Trail and Coastal Encloak Trail, many of which form vital links in the statewide Sun Trail System. And whereas the Starkey Trail and Sun Coast Trail are part of the Florida Coast to Coast Trail System, with nearly 88% of the trail construction. And will span 253 miles from St. Petersburg to Titusville and play a vital role in the regional trail network. And

   1:22:40whereas Pasco County continues to prioritize trail development with several capital projects underway, including the Orange Belt Trail and the Lacucci Strait uh State Trail, and whereas the Orange Bell Trail is proposed multi-use corridor envisioned as a 12 to 14 foot paved trail that will connect Trinity, Odessa, Atlanda Lakes, San Antonio, St. Leo, and Dade City, and whereas the With Lacouche State Trail Extension will

   1:23:10close the gap. Between the existing Withlacuochie State Trail and the existing Hardy Trail in Dade City, strengthening the connecting. strengthening and connecting the local and regional trail systems, and whereas Pasco County remains committed to seeking opportunities, partnerships, and investments that expand and enhance greenways, trails, and blue ways, ensuring access for present and future generations. Now, therefore, be it resolved by the Board of County

   1:23:40Commissioners of Pasco County, Florida, that the said Board hereby declares October twenty twenty five as Florida Greenways and Trails Month in Pasco County and encourages all citizen to enjoy and value the health and benefits and natural resources of the Florida Greenways and Trails for present, as well as future generations done and resolved in regular session with a quorum present and voting this twenty first day of October 2025.

   StarkeyChair

   1:24:09Move approval.

   Unidentified speakerVoice A

   1:24:10Second.

   StarkeyChair

   1:24:11All in favor? Aye. Aye. So um I wanted this to be last because I had to change to green because I forgot to wear green today. Um but I happen to have this in my car. So uh I am very uh happy to be the sponsor of the Greenways and Trails um resolution and you see Commissioner Weightman is wearing green. So um You know I remember.

   1:24:36Um, you know, it just came to my mind while while uh she was reading the proclamation that when we're done, we're gonna have three trails in this county of state significance. I don't maybe Palatkas I know that's a city. I don't remember what county it's in. But I know there are a lot of trailhead trails that go out of Pulaka but That's gonna be huge. So uh we have to do a little research to see if anyone else will have three trails of regional s state significance. But um I'm grateful for all the work you

   1:25:06guys are doing. Um It's uh It takes a long time to get these done. Um, but our citizens and our communities are gonna be such great beneficiaries of this opportunity to get out and recreate safely and um it will greatly enhance our tourism abilities and uh really, really uplift our quality of life. So um thank you all for for your work on this. And I had um I I had Ralph

   1:25:36come up because maybe you don't know, but Ralph served was Will Weatherford's appointment to the State Greenways and Trells Council for how many years?

   Mike Carballa

   1:25:43Uh I was under there for

   StarkeyChair

   1:25:45five speakers. Five speakers.

   1:25:50And I was on there before Ralph. So I I first was appointed um by Senator McKay, state or Senate president. Then I stayed on for Governor Bush, I stayed on for Governor Christ, and I stayed on um just a little bit for Governor Scott. Uh so um I loved serving on that council. Council and la I wholly believe in the state's mission on its trails um plan and um just really grateful that our state is really going all in on

   1:26:20trails. So um Commissioner Oakley.

   Oakley

   1:26:23Well, I thank you for all that you do for helping see that everything all these trails get connected. They always ask me about Well, if you got a trail you're studying or working on, I says you need to talk to Commissioner Starkey. And she'll take care of whatever your wishes are on that trail. So as long as she's looking after it, I don't have to worry about it. So but she does a great job in doing just that and I appreciate each and every one for the work you do and whatever parts you fitted And

   1:26:54to make it all connect. So Very important.

   StarkeyChair

   1:26:58Commissioner Weightman.

   WeightmanSecond Vice Chair

   1:26:59Thank you ma'am. Yeah, yeah. Hand in hand with planning day, right? What the what our future looks and and how how we enjoy the amenities of our county and it's not always an easy job to figure out where to land the trail. Isn't that right, Aaron? Um thanks for hanging it tough through these, but no it's important you know to work with with all the stakeholders when a trail comes through and and how to make make it successful and um you know so it's uh could

   1:27:29be a fun potentially a fun ride if you will but uh pleasure to wear green with you all today and uh thanks for coming in.

   StarkeyChair

   1:27:37Mr.

   WeightmanSecond Vice Chair

   1:27:38Yaker.

   Yeager

   1:27:39Well, I wanna thank you guys. Um when I think of trails, I just think of family memories, you know, just getting the bikes or walking with our kids and they'll say, I see a turtle or s and then you know we pull over, we look at the turtle. So I love anything that's free that families can enjoy and be together, um, enjoying the outside. And I love how much planning goes into the trails. I know recently, Commissioner Starkey, we were looking at something and she's like, wait, the trail is on this side and there's nothing over here, so it doesn't connect. So like I

   1:28:09always love that you guys are mindful of that because that could easily just go unnoticed and then it goes through and we're like, what were we doing? So just thank you guys.

   MarianoVice Chair

   1:28:21And I I appreciate the trails. Commissioner Starkey you've been a great leader uh to get a lot of these trails paved, et cetera. And I'm glad we mentioned ecotourism because I want to talk about that just for a for a moment. There's a lot of opportunities now that we've done change the penny for Pasco in trying to work with our Eliamp projects that are out there. Uh Um past few years going up to uh New Hampshire, Maine, um, the off road experience they have up there. They can go snowmobile and they can go A T V riding. Now we're not gonna do much snowmobiling here. But I think there's a great opportunity

   Keith

   1:28:51to work on that.

   MarianoVice Chair

   1:28:53But I think there's great opportunity. But I think there's great opportunity for not only for ATV riding, I mean those people who like travel, they they stay weekends, they have a fun, the whole family can do it. I think we'd actually save a lot of our neighborhoods and our sheriff's deputies out there that have to ch chase these guys down if they've got a place to go. So as well as having their friends from out of town or across the country coming in to spend time with us. f if you can find a way to like make some trails in there. You don't have to pave 'em obviously, just cut a path through. Equestrian trails like uh Gidey Up was gonna

   1:29:23try to do that up the street with uh Tammy and then Nancy Hazel which she talks about trying to put that on the on the other side. give the horses a place to go, which I think we've tried to do. So I think if we can kind of look at all those things and and just keep this thing going, uh keep up the good work.

   StarkeyChair

   1:29:38Okay, who's gonna um I

   Keith

   1:29:40asked David if he wanted to, but I'll give it I'll give it a shot. So Keith Wiley, Director of Parks, Recreation, and Natural Resources. I will say that It takes a lot. You see all the different department representation here. It's not something easy to get done. But uh back in twenty I think it was twenty fourteen, twenty fifteen, when Michelle Baker uh was contemplating merging environmental lands with uh with the parks department back then, this is this is the thought that we were thinking that we would be able to take advantage of planning recreation within the natural resources landscape. And

   1:30:10so when you when you're honoring Greenways, so I didn't wear green, but I wore a blue tie because it's actually Greenways Blue Ways. That's right. I

   StarkeyChair

   1:30:17am the Blue Way. You're saving yourself. I am the Blue Way.

   Keith

   1:30:19I'm the blue way within the greenways. But uh you and Terry. I had the same vibe. Yes, we were Commissioner Oakley, we were we were thinking the same thing. So uh it's it's very encouraging to see the support by the board. Uh Commissioner Starkey, of course everyone knows that you're a huge trail advocate, but but we all we all see the benefit, you know, in the community. And and again it's not it's not an easy thing to do. So we have some work to do. We're doing the the twenty fifty uh update right now. With the planning department, they're uh leading that very well. And we're trying to figure out How we make this

   1:30:50plan trail planning, this regional system, how we get it concreted so that we have a we have a clear path, if you will, clear path for trails.

   1:31:05All the teams that are represented here, but you know, Sam Bennick is no longer with us from project management, he was huge. I know he's doing trails in Denver. He's doing trails in Denver, but you have it's just a massive collaboration, and I just want the board to really understand how complicated it is from both the planning, just the identifying of a system, right? How you do that to getting it into the into a policy document to then actually require Acquiring it both on private or public land and then designing it and constructing it. And oh guess

   1:31:35what? Uh they always like to say, oh Keith, you maintain it at the very end. And I'm like, okay, well, if I'm gonna maintain it, I'm gonna be a part of the actual planning process. But thank you very much for the recognition.

   StarkeyChair

   1:31:45Thank you. All right. So I'm gonna um come down and do the photo and and the rest can stand behind.

   MarianoVice Chair

   1:31:51Mm-hmm. Let's take that.

   1:31:57Mr. Chair today.

   Yeager

   1:31:58Yeah, like Heath is always needs money and he's not here.

   StarkeyChair

   1:32:15No, I don't know who.

   1:32:20And we could get more if you guys want.

   1:32:24Ready?

   1:32:31Yeah, you are

   Yeager

   1:32:37So we we gave it to a different we gave it to someone else. You aren't here.