Residents are still against a new Cox dealership. Here’s what they’re doing about it
Editor’s Note: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that the project would be required to reduce stormwater runoff by at least 50 percent. It was updated at 9:30 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 17, 2020, to reflect the developer’s agreement to provide additional stormwater retention to compensate for the project location inside the Gates Creek Watershed.
Neighboring residents are banding together over their major concerns regarding a new Cox dealership that might be built along State Road 64 in East Manatee.
The group made their voices heard at a Manatee Planning Commission in January, and on Wednesday afternoon they gathered once more at the Greyhawk Landing Clubhouse to figure out how they can get the Board of County Commissioners to deny or modify the project.
More than 100 residents attended Wednesday’s meeting, where organizers laid out the presentation they hope to give commissioners before they make a decision on the dealership at Thursday’s Land Use meeting. In the meantime, residents are routinely picketing and protesting in front of the 18 acres of property that could turn into a car lot.
“We’ve got eight days, so let’s make the most of it,” said Jim Hengel, chairman of the Greyhawk Landing Community Development District.
Neighbors are protesting a plan to turn a lot plagued with drainage issues at the corner of State Road 64 and 117th Avenue East into a 150,000-square-foot car dealership. The Cox Auto Group operates two other dealerships in Manatee County, both on Cortez Road.
The Cox Auto Group did not immediately respond to the Bradenton Herald’s request for comment.
Instead, residents would like to see a less intensive use of the land, such as a small shopping center or professional offices.
Ken Krudys, a Greyhawk landing resident, harped on the fact that the dealership would be right in the middle of several neighborhoods.
“People live here,” said Krudys. “It just doesn’t fit. It’s surrounded by normal residential development on all sides. I’d rather see something that serves the community, not fill the pockets of a car dealership.”
“We all know it’ll be developed commercially, but we want the size to be small-scale and neighborhood-serving,” Hengel added.
It’s a safety issue, according to residents. There is a traffic light planned for the State Road 64 and 117th Street, but dealership shoppers would still need to make a U-turn to use the front entrance along the major roadway, if they’re coming in from the west.
Perhaps their biggest concern, however, is the threat of increased flooding. That’s what led to members of the Planning Commission to vote against the project last month.
Because of the location of the property within the Gates Creek Watershed, the county is not requiring the project to reduce pee-development runoff by at least 50 percent, according to an email from Tom Gerstenberger, the county’s stormwater engineering division manager. Instead, the developer will propose a larger stormwater pond that “provides greater mitigation and ensures compliance of no adverse drainage impacts.”
Rhodes said the that larger pond is enough evidence to prove that the land should be used for something else entirely.
“Of the 18 acres, only about 10 acres is usable, because about 30 to 50 percent of the site is in the floodplain,” said John Rhodes, an environmental consultant working with the neighbors.
Commissioners will hear arguments on the proposed development at 9 a.m. during Thursday’s meeting at the County Administration Center, 1112 Manatee Ave. W., Bradenton.
This story was originally published February 15, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
