Eisenhower Property Group one of the largest developers in the Tampa Bay area has filed for permission with the county and city to annex 150 acres into the city limits and then rezone those new areas to allow for a higher residential density.

The combined parcels would each go from an allowed 1 house per acre with current zoning to 6 houses per acre if approved. This increase in allowed homes per acre would allow the developers the ability to build an additional 900 homes on the two sections highlighted in red on the map below. This would lead to a roughly 36% increase in the number of houses within the North Park Isles/Park East developments since that development is currently approved for 2500 homes.

To put it into perspective, Developers plan to build 900 homes on 150 acres, meaning they would fit 41% of the number of homes in Walden Lake on just 8% of the land. By comparison, Walden Lake’s 2,200 homes are spread across 1,810 acres, demonstrating a significantly higher density in the proposed development.

None of the parcels in question were ever publicly available for sale. The land sales to the developers have not officially gone through yet, so it is unknown how much the property owners will receive for their land from the developers. Currently, the northern parcel is used as a strawberry farm, while the southern parcel is a tree farm/ nursery.

The water and sewer analysis concluded that the extra homes would add 315,000 gallons per day in water and sewer use. The city departments stated that while there is not currently capacity to meet these water needs, once a new well is constructed there will be ample capacity. Additionally there is no issue meeting the expected sewer capacity.

Expected roadway Impacts

According to the Hillsborough County Transportation Planning Organization (TPO), the proposed developments are expected to cause a significant increase in traffic along Knights Griffin Road, Wilder Road, and other surrounding areas. The projections indicate an additional 9,297 average daily trips, representing an extraordinary 1,095% increase compared to current traffic levels. This surge would dramatically impact these roads, which are not currently equipped to handle such a substantial rise in daily traffic.

Breaking down the data further, the number of AM peak trips on Knights Griffin and Wilder Roads would increase by 630 trips per day. Similarly, PM peak trips are projected to rise by 846 trips daily. These increases would lead to additional congestion, particularly during critical morning and evening commute times, straining local infrastructure and potentially causing delays and safety concerns for drivers.

The Transportation Planning Organization made it clear that there are currently no future or proposed transportation improvements planned for these roads by any organization. This lack of infrastructure planning raises concerns about the ability to accommodate the expected surge in traffic. The only improvement scheduled is the repaving of North Wilder Road, which is expected to be completed in early 2027. Beyond that, no further enhancements or expansions are on the horizon to address the anticipated increase in traffic demand.

The TPO did add that once further traffic studies are conducted, they will be able to more accurately evaluate expected traffic demand as the data they provided are only estimates based on current and projected use.