OLDSMAR — The Oldsmar City Council voted 5-0 on May 5 to approve a revised conceptual site plan for the downtown city hall redevelopment, while also authorizing a $29,023 engineering work order to begin site due diligence for the potential relocation of City Hall.
The meeting focused on two major components of the city’s downtown strategy: a strategic layout shift for the project managed by Stanbery Development Group and the formal start of a feasibility study for a new 20,000-square-foot municipal facility on 10.2 acres of city-owned land.
According to city officials, the approval does not green light a new project, but rather replaces the previously accepted site layout with the revised configuration. Had the council rejected the modifications, the redevelopment would have proceeded under the original design approved late last year.
The plan calls for 240 residential units, a public plaza and more than 21,000 square feet of ground-floor retail.
Mark Hayes, a representative for Stanbery Development, presented the updates to the council, characterizing the changes as an effort to improve the usability of the site’s public spaces. Hayes explained that the revised plan shifts the retail building located on the plaza further back from State Street (SR 580). According to Hayes, the original plan placed the building up against the sidewalk, creating “wasted space” in the rear of the structure.
“What happened there is it created a bunch of space behind the building up against 580 where we had a patio, but other than that the space wasn’t really being beneficial,” Hayes said. “We thought that it was wasted space, especially in this area where we’re trying to create a nice community event area and a plaza and a place where people can mill around and enjoy things.”
Hayes argued that moving the building would also create a buffer against the noise of passing vehicles. “By doing that you’re also shielding the plaza from the traffic going by, which isn’t an overly big deal but I think is kind of nice,” Hayes said.
The architectural design for the project is intended to mirror the current council chambers. Hayes noted that the design team viewed the council chambers building as “the most interesting of all the buildings here along State Street,” leading the firm to incorporate stone and muted colors into the new renderings.
During the presentation, council member Sean Swauger questioned the usage of the ground-floor space, asking, “That’s living space on the first level?” Hayes clarified that while the side of the building facing State Street includes residential units with patios, the first level facing the parking lot and plaza is dedicated “amenity space.”
Before the vote, council member Valerie Tatarzewski clarified the nature of the council’s decision for residents who may have been confused by the recurring discussions on the topic.
“I know that most of the people in Oldsmar know that this plan isn’t my favorite and I’ve historically voted no on this plan,” Tatarzewski said. “This vote is, do we like this site plan versus the one you just showed us earlier in your slideshow. I do like the new site plan better than the old site plan. So, if I have to choose option one or option two, I choose option two.”
Vice Mayor Steve Graber reinforced the distinction, stating, “If we said no tonight, it would go back to the plan that’s already been approved. The project would not go away. All we are voting on is the revision.”
Public comment brought concerns regarding the broader impact of the redevelopment’s 240 units. Resident TJ Murphy warned that the project would lead to a surge in cut-through traffic.
“All of those apartments are going to come down through that residential section like madmen,” Murphy said. “We’re going to get hundreds of cars cutting through there. They’re going to try to catch the light up there. They don’t want to go down State Street.”
Murphy advocated for the permanent closure of Fairfield Street, warning that without it, the neighborhood would become “Grand Central Station.” Murphy also highlighted current safety risks on State Street, describing the process of pulling into traffic as “taking your life in your hands.” Murphy referenced a recent accident at St. Petersburg Drive and Tampa Road where “two kids got seriously injured,” arguing that the city must address traffic infrastructure immediately.
In a separate action, the council approved a work order to begin site planning for a new city hall location.
A memo from Director of Public Works Andy Greenwood stated that the city is evaluating a 10.2-acre city-owned property as a potential relocation site. The $29,023 study will include a “Preliminary Site Assessment” to identify constraints such as utilities and stormwater needs for a proposed 20,000-square-foot building and an emergency response center.
The council approved both the site plan revisions and the engineering work order in a unanimous 5-0 vote. Negotiations between the city manager and Stanbery Development Group will continue as the project enters the next phase of technical review.