BROOKSVILLE — Warehouses planned near Interstate 75 in eastern Hernando County can rise higher than current rules allow, after county commissioners approved a zoning change to make room for the automated equipment reshaping modern distribution centers.
At their July 7 land use meeting, commissioners voted 4-0 to let One Hernando LLC raise the maximum building height on its Kettering Road site from 60 feet to 85 feet. The added height accommodates a shift in technology that requires taller ceilings for robotics and automated handling equipment.
“This is to allow some of the robotics and other things to be able to function appropriately,” senior planner Michelle Miller said, adding that such requests are likely to become more common for industrial projects.
Commissioners first approved a master plan for the site on July 13, 2022, clearing the way for an industrial center of up to 2.4 million square feet. The revision does not change the project’s purpose or square footage, only how tall its buildings can stand. The Planning and Zoning Commission recommended approval June 8 in a 5-0 vote.
The site sits east of I-75 and south of State Road 50 (Cortez Boulevard). A residential development lies to the east and a Walmart distribution center to the south. To the west is Sunrise Hills, a planned development now in the permitting phase.
Don Lacey of Coastal Engineering, representing the applicant, said the taller buildings simply reflect how the industry now operates, with automated systems distributing goods from above.
“It’s the modern way of doing distribution centers,” Lacey said. “They do it from above.”
Commissioner Ryan Amsler asked about a nearby trail and drainage before moving to approve the request. Commissioner Steve Champion seconded the motion, which passed 4-0.
“It’s really easy to make these decisions when you put things in the right place,” Champion said after the vote.
In other action
Commissioners voted 4-0 to approve a master plan revision by Southeast Investments for a commercial parcel at the northeast corner of Commercial Way and Hexam Road, following a discussion of variances, uses, setbacks, buffers, drainage and utility connections.
The board voted 4-0 to modify a special exception use permit for a place of public assembly, a special-events venue on the south side of Lake Lindsay Road, about 3,000 feet east of Ponce de Leon Boulevard. Events must end by 10 p.m., and the owner pledged to be a good neighbor.
Commissioners also approved, 4-0, three separate requests for hardship relief from subdivision regulations.