Back to the future? Hillsborough Planning Commission okays filling lagoon for townhomes

TAMPA — Think of the bay breeze wafting through Snell Isle’s graceful curving streets, Davis Islanders’ stunning views of Hillsborough Bay, or the man-made fingers that make up Venetian Isles.

Many of Tampa Bay’s most scenic and pricey waterfront neighborhoods were built by pouring soil into the open water. Known as "dredge and fill," the practice largely ended in the 1970s as lawsuits and state and federal laws designed to protect marine environments made it difficult.

Now, officials in Tampa may be turning back the clock.

On Monday, the Hillsborough County City-County Planning Commission approved a proposal to fill in 3 acres of open water north of Rocky Point Drive, near the eastern end of the Courtney Campbell Causeway.

An Albany, N.Y., developer wants to build 16 townhomes there, each 3?½ stories high with a private dock. Residents would enjoy views of private Scarborough Park and what’s left of an 8.8 acre lagoon once part of it is filled to create the property.

The 6-3 vote followed more than 90 minutes of contentious discussion among planning commissioners, neighbors and businesses. Opponents call it a precedent-setting decision that would harm marine life, limit public access to the water, and encourage people to move into a coastal flood zone.