Politics & Government

CAN-DO Big-Box Opponents Meet, Residents Vote To Sue

The passion to fight a big-box retail development on Bloomingdale Avenue has not waned over the summer months. New steps are being taken.

Residents attending a meeting at the Bloomingdale Regional Library on Sept. 9 made one thing perfectly clear: They stand united — and opposed — to the upcoming big-box retail development adjacent to the library on Bloomingdale Avenue.

So much so that a vote among the almost 100 residents in attendance was all but unanimous in support of moving ahead with plans to sue Hillsborough County officials, most likely on grounds for using a land-use code amendment, rather than a rezoning, to give the go-ahead for the roughly 44-acre development.



Meeting under the auspices of the Coordinated Active Neighborhoods for Development Organization (CAN-DO), the group's steering committee has taken the lead in organizing opposition to the development, for which the latest construction plans were submitted last month by Red Cast Bloomingdale LLC.


Dee Bristol, a member of CAN-DO, said the steering committee scheduled the meeting to see if it had community support in moving ahead with the organized opposition.

"We heard loud and clear that, yes, the residents at large want to sue so that is what CAN-DO is going with at this point in time," she said.

Reportedly, CAN-DO is working to incorporate and took pledges at the Sept. 9 meeting to determine how — and how much — attendees would be willing to donate to the war chest. Moving forward, CAN-DO will be posting yard signs, holding fundraisers, forming subcommittees and working with the hired attorney, Pamela Jo Hatley.

"The community at large is very passionate about this," Bristol said. "We were wondering, because it has been so long since we met with [Commissioner Al] Higginbotham, if interest had waned over the summer. But it really hasn't."

_____

RELATED COVERAGE:

  • 16 Questions Asked By Bloomingdale Big-Box Opponents

 






Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here