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Westchase CDD Slows Move to Merger

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By MICHELE SAGER | The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 12, 2008

Westchase - Westchase leaders decided to slow down their push for one Community Development District and take some cues from another neighborhood.

CDD attorney Erin Larrinaga suggested to CDD supervisors at a recent meeting that Westchase should watch the merger of the Seven Oaks community in Pasco County which is currently going through the process.

"I think we should think about slowing down a little bit in our plan to get in our petition by December," she said. "We should see how Seven Oaks does with the [merger] process."

Larrinaga said watching Seven Oaks leaders wrangle through the state system to complete the merger could end up saving Westchase time and money. The Seven Oaks development is currently in the sufficiency review process with the state, proving its viability as one district.

The Westchase community is currently run by two separate taxing districts. Combining into one district would cut costs and streamline government procedures. Once Westchase submits its petition to merge, the process isn't expected to be completed until about November 2010. A transition board, made up of five of the 10 current supervisors would be set up to help ease into the new one-district system.

Under the proposed plan, two or three of the five supervisors on the new board would be up for election in 2010 and the rest would face an election in 2012. Supervisor Ernie Sylvester said it's important to let residents have some say in the selection of the new board.

"I don't think we should take that away from community members," he said.

Michele Sager can be reached at (813) 865-1523.

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