TRINITY, Fla. — A proposed development project is garnering some negative feedback from residents.
Plans are being proposed for a massive sports entertainment complex to be developed on land between State Road 54 and Little Road in Pasco County. But not everyone is fully on board. Local residents are speaking their mind through a petition before work can begin.
Behind her family home, Alexis Wilson takes her dog Koda along the Starkey Gap Trail. And she is making her thoughts known on the complex.
“I think of beautiful views like this," she said.
Wilson has called the area home all her life. But recently, there’s been talk of potential changes, in the form of a massive sports complex. Wilson is speaking out, starting her own petition against it.
“If anyone can get this done, if anyone can stand their ground and dig their heels in, I thought I might as well try to rally the community together because I do love this community," said Wilson. "I love the people who live here, and I knew that everyone would come together and do what was best for their own families and for their community.”
The proposed development project would cover about 800 acres of space. To put that into perspective, the total size is about six times larger than Disney Springs.
“If people wanted to live near an ESPN Wide World of Sports and Disney combo, they would have moved to Orlando," Wilson said. "The reason that people moved to Trinity is not because they wanted it to become the ‘Sports Coast’ one day. They moved to Trinity because it’s a small town with a suburb feel, a good school district, it’s quiet and it’s away from the city.”
As Wilson continues to gather signatures, she says residents should consider one thing.
“We need to ask is the person purchasing it going to be a good steward of that land?" said Wilson. "Are they going to listen to the voices of the community when we oppose to what their plans are? And are they truly going to take into account what is best for us or are they just going to plow forward with what they think is best and what benefits them the most?”
Spectrum News reached out to Pasco County for comment, and they declined an interview.
A spokesperson, however, did provide this statement: "Pasco County was not aware of these conceptual plans until the design firm made the announcement on its website at the end of November. A project like this would require significant review; however, no plans for this project have been submitted to the county."