![]() Wave to your constituents, she said, then “look off to the left and see that canopy of oak trees and see that pristine conservation area you’re about to asphalt over.This map is in my opinion the most visually arresting: a sunken forest with a network of paths above and below. The parade participants line up at the corner of Lumsden Road and S Parsons Avenue She recently offered advice to commissioners who planned to be a part of Brandon’s upcoming Fourth of July parade. Lilyquist has appeared at three consecutive County Commission meetings, taking her three minutes during public comment to ask the county to reconsider. Any future use of this property will consider community input and require board approval.” In an emailed statement to the Tampa Bay Times, Kim Byer, assistant county administrator for public works administration, said: “There is nothing currently planned for this property. The recently-approved county contract with Harvard Jolly included a statement that said the property “is intended to be utilized for a future possible residential or other development.” It’s dubbed the “surplus parcel” and the conceptual drawings show more than 90 trees being taken down to make way for what could become an affordable housing complex and accompanying drainage. The remaining 8 acres on the east side of the property apparently face a different concept. The 8.4 acres there are less heavily wooded and the conceptual drawings show as many as two dozen trees being spared and an estimated 50 new trees being planted.įormer Commissioner Stacy White, who championed the project before leaving office, said he hoped the county could preserve as many trees as possible and the area could be used an outdoor extension of the library where people could sit outside to enjoy a book or tap into the library’s wifi. The county plans to put the library on the western half of the property, closer to Woodview Drive than S Parsons Avenue. Later, she devised a site plan to include a post traumatic stress recovery center for veterans.Ī Hillsborough county owned empty lot with an oak-tree canopy that is targeted as the site of a new Brandon Regional Library on the corner of E. Petersburg Times advocating for a park there, as a memorial to 9/11, while maintaining the oak trees. Nearly 20 years ago, she authored a guest column in the then-St. ![]() Lilyquist, however, has long targeted the property at this corner as a viable community asset. Noise from honking car horns and accelerating vehicles assault pedestrians’ ears as traffic zips by on Lumsden Road’s four lanes. The corner of Lumsden Road and S Parsons Avenue isn’t particularly serene. In November 2022, in their final meetings as commissioners, Overman and Commissioners Stacy White and Mariella Smith joined the majority in voting to design the building in neo-classical style with a red brick façade, entry portico, Ionic columns and a raised cupola on the roof. This is a rendering by Wilder Architecture of the proposed Brandon Library on Hillsborough County-owned property at the corner of West Lumsden Road and South Parsons Avenue. The commission delayed the vote after hearing their concerns, but authorized the contract two weeks later. for the project’s planning and design work. He and Lilyquist recently asked the Hillsborough County Commission to reject a $941,000 contract with Harvard Jolly Inc. Saving the land for sandhill crane habitat or other environmental purposes should be the priority, he said. Our grandchildren won’t ever know the beauty and charm of old Brandon because it’s all been bushwhacked.”Īustin Zane, 31, joined Lilyquist in speaking out against the new library. “We have to keep some trees! We are cutting down all the nature in Brandon, building to accommodate everyone. One respondent’s comment echoed Lilyquist’s sentiments. Lilyquist said she believed the sample size was too small to accurately measure the community’s apprehension. Others said they supported the project, but worried about the heavy traffic on W Lumsden Road. Want more of our free, weekly newsletters in your inbox? Let’s get started.
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