Newberry Rezones 220 Acres For 636 Homesites and Commercial, Development Will Take 20 Years for Build Out

NEWBERRY ‒ The Newberry City Commission has given final zoning approval for a development of 636 homes and 140,000 square feet of commercial properties. The 220 +/- acre property was rezoned from Agricultural (A) to Planned Development (PD). The Commission, at the Feb. 27 commission meeting, approved the zoning change for the property located south of West Newberry Road/State Road 26 and west of Southwest 202nd Street. Development of the property is planned for four phases which is to occur over a 20-year period.

CPAs & Zoning

The Commission also gave unanimous approval to rezone four properties from Alachua County Agricultural to City of Newberry Agriculture (A). These properties were annexed into Newberry on July 11, 2022.

Properties rezoned included 22.75 +/- acres owned by Joshua P. and Tracie A. Blackford located on the west side of the intersection of Northwest County Road 235 and Northwest 46^th Avenue; 4.35 +/- acres owned by Clifton A. and Shari D. Brown located on the west side of Northwest 32^nd Avenue; 20.68 +/- acres owned by Richard Marion Fowler II located on the southwest corner of West Newberry Road/State Road 26 and Southwest 266^th Street; and 40 +/- acres owned by Martin and Martin (20 acres) and Todd and Lori Martin (20 acres) located on the east side of Northwest 298^th Street.

CR 337 Water Main Extension

A $1,249,227 base bid for the County Road 337 water main extension was awarded to Andrews Paving, Inc. Director of Utilities and Public Works Jamie Jones said the project has already been approved as part of the current budget. Construction on this project is set to begin in late April or early May.

Consent Agenda

Construction plans were approved by resolution for a 45 +/- acre property owned by Jilanne Belcher. The property is located at the northwest corner of Southwest 15^th Avenue and Southwest 170^th Street. The construction plans provide for infrastructure and site work improvements. The proposed infrastructure will remain privately owned and maintained. This petition is related to the special exception for a Small-Scale Rural Subdivision approved by the Board of Adjustment on Oct. 24, 2022 and the preliminary plat entitled Lakota approved by the City Commission on Oct. 24, 2022. A final plat will be forthcoming.

In other business, the Commissioners unanimously authorized submittal of a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Rural Business Development Grant (RBDG) program for the Agri-Tech Innovation Park. This is a competitive grant. If the City’s grant application is approved the grant would help pay for a qualified consultant to produce the incubator business plan and help pay for economic development consulting services. The total project cost is $75,000 and the grant amount being applied for is $55,000.

The Commission also approved construction plans and a replat for Cedar Estates Addition, which Planning and Economic Development Director Bryan Thomas said is an infill project. The construction area encompasses 2.5 acres and the replat allows for seven detached single-family residences and one lot designated for stormwater retention. The City will provide utility services for this project.

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