Future Land Use Change Approved for Site of Kathleen Government Center in Lakeland
by James Coulter
 
Residents in North Lakeland are one step closer to a new government building where they can obtain building permits, pay water bills, and attend public meetings now that a future land-use change for the site has been approved.
 
At their regular meeting last month, the Polk County Board of County Commissioners (BoCC) voted unanimously to approve changing the future land-use designation for the 29-acre parcel from Residential Low (RL) to Institutional (INST).
 
Located east of Kathleen Road in Lakeland, the site will be home to the Kathleen Government Center. This new government building will offer services including building permits and customer service for water, wastewater, garbage, drainage, and road maintenance.
 
The center also will include facilities for public meetings and provide access to services from constitutional offices such as the Clerk of Courts, Property Appraiser, Tax Collector, Sheriff, and Supervisor of Elections.
 
The Kathleen Government Center is one of several county courthouse annexes planned to decentralize government services and bring them closer to the residents they serve. Similar facilities have been built in Haines City, Lake Alfred, and Winter Haven.
 
“This site was chosen because it is more central to the growing populations in the northwest portion of the County than the existing one in downtown Lakeland,” Erik Peterson, AICP, Planning Administrator. “Together with the County seat in Bartow…the government centers will bring County services closer to the people that need them.”
 
The new facility will replace the Northeast Government Center at 930 E. Parker St., which has become too small and is operating under a lease that is set to expire, explained Erik Peterson, AICP, Planning Administrator. Although the new building will not be as large as the current facility, it will have more than adequate capacity to meet the county’s needs, he said.
 
Furthermore, the site and surrounding area have the infrastructure and urban-level services needed to support the government facility, but additional grading will be required to bring the property to the appropriate elevation and accommodate the necessary stormwater infrastructure, Peterson said.
 
“One thing that will be a mitigating factor is bringing down the height of the property to a standard height,” he said. “That gives us the ability to expand the retention ponds and provide for more stormwater.”
 
Commissioner Mike Scott commended the new facility, saying it will help provide essential government services to an area experiencing rapid growth but lacking adequate access to those services.
 
“When you look at the amount of development over the past 15 to 20 years in North Lakeland, there are a lot of services that are lacking, and this is one of those,” he said. “When you look at what the residents need, to have this parcel be another community development and have no government services, you continue to add to the problem of a lack of providing the residents in North Lakeland.”
 
However, resident James Abercrombie raised concerns about the proposed location during public comments. He said the area has experienced flooding and expressed concern that development might redirect floodwater toward his property.
 
He noted that about 200 people attended a previous public meeting on the proposed development, with 39 providing their names and email addresses to receive updates. He said none were notified and criticized commissioners for failing to communicate their plans to the public.
 
“Three of the commissioners refused to come [to that meeting],” he said. “They couldn’t care less about what goes on out there. They will get their building no matter what happens. No matter what I say, it is going to happen. We know that.”
 
Commissioner Scott said he and the commission were receptive to community feedback. He noted that the design had been amended to include “passive elements,” such as a park and pedestrian facilities, intended to make the site more than an “8-to-5 office building” and create a place that benefits residents.
 
Scott said the commission was willing to collaborate with the community but added that feedback needed to go beyond simply opposing the project to be effective.
 
“We have been very keen to understand the concerns of the community,” he said. “But it is one of those things I want collaboration to help come up with great solutions as a community, to have a town hall meeting and have statements of we hate this, that does not take us anywhere. That does not get us anywhere positive.”