Growth

Planning work is underway for 170 homes adjacent to the wetland restoration project.

More people are moving into the state, and that means more stress on Florida's tourist destinations, says a USF professor who specializes in Sports Tourism and sustainability.

Pasco County's largest city has taken the unprecedented step of halting growth for the next year as it tries to figure out how to reduce how much water it uses.

Retired USF professor and political analyst Susan MacManus has seen Florida's political landscape change drastically over the years from her farmhouse in Pasco County.

Florida residents own rights to decide if 5,000 acres of farmland in Charlotte, Hardee, and Highlands counties will ever be developed as part of the Rural and Family Lands program.

The increase would mean the average homeowner would pay $19.29 more a month to address transportation, infrastructure, and other areas.

A majority of county commissioners said the price tag was too steep, with not enough potential commuters guaranteed to make it worthwhile.

Florida's wild places are transforming and sometimes disappearing.

More than 180 landowners applied to a state grant program --- a target of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ veto pen — that is designed to keep swaths of rural property from commercial and residential development.

The community will be called Myakka Village. One resident said locals were recovering from Hurricane Ian when the project was being discussed and found out about it through internet ad.

The city council voted unanimously on a year-long moratorium on new housing developments, as it nears maxing out the amount of water it is allowed to withdraw from the underground aquifer.

The city of Zephyrhills is about to issue a hold on new developments for the next year as it reaches the maximum amount it's allowed to withdraw from the aquifer. The head of the local water district says it's more about the growth than not having enough water.