The Port Richey City Planning and Zoning Board on Thursday voted to recommend that City Council redesignate three parcels on Chapel Avenue from residential to commercial mixed use and rezone them from R-2 (two‑family residential) to C-3 (general commercial), with a condition limiting use to boat and RV storage and requiring access from River Gulf Road only.

Planner Tammy Vrana of Vrana Consulting told the board the applicant asked to change the future land use and zoning to allow outdoor recreational vehicle and boat storage on the roughly 0.9‑acre site. “Based on staff’s evaluation and finding that the request is inconsistent with the goals, objectives, and policies of the comprehensive plan, our recommendation to the planning and zoning board is to find the request to be inconsistent and to recommend to city council that their request be denied,” Vrana said during her presentation, while also outlining how the site could be used if the change were approved.

The board discussed neighborhood compatibility, potential impacts on property values and traffic, and whether a narrowly drawn condition could allow the storage use without opening the parcels to other commercial uses allowed in the C‑3 district. One board member summarized a recurring concern: changing the land‑use category could “open the door” to other uses such as a 17‑unit building or a large nonresidential structure unless the approval is tightly limited.

Applicant Ryan Daley, who identified himself as the son‑in‑law of the owners, described the proposal as a storage lot and said the owners “have no intentions of paving it” and plan to leave the surface as crushed gravel, maintain the lot and install fencing. Owner Shirley Carini told the board the site previously had a commercial building and that historical use informed the application.

Public comment included a neighbor who said he is building a house across Chapel Avenue and did not object to a storage lot. Following discussion the board made two separate recommendations to council: one to redesignate the parcels on the comprehensive plan map and a second to amend the zoning map (ordinance 25‑710) with the limiting condition. A motion to recommend approval of ordinance 25‑710 included the specific condition that the site be limited to boat and RV storage with access from River Gulf Road only. The motion was seconded and the board voted in favor.

The recommendations from the Planning and Zoning Board are advisory; City Council must still consider and act on the comprehensive plan map amendment and the zoning ordinance. Board members and staff noted that site plan review and any required conditions, buffers or fencing will be handled in subsequent permitting steps if Council approves the change.

Votes at a glance: the board approved recommending the comprehensive plan map redesignation and the zoning map amendment (Ordinance 25‑710) with the access/use condition; the board’s recorded vote was affirmative and the motions carried on voice vote.

Background/clarifying details: Planner Vrana said a designation of Commercial Mixed Use (CMU) on the roughly 0.9‑acre site could allow up to 17 residential units or up to 27,748 square feet of nonresidential development; under the existing R‑2 zoning the site could yield fewer residential units (staff estimated up to five units under current conditions). Vrana said staff’s analysis highlighted neighborhood compatibility, site access/traffic circulation and potential to impair investment on adjacent properties as concerns. The applicant said the intended use is outdoor boat/RV storage only, the surface would remain crushed gravel, and the owners would maintain the lot and erect fencing.

Next steps: the two board recommendations will be transmitted to Port Richey City Council for public hearings and final action. If Council approves the zoning change, site plan review and recorded conditions can be used to limit the use and control access, buffers and fencing, and future owners could request changes only through Council action.

Ending: The board record shows the recommendation passed at the meeting; the agenda item will appear on a future City Council docket for final decisions and formal ordinances.