Apartment Complex Considered for Briarwood RV Park

As part of its efforts to encourage economic development along Ulmerton Road, the Largo City Commission on Tuesday took another step in helping property owners secure incentives to redevelop the 13.8-acre Briarwood Travel Villa RV park.

The property's owners hope to turn the park, along with a connected parcel, into a 260-unit apartment complex, said Largo Program Planner Jesus Niño.

The commission voted to designate the parcel as a Brownfield area. The Brownfield designation gives businesses access to financial and regulatory incentives such as tax credits, loan guarantees and liablity protection.

The commission still needs to approve the designation on second reading at its Oct. 2 meeting.

"Brownfield sites are typically abandoned, idle, or underused industrial or commercial properties," Niño said. "The designation does not mean the property is contaminated."

As for what would happen to the Briarwood RV park and its tenants, that's still unclear. A representative of one of the property owners declined to speak with Patch on the record about plans for the property.

The Briarwood parcel, located at Seminole Boulevard and Ulmerton, would be part of the new Ulmerton Road Opportunity Corridor. It covers a stretch of four miles of industrial and commercial properties in Largo and unincorporated Pinellas County. The goal is to encourage redevelopment along the corridor from Seminole to Roosevelt Boulevards.

For more information on Brownfields, visit www.largo.com/redevelopment or www.floridabrownfields.org