“Once completed, the county will see an estimated $100 return for every dollar invested,” said Commissioner Ron Oakley. “This project is a win-win for east Pasco, bringing new infrastructure and jobs with minimal cost to the county.”

The agreement between Pasco County and Columnar Developers, which purchased the property in December for $52 million, includes a $55.8 million incentive package, funded mostly through property tax rebates, as certain milestones are met.

Columnar Developers will also install key roads and utility connections beyond the Pasco Town Center Property, providing $70.1 million in public infrastructure with no direct cost to taxpayers, said David Engel, director of the Pasco County Office of Economic Growth.

"The benefits of the project related to economic growth are profound because we're focusing on installing all the public master roadway and utility infrastructure in the connected city employment area. That will be on the developer's property and off-site to serve the entire area," said Engel.

In addition, Engel said it will allow the county to accelerate development along the Interstate 75 corridor.

"Because of the pressures in the marketplace and our lack of inventory, we do not have suitable space for companies to come into that area right now, and we do have tremendous demand for that," Engel said.

He said the developer has requested some assistance to allow it to fast-track the project.

"So we're proposing to provide 46.2 million in ad valorem equivalency grants, a form of rebate," he said. "The funds will go into an escrow account that the developer will not be able to access until 1 million square feet of industrial space is occupied."

For the employment center incentive, the developer will construct 1 million square feet of industrial office buildings as its first phase and is seeking help with the master utility system, which will cost $9.6 million, or $9.60 per square foot.

Over the period that the county is providing the rebates, Engel said the county will receive at least $300 million in the general fund, he said. The project will generate a total of $386.6 million, while the developer is asking for only $55.8 million in incentives. He said the annual gross county product will be $604 million a year.

Michael Wolf, vice president of land acquisition for Columnar Developers, a real estate development arm of Taylor Properties, said the company is currently building projects in Denver, Colorado, Austin, Texas, Washington, D.C., and the Miami area.

He said one of the exciting aspects of Pasco Town Center is the fact that it's contiguous to the "connected city" developments of Epperson and Mirada off at Curley and Overpass roads near San Antonio and the county's "Super Park" under development in the Villages of Pasadena Hills just off Prospect Road and Highland Boulevard in Dade City.

The a 7,800-acre Epperson and Mirada projects are the first mixed use developments built with "Ultrafi," the fastest internet available, as well as a 7.5-acre crystal lagoon at Epperson and a 15-acre crystal lagoon at Mirada.

When completed, the "Super Park" will serve the connected city developments with sports fields and other active recreation along with 155-acres of passive recreation including walking trails, access to wildlife habitats and kayaking on Buddy Lake.

Wolf said the developer hopes to break ground on Pasco Town Center this year and complete it by December 2028.

"Once completed, for every dollar contributed by the county, the county will receive a return of $100," Engel said. "So this is the most productive agreement that I've brought forth to date to the board."

Wolf said the section along the I-75 corridors will have focus on the health and wellness industry with a retail component. He said the developer is also working with the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agriculture to design the project with sustainable features, parks, green space and multimodal trails that can accommodate bicyclists, runners and golf carts.

"We think that's truly critical to the project's success," Wolf said. "We're really excited to bring this quality of development to the area. It's going to be a phenomenal project."

Starkey agreed.

"This looks absolutely fantastic," she told Wolf. "I'm so excited to get this quality of development at 75 and 52. I'm sure you're going to be very successful there."

Other Major Development

Also last month, the county commission approved a major industrial building project in Zephyrhills that commissioners say will transform and revitalize the area and bring 2,400 new jobs to the county.

The project, at the northeast corner of Interstate 75 and State Road 52, is a 1.4 million-square-foot, build-to-suit distribution center on 218 acres.

The project, known now as Project Channel, also includes construction of nearly $10 million in road improvements in the area.

The developer, Northpoint Development LLC of Kansas City, has requested $6.3 million in assistance from the county in the form of ad valorem tax relief over 20 years.

"The projected revenue over that period will be $19.1 million, so when you net out the $6.3 million in ad valorem assistance, the general fund will capture at least $12.8 million in revenue," Engel said.

Engel said the project has an estimated return on investment of $195 for every $1 Pasco spends.

Meanwhile, on the west side of the county, work is continuing on the 6,200-acre Angeline project that will be anchored by a 775-acre state-of-the-art global innovation project led by Moffitt Cancer Center, envisioned to be a life sciences destination that will bring 14,400 jobs to the area.

The Angeline development is located east of the Suncoast Parkway and south of State Road 52.

Built by Metro Development Group, Angeline will be home to more than 30,000 residents with access to a community farm, 3,600 acres of green space, an extensive trail network, office and retail, a crystal lagoon, on-site schools and UltraFi internet like the Epperson and Mirada developments.