Dade City Fills City Manager Position
By JOE POTTER
Marieke vanErven was hired as City Manager for Dade City during the City Commissioners meeting on Oct. 14. This took place a year and four days after the former City Manager, Leslie Porter, had resigned. Miss vanErven had served as Acting City Manager since Oct. 10, 2024, when Porter had stepped down from her leadership role. Miss vanErven had been the Executive Assistant to the City Manager prior to Ms. Porter’s resignation.
In other business City Commissioners:
Dade City’s Code of Ordinances has been amended relating to the Historic Preservation Advisory Board in regards to members’ terms of office.
Continued until Oct. 28 a public hearing on the first readings of two ordinances relating to West Hill Estates.
The applicant was seeking an amendment to the City’s Comprehensive Plan, providing for a large scale Comprehensive Amendment to the Future Land Use Map; and a rezoning of their property from Pasco County’s Residential 1 (R1) District to Dade City’s Single Family Residential 1 (RS-1) District on approximately 68.67 acres more or less of property generally located on the south side of St. Joe Road.
The applicant agreed to have the hearings on the proposed ordinances continued because City Commissioners said they wanted some kind of guarantee that no more than one dwelling unit would be developed per acre on the property. Attorney Barbara Wilhite, who was representing the applicant, said it would only be possible to develop 55 acres of the property for residential uses because wetlands are in a significant area of the property.
The City’s Community Redevelopment Agency’s board (C.R.A.) agreed to pay Centennial Bank $120,000 for 18,219 square feet, or 0.42 acres, of the parking lot located at 14033 8th St. The property that’s been purchased would be used for additional parking for the C.R.A. District, including the park and Splash Pad just to the west of the site within the C.R.A. District.
The C.R.A. would be responsible for creating an entrance and exit to the site from Howard Avenue. Also, the property the C.R.A. had bought would need to be cleared and blocked so it couldn’t be accessed from the rest of Centennial Bank’s parking lot.
It wasn’t announced when this work would be done at that location.
Also, Steve Van Gorden was appointed as a member of the City’s Historic Preservation Agency’s board to fill a vacancy created when a member who was another resident of Dade City resigned from that board.
