The Pinellas County Local Planning Agency voted on Nov. 12 to continue to Jan. 14, 2026, companion applications FLU25-06 and ZON25-04, which would redesignate and rezone a 1.87-acre property in unincorporated Largo to permit a formal solid-waste transfer station and accessory outdoor sales. The continuance followed sustained public opposition focused on airborne dust and possible health risks.

County planner Scott Swearingen told the LPA the proposal would change a 1.18-acre portion from Commercial Neighborhood to Commercial General and a 0.69-acre portion from Employment to Industrial General and would be governed by a development agreement that, among other limits, requires on-site truck queuing and substantial conformance to the concept plan. "The property shall be developed substantially in compliance with the concept site plan," Swearingen said during the staff presentation.

Applicant counsel Craig Taraske said the transfer operation on the northwest parcel has operated for decades and the southern parcel would be limited to parking and a small landscape-material retail use. "The use that the applicant has expressly desired ... is a solid waste transfer station and accessory outdoor sales and parking," Taraske said. He emphasized the retail materials would come from off-site wholesalers and "are not being processed on-site and then sold retail." Doug Deitemeyer, director of Florida operations for Green Energy Transport (the operator), added the site does not accept contaminated materials and that demolition-stage work is subject to separate mitigation requirements.

Neighbors countered with photos and testimony describing daily dust accumulation and respiratory impacts. "When the wind comes from the north ... it's pelted with this dust and dirt," said warehouse owner Steve Kawal, who provided photographs he said show dust entering adjacent properties and restaurant seating. Resident Darlene Shirley said her husband uses supplemental oxygen and has had to go indoors because of dust. "I'm concerned about his level of his oxygen," Shirley said.

County staff acknowledged prior air-quality complaints had been investigated and closed but said enforcement and environmental monitoring are handled by the appropriate regulatory agencies; the county's role is to require compliance with land-development code standards for visible emissions and dust. Staff also said the site is likely in Flood Zone X, and that the land-use delta would add an estimated 12 PM-peak hour vehicle trips, with Roosevelt Road and Ulmerton Road identified as the primary impacted corridors.

Board members pressed the applicant and staff for additional assurances — including paving, sprinklers, and clearer dust-control commitments — and suggested the applicant hold neighborhood outreach meetings to resolve remaining concerns. A motion to deny the FLU application was made but the applicant requested a 60-day continuance; the board withdrew the denial motion and voted to continue both cases to the January LPA meeting so the applicant could provide updated plans and community engagement.

Next step: both cases will return to the LPA on Jan. 14, 2026, and, if recommended, will proceed to the Board of County Commissioners public hearing currently scheduled for Dec. 16, 2025, for final action.