The hypocrisy is impossible to ignore.
In 2026, Hillsborough County updated its hurricane evacuation maps and placed much of the proposed Little Manatee South urban expansion area into Evacuation Zone A.
Think about that.
The County is acknowledging that this area faces enough hurricane and flood risk that residents should be among the first to evacuate during major storms.
Yet some of the very same elected officials continue pushing to expand the Urban Service Area into this region, opening the door for thousands of new homes.
How can the County justify encouraging more people to live in an area it now recognizes as one of its highest evacuation priorities?
Little Manatee South is not vacant land waiting to be developed. It is one of southern Hillsborough County's most important natural landscapes.
It contains:
Critical wildlife habitat and migration corridors.
Habitat for deer, bobcats, gopher tortoises, wading birds, and countless other native species.
Lands that recharge the aquifer through the Little Manatee River watershed.
Natural systems that help protect Cockroach Bay Aquatic Preserve.
Wetlands and open space that absorb floodwaters instead of pushing them into surrounding communities.
When these lands are paved over, we don't just lose wildlife habitat, we lose natural flood protection and water recharge while increasing the number of people living in harm's way.
This isn't responsible planning. It's a policy choice.
If an area is too vulnerable to hurricanes and flooding to remain outside Evacuation Zone A, then it should also be too valuable, and too risky, to become the next target for sprawling development.
County Commissioners cannot claim to be preparing for stronger storms and climate resilience while simultaneously voting to urbanize one of the very landscapes that helps protect us from those storms.
The people of Hillsborough County deserve answers.
Why is the County recognizing the risk while still considering development that would put even more families in that risk?
Protect Little Manatee South.
Protect our wildlife.
Protect our water.
Protect our future.
The facts no longer support urban expansion in this area.