A massive rezoning push tied to the Thomas family's Two Rivers Ranch could bring as many as 3,900 new homes to northeast unincorporated Hillsborough County, a shift neighbors and planners say would fundamentally change the rural stretch of U.S. 301 near Hillsborough River State Park. County officials have circled April 9 as the key date when commissioners are expected to decide whether to send the proposal on to state reviewers.
According to FOX 13, the land in question is currently designated for a little more than 700 homes, but the Thomas family has asked to reclassify it to allow nearly 4,000 units. The family's attorney, Kami Corbett, told FOX 13 the proposal "represents a pioneering approach to environmental stewardship and community planning." Neighbors counter that the change could push up taxes, strain already stressed water supplies and clog narrow two-lane roads that were never built for master-planned suburbia.
Where it sits in the county process
Hillsborough County has logged the request as HC/CPA 26-10, described as lying southeast of Kingsway Road and Thonotosassa Road, and included it in the March Planning Commission agenda materials. As shown on Plan Hillsborough, HC/CPA 26-10 is a comprehensive-plan map amendment that must go before the Board of County Commissioners before any transmittal to state agencies can happen.
Neighbors push back
Longtime residents along U.S. 301 say they chose the area for its quiet, rural feel and abundant wildlife, and they worry that jumping from hundreds of units to thousands would rewrite daily life. Some have floated the idea of a state purchase of portions of the ranch or a scaled-down development that keeps key river corridors and existing roads largely intact.
Water, wildlife and infrastructure questions
Two Rivers Ranch sits where the Hillsborough River meets Blackwater Creek, a highly sensitive spot from an environmental and water-resources standpoint. The family points to conservation projects on the property as proof of its stewardship. Environmental Stewardship highlights the ranch's long conservation track record, while regional planning documents from the Southwest Florida Water Management District outline a web of preserves, mitigation banks and water protections in the same corridor that critics fear could be affected by such a large buildout.
How this fits with Two Rivers
Two Rivers is already pitched as a major master-planned community in the Pasco and Wesley Chapel area, with developers touting thousands of homes spread across multiple villages, some of which spill over into Hillsborough County. Two Rivers marketing materials lean hard on conservation-minded design, but the size of the Thomas family's latest Hillsborough request has revived questions from neighbors and planners about how far that branding stretches when thousands more rooftops are on the table.
What comes next
As reported by FOX 13, the Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners is scheduled to decide at its April 9 meeting whether to transmit the amendment to state agencies. If commissioners vote to transmit, the package heads to state reviewers under the procedures spelled out in Chapter 163 of the Florida Statutes. That review can stretch from weeks to months, and any ultimate county adoption would come only after additional public hearings and responses to state agency comments.
