Citrus County commission approves larger parking lot and deck for Crystal River Eagles with limits on outdoor music

The Citrus County Planning and Development Commission on Feb. 19 approved a conditional‑use amendment allowing the Crystal River Eagles (Area 4272) to expand their parking and add a deck at their Grover Cleveland Boulevard site.

The commission voted 7–0 to approve CU‑2025‑10 after staff described the proposal as compatible with the Comprehensive Plan and Land Development Code, and the applicant agreed to conditions addressing buffers, landscaping and a prohibition on outside music and bandstands. Dennis Karcher, the applicant, said the extra parking is needed for holiday dinners and community events and noted the club’s charitable work: “We give over $300,000 a year to Citrus County,” he told commissioners.

Staff and commissioners discussed technical details including the existing and proposed parking counts, stormwater, landscaping and fire‑safety oversight. Principal planner Joe Hockadell reported the site currently has roughly 72 parking spaces and the proposal would add about 60 more, bringing the total to about 132 spaces; the applicant confirmed the site is about 9.91 acres. Commissioners required the project to meet the county’s small non‑residential design criteria for parking‑lot landscaping and buffers. The applicant told the board there are no plans for a bandstand and agreed to a condition that would bar outdoor music on the new deck.

A resident who lives directly behind the Eagles property, Carrie Ann Krieger, said she had not experienced disruptive noise but asked that trees between her house and the club remain; the applicant said the plan seeks to preserve existing trees where possible.

The approval includes standard permit conditions (landscaping, buffers, stormwater and building‑code compliance) and a new explicit condition agreed at the hearing: no outdoor music or bandstands on the deck. The commission’s action was recorded as a motion by Commissioner Robert Sherra, seconded by Commissioner Stuart Bozeman, and recorded by the clerk as a 7–0 approval.

The next step is permitting and construction reviews: the applicant must satisfy stormwater, building and fire‑safety permits and implement the landscaping and buffer conditions before final site work.