Ocala Star Banner October 19, 2003
THE VILLAGES - The past will run into the future in The Villages' latest expansion proposal as one of the early pioneer homesteads in the once rural northern Sumter County area of Oxford is included in an area slated for development.
Since 1887, the Brinson Perry residence has stood on the north side of County Road 466 on a parcel of land where early settlers of the area once raised livestock and farmed. But as The Villages continues to boom, the stretch of CR 466 in front of the home is now a construction zone and the last remaining pasture land along the roadway is planned to become a mix of commercial and office space.
"I feel fairly certain that they're going to move it off that site," Jack Sullivan, The Villages land-use attorney with the Tallahassee law firm of Carlton Fields said of the Brinson Perry home.
Monday night, Sullivan will take The Villages planned expansion of the Tri County Villages Development of Regional Impact before the Sumter County Zoning and Adjustment Board. The Sumter County Commission is expected to consider the proposal on Oct. 28.
Richard Winters, also of Carlton Fields, said the two-story "I-frame" Brinson Perry home could be relocated, possibly becoming a centerpiece of one of the retirement community's recreation facilities or used as office space.
"There are so many options now it's still up in the air," Winters said. "Just because it was a residence at one time doesn't mean it has to remain a residence."
The Villages purchased the vacant Brinson Perry homestead in 2002 for $1.15 million, according to Sumter County property records.
A study by The Villages historical consulting firm, Archeological Consultants Incorporated, said the home could be eligible for inclusion the National Register of Historic Places for its architectural and historic features. Consultants Jeff Moates and Kimberly Hinder described the home as "one of the most intact pioneer residences in the Oxford area."
Using county records and information from the Sumter County Historical Society, the consultants traced the history of the home to the time the land was first acquired in 1854 by a settler named Andrew McDonald. In 1885, Hampton Brinson and his wife Charlotte Brinson (maiden name Perry) bought the land in an area then known as Sandspur, building a home two years later and settling down to raise cattle and farm. After Hampton Brinson and later Charlotte Brinson passed away, the home remained in the Perry family for generations. It was later acquired by Debra Leatherman who sold the home to The Villages in 2002.
Laura Kammerer, a supervisor with the Florida
Division of Historical Resources, said that state agency believes the home could qualify for the Historic Register because it has existed "relatively unchanged" for some 116 years.
"We do think it's a pretty interesting property," she said. "In general, we recommend it be preserved. They don't have to preserve it in place . . . once it is demonstrated it can't be kept there, they do have an option of moving it."
The Villages seeks to add approximately 142.5 acres on the north side of CR 466 to the Tri County Villages DRI, from about 400 feet east of the railroad tracks near U.S. 301 to 300 feet west of County Road 101. The request includes no additional residences but will add 95,000 square feet of commercial space and 59,000 square feet of office space.
Christopher Curry covers The Villages and can be contacted at
chris.curry@starbanner.com or (352) 867-4115.