WESLEY CHAPEL, Fla. — It’s a question being raised by some Pasco County businesses: should Wesley Chapel become a city?

The North Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce is raising money to research the pros and cons.

What You Need To Know

  • Wesley Chapel is the focus of a potential research study being performed by the North Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce

  • Wesley Chapel is an unincorporated census designated place or CDP, making it part of Pasco County and Pasco County government

  • The study is a way to see if Wesley Chapel becoming a city makes financial sense

  • The hope is to have the first study funded in the next 2 to 3 months, with another few months to complete it

“The timing is right,” said Hope Kennedy, President & CEO of the North Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce. “The business community came to the chamber and said, ‘Hey, we want to look into incorporation of Wesley Chapel.’ Not for right now, but for the future.”

Wesley Chapel, as Kennedy explains, is an unincorporated census-designated place, or CDP, and is governed by the Pasco County government.

“The business community has come to us because, at a certain point, the growth is outpacing the infrastructure and the different services within our community,” said Kennedy. “The business community sees it as an opportunity to keep the tax dollars here in this area.”

She says the study is a way to see if Wesley Chapel becoming a city makes financial sense.

It’s not the first time this has been discussed, with talk going back more than 10 years.

“Back then, it was being driven by the residents, ironically,” Kennedy said. “The business community wasn’t as engaged in that process. Now the business community is engaged in the process and so we want to make sure that, again, it’s data driven and it’s done right.”

There will be two separate studies, an economic impact study and a feasibility study. It will show what a municipality would look like and what sort of structure the city would have.

One potential outcome, Kennedy says, could involve taxes.

“There might be a redistribution of those taxes," she said. "Again, we won’t know those dollar amounts or what that looks like. What we’re hoping to get out of this study is here’s what you get now for your taxes at this amount and here’s what you’re going to get for your taxes at this amount.”

She says the goal is for the study is to show the impact becoming a city may have on local residents.

“It’ll be a very good look at what Wesley Chapel is and what Wesley Chapel can be,” she said.

Kennedy says they hope to have the first study funded in the next 2 to 3 months. It’ll then take another few months to complete it.