NEW PORT RICHEY - The fate of five acres led to a battle of numbers, accusations of disingenuousness and even a complaint by one county commissioner that the new growth management administrator had implied she and her colleagues were "stupid."

The issue? Whether to turn those five acres at State Road 54 and Trinity Boulevard from light industrial to commercial use.

Developers of the Trinity communities said yes. County staff said no.

In the end, commissioners voted 4-1 in favor of the developers' request. Chairman Jack Mariano dissented.

Richard Gehring, the county's growth management administrator, had argued that changing the future land use of the property conflicted with the vision of building industrial centers that would bring higher-wage jobs. He said the Trinity property was special because its location near two roads - Trinity Boulevard and Gunn Highway - could bring in workers from Pinellas and Hillsborough counties.

He argued, too, that changing the five acres would mean the Trinity community had lost a total of 463 acres once slated for light industrial use to other uses.

"To us," he said, "it's the tip of the iceberg."

But Barbara Wilhite, a former assistant county attorney making her first major case in front of her old bosses, said the county staff had "misrepresented" the numbers. She said the 463-acre figure is inaccurate, and what the developer is allowed to build is allocated by square feet and units, not acreage. The project has been part of a process that is nearly three years in the making, she said.

"It's five acres," she said. "It's not a significant issue."

Commissioner Pat Mulieri lashed at Gehring, saying, "I almost feel like you're saying we're stupid up here." (She did not say which of his comments made her feel that way.) She told her colleagues that people were watching their decision: "If you say no today, I feel you're sending a bad message to the business community," she said.

Commissioner Michael Cox, who said the property seemed better suited for commercial than industrial, added that he didn't like hearing what the developers had to say about the staff.

"It's a little bit disturbing to me, this squaring off between our staff and this applicant," he said. "We're trying to make this more of a user-friendly place."

The squaring off may not be over. Trinity developers are scheduled to go before the county's development review committee today to discuss other changes in the works. County Administrator John Gallagher, at the end of Wednesday's commission meeting, expressed frustration about what was to come.

"I've heard so much conflicting information today," he said. "We need to find out what's right."

Jodie Tillman can be reached at jtillman@sptimes or (727) 869-6247.