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Turnpike bill called destructive 'Roadzilla'
By WES PLATT, Times Staff Writer SPRING HILL -- The revolution arrived in a pickup truck Monday morning. Clay Colson hopped out of the back of the truck, hauled a portable lectern to the grassy ground in front of state Rep. David Russell's office off Spring Hill Drive, and kicked off a rally against proposed turnpike legislation being sponsored by Russell. Specifically, the Land O'Lakes resident and Naturecoast Sierra Club spokesman criticized House Bill 261 and Senate Bill 502, under consideration during this final week of the state legislative session. The legislation would allow the Florida Turnpike Authority to build toll roads without requiring that they pay for themselves and would allow for the creation of enterprise zones along the highways. "It's a monstrous abomination we call Roadzilla," Colson said. "If unleashed, it will be stalking our quality of life, pursuit of happiness and peace of mind." Colson was among a handful of protesters, including Jennifer Sullivan of Hernando County's Green Party and Janet Masaoy of Citrus County's Citizens Opposed to the Suncoast Tollway, who spoke at the rally. The House bill, amended last week to require environmental approvals before project bidding, is likely to fade into obscurity in favor of its companion Senate bill. A vote on the Senate bill, already modified to resemble the House bill, is expected this week. The legislation would promote intense development, would not make toll roads pay for themselves, as currently required, and would destroy wildlife habitats, Colson warned, criticizing the "institutionalized enthusiasm for growth" in the state Department of Transportation. For example, Colson disliked the idea of enterprise zones that would allow for the construction of hotels and strip shopping centers along toll highways. He said such development could urbanize rural communities and perpetuate a chronic concern in Florida's growth management: sprawl. "The DOT wants to put a happy face on sprawl," Colson said, pinning a big yellow smiley face over the word "SPRAWL" on a sign poking up from the lectern. He decried as "egregiously un-American" moves to keep public input from the road project approval process, and said the subsidizing of state acquisition of private land for public use encouraged by Russell's bill in the House was "socialistic and communistic." That characterization left Russell bemused. "These folks are making a tempest in a teapot," he said in a telephone interview from Tallahassee. "These are zero-growth people. They do not want new roads. They do not want any growth. They will do anything they can to stop growth here in the state of Florida. . . . I can't see how someone could construe this as socialistic or communistic. This is really empty rhetoric." Sullivan of the Green Party said she isn't against growth -- she just prefers planned growth. "Smart growth is the way to go," she said. "We need to do this in a smart way. We can welcome others, but on our own terms."
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