Northpinellas: Judge denies bid to block overpass at Drew Street

Judge denies bid to block overpass at Drew Street

An unhappy property owner is not granted his wish, as a judge refuses to stop the project on U.S. 19. But he will fight the county's effort to use an easement on his property.

By LISA GREENE, Times Staff Writer

An unhappy property owner is not granted his wish, as a judge refuses to stop the project on U.S. 19. But he will fight the county's effort to use an easement on his property.

A U.S. 19 property owner fighting the Florida Department of Transportation lost a round in court Tuesday.

Frank Kunnen had tried to stop the DOT from building the Drew Street overpass. But Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge James R. Case refused to grant Kunnen's motion to stop the project.

"Of course I'm disappointed in the ruling, but he's a fair judge," said Kunnen's lawyer, James A. Helinger Jr. "It's not the first time a judge has disagreed."

DOT officials wouldn't comment on the ruling. The agency plans to start building the overpass this fall.

Kunnen owns the Clearwater 19 Commerce Center, just north of the northeast corner of U.S. 19 and Drew Street. The overpass will cut off Kunnen's access to U.S. 19, forcing his tenants to use service roads instead.

After negotiations to buy Kunnen's property stalled, DOT decided to redesign its project to remove a retention pond from Kunnen's land.

DOT still must build a service road across Kunnen's land. But DOT now says it can use an easement that Kunnen granted Pinellas County to build the service road without buying the land. The county uses the easement to get to its maintenance yard, just north of Kunnen's center.

This isn't the end of the legal battle. DOT and the county filed suit Monday to ask a judge to declare they can use the easement. Helinger said Kunnen still will fight that action.