Sugarmill Woods homeowners tell federal officials they'll fight a highway extension through their area.
By JUSTIN GEORGE
Published August 4, 2004
SUGARMILL WOODS - Sugarmill Woods residents opposed to a Suncoast Parkway extension that would affect their Citrus County neighborhood have countered the Federal Highway Administration's latest move.
If the government, state or federal, wants to build a route through their community, the government would have to negotiate settlements with almost 10,000 property owners - individually.
So goes the next move in a chess game that has been going on for more than a decade.
The parkway runs between Tampa and U.S. 98 near the Hernando-Citrus county line. Florida's Turnpike Enterprise, which is part of the Florida Department of Transportation, is studying a possible $200-million extension through Citrus.
The state is seeking at least $140-million from the federal government to build the proposed tollway, so officials are following Federal Highway Administration guidelines during their review of 10 possible routes.
The routes under consideration include land between the Withlacoochee State Forest to the east and Sugarmill Woods power lines to the west. The extension's northern boundary would be U.S. 19 north of Crystal River.
Turnpike officials, wanting to relieve some neighborhood concerns and move forward with more specific planning, decided to ask federal transportation officials if seven of the 10 routes - including one that would run smack through Sugarmill Woods - could be eliminated from consideration.
But federal officials rejected that request.
"At this time there wasn't sufficient detail or justification to reduce (to) the three routes," Steve Jacobitz, FHA's Florida division spokesman explained.
Walter Averill, president of Sugarmill Woods' Cypress Village Property Owners Association, wrote federal officials late last month with an invitation to visit their bucolic neighborhood greenbelt. He also included a threat:
"I can virtually guarantee that should a decision be made to put the road through Sugarmill," Averill wrote to FHA engineer Marvin Williams, "it will be necessary to negotiate with each and every property owner in Sugarmill as each of us owns a piece of every tree and piece of ground in our greenbelt."
Cypress Village is part of Sugarmill Woods, and Averill's comments have been echoed by Skip Christensen, president of the Sugarmill Woods Civic Association.
"That's right," Averill said later in an interview, "because every property owner owns a part of every tree and a square inch of every common area."
"Well, that ought to get their attention," said Joanne Hurley, Turnpike Enterprise spokeswoman.
The state still believes the seven routes it ruled out "are not reasonable," Hurley said, and Turnpike officials are now gathering data that would persuade federal officials to see things their way.
Jacobitz welcomes the advice. Federal officials weren't endorsing any routes when they rejected the state's request, he said; they just aren't ready to rule out anything.
"We've asked that all reasonable alternatives be considered and evaluated," Jacobitz said. "There are many factors in determining whether a roadway is needed and its preferable route, including natural and environmental concerns. That's why public input is essential."
