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Widening of CR 54 may head to courts

Commissioners give the county attorney the authority to file an eminent domain lawsuit if land negotiations are not resolved.

By STEPHEN HEGARTY
Published January 26, 2005

DADE CITY - The county's longstanding plans to widen County Road 54 on each side of Interstate 75 have run into another roadblock, as the county has been unable to buy all the land needed for the project.

On Tuesday, the County Commission gave the county attorney the go-ahead to go to court to take the needed property if negotiations continue to stall.

"This gives us the authority to file" the eminent domain lawsuit, said assistant county attorney Marcie McDonie. "But we'll continue to negotiate with the landowners."

The road widening is a key project in an area where traffic is routinely backed up on each side of the interstate. Once the two-lane road is widened to four lanes, it will make the frustrating trek toward the interstate a lot easier for residents in Lexington Oaks to the west or Saddlebrook to the east.

For a couple of years now, the county has been working to buy pieces of property for the right of way. McDonie estimated the county has bought about 85 percent of the property it needs all along CR 54. That road is commonly known as State Road 54, but the state turned that part of the road over to the county when State Road 56 opened.

But the county has been unable to reach an agreement to buy 14 pieces of property, most of it around CR 54 and Old Pasco Road. The estimated value of the 14 parcels is $1.87-million.

The road job has been held up before. In 2001, the Florida Department of Transportation reneged on a promise to contribute more than $3-million for the widening on the west side of I-75.

The project extends from Magnolia Boulevard and CR 54 all the way under I-75, east to Bruce B. Downs Boulevard. The county estimates the total cost of right of way purchases will be about $6.5-million. The actual construction costs are not much higher, an estimated $6.8-million.

That two-lane section of the road would be widened to four lanes. The county is buying up enough right of way so it has the option to widen the road to six lanes someday.

The project is a necessary part of one of Pasco's most expensive planned road projects: the new interchange at CR 54 and I-75. That new interchange would involve a redesigned bridge over CR 54 as well as more lanes under the interstate. That was the biggest single road project promised under the Penny for Pasco referendum last year. It was estimated to cost about $22-million.

The widening project would not be limited to CR 54. It also involves work on the Old Pasco Road intersection. That's why several of the parcels of land the county is trying to purchase are on Old Pasco Road near the intersection with CR 54. The county will be buying pieces of land as far north on Old Pasco Road as Foamflower Boulevard.

County engineer Jim Widman said if all goes well, the county could start the construction project as early as spring.

[Last modified January 26, 2005, 00:13:15]