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Extend Citrus Park Drive: a no-brainer? Not quite

Many in Fawn Ridge and Windsor Place say it will cut too close. The main backers say a win-win solution is needed.

By STEPHANIE HAYES
Published February 23, 2007

For years, a grass roots lobbying group called the Upper Tampa Bay Alliance has pushed for the extension of Citrus Park Drive.

Now, Hillsborough County is conducting a study to see if the proposed 2.8-mile extension from Countryway Boulevard to Sheldon Road is feasible. The project is high up on the county's list of unfunded projects.

Good as gold? Hold the phone, say some alliance members.

Fawn Ridge and Windsor Place neighborhood representatives came to Tuesday's alliance meeting to voice concerns.

"Somebody is winning, and we're losing big," said Barbara Dawes, who lives in Fawn Ridge, on the project's east end. "The majority of the community is against the extension."

Dawes said the road, as proposed, would be 30 to 50 feet from her home, with no barrier between. She wants to see the alignment move south, where a mitigation pond stands in the way.

"Work around it and figure it out," she said. "They have not convinced us that it can't go south."

Barbara Bailey, who lives in Windsor Place, at the project's west end, spent six weeks going door to door in her neighborhood and nearby Mandolin Reserve and Mandolin Estates with official county comment sheets. The Windsor Place home-owners association submitted concerns to the county on behalf of 182 residents.

Bailey said 37 homes in her neighborhood would be less than 30 feet from the road.

She worries about safety and noise. As it is, she said, teenagers race down the existing dead end street. Extending it would "open up a drag strip right next door to my bedroom window."

Rich Reidy, aide to county commissioner Ken Hagan, attended the meeting. He told Bailey and Dawes that acting for change now is the right thing to do. Hagan pushed for county approval to spend $10-million toward the road, which could cost $45-million to $70-million.

"This is by no means over," Reidy said. "We are only in the drafting stages."

Alliance president Susan Edgerley, who lives in Westchase and supports the extension, said everyone needs to unite for the best result.

"The problem is, nobody wants a road in their back yard," she said. "We have to work together to get some kind of win-win."

Also at the meeting: Reg Alford, project manager for the Race Track Road and Gunn Highway widenings, provided updates on those projects.

Construction on the portion of Race Track Road from Countryway Boulevard to Linebaugh Avenue began in January. Work on the road in front of Tampa Bay Downs will begin in 2008, and from Douglas Road to Hillsborough Avenue in 2009.

The project, which will expand Race Track from two lanes to six at a cost of more than $65-million, should be done by 2012, Alford said.

"I know it's a pain for a lot of people," said Alford, who planned to talk to the general contractor about lighting construction zones better at night.

Gunn Highway will also expand from two lanes to four between Ehrlich and South Mobley roads. Construction on the $9.1-million job could start in June, Alford said.

The project includes sidewalks, bicycle lanes and median improvements. The Sickles High entrance will move from Gunn to Hixon Road.

Alford said a pond in front of the school will expand, and a 6-foot wrought iron fence will go up. It should keep students from loitering near the road.

"They will not be able to climb across it," he said. "If they do, it'll be a big, wet pond."

Stephanie Hayes can be reached at shayes@sptimes.com or 813 269-5303.

[Last modified February 22, 2007, 08:00:44]