Builder selected for Belcher extension

The county will pay $5.98-million for construction of the stretch between Alderman and Tampa roads.

By EDIE GROSS

© St. Petersburg Times, published January 10, 2001

Adding another 1.8 miles of asphalt to Belcher Road: $5.98-million.

Having an alternative to U.S. 19: priceless.

So say Pinellas County officials who approved the second leg of Belcher Road's long-awaited extension Tuesday. R.E. Purcell Construction Co. of Odessa, which handed in the lowest of six bids on the project, will construct the new section from Tampa Road to Alderman Road.

The county agreed to pay Purcell $5.98-million for the work. Another $1.2-million has already been spent designing the road and purchasing right of way.

The project is expected to begin by the end of February and take about 15 months to complete.

"We'll be happy to have it," said Commissioner Susan Latvala, a Palm Harbor resident. "It's got to eventually take traffic off U.S. 19."

The extension of Belcher from Curlew Road north to Klosterman Road has been in the county's plans since 1971. The project has taken on more urgency in recent years as county officials look for ways to get drivers off dangerous U.S. 19.

The four-lane stretch of Belcher between Curlew and Tampa roads opened Jan. 11, 1999. Traffic counts show that segment carried an average of 20,258 cars each day that year.

Meanwhile, traffic on parallel stretches of Alt. U.S. 19, County Road 1 and U.S. 19 dropped.

Latvala said she uses the newest section of Belcher Road, but she suspects that more drivers will take advantage of it once it reaches farther north.

"I don't think it's used as much as it should be or could be, and spilling out onto Tampa Road may be a reason why people don't use it," Latvala said. "The next leg will take you through a lot more subdivisions. More people will be able to get home.

"I love it," she said. "I hate having to get off it. You just get on this and go."

Eventually, Belcher will go all the way to Klosterman Road. The section between Alderman and Klosterman roads, expected to begin in 2002, is estimated to cost about $6-million.

The two years that Kimmins Construction spent building the $5.7-million section between Curlew and Tampa roads were filled with controversy. Residents in surrounding neighborhoods claimed the heavy construction equipment damaged their homes, patios and pools.

The county and Kimmins argued over who was responsible for the damage as well as who should be blamed for a three-month delay in the road's opening. Kimmins insisted that the county made last-minute changes that pushed back the road's schedule. The county, in turn, said Kimmins' mistakes were responsible for the delay.

Kimmins did not bid on the new section of Belcher Road. The company is now allowed to bid only on projects that cost less than $100,000, according to the county's Purchasing Department.

Meanwhile, R.E. Purcell Construction was 104 days ahead of schedule when it finished a $14-million widening project on Curlew Road in June. The state Department of Transportation awarded Purcell a $470,000 bonus for its speed.

The company also recently widened part of East Lake Road just north of Tampa Road, adding a lane to help Boot Ranch residents turn safely into their subdivision.

Before the company gets started on Belcher Road, Latvala said she may ask it to meet with nearby residents to explain what effect the construction will have.

"If we damage something, we'll make it right," Latvala said. "We're doing this to make our community better, not to destroy property."

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