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State won't pay for SR 54 fix
By JAMES THORNER
© St. Petersburg Times, Starved for money from this year's state budget, the Department of Transportation has reneged on a promise to pay $3.2-million toward widening an accident-prone stretch of State Road 54 near Interstate 75. That's not all. Also on the chopping block is a promised $300,000 to help widen Little Road north of State Road 52 in Hudson from four to six lanes. Another victim of budget cuts will be a $283,000 grant to straighten the jagged intersection of Livingston Avenue, County Line Road and Collier Parkway in Land O'Lakes. DOT spokeswoman Marion Pscion stressed Thursday that Pasco wasn't the only county to lose the grants. It's a statewide problem caused by the economic slowdown, made worse by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, she said. "Right now with the state of the economy we didn't want to ask for any more money," Pscion said of the three grants, all promised to Pasco for the 2002-2003 budget year. The biggest loss was $3.2-million for State Road 54, part of a project to widen the highway from two lanes to four for 1.5-miles between Magnolia and Oakley boulevards in Wesley Chapel. That oft-congested highway is blamed for several fatal accidents over the past few years. Traffic worsened after the county bought Oakley Boulevard for $450,000, turning what had been a 1.3-mile dead end into a link between SR 54 and Old Pasco Road. Assistant County Administrator Bipin Parikh said the county should be able to replace the $3.2-million for SR 54 from its own budget. "We're moving forward with the project," Parikh promised. The fate of the intersection realignment at Livingston, Collier and County Line Road is more in doubt. Parikh said the state grant was a vital part of the $1.7-million project to smooth out traffic and create a cul-de-sac for several homeowners on the county line who have complained about speeding cars. The plan was to combine the DOT's share with $350,000 from Pasco County, $300,000 from Hillsborough County and about $700,000 worth of land from a neighboring landowner. "The project's on hold," Parikh said. The cuts also could jeopardize the widening of Little Road from SR 52 to Fivay Road. The grant was supposed to cover $300,000 of the $970,000 cost. In an attempt to save some of the projects, the DOT has promised to scrounge up any grant money left over from previous years, Pscion said.
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