Citrus Chronicle
By: Terry Witt
Published: December 27, 2007

Suncoast Parkway 2 wasn't a major issue in 2007 for most Citrus County residents, but for those who feared it might become their next-door neighbor, it loomed big.

The Sugarmill Woods Civic Association attempted without success to convince the Florida Turnpike Enterprise to move the route a half-mile east of the approved location on the community's far eastern side to lessen potential traffic noise. The effort failed.

Turnpike officials said the 1998 approved route wasn't going to be changed. They said the FTE might tweak it slightly in some locations, but that's about all.

Most of the work on Suncoast 2 in 2007 was not visible to the naked eye, as planners and engineers at FTE began building the road on paper. Field survey crews could be seen on the official route, creating an official record of what has and hasn't changed since the route was selected almost 10 years ago.

In mid 2008, when FTE has completed 30 percent of the design on the 26.4-mile toll road, agency officials will schedule a public meeting in Citrus County to explain what has been accomplished to that point and to take public comment.

Approve or disapprove?

A year later, when the design is 60 percent complete, FTE officials will schedule a public hearing to take more public input. They will also ask the Citrus County Commission whether the road should be constructed through the western part of the county.

Turnpike spokeswoman Joanne Hurley said the no-build option is no longer on the table, but she said county commissioners have the ability to disapprove Suncoast 2 in 2009. To this point, commissioners have been supportive of the project. However, they have asked for more information.

"I wouldn't say no build. We have an approved project. I would say the county commission has the ability in 2009 to approve or not approve the project," Hurley said.

If commissioners disapprove the project, Suncoast 2 won't be constructed.

Hurley said FTE is compiling information requested by commissioners on projected traffic counts, impacts to communities, impacts to the natural environment, and interchange locations. The information will be provided to the board in 2009.

Buying land

The Florida Legislature has allocated $140 million for the purchase of rights-of-way. Hurley said the projected cost of buying land and building the four-lane road is $578 million at today's prices.

FTE's five-year planning budget contains no construction money for Suncoast 2, and that means construction couldn't begin through 2013.

The current design calls for interchanges at U.S. 98 in southern Citrus County, State Road 44 in Lecanto and U.S. 19 at Red Level above Crystal River. Future interchanges are planned for County Road 495 and Cardinal Lane. The county commission has asked FTE to investigate Grover Cleveland Boulevard as an alternative to Cardinal Lane.

Hurley said FTE plans to purchase a limited number of properties along the Suncoast 2 route next year despite the risk of county commissioners killing the project in 2009.

"We're in the process of developing a process to decide which parcels we may acquire in 2008," she said. "It would be parcels we feel very strongly are needed, and we would do it at our own risk."

New parkway won't sever roads

Hurley said Suncoast 2 wouldn't sever any major county roads. Residents raised that issue at the last county commission meeting attended by FTE officials. She said FTE will decide whether to "go over or under" the county's major roads that lie in the path of Suncoast 2. She said some dirt roads might be severed, but FTE would provide an alternative access route to properties in the affected area.

The Suncoast 2 corridor would be 400 feet wide. The toll road would be a divided highway with four lanes. Fencing would line the highway to prevent deer or other animals from crossing. The fence would be buried in the ground to deter burrowing animals from entering the roadway.

Animal crossings

Hurley said the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service would determine the location of animal crossings and the length of the crossings in 2008. The crossings would allow wild animals to travel under the toll road.

She said FTE constructed bridges longer than necessary over wetlands and rivers when Suncoast 1 was constructed in an effort to leave dry land for animal crossings.

Suncoast 2 will pass through Annutteliga Hammock and the Lecanto Sandhills, two conservation areas purchased with state preservation funds. However, the county commission said it would not approve the state's purchase of those lands if it interfered with construction of the parkway.