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Mayor Reconsiders Bridge Over I-75 As Standalone Project

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By LAURA KINSLER

The Tampa Tribune

Published: August 13, 2008

NEW TAMPA - Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio has softened her stance on whether to build a $22 million bridge over Interstate 75 in New Tampa.

Iorio previously said she would not build the New Tampa Boulevard Bridge without the proposed east-west toll road that would have linked Tampa Palms to I-275. Now, her administration is considering moving forward with the bridge as a standalone project.
Councilman Joseph Caetano said the mayor told him she could support the project but only after Hillsborough County widens the segment of Bruce B. Downs Boulevard that includes the I-75 interchange.

The bridge would link Tampa Palms to neighborhoods and shopping centers north of the I-75 interchange so motorists can move around without having to use Bruce B. Downs Boulevard. But that's why many homeowners in Tampa Palms don't want it built. Dozens attended a workshop Tuesday organized by Caetano, who only recently reversed his position on the bridge.

"They think I deserted them," the longtime Tampa Palms activist said. "I didn't desert them. This project was on the books before I ever got elected."

His neighbors worry that without the east-west toll road to I-275, commuters would use the bridge and Tampa Palms Boulevard as a cut-through to avoid driving on Bruce B. Downs Boulevard. Some talked of secession from the city. Others called the project a "monstrous" waste of money.

"Why do you have to destroy that side of Tampa Palms to serve other developments when we were never at the table?" resident Warren Dixon said.

Steve Daignault, the city's administrator for public works, said a final decision hasn't been made. Iorio could not be reached for comment.

"The mayor is looking to us for a recommendation on whether to build the bridge," he said.
Transportation director Jean Dorzback made her department's position clear: The city is required to build the bridge. The project was part of a road network required under state concurrency laws that allowed the city to approve several New Tampa developments, such as West Meadows and Arbor Greene. It also was named in annexation agreements for K-Bar Ranch and Grand Hampton, to name a few.

"The city of Tampa is obligated to comply with these contractual agreements," assistant city attorney Julia Cole said.

"We've allowed these developments to occur, but the infrastructure is not there to support them," Dorzback said.

The county is scheduled to let bids for the Bruce B. Downs widening project in February.

"That's a two-year project," Dorzback said. "Ours is a two-year contract, so even if we let bids today, we wouldn't be ready to open before Bruce B. Downs is done."

Reporter Laura Kinsler can be reached at (813) 865-4844 or lkinsler@tampatrib.com.

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