 2 BRIDGES NOT TIED IN REVIEW Palm Beach Post -- Friday, February 2, 2001 By: Jim Reeder, Palm Beach Post Staff Writer PORT ST. LUCIE -- Approval of the West Virginia Drive river crossing won't depend on approval of a toll bridge to South Hutchinson Island, a Department of Environmental Protection official said Thursday, easing the fears of Port St. Lucie officials who worried the agency would approve both bridges or none. "Our letter has been misunderstood," said DEP Deputy Secretary Kirby Green III. "We will not hold up the permit for one bridge until the other bridge is decided." DEP officials had said in a letter to city officials in August that they would review the West Virginia Drive bridge across the St. Lucie River and a proposed toll bridge across the Indian River Lagoon as one project. "The reason for reviewing both bridges is to determine if by approving the West Virginia Drive, have we fixed the location of the toll bridge," Green said. "We were talking a broad planning perspective on the impacts of both bridges together." State Rep. Gayle Harrell, R-Port St. Lucie, invited Green to discuss the project with local officials. Linking the two bridges with a single roadway could boost toll revenue on the Indian River Lagoon Bridge, probably to be built at Walton Road. Other alternatives under consideration include Midway Road, Prima Vista Boulevard and building no bridge. The Port St. Lucie City Council and the Metropolitan Planning Organization have told DEP the two bridges are separate projects and should be reviewed separately by state officials. A bridge in the West Virginia Drive corridor is the only feasible place for a third east-west road in a city that's divided by the North Fork of the St. Lucie River, according to bridge proponents. "Our priority is the welfare of the citizens, and we can't meet critical transportation needs without this project," Mayor Bob Minsky said. Critics say that area is too environmentally sensitive because it is classified as Outstanding Florida Waters, a designation that means water quality should not be harmed. Green said the bridge design must reduce environmental problems. "We will rely on the Department of Transportation and the city to determine if the bridge is required for transportation and DEP will see that it's built in an environmentally sensitive manner." Copyright (c) 2001, The Palm Beach Post |