Why not ask?
Materials the Florida Department of Transportation used to gather public input during the Cortez Bridge project development and environment study, conducted 2013-19, included questions about specific bridge alternatives.
The Longboat Pass Bridge PD&E materials do not.
During the Cortez Bridge study, the DOT used surveys that included the questions:
- Are you in favor of replacement or rehabilitation of Cortez Bridge?
- Should the bridge require replacement, what type of improvement would you like to see built? Why?
Respondents could tick boxes for the options: high-level fixed bridge, midlevel drawbridge, low-level drawbridge or “other.”
Such queries do not appear on the Longboat Pass Bridge PD&E questionnaires DOT consultants said were mailed March 9 to 1,589 people across two ZIP codes, along with a newsletter.
The mailing was part of an official comment period that started online March 16 and ended April 2 on the project’s website, swflroads.com/sr789/longboatkey/.
DOT communications specialist Brian Rick said in a March 30 email to The Islander that the two newsletter mailings the department carried out are typical public outreach for this project type, while the questionnaire was an optional component the department decided to include.
Additional questionnaires and/or surveys may be used as the study progresses, Rick added.
One of the build alternatives the DOT is considering for the Longboat Pass Bridge is a high fixed-span structure.
At the study’s public kickoff meeting March 23, Longboat Key Mayor Ken Schneier said a 65-foot-clearance fixed-span bridge is not a viable alternative, because it could lead to a situation where sailboats with masts taller than 65 feet are trapped in Sarasota Bay.
Surveys played heavy role in Cortez Bridge study
Surveys with questions about specific alternatives were used at least five times during the Cortez Bridge PD&E, beginning with a handout at the February 2013 Cortez Commercial Fishing Festival.
Of the 168 surveys that were filled out at the festival, 51% favored rehabilitating, as opposed to replacing the current 17-foot-clearance drawbridge that spans the Intracoastal Waterway and connects Cortez on the mainland to Bradenton Beach on Anna Maria Island. Of those who favored bridge replacement, 51% percent ticked the box for a high-level fixed bridge.
More than half of the surveys returned in April and May 2013 — including those handed out at an April 30 public kickoff meeting — were in favor of rehabilitating the Cortez Bridge over replacement.
At the two alternatives public meetings, held in August 2014 and August 2016, public opinion appeared to shift.
The DOT received 59 surveys at the first meeting, of which 59% favored bridge replacement. Of those who favored replacement, 43% preferred a midlevel drawbridge alternative, while 40% favored a high-level fixed-span bridge.
At the second meeting, 67% of the 426 surveys returned favored replacement. Of those, 64% favored the high bridge alternative.
In August 2017, the DOT conducted a public hearing, the last official opportunity for public input into the Cortez Bridge PD&E.
Public opinion appeared to change once again — of the 165 surveys that were returned in the days following the meeting, 50% favored maintaining the current bridge, while 38% favored replacement.
Of the responses that favored replacement, 75% preferred the high-bridge alternative, compared to 24% for a 35-foot-clearance drawbridge.
Despite the final survey results, the DOT announced in September 2019 that they would move forward with a 65-foot-clearance fixed-span replacement.
That decision is being challenged in federal court by a coalition that includes the city of Bradenton Beach, former County Commissioners Joe McClash and Jane von Hahmann and two Cortez residents.
Citing the ongoing litigation, Rick declined to comment on the DOT’s megabridge selection process.
Comments about the PD&E can be submitted on the project’s website or sent to project manager Patrick Bateman at patrick.bateman@dot.state.fl.us.
