Is Bradenton Beach willing to cross this bridge?
A group challenging the Florida Department of Transportation’s decision to replace the 17-foot-clearance Cortez drawbridge with a 65-foot-clearance fixed-span megabridge has reached an agreement with the agency on the draft administrative record, a more than 6,000-page document detailing how the department came to its decision to build the high bridge.
The coalition — which lodged a 47-page complaint against the fixed-span bridge in federal court in 2020 — signed off on the DOT record June 17.
Should the suit reach the summary judgment phase, a federal magistrate will review the finalized record, along with written arguments from both parties, before ruling.
According to former Manatee County Commissioner Joe McClash, who spearheads the anti-megabridge group, the DOT is expected to file the finalized record soon with the court.
Once filed, a 45-day clock will start on the city of Bradenton Beach to join the lawsuit.
The city has flirted with joining McClash, Jane von Hahmann, also a former county commissioner and a Cortez resident, and Linda Molto and Joe Kane, Cortez residents, to become the fifth anti-megabridge complainant.
The coalition is advocating for the construction of a 35-foot-clearance drawbridge to replace the 17-foot bascule bridge, which was built and opened to traffic in 1957, spanning the Intracoastal Waterway and connecting Cortez on the mainland to Bradenton Beach on Anna Maria Island.
Bradenton Beach commissioners and the mayor unanimously voted March 18 to direct city attorney Ricinda Perry to coordinate with outside counsel to join the suit and allocated up to $15,000 for legal costs.
On April 8, Perry communicated to the commission that the case could eventually cost the city six figures and commissioners voted 4-1 to reduce its allocation to $5,000.
Perry met with DOT representatives behind closed doors April 16 for informal negotiations with the agency.
McClash maintains that legal costs to the city would be minimal because outside representation would only need to review the coalition’s documentation.
Perry said June 15 that attorneys are required by the Florida Bar rules to defend their clients zealously, meaning outside counsel would need to review the 6,000-page administrative record in addition to all other case materials.
“The attorney that I spoke with was uncomfortable not performing the necessary due diligence and review of the file to intelligently address the issues. He’s not going to work on the case halfheartedly,” she said.
The city has made progress in its settlement negotiations with the DOT, Perry said, providing the agency with pricing for undergrounding utilities within the scope of the bridge project.
The city also plans to provide the DOT with pricing for the construction of a sidewalk between the intersection of Cortez Road and Gulf Drive and the Gulf Drive Cafe, 900 Gulf Drive N., Bradenton Beach — an undertaking outside the project limits.
Other city objectives include modifications to the multi-use path that runs alongside Bridgeport Condominiums and under the bridge and the trimming of Australian Pines at Cortez Road and Gulf Drive.
The next informal settlement conference could be held as soon as June 25, Perry said.