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Mark O’Brien: Put Perdido Key’s growing traffic on road to future

May 30, 2004

Mark O'Brien
@PensacolaNewsJournal.com

For years, some people were happy that Perdido Key Drive was skinny and unattractive, by highway standards.

The mostly two-lane road along the beaches kept the down-home flavor and set Florida's side of the island apart from the huge highway feeding it from Alabama.

Better yet, they thought, the rickety road helped deter growth, especially because it's a state road and the cash-strapped State of Florida didn't consider it a high priority.

But the train has left the station, the horse is out of the barn, and Perdido Key Drive needs to be widened, pronto.

Look at it: Condos to the left. Condos to the right. A development here. A development there.

In addition to 4,500 existing residential units, hundreds more are on the drawing boards.

"We've been discovered,'' said Alvin Wingate, a member of the Escambia County Planning Board.

The traffic count is high, and it's sure to rise more.

Time to decide whether to make the road three lanes or four lanes, and find the money, which might be tantalizingly close by. The key delivers millions in property-tax dollars to be spent elsewhere in the county.

Commissioners can set aside a portion of the new property tax revenue for engineering studies and begin planning for a bigger, better road. This will improve the chances of getting federal and state aid.

For an estimated $50 million, the road can be converted into four lanes, all the way from the Theo Baars Bridge to the Alabama line.

That includes sidewalks, bike paths, medians and underground utilities, according to Perdido Key Chamber of Commerce officials who back the plan.

This would provide an avenue that is efficient, safe and attractive, in keeping with the barrier island's upscale boom.

Perdido Key now generates $12.8 million a year in property taxes, double the figure five years ago, says Bill Stromquist, the chamber's executive director. And the total may double in five more years as expensive new units open.

"It's not hard to do when you've got $100 million projects," he said.

We're not talking about just the convenience of motorists.

Safety is a serious concern for bicyclists and walkers. Perdido Key Drive lacks shoulders. It's vital for hurricane evacuation.

Setting aside some of the new property tax money -- called tax increment financing -- may be the best solution.

Traffic problems across the area are bound to worsen, increasing the squeeze for transportation money.

Sorrento Road, a major road in southwest Escambia, is at 93 percent capacity. Across town, parts of Olive Road have been jammed with traffic for years.

Engineers give an F to the Pensacola Bay Bridge when it comes to delivering morning traffic to Pensacola, and Santa Rosa County residents have their own horror stories.

The good news: Perdido Key traffic can improve if authorities try this new approach.

The bad news: It probably should have been done years ago. Residents raised the idea in the mid-1990s but couldn't get the County Commission's OK.

Time to try again. And remember: The road isn't getting any safer, nor is the project getting any cheaper.

©The Pensacola News Journal

May 30, 2004

Perdido Key study could open door to growth

Residents: Traffic impact needs further consideration

May 27, 2004

Steve Mraz

@PensacolaNewsJournal.com

A new traffic study accepted Wednesday by the Escambia County Planning Board could allow a bit more development to take place on Perdido Key.

But because Perdido Key Drive is limited in the volume of traffic it can accommodate, development still might be halted prior to reaching the cap of 7,150 dwelling units on the barrier island.

County planners believe development will be halted when the number of dwelling units reaches between 6,000 and 6,500.

Today, 6,190 dwellings exist, are reserved, have building permits or development orders on Perdido Key, according to county records.

Data in the study, conducted by the engineering firm of PBS&J and published in April, show Perdido Key Drive can handle more evening peak time trips than was previously believed. That could allow some development that might have been denied before the study got under way, said Richard Duane, director of Escambia County's Planning and Engineering Department.

"Acceptance of these numbers does increase capacity on Perdido Key Drive," he said.

But Perdido Key residents felt that the county did not give a traffic study they commissioned proper consideration.

"There have been valid questions raised and not answered," said Ann Griffin, president of the Perdido Key Association. "Please send the PBS&J report back to staff for more independent review. Please direct staff to make public the long-range plan for Perdido Key Drive, including plans for funding and implementing improvements."

Once the county stops development, it won't be able to continue until improvements are made to two-lane Perdido Key Drive. To four-lane the road from the state line to Innerarity Point would cost an estimated $50 million, Duane said.

Planning Board member Rodney Jackson suggested the county explore creating a taxing district in Perdido Key to fund improvements for the road.

Planning Board members voted to accept the study as a sign of addressing the issue.

"Let's move forward and solve the problem because you can't stop people from coming to Pensacola," said Alvin Wingate, Planning Board member. "We've got cake, ice cream and apple pie, and they want some too."

©The Pensacola News Journal

May 27, 2004

Escambia County commissioners moved Thursday night to re- examine the residential dwelling cap on Pensacola Beach development.

With little discussion, commissioners approved two studies that would confirm the number of dwellings that still could be constructed under the current plan and evaluate the economic impact of changing the 4,128-unit cap.

One month after the Santa Rosa Island Authority approved a $22 million project to four-lane Via de Luna, the commission decision has some opponents of further beach development crying foul.

But County Administrator George Touart adamantly denies any plan to raise the cap.

Santa Rosa Island Authority board members "don`t want it raised. We don`t want it raised. We`re not going to raise it," Touart said.

That doesn`t ring true to Gary Smith, president of the Pensacola Beach Residents and Leaseholders Association. He said the progression is similar to what happened on Perdido Key, where a cap of 4,116 units in 1998 became 8,150 units in 2002.

"They say, `We`ll never do it, we`ll never do it,` and meanwhile they`re steadfastly pursuing it all the while," he said. "It`s like boiling a frog by raising the temperature one degree an hour."

The two studies, estimated to cost $40,000, passed 4-0. Commissioner Cliff Barnhart missed the Thursday meeting for health reasons.

Condos could share turf with beach mice

Endangered rodent makes strides, needs more room

The endangered Perdido Key beach mouse seems to be doing fine, and that could be bad news for developers.

Federal Fish and Wildlife Service biologists have notified the owners of four large developments that they might have to set aside some acreage for the mouse.

The critter, which biologists repopulated to the Perdido Key State Recreation Area in 2000, has been reproducing and wandering east.

"Not all the area is beach mouse habitat, but we're trying to delineate exactly where the suitable beach mouse habitat is," said biologist Lorna Patrick.

The Fish and Wildlife Service plans to schedule a meeting next month to discuss the issue with the owners of the sites: Lost Key Plantation, Florencia condominiums, Magnolia West condominiums and the Cottages of Perdido.

Joe Edmisten of Edmisten & Associates Ecological Consultants is representing all the developments except Lost Key.

He's already working with Fish and Wildlife for mouse mitigation regarding Florencia, a $13.8 million condominium project going up near River Road and Perdido Key Drive.

The environmental consultant does not foresee the protected mouse stopping any development plans, but he said the rodent's presence will eat into the developers' bottom line.

"Not only will Florencia have to mitigate and give up some land," he said, but also "the feds want Florencia to leave a corridor to let the little critters move farther to the east if they can get across old River Road."

Lost Key Plantation is the largest project that could be affected. WCI Communities, the huge Bonita Springs development company that purchased Lost Key Plantation during a bankruptcy sale in October, is formulating plans to construct a 1,900- unit resort community on the 412 acres.

WCI communications director Pamela Cox said the company could not comment on the situation until after meeting with Fish and Wildlife officials.

The mouse caused a stir in 2000 when the federal government fenced off dunes at Johnson Beach to protect the little animals' habitat. The National Park Service also installed boardwalks over the dunes to offer visitors access to the beach.

The efforts in 2000, which included the mouse being repopulated in the state park, seem to have worked, said Fish and Wildlife biologist Bill Lynn.

In 1999, the mouse population was estimated to be 100. Now, it's more like 500 to 800, Lynn said.

In January, a mouse was trapped on property belonging to the proposed Cottages of Perdido, indicating that the species is migrating out of the state park, Lynn said.

Edmisten said the issue could grow into an "awkward situation" with developers, particularly because the endangered mouse was "planted" on adjacent property in areas that are not historical habitat.

However, Gulf Islands National Seashore Superintendent Riley Hoggard believes an agreement will be reached.

"The first reaction is always: `They're going to tell us that we can't do something, and they are taking away our rights.' But it never comes out like that," he said. "It'll get dicey for a while, and then it will go away. And everybody will be happy."

The following article discusses land that the County has purchased and intends to turn into a sports ground. They are proposing to move the Sports facilities at Baars Field to this location. The local Sports Association is pleased to be offered a larger facility. They are discussing with the Perdido Key Chamber and us whether Baars Field should be retained and used as a park. Commissioner Dickson would like to sell Baars Field and use the revenue for building the sports facilities.

County to buy land near NAS

Escambia County is prepared to spend $1.36 million to protect the future of Pensacola Naval Air Station and, in the process, free up property for a park.

The Escambia County Commission is expected to vote Thursday on purchasing 48 acres adjacent to the air station. Nearly all of the purchase price is expected to be covered by state and federal grants.

The land, immediately northwest of the air station's airfield, was destined to become the Bayou Grande Plantation subdivision.

But, after a temporary moratorium last year halted the subdivision's development, the recently completed Joint Land Use Study recommended the county purchase land around the base.

"If the county doesn't go ahead and buy this property, we're going to have to let them develop," said County Attorney Janet Lander.

Capt. John Pruitt, commanding officer at the air station, has expressed concern about Bayou Grande Plantation potentially encroaching on air station boundaries, even if it complied with ordinances.

Developments that border an air station eventually produce dissatisfaction on the part of the homeowners, Pruitt wrote in a 2003 letter.

"This dissatisfaction in turn may lead to political pressure exerted to change the mission of the military installation," he wrote.

The Pensacola Area Chamber of Commerce recognizes the military as the region's largest economic engine, contributing about $2.1 billion annually.

If the county obtains the property, early plans are to relocate athletic events from the eight- acre Baars Field to the 48 acres. Also, a boat ramp to be paid for with state funds is planned for the park.

"I just think this could be a win-win," said Commissioner Bill Dickson. "Why not increase the opportunity for the kids out there to participate in youth sports?"

To purchase the property, the county is banking on receiving a $500,000 federal grant. In the meantime, the county will borrow $568,286 from the local option sales tax fund. Almost $170,000 of that money would come from the Americans with Disabilities Act facility improvements project.

"If the county goes to closing before it gets the grant money, there will be a short-term loan from the local option sales tax," Lander said.

If the county receives the $500,000, it will pay a maximum of $68,286 from the local option sales tax fund. If the county does not receive the grant, it will pay a maximum of $568,286 from the fund.

County Administrator George Touart said he is confident the county will obtain the grant money.

Lost Key discovered

Destination resort would be a first for Perdido Key

One of Florida`s largest development companies slowly is forging plans that could reshape much of Perdido Key.

Bonita Springs-based WCI Communities Inc., which bought the 412-acre Lost Key Plantation in bankruptcy court in October, has major development plans that could eat up most of the residential capacity left on the key.

Preliminary plans, which have been submitted to the Escambia County Growth Management Department, include:

1900 units of housing, including single-family homes, multifamily resort housing and multilevel condominiums.

If the plans come to fruition, they would bring the key its first destination resort.

The road and infrastructure work alone will cost $12 million, said WCI project manager Wanda Cross. Sidewalks, walking and jogging trails, swimming pools and tennis courts also are included in the plans.

Cross hopes to unveil more specific plans in three or four weeks for what will be WCI`s first community in north Florida.

"We looked at plenty of property around Destin and in the Panhandle, but this is what we focused in on," Cross said.

She would not divulge a construction timeline or cost estimate but said the development would be done in phases.

The 1,900 units would represent a significant portion of residential development on Perdido Key. There are about 4,300 homes and condominiums on the key or under development, said Richard Duane, Escambia County director of planning and engineering.

Duane said that WCI`s plans also would just about max out the development that the key`s current road system can support, meaning that subsequent developments would have to include roadway improvements.

"There is capacity for a couple of thousand units," Duane said. "But I say that today. Something could come in tomorrow and take that capacity."

Development on the barrier island is tracked by road capacity and by number of residential units. The residential cap of 7,150 is in "no danger" of being reached by this development, Duane said.

It could take a development as large as WCI`s as much as six months to go through the planning process to reach an development agreement with the county, he added.

Nevertheless, visitors to the golf course should see signs of change much sooner, said Greg Jones, WCI`s general manager of amenities.

Workers are refurbishing the trailer that serves as a clubhouse. On Monday, maintenance crews will begin clearing underbrush bordering the fairways in an attempt to widen landing areas.

The course was designed by Arnold Palmer and is an Audubon International Silver Signature Golf Course. It is known locally for its narrow fairways and unforgiving nature.

Jones said the fairway work is an attempt to make it more playable for the mid- to high handicap golfer. The first phase of the fairway work should be done by early February.

In an effort to draw local players, the course also is offering $25 greens fees - 18 holes and a golf cart - for residents of Escambia, Santa Rosa and Baldwin counties. The special, which requires picture identification, is good until Feb. 8.

Lost Key`s property includes the golf course 116 acres of protected preserve, and 165 acres of developable land.

It was owned by Lost Key Plantation Limited Partnership, which had discussed developing the land for years. However, the plans never reached fruition, much to the chagrin of many in the local business community, said Bill Stromquist, executive director of the Perdido Key Chamber of Commerce.

"It`s been eight years trying to get that thing off the ground," he said. "I think what happened in the long run was that we had a lot of businesses come and go because we didn`t have that development."

The partnership declared bankruptcy in 2002. WCI bought the property for an undisclosed amount and has agreed to pay Lost Key`s creditors 100 percent of their claims.

Dan Savage, who was project manager for the previous owner, is working as a consultant for WCI.

"This is coming at the right time,"he said. "I`ve seen property values double out here over the last five years. It`s going to have a huge economic impact."

Company has long history

Local businesspeople and developers said the giant Bonita Springs firm is well-known for its high-quality, top-dollar developments.

"They are a large company and have a very good reputation," said Allen Levin, who is developing Pensacola Beach`s posh Portofino condominiums. "I think that the fact they are coming in here tells you that the area has been discovered. Years ago you couldn`t have gotten a big company like that interested in Northwest Florida."

With $1.22 billion in revenue in 2002, the company based in southwest Florida ranked 30th in Florida Trend magazine`s list of the state`s largest public companies. For comparison, St. Joe Co., which is reshaping much of the eastern Panhandle with its developments, ranked 46th with just over $646 million in revenue.

WCI employs 2,900 people and has developed 42 communities in South and Central Florida since being founded in 1946. Its average price per unit is $626,000, but they range from mid-$100,000 to $10 million or more.

WCI`s backlog of orders - under contract, but not yet closed - is nearly $990 million.

Don Hooper, Wachovia bank`s manager of commercial real estate for north Florida, said the best way to judge the company`s niche is to look where it advertises. In WCI`s case, he said it regularly advertises property in the Wall Street Journal`s Weekend Journal, a weekly leisure section for the newspaper`s mostly upper-income readers.

"It really signifies that the area is very ripe for the upscale," said Hooper, who added that WCI`s Lost Key development will probably be of a scale to rival the well-known Sandestin Resort in South Walton County.

The company`s entry into the Pensacola area market doesn`t surprise local businessman Collier Merrill.

Merrill has worked with WCI Chief Executive Officer Al Hoffman Jr. on President Bush`s 2000 election finance team and the Florida Arts Council. He said that the local vacation real estate market has hit a level where it is now catching the attention of large firms. For example, Merrill`s newest development, Crystal Shores West in Gulf Shores, Ala., sold all 108 condos Monday, the day it announced the units were available.

"It just kind of shows what the market is doing," he said. "Lost Key has been sitting there and needed an infusion, and WCI has the resources to turn this into a class development."

About 20 Perdido Key residents applauded the Escambia County Commission on Thursday night after commissioners approved the Perdido Key Neighborhood Plan. The motion passed 4-0.

Residents praised county staff - singling out Asst. County Administrator Bob McLaughlin, County Administrator George Touart and Commissioner Bill Dickson for assisting in the development of the plan.

The plan calls for creating bicycle paths and walkways along Perdido Key roadways, as well as painting the Perdido Key logo on the area’s elevated water storage tank. The plan also outlines enhancing entryways into Perdido Key with street lights and fountains and improving access to county-owned beaches.

“This has been 11 months of hard work on everyone’s part,” said Dick Domurat, President of the Perdido Key Association. “We have a bad track record with the ‘97 neighborhood plan. We just don’t want a repeat of that.” A similar neighborhood plan was developed six years ago but did not materialize because of a lack of funding.

Along with the praise, the residents urged the commission and county staff to make sure the latest plan is funded properly this time.

“I do commit to you and give you my promise, along, I think, with all the commissioners up here, that we are going to move forward on these issues,” Dickson said. “It's not just going to be a piece of paper. We will dedicate ourselves to getting these things done for you.”

Building bicycle and walking paths along Navarre Beach Causeway from Gulf Breeze to U.S. 98 is an exellent idea. So is restoring six miles of the historic U.S. 90 from Blackwater East.

The problem is that the $2.5 million earmarked by the Department of Transportation for such projects isn't nearly enough for the 16 counties in the district that share the funding.

Both are good projects and deserve adequate funding. In that light, we see no reason to move the U.S. 90 project ahead of the Navarre Beach Causeway bike and walking path. The $109,000 Navarre Beach Causeway project has been in the works for some time. There is no no reason at this stage of the process to move it down on the priority list in favor of another.

We ought to be able to do both at the same time. Building bike and and walking paths is an effective way of easing traffic problems and helping people adopt a more healthy lifestyle simultaneously. Bicycle paths not only are good for recreational uses, but als provide a means of transportation to help relieve crowded roads.

A common reaction to rducing traffic is to build more roads. But a more sensible, less costly way is to get people off the roads by providing them a safe and healthy alternative. Bike and foot paths fit the bill. More people riding bikes and walking will mean fewer people driving automobiles on roadways.

Biking and walking paths also provide increased safety for bicyclists, joggers, skaters, strollers, walkers and wheelchair users. And they help motorists by keeping other users off the road.

Ideally, there ought to be enough funding available to complete multiple projects at once without the need to sacrifice one over another.

If the Pensacola Area Metropolitan Planning Organization officials grow tired fighting over the meager funding for road projects, they should start asking the Northwest Florida legislative delegation to explain why we continue to receive such little funding for important - and necessary - road projects.

A mere six years late, Perdido Key might finally get some upgrades, such as bicycle path and walkways, improved access to the beach and better lighting. Perdido Key’s amenities already are a distant second to Pensacola Beach, which is adding more.

A plan drawn up in 1997 never materialized because of a lack of money, but new Escambia County Commissioner Bill Dickson vows to carry out this proposal. The commission should put this on the fast track so Perdido Key residents and visitors can enjoy the same niceties as folks experience on Santa Rosa Island.

The Neighborhood Plan includes providing bike and pedestrian paths on many of the roads on Perdido Key.

The following are two articles from the Pensacola News Journal deploring the shortage of State money for bike and walking paths

Sidewalk additions in slow lane

Escambia and Santa Rosa counties, but money is short, and it could be some time before the paths are built. The local Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee will make recommendations to the Pensacola Area Metropolitan Planning Organization on which projects should be funded first. At the last planning organization meeting, members approved a priority list of seven bike and pedestrian projects in Santa Rosa and Escambia counties. The advisory committee will review the list and make a recommendation to the planning organization, said Carol Pulley, planning organization staff member. The first project on that priority list is likely the only one that stands a chance of being funded next year.

Boulevard to College Boulevard. A $109,00 project to build bike and walking paths along Navarre Beach Causeway from Gulf Boulevard to U.S. 98 is next in line. Rehabilitation of the six miles of the historical Old U.S. 90 from Blackwater River east should be moved to the top of the list because the project best meets new ranking criteria, Pulley said.

Milton Mayor Guy Thompson agrees. "That is an old brick, cobblestone road, that used to be the first U.S. 90," Thompson said. "It has a lot of historical significance, and it would be really nice to rebuild it for bicycle riders and joggers." Moving up the project would move the Navarre Beach Causeway project down on the list, said advisory committee member Margaret Cunningham. "We've been working on this a long time, and I would hate to see it delayed," Cunningham said. The problem is there is not enough money to go around. "These are all good projects," Pulley said. "I just wish we had the money to fund them all. Typically they only fund one project per MPO each year."

The $2.5 million DOT has earmarked for transportation enhancement projects doesn't go far, especially because 16 counties in the DOT district share that money. Last year DOT didn't fund any projects in Escambia or Santa Rosa counties. The need for more places to exercise off busy roads is great, some say.

"There are more people riding bicycles, and their number one complaint is that there are not enough places to ride," Alpine Bicycles President Russell Bennett said.