TPO nixes Highway 98 funding
Escambia County out votes Santa Rosa panelists
BY FRANKLIN HAYES Gulf Breeze News franklin@gulfbreezenews.com
Highway 98 is not likely see any major capacity improvements in the foreseeable future. After a 9-7 vote, transportation officials removed a multi-million dollar project six lane a portion of U.S. 98 from their cost feasible plan, eliminating the possibility for federal funding. Officials also removed two other incomplete projects and one completed project from their list of priorities.

Franklin Hayes/Gulf Breeze News Traffic backs up along Highway 98 during rush hour Aug. 23. Transportation officials recently cut funding to add two more lanes to this portion of the road.

After a lengthy and heated discussion at a Florida-Alabama Transportation Planning Organization (TPO) meeting Aug. 21., a motion entered by Escambia County Commissioner Mike Whitehead gathered just enough support remove projects from the plan.

"I think 98 is vitally important but the problem is, it's such an issue, it's beyond the scope for us to do anything else," said Escambia County Commissioner Grover Robinson IV in support of Whitehead's motion. "It will basically encumber all the funds that we could do any of these other projects with."

Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) official Jim DeVries explained the removal of U.S. 98 and from the plan would prevent the project from receiving federal funding.

"If it's not in the cost feasible plan we're not able to use federal dollars on that project and it could impact the ability to use state dollars on a project," DeVries said.

When asked if the project was now unlikely to proceed, DeVries responded: "That's probably true."

Unhappy with the decision made by the TPO, Santa Rosa County Commissioners voted last Thursday to file formal complaints with the U.S. Attorney's Office, the U.S. Dept. of Transportation, and the Federal Highway Commission immediately. A copy of those complaints and letters will also be sent to Florida Governor Charlie Crist's office.

Santa Rosa County Commissioner Gordon Goodin expressed concerns that the TPO would be sending the wrong message by removing the Highway 98 project.

"It is clearly a regional road," Goodin said. "My concern is what message is this TPO going to send by saying, 'You know what? 98 is not important enough for us to even leave it on the cost feasible plan.' We are washing our hands of it and walking away. It simply cannot be ignored… I'm afraid that message we're sending there could not be worse."

The TPO's proposed cost feasible plan encompassed 22 projects that would cost an estimated $197 million to complete by 2025. Out of those projects, the U.S. 98 improvements were estimated to cost more than $65 million. Projects to six lane Highway 90 from Avalon Boulevard to Dogwood Drive and Nine Mile Road from Highway 29 to Chemstrand Road were also removed. Those projects were expected to cost more than $64 million combined. A completed project on Pine Forest Road was also removed.

The Florida Alabama TPO consists of elected officials from municipal and county governments in Santa Rosa and Escamia counties. The TPO also includes County Commissioner Charles Gruber of Baldwin County, Ala.

The motion to remove U.S. 98 from the plan required all members present to vote. The issue seemed to polarize TPO members and was even dubbed "divisive" by Escambia County Commissioner Marie Young. Most TPO members voted according to the geographic region they represented: officials from Escambia County governments voted in favor of the motion to remove the U.S. 98 project and those representing governments in Santa Rosa County voted against the measure. Gruber was not present. Pensacola City Council Member P.C. Wu was the only official representing a government in Escambia County to vote against the motion.

Santa Rosa County Commissioners have expressed their desire to secede from the Florida/Alabama TPO.

"Frankly, I'm not going to any more TPO meetings," Goodin said. "Tuesday's action showed us decisions are already being made before the meeting starts."

Gulf Breeze News writer Pam Brannon contributed to this report.