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Stimulus Money To Target Pasco Roadways

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By Carl  Orth | The Suncoast News

Published: February 7, 2009

NEW PORT RICHEY - Pasco leaders hope to stop and get directions next week about how much federal stimulus money the county might expect for road projects here.

Proposals for the federal aid package have been changing almost daily, Doug Uden, the county's transportation planning coordinator, said.

By the time the Pasco County Metropolitan Planning Organization meets Feb. 12, federal and state authorities hope to map out in more detail how the stimulus plan could work.

The county already submitted a preliminary "wish list" of road projects, Uden said.

If Christmas comes real early this year, Pasco could stand to gain nearly a billion dollars. Pasco's road list totals $998.8 million to fund every road construction project that has hit a dead end because of shrinking tax revenue.

It's not likely, however, Pasco will get the entire $998 million, Uden concedes with a chuckle. So county officials ranked their top seven road projects.

Three of those projects in the top seven would benefit West Pasco.

Coming in at No. 4 on the ranking list is U.S. 19, which would gain funds for continuous right-turn lanes and redesigned medians. The estimated construction cost is $25.3 million.

The widening of Moon Lake Road from two to four lanes ranks fifth on Pasco's priority list. The road would gain the extra lanes along its entire length, from Decubellis Road to S.R. 52.

The estimated price tag for the road makeover is $57.6 million.

In seventh place on the Pasco list is the first phase of the Ridge Road extension. The controversial project would create a four-lane road from Moon Lake Road to the Suncoast Parkway.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, however, has yet to approve a permit for the road, a portion of which would cross sensitive wetland areas. A local environmental group is promising to sue to block construction, even if the county's obtains the Corps of Engineers permit.

The Ridge Road extension would include a bridge and interchange with a toll plaza on Suncoast Parkway. The estimated cost is listed at $71.3 million.

Farther down the county's wish list for federal aid are these other West Pasco projects:

• Decubellis Road widening to four lanes, costing about $17 million for two phases.

• Main Street upgrades in a joint project with the city of New Port Richey, costing about $4.55 million. The narrow, two-lane street would gain a third, center turn lane and 5-foot sidewalks from Congress Street to Rowan Road, the section that runs past the New Port Richey post office. Penny for Pasco sales tax funds are supposed to pay for part of the project.

• Perrine Ranch Road intersection improvements at Grand Boulevard and Seven Springs Boulevard. About $6.8 million in federal aid would pay for more turn lanes and traffic signals at both corners.

• Countywide paving of 191 miles of dirt roads for about $47.7 million.

• Starkey Boulevard widening to four lanes from River Crossing Boulevard to Decubellis for about $19.8 million.

• Starkey Wilderness Park trail extension from Starkey Boulevard to Congress Street in New Port Richey for $1.4 million. The project description calls it a "multiuse path" 10 to 12 feet wide over a distance of about 3.4 miles.

• Bridge repairs, including the bridge on Little Road over Bear Creek, south of S.R. 52. The upgrades for five bridges would cost an estimated $1 million.

Carl Orth can be reached at 727-815-1068 or corth@suncoastnews.com.

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