Coral Springs City Commissioner Ted Mena Supports University Drive Extension
Published June 18th, 2008
By Nicol Jenkins
Editor
It’s Broward County versus Palm Beach County.
The spar was over the much debated extension of University Drive that would connect both counties is heating up once again.
This time around, Coral Springs City Commissioner Ted Mena says Broward County is not getting fair treatment.
“It’s one sided. Palm Beach County doesn’t want it, and on the Broward County side, among the oversight committee of four people, two from Palm Beach and two from Broward, I am the only one in favor of the expansion,” said Mena. “They are not thinking of the regional traffic consequences of eliminating University Drive.”
Update
Mena is referring to the most recent MPO (Metropolitan Planning Organization) Oversight/Policy Committee meeting. Plans for the University Drive expansion have been narrowed down from 17 scenarios to 7, at the recent meeting. Members, consisting of two Broward MPO members, one from Parkland and one from Coral Springs, and two Palm Beach MPO members, reviewed the 7 scenarios but did not select one scenario as of yet.
Among the most viable are scenarios that include exclusive transit lanes, according to Roger Delrio, Director of the Broward MPO. Among those is the controversial Scenario 3D, which would add 10-lanes to SR 7 from the Sawgrass Expressway to county line, 10-lanes to Lyons Road from Sample to county line, and 8-lanes to Lyons Road from county line to Glades Road.
Secretary Opinion
Mena says James Wolfe, Secretary for Region Four of the Florida Department of Transportation, is siding with Palm Beach suggesting that extension of University Drive is not viable.
At the recent meeting where members reviewed scenarios for the University Drive extension, Mena claims Wolfe swayed the vote saying there were only two viable scenarios and is in favor of the one that would not extend University Drive, which is scenario 3D.
The other one, Scenario 1G would extend University Drive into Palm Beach County with six lanes up to Glades Road. Mena and the city of Coral Springs support this scenario because, “This is the most viable and feasible of the entire 17 scenarios initially considered by the FDOT working group committee. The reason the University Drive connection is the most feasible alternative is because the right of way is already owned by FDOT, and the length of new construction will be approximately 1.2 miles. Also, with six lanes, we can accommodate a transit line in the future.”
Mena claims Wolfe sided with Scenario 3D, which does not have a University Drive Extension.
According to Mena, “Wolfe initially believed that 1G was the ‘best transportation solution’ in their view of the 17 scenarios. However, [Wolfe] added after, that this scenario would not be achievable because of lack of political support from Palm Beach County and Parkland.”
Mena added, “His staff worked on this problem and came up with a good solution, agreeing that University Drive extension really is the best scenario of all proposed, but then [Wolfe] pulls a "political trick" which undermines his own staff’s position.”
Mena added, “It further states that if University Drive is not connected then Lyons would then have to become 10 lanes. Nowhere in Broward do we have 10 lanes in a roadway, and there is no room on Lyons for 10 lanes anyway.”
In addition, Mena says this scenario does not ease traffic on Wiles Road and University Drive.
”This is no solution to the gridlock we already have on Wiles, University south of the Sawgrass for those trying to go North in the morning,” said Mena, adding, “West Palm Beach and West Boca wants to keep their little country and state road, but it’s not going to happen. We need to look at the reality of it, and sometimes we need to put one or two people aside for the betterment of many.”
“It’s imperative to keep University Drive connection between two counties and addresses the worsening congestion on State Road 7,” said Erdal Donmez, Assistant City Manager for the City of Coral Springs.
‘Under Review’
Delrio says Scenario 3D will be “under review” because “this scenario has sections of SR 7 and Lyons Road requiring additional lanes of through traffic making it difficult to implement.”
“We are going to go back and take another look, and come back within one month with revised scenarios,” said Delrio. The committee plans to meet by the end of July.
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