Courtney Campbell Scenic Highway
Corridor Advocacy Group (CAG)
Minutes
Regular Meeting at the
FDOT Clearwater Construction Office
3204 Gulf to Bay Boulevard
Clearwater, Florida 33759
January 11, 2002
8:30 to 10:00 a.m.
I.
Attending:
a. Mr. Ned Baier, Hillsborough County Transportation Planning
b. Mr. Jim Gilman, URS Corporation
c. The Honorable Bill Jonson, Clearwater City Commissioner and President Citizens for a Scenic Florida
d. Mr. Tim Kurtz, City of Clearwater
e. Michael Palozzi, FDOT - Post Buckley, and current District 7 Scenic
Highways Coordinator
f. The Honorable Jan Platt, Board of County Commissioners, Hillsborough
County
g. Mr. Brian Smith, Planning Director Pinellas County
h. Ms. Gena Torrez, Hillsborough County MPO
II.
Bill Jonson, CAG Chair, called the meeting to order at 8:45 a.m.
III.
The minutes of the meeting of November 14, 2001 were reviewed. The
following corrections was noted: item V.b.vi should read “Mr. Gilman
suggested adding FDOT requirements for clear sight visibility and recovery
zones that would affect future landscaping opportunities.
IV.
Status of Actions from November 14, 2001:
a. The Tampa Bay Estuary Policy Committee adopted a statement of support
for the Scenic Highway designation. But written confirmation has yet to
be received [Action Bill Jonson].
b. Although the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council has adopted a scenic
highway policy statement as part of the Future of the Region: A strategic
Regional Policy Plan for the Tampa Bay Region, the group still felt
strongly that the Agency on Bay Management should be asked to adopt a
statement of support for the Courtney Campbell Scenic Highway. [Action
Bill Jonson]
c. Ned Baier reported that he is in the process of summarizing the traffic
accident statistics for the Hillsborough side of the causeway. This should
be completed by January 18. [Action]
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d. Bill Jonson will look for the suggested wording from Mr. Gillman on clear
visibility and recovery zones. [Action]
e. Ms. Saul-Sena was to see if the Tampa Bay Historical center has
information about the causeway. Ms. Saul-Sena also volunteered to check
if the Tampa City limits include all segments of the causeway in
Hillsborough County.
f. Letters of support opportunities from last meeting are still open:
i. Tampa Chamber of Commerce – Saul-Sena [Action]
ii. Hillsborough Convention and Visitors – Saul-Sena [Action]
iii. Tampa Bay Partnership – Cole [Action]
iv. Three Pinellas County Chambers of Commerce – Cole [Action]
v. Pinellas County Convention and Visitors Bureau – Cole [Action]
V.
New Business
a. Ms. Platt reported on the Agency on Bay Management meeting where
there was a discussion of the LINKS project. During this meeting there
was considerable discussion of the aesthetic design of the project.
However there was no discussion of a Gateway to Tampa design. The
CAG then discussed the need to minimize the aesthetic degradation to the
causeway during the LINKS’ construction period. The CAG directed the
Chair to send a letter to Secretary Ken Hartman asking that the aesthetic
degradation be minimized during construction [Action]
b. Mr. Smith reported that he had recently seen photos taken during the
construction phase of the causeway. This would be a good addition to the
Eligibility Document. He will try to find these [Action]. Commissioner
Platt reported that the Tampa Library has the Berger Photo Collection that
might also be a source for the CAG.
c. The group reviewed the draft Corridor Story with the following
comments:
i. The section on the Environment could be stronger. Brian Smith
will provide some enhanced wording [Action].
ii. Commissioner Platt suggested that Rich Paul (813-623-6826) of
the Audubon Society assist with the language relating to the
Environmental Sanctuary. [Action by Bill Jonson].
iii. Additional language could also be added relative to the
environmental restoration volunteer plantings that have been
organized by the Agency on Bay Management. Bill Jonson will
contact Susan Cooper [Action].
iv. Ms. Torrez provided some editorial changes to the draft. [Note:
On 1/14 these were incorporated into the document.]
d. The CAG reviewed the Vision and Goals section. Several changes were
suggested. [Note: these were incorporated into the document on 1/14/02.]
With regard to rail across the bay, Mr. Smith reported that MPO’s in both
counties have designated the Interstate as the cross bay connector.
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e. The CAG reviewed the Funding and Promotion section. Several changes
were suggested. [Note: these were incorporated into the document on
1/14/02.]
f. The Eligibility Document Approval
i. The group suggested that the changes be emailed to the group for
final approval.
ii. Mr. Baier suggested that a letter be prepared to be sent to the four
governmental sponsors asking for their concurrence with the
submission of the Eligibility document. He offered to prepare a
draft of this cover letter. [Action]
iii. Mr. Smith suggested that the approval be coordinated so that both
Counties approve it the same week. The group suggested we target
for approval the third week of February.
VI.
Next Meeting
a. Meet in Mid March on a Friday (3/8, 3/15, or 3/22) at 9:00 a.m. at the
Florida Department of Transportation’ s Clearwater Construction Office, at
3204 Gulf to Bay Boulevard Clearwater, Florida 33759. Bill Jonson took
the action to schedule the meeting after consulting with Commissioner
Saul-Sena and Commissioner Seel. [Action]
If corrections to these minutes are noted, please notify:
Bill Jonson, CAG Chair
2694 Redford Court West
Clearwater, Florida 33761
727-786-3075
bill.jonson@usa.net
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