FDOT ignores residents on Cortez Bridge

My family is one of 13 families that are superfluous to the Florida Department of Transportation. We call Anna Maria Island home. We live near the Cortez Bridge. FDOT wants to demolish our building to "improve" the bridge. Why do we need a huge bridge to empty into two-lane roads? Is this to connect the huge developments that are in the works near the beach? Why not a new bridge from the new developments connecting to Longboat Key?

Many before us have worked very hard to keep AMI the charming island that it is. We need to repair our present charming bridge. Most of the traffic backups are due to the "cut throughs" between the mainland to Longboat Key. The latest weather reminds us we do not need a fixed high rise bridge that we cannot evacuate over.

We agree with former Bradenton Beach Mayor Katie Pierola, that repair, restore and remodel are the best ideas of all. We ask for your support in keeping AMI the wonderful island it is. We also want to keep our homes. AMI deserves to be more than a conduit for the developers or another place.

This story was originally published September 8, 2016 at 3:22 PM with the headline "FDOT ignores residents on Cortez Bridge."