Don’t build Tara Bridge

At the May 24 Manatee Board of County Commissioners (BCC) meeting, the discussion of the Tara Bridge (connecting Tara Boulevard and Honore Avenue over the Braden River) will be reopened. I encourage the residents of University Park and Tara to advise Chairman Vanessa Baugh (District 5, vanessa.baugh@mymanatee.org) of their concerns. The bridge has been in the planning stage for more than 25 years and, rightfully so, BCC has shelved the idea more than once.

There is no need for this bridge.

A group of citizens from north of the Braden River have formed a group called Build the Tara Bridge Now (BtTBN). Does BtTBN think that only local citizens will use the bridge? Has BtTBN thought ahead to the traffic congestion caused by drivers cutting through our neighborhoods? Has BtTBN considered the effect on wildlife, vegetation, and the environment?

BtTBN members would like the convenience of a shortcut to the UTC area. When the members of BtTBN bought their homes, they surely recognized the effects of living in a quiet, “out-of-the-way” neighborhood, but moved in anyway. Now, they would like the taxpayers of Manatee County to build them a bridge.

Manatee County began planning this bridge to relieve congestion on SR 70 25 years ago, before Lakewood Ranch and Lockwood Ridge were through streets. The lead-in to the potential bridge is Tara Boulevard, a narrow, curvy, two-lane road with a 30 mph limit. There are three north/south connectors for SR 70 and University Parkway in the east county area; I-75 (six lanes), Lakewood Ranch Boulevard (four lanes) and Lockwood Ridge Road (four lanes).

How few people will be served by building this expensive connector over the Braden River?

Through letters and phone calls, I've been asking that question for nine years and have never received a logical explanation.

This story was originally published May 20, 2016 at 3:22 PM with the headline "Don’t build Tara Bridge."