By Chris Wilson

The Alachua County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) has approved a comprehensive plan amendment that adopts a “Future Traffic Circulation Corridors Map.” The purpose of the map is to identify and preserve future rights of way that may be needed in case development occurs in the area of the identified corridors.

“One of the objectives in the development of the plan was to identify corridors that would be needed to alleviate congestion on the major arterial and collector road system and to provide mobility options to the town activity centers throughout Alachua County,” says Alachua County assistant public works director Michael Fay.

Fay said the map was need particularly to  help provide alternatives to relieve congested and constrained corridors, including Archer Rd., Newberry Rd., NW 13th Ave (441) and “a number of other roads on the west side of the community that are facing these issues.”

During phase one of the project, public works staff analyzed countywide buildout projections. By 2025, it is expected that there will be an additional 60,000 residents in Alachua County, which would put countywide population near 300,000.

During phase two, the staff defined new potential road connections and corridors, evaluated and?screened those areas for feasibility, took public input and input from local municipalities and made their pitch to the BOCC.

Some of the things the staff considered in its projections were land ownership patterns, subdivision & activity centers, environmental constraints, origins and destinations of traffic flow, spacing standards to determine a grid, the existing road network and road capacity constraints.

“Without a comprehensive future corridors map, a number of future corridors that would provide alternatives to a number of already-congested roadways, such as Newberry Rd., Archer Rd. and C.R. 241 are potentially being lost,” says Fay. “The corridors identified on the proposed corridors map identify access and connections to the existing transportation system to serve existing and future uses consistent with the county’s future land-use map.”?

Fay says the important part of the plan was understanding that the map was for preserving rights of way, not reserving them. “These roads would be built by private development interest as development occurs in the area of one of the corridors, and the final alignments are determined,” he says. “There is not funding for nor a plan for construction of these facilities by the public sector.”

In order to illustrate his point, Fay says you need look no further than Jonesville. “NW 32nd Ave south of the Jonesville Park is an example of where a corridor was protected and alignment identified when the county purchased the park. But, the roadway was constructed by private development interests.”

The BOCC voted 4-1 in favor of the amendment, with commissioner Mike Byerly as the lone dissenting vote. Byerly argued that the plan needed to be discussed more before it was put on the books, because it is the type of document that the public and developers take seriously.

“Once we get these things on the map and they’re adopted as a plan, people who own this land begin making investment plans and planning for the future,” says Byerly. “They have expectations, whether they’re legally founded or not. Once you adopt a plan like this, we all know we’ve heard over and over through the years that adopting something like that has consequences. Certainly, in the expectations of the public, it does mean something.”

Nevertheless, some of the commissioners, including Lee Pinkoson, felt as if it was important for the county to have the map documented. “I think there is a dire emergency, because of what’s happening on SR 26, on 39th Ave., Archer Rd., Williston Rd.,” says Pinkoson. “We’ve got to come up with some other corridors. The fact that we’re talking about a grid-like function on the western part of the county — there are miles between some of these corridors, so I see that as a foundation for a grid-like area for collectors and arterials. We’re not talking about massive amounts of four-lane or six-lane highways.”

Commissioner Paula Delaney says most of the area already was zoned for at least low-density development. “We continue to approve development,” says Delaney. “What should come first, the roads or the development?” Delaney says that where Parker Rd. deadends at Newberry Rd. and drivers are forced to turn either right or left and travel for miles to reach NW 39th Ave. is an example of where a grid network would come in handy. “I feel like we’re in some kind of denial that if we don’t have the grid network, we won’t have the development,” she says.

Several residents spoke out against the comprehensive plan amendment, arguing that it would promote sprawl. Of the 14 area residents who commented on the plan, only one spoke in favor of the plan.

For more details, visit the county government website at www.co.alachua.fl.us.