Our new No Roads to Ruin Coalition website: http://noroadstoruin.org/ We are so pleased to announce that our new No Roads to Ruin Coalition website is now live! Please share the website link as far and wide as possible — via social media and email — to help get the word out and build the “No Build” movement.
Quick debrief on the M-CORES Task Force webinars this week:
- SW-Central on 4/28: Only 29 out of 121 public commenters made it through the virtual system; 28 out of 29 were opposed.
- Northern Turnpike on 4/29: Only 29 out of 135 public commenters made it through the virtual system. 29 of 29 were opposed.
- Suncoast on 4/30: Only 38 out of 162 public commenters made it through the virtual system. 37 out of 38 were opposed.
News articles
Where the revenue meets the road By Mike Vogel, Florida Trend
Florida’s plan to build 330 miles of new toll roads in the hinterlands hinges on uncertain finances.
New Polk toll road: Panel considers ‘attraction’ sites By Gary White, The Ledger. The task force planning a toll road from Polk County to Collier County
Chiefland will send list to M-CORES Task Force By Mark Berryman,
Chiefland Citizen. Suggestions on how to prepare the city for the proposed M-CORES toll road should the project come to or near Chiefland was discussed when the Chiefland City Commission met Monday night.
Opinion columns, editorials and letters to the editor
Planned M-CORES highways solve problem that isn’t there By Tim Jackson
Orlando Sentinel. Florida’s governor and Legislature have started the process of funding three major new highways which will cut across a vast swath of the state’s rural areas — all with the purpose, as outlined by the secretary of the Florida Department of Transportation, of meeting the needs of our growing population.
Useless roads By Jay Bushnell, Chiefland, Gainesville Sun. The proposed “hurricane evacuation toll roads” would not mitigate the very thing that created the supposed excuse for these roads — that is climate change. Climate change is a reality that the Legislature finally officially acknowledged in 2018 Florida Statutes. These roads would also threaten the agricultural and environmental stability of rural Florida. In 2015, the Conservation Fund study of the Big Bend region of Florida stressed the economic importance of agricultural use of the region. Finally, evacuation of 20-plus million people makes no sense nor is it even recommended by responsible urban planners.
Our allies
Does Jefferson County Need a Toll Road? YouTube video, Tall Timbers
Related: Tall Timbers action page for emailing Jefferson County Commission and Florida DOT
Please take a few minutes to listen to these local perspectives. Tall Timbers supports sustainable economic growth, but we oppose the new toll road in Jefferson County. We are concerned about our water resources, wildlife habitat, the ability to use prescribed fire, and impacts to rural downtowns. Thank you to Citizens for Responsible Government of Jefferson County and the Jefferson Progress & Preservation Committee for working on this video.
Update: Toll Roads Virtual Meetings, YouTube video, Florida Conservation Voters. Government Relations Director Lindsay Cross details her experience and takeaways after attending the April virtual meetings of the M-CORES Toll Roads Task Forces.
M-CORES Citizen Primers, 1000 Friends of Florida. Sharing with the public how to engage in important planning processes is at the heart of all 1000 Friends of Florida does. To this end, we are preparing a series of Citizen Primers explaining the various processes involved in M-CORES. Check back, as we will be adding more!
Florida News Channel coverage of this week’s M-CORES webinars:
4/30/20 M-CORES Suncoast Connector Task Force
4/29/20 M-CORES Northern Turnpike Connector Task Force
4/28/20 M-CORES Southwest Central Florida Connector Task Force Meeting
As always, I wish you safety and health during this time.
All the best,
Herman
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Herman Younger
Organizing Representative
Sierra Club Red Tide-Wildlands Campaign
305.741.8876
herman.younger@sierraclub.org