$10m could be better spent

Dear Editor,

After reading the article concerning the S.R. 674 project in the Nov. 22 edition of The SCC Observer, I felt a $10 million bandaid was being applied to the ever-growing traffic problem. Sam Sudman, SCC Community liaison; John Lupus, president of Greater SCC Beautification Committee; and Shiva Monica, construction manager; have approved a project that will not fix the growing traffic gridlock in Sun City Center. I believe SCC residents are being taken advantage of by the FDOT, Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners and contractor Russell Engineering of Bradenton.

New homes are being built now in our area, which will affect our traffic in SCC. Eleven thousand are on 19th Avenue between U.S. 41 and U.S. 301. Three thousand are in Wimauma along S.R. 674. One thousand apartment units are going up on Cypress Creek Boulevard. All of these homeowners will be merging onto S.R. 674. New businesses are being recruited to join Amazon at the South Shore Corporate Park. This is great for employment and bad for the traffic gridlock already happening on S.R. 674 when Amazon changes shifts. When SCC was built, large trucks were prohibited from using S.R. 674 from U.S. 301 to U.S. 41. Now they barrel down our part of S.R. 674 like we are not present. Something needs to be done to widen 674 rather than change left and right-hand turns. The $10 million used now could be applied to this solution instead of being wasted. The widening of S.R. 674 is inevitable.

I am a concerned citizen of SCC for 22 years.

Robert Cori

Kings Point idea

Dear Editor,

A third arch or entrance off of S.R. 674 into Kings Point. Let’s watch our spending. 

Our county is extending turn lanes themselves — ours is evidently too short for the four months of winter.

Extend the turn lanes all the way west if needed to hold cars that are slowing down to make the turn into Kings Point. The county does this for safety — to get drivers off of the fast-moving S.R. 674.

Lezlie Pitzer