Resolution 196-1995
RESOLUTION NO. 196-1995
A RESOLUTION EXPRESSING CONCERN REGARDING,
AND IDENTIFYING THE IMPACTS ASSOCIATED WITH,
THE WIDENING OF U.S. IDGHWAY ONE BETWEEN KEY
LARGO AND MAINLAND FLORIDA, AND REQUESTING
PERMI1TING AGENCIES TO CONDffiON THEIR PERMlfS,
UPON MEASURES TO MffiGATE OR ELIMINATE TH~~
IMPACTS. i~.
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WHEREAS, the expansion of U.S. Highway One to four lanes betw~n Key Ytgo ~
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mainland Florida will substantially increase the volume of visitors utiiizing the limited
infrastructure and fragile ecology of the Florida Keys; and
WHEREAS, the increased volume of visitors associated with Highway One expansion
will create secondary impacts on the Keys environment and quality of life, to an extent which
can only be measured and addressed through an environmental carrying capacity study that is
beyond the expertise and financial capability of Monroe County; and
WHEREAS, there is insufficient law enforcement presence on U. S. Highway One
between Key Largo and mainland Florida, and increased vehicular traffic into the Upper Keys
will place additional demands on loca.llaw enforcement agencies; and
WHEREAS, the Monroe County Comprehensive Planning process has identified the need
to replace existing individual sewage facilities (primarily, septic tanks and cesspools) due to their
adverse impact on nearshore water quality, but no funding source has been identified to pay the
expected cost of such replacement; and
WHEREAS, existing waste-water facilities in unincorporated Monroe County are
inadequate to serve the current resident and transient population of the Florida Keys, much less
to accommodate the additional demands associated with an increased volume of visitors; and
WHEREAS, the Monroe County Dwelling Unit Allocation Ordinance (commonly known
as "ROGO") requires Monroe County to issue building permits to, or purchase the property of,
property owners who are repeatedly denied a ROGO allocation; and
WHEREAS, increased accessibility of the Upper Keys to South Florida urban areas will
accelerate the residential development pressures which have been evident after Hurricane
Andrew, thereby increasing the number of ROGO applications, which already exceed available
allocations; and
WHEREAS, Policy No. 1 of Monroe County's Comprehensive Plan establishes that
Monroe County taxpayers cannot alone bear the cost of major infrastructure improvements and
land acquisition; and
WHEREAS, the hurricane evacuation objective being served by the Highway expansion
is jeopardized by the continued dependence on a drawbridge (bascule) at Snake Creek, which
should be replaced with a fixed-span bridge; and
WHEREAS, the establishment of a substantial toll to be levied on non-resident users of
the expanded Highway will provide a funding source for mitigating or eliminating the impacts
identified above, through an equitable user-based fee;
NOW, THEREFORE, it is RESOLVED that the Board of County Commissioners of
Monroe County requests the Army Corps of Engineers and the South Florida Water Management
District to condition any permit issued to the State of Florida DOT for expansion of U. S.
Highway One upon measures which will (1) establish a substantial toll to be levied on non-
resident users of U.S. Highway One entering the Florida Keys; (2) fund and implement
throughout Monroe County a modem sewage treatment system; (3) fund Florida Keys local law
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enforcement activities associated with traffic on, and response to criminal activities by persons
utilizing, U.s. Highway One; (4) fund and implement an expanded land-acquisition program to
purchase lands unbuildable under RooO; (5) replace the Snake Creek bridge with a high-rise,
fixed-span bridge; and (6) fund an environmental carrying capacity study to quantify the
sustainable human impacts on the environment of the Florida Keys.
PASSED AND ADOPTED by the Board of County Commissioners of Monroe County,
Florida, at a regular meeting of the Board held on the I 7TH day of MAY
, 1995, A.D.
Mayor Freeman YES
Mayor Pro-tern London YES
Commissioner Harvey YES
Commissioner Douglass YES
Commissioner Reich NO
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA
BY: cS~-:F~
MAY CHAIRMAN
(SEAL)
ATIEST: DANNY L. KOLHAGE, CLERK
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DEPUTY CLERK'
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