Ridge Road Extension Expected To Attract New Jobs To Pasco County

PASCO COUNTY, FL — Cheers and jeers greeted the official opening of the first phase of the Ridge Road Extension in Pasco County Friday, which has been more than 20 years in the making.

Among those in the cheering section were county commissioners, developers and the Pasco County Economic Development Council who view the 4.2-mile section of roadway connecting Moon Lake Road to the Suncoast Parkway turnpike as an opportunity to reduce east-west traffic congestion in the growing county, provide an additional hurricane evacuation route and spur growth.

On the side of those giving the project a thumbs down are members of the Suncoast Chapter of the Sierra Club and Pasco County environmentalists who lamented the loss of a conservation preserve that is home to more than a dozen protected and endangered species of wildlife.

For now, the opening includes one eastbound lane and one westbound lane connecting Moon Lake Road to the Suncoast Parkway.

Drivers will have access to the ramps heading south onto the Suncoast Parkway turnpike and west onto Ridge Road. The two additional lanes of Phase 1 — the northern access ramps and the paved pedestrian trail — are set to open in the fall.

"The impact the Ridge Road Extension will have on our community is tremendous," said Pasco County Commission board chairwoman Kathryn Starkey. "This much-needed east-west roadway will help reduce traffic on other thoroughfares in Pasco County and will also serve as a critical evacuation route during hurricanes. We're thrilled it's finally open."

The new road includes 16 bridges and 15 upland wildlife crossings designed to maintain the wildlife habitat and reduce the impact on the 83 percent of wetlands it crosses in the Serenova Preserve.

Construction on Phase 2 of the Ridge Road Extension is ongoing with sections slated to be finished between 2022 and 2025. It will continue the connection 0.24 miles from the Suncoast Parkway to Sunlake Boulevard and then another 3.75 miles to U.S. 41.

The total 9-mile road is expected to improve east-west roadway capacity and enhance overall mobility within the area bounded by State Road 52 to the north, State Road 54 to the south, U.S. 41 to the east and Moon Lake Road, Decubellis Road and Starkey Boulevard to the west.

In anticipation of the new highway, several new developments already have been approved that will depend on the extension for access.

Among them is the mixed-used Angeline community by Metro Development Group being built on 6,200 acres south of SR 52 and west of U.S. 41. It includes homes for 30,000 new residents, a 150-acre regional park, a Crystal Lagoon and beach, a village center featuring restaurants and retail, and 3,600-plus acres of natural, undeveloped green space with an extensive trail network.

The H. Lee Moffitt Cancer & Research Institute has already claimed 775 acres of the development for a massive new medical complex near the Ridge Road and Suncoast Parkway interchange that includes a 128,000-square-foot corporate business park, generating about 430 new full-time jobs.

The county's EDC expects to attract new medical and research industries to Pasco County as a result of the new Moffitt campus.

Additionally, the road will allow the county to evacuate residents during an emergency from Pasco's coastal evacuation zone nearly 30 percent faster, cutting the time it takes to evacuate by six hours.

Pasco County has 178,000 residents (or nearly 38 percent of county residents) living in evacuation zones within two miles of Ridge Road.

During a major storm event, Pinellas County residents will also flee using northbound routes through Pasco County when high winds require all bridges out of Pinellas to be closed.

Pasco County previously had only two east-west evacuation routes: state roads 54 and 52.

The new road has been a long time coming.

After the Sierra Club filed a lawsuit objecting to the destruction of protected wildlife in the area, which was originally designated a nature preserve, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers investigated 19 alternatives including a no-build alternative.

The Army Corps of Engineers ultimately issued a permit for the construction of an alternative that provided a 6.8-hour improvement in evacuation time and a 9 percent improvement in road capacity.

Project Milestones

• January 1992, the Serenova Development of Regional Impact (DRI) was approved by the county commission. The transportation plan included construction of the Ridge Road Extension.
• August 1994, the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Suncoast Parkway Phase 1 was completed including the overpass for the Ridge Road Extension.
• 1997, agreements were executed by Pasco County, the Southwest Florida Water Management District and the Florida Department of Transportation preserving right of way for roads in the Serenova Preserve.
• 1998, the county submitted a permit application to SWFWMD and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
• 2000, the USACE issued the first public notice.
• 2003, SWFWMD issued an environmental review permit for the road project.
• May 31, 2011, at the request of the USACE, the county and Florida's Turnpike Enterprise submitted a new joint application for the RRE.
• November 28, 2011, the USACE published a public notice for the road projects based on the resubmitted application.
• August 2018, the the USACE issued new public notice.
• December 2019, the USACE issued a Department of Army permit in accordance with Section 404 of the Clean Water Act.

To learn more about the Ridge Road Extension Project, click here.

See related stories:

• Injunction To Stop Construction In Serenova Preserve Denied
• Sierra Club To File Federal Suit Over Road Through Wildlife Tract
• After 20 Years, Ridge Road Extension Gets Go-Ahead
• Residents Can Now Follow Ridge Road Extension Progress On Website
• Call For Action For Ridge Road Extension
• Corps Extends Comment Period For Controversial Ridge Road Extension