Both Sides Taking A Closer Look At Kinnan/Mansfield Connection By John C. Cotey
A new study to determine the feasibility of connecting Kinnan St. in New Tampa and Mansfield Blvd. in Meadow Pointe could be on the horizon, after both Pasco and Hillsborough counties met recently in hopes of settling the long-simmering disagreement between the sides. Pasco County District 2 commissioner Mike Moore and Hillsborough County District 7 City Council member Lisa Montelione, accompanied by lawyers, city administrators and engineers from each side, met in Dade City on March 9, as negotiations to connect their two counties heated up. The result: a decision to send the engineers back to work, looking at old plans from 2007-12 to determine if any are applicable today in light of the new developments in the area. “Our staff, the engineers who do the technical stuff, are going to look at prior studies to see if we need to do a new study,’’ said Moore. “Things have obviously changed in that area, with more homes, schools and daycares.” Kinnan St., which is on the Hillsborough side, and Mansfield Blvd., which is on the Pasco side, are separated by a 100foot patch of grass (photo) that is more a dumping ground than the commuter convenience it should be, argue some.
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The last traffic study in the area was done roughly two years ago, says Montelione, by ICON Engineering, Inc., as part of the process for M/I Homes during the re-negotiation of the development agreement for K-Bar Ranch. She said similar studies go back to 1996, and that both staffs plan on taking inventory of those to determine the next step forward. Kinnan St. was paved north to the Pasco County line in 2007 by the de-
veloper of Live Oak Preserve, but never completed. Barricades mark the end of Mansfield and block the road heading south, while steel poles with red diamond-shaped signs on them prevent any traffic further north on Kinnan St. Last publicly discussed in 2012, when the two sides failed to come to an agreement, Montelione raised the issue again of connecting the roads in January, writing a letter to Moore. The two officials first met later that month to discuss
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it, before agreeing on the latest meeting with government staff, namely the engineers. “We’ll see what was discussed in the past,’’ Moore said. “There’s no guarantee either way. But, I think what we all agree on is we need an end result.” If both sides decide a new study needs to be done, Moore and Montelione said public meetings will be held so that residents and business owners of both sides of the debate can be heard. Montelione attended the meeting with Tampa city attorney Julia Mandell. Mandell, who was the senior assistant attorney for the City of Tampa during the last round of negotiations with Pasco County in 2013, is now the City Attorney, having been appointed in March as only the second female City Attorney ever by Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn. Susan Johnson, the subdivision/DRI coordinator for the City of Tampa, and Melanie Calloway, the senior transportation planning engineer, also attended the meeting. Pasco was represented by county administrator Michelle Baker, assistant county attorney David Goldstein and Ali Atefi, Pasco’s transportation engineer. The meeting also included discussions on other possible extensions to help alleviate traffic issues affecting both counties, like one linking Beardsley Dr. in Meadow Pointe southeast east to Morris Bridge Rd. in K-Bar Ranch, Moore said.
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