FDOT mulls fixed bridge, tunnel to replace Snake Creek drawbridge

The drawbridge spanning Snake Creek could someday be replaced by a high fixed bridge or even a tunnel.

Either option is at least two decades away from ever coming to fruition, but the five-member Islamorada Village Council nevertheless voted 4-1 at its Nov. 16 meeting to provide input to the Florida Department of Transportation as it looks into ways to improve the traffic flow through the Upper Keys.

The four commissioners who voted for the resolution said they didn’t do so in support of either option, but rather because FDOT is in the process of studying the issue already and the village should have a say in the outcome.

“The reality is, it’s going to be at least 25 years if it ever happens to begin with,” said Islamorada Mayor Jim Mooney. “The flip side is the proverbial dog and tail issue. If the tail is still wagging the dog, we better have a dog in the fight. So if we don’t jump in, we’ll probably have no say at the end.”

Councilman Chris Sante was the sole no vote. He acknowledged the drawbridge at mile marker 85.5 holds up vehicles when it rises to let boats pass through, but it is not the only factor, nor the lone culprit in jamming traffic.

“I don’t see it changing anything,” Sante said of the fixed bridge or tunnel. He added that the Snake Creek Bridge is the first time tourists heading into the Keys get a good look at the picturesque ocean and Florida Bay view after passing over the Jewfish Creek Bridge entering Key Largo 20 miles to the north. This leads them to slow down, which Sante said isn’t really a bad thing.

“We take it for granted. We don’t even see the water anymore,” he said. “But they slow down. They look at it and they enjoy it. And that’s what they come here for.”

Building a fixed bridge would require the approaches on either side to be significantly lengthened, which people owning businesses there fear could put them under.

Steve Elmore, who rents to five businesses on both approaches, said the village passing a resolution stating it supports either option “is a slap in the face of business owners who own properties in close proximity.”

“If you want to build a bridge over Snake Creek, have at it,” Elmore said. “But you need to figure out how you’re going to remunerate business owners, because what you’re doing is setting a death knell to their businesses.”

But Councilman Mike Forster urged calm, reiterating that there’s no chance either project will happen any time soon.

“We’re not signing off on this, We’re not saying, ‘yes.’ We’re saying, ‘Show us what you’re thinking about. What you are planing,’ ” Forster said.

“This is 20 years away, at best, Let’s just see what they have in mind. see some drawings, and then we’ll go from there,” Forster said.

This story was originally published November 25, 2017 at 8:53 AM with the headline "FDOT mulls fixed bridge, tunnel to replace Snake Creek drawbridge."