A 16-year resident of The Villages went to the podium this week and asked the Project Wide Advisory Committee some pointed questions about the $1.2 million project to shore up the embankment of the Morse Boulevard bridge at Lake Sumter.
Steve Sedor of the Village of St. Charles admitted he had never been to any previous meetings of PWAC, which oversees infrastructure and amenities south of County Road 466.
PWAC has wrestled with the bridge issue for about seven years, looking for a solution to the sloughing on the embankments which support the bridge.
“I don’t understand why the homeowners are picking up the bill for this,” Sedor said.
He was given the standard answer. Sumter County owns the road, and therefore the bridge, too. The district owns the islands on which the bridge rests. And the lake.
“How much did we pay for the islands?” Sedor asked.
He did not receive any answer.
“I just think we’re getting run over,” he said.
PWAC member Steve Bova, who represents Community Development District 10, also had some questions.
He indicated that he was disappointed that the bid represented the riprap work that will be done, but the documentation did not provide all of the costs and all of the money all ready spent on studies, soil borings and designs for the project. It’s something he has previously said should be included when PWAC is looking at big ticket items.
“I’d like to know what the engineering costs are. I’d like to know the mitigation costs. I would like to see the total cost of the project,” Bova said.
PWAC member Jerry Vicenti wondered why the project needed to move forward when there hasn’t been further degradation to the islands.
“It was a big emergency seven to eight years ago. The erosion hasn’t gotten any worse. It seems to be a lot of money to spend for something that hasn’t gotten any worse,” said Vicenti, who serves as chairman of the Community Development District 7 Board of Supervisors.
However, PWAC member Peter Moeller warned that waiting would be a mistake.
“I think we keep dodging bullets with hurricanes,” Moeller said. “It has to be fixed at some point. Let’s get it behind us.”
PWAC has already set aside money for the riprap project.