Walden Lake resident Shelly Orrico spoke at the City Commission meeting Monday, Sept. 28, about persisting street issues in the Walden Lake community. Over one dozen residents came to the meeting to show their support.
Orrico is the vice president of the Forest Club subdivision homeowners association. She has lived in one of Forest Club’s 121 single-family homes for 12 years and has noticed a number of safety issues caused by the subdivision’s deteriorating roadways. Two stretches of road, spanning about four houses long, are undergoing repairs, but Orrico said more should be fixed.
“Our roads should be safe, and ours is not,” Orrico said. “It distracts from the beauty and value of our homes.”
Orrico said that the roads in Forest Club, which was established in 1985, are filled with potholes and cracks. The rim of her son’s Honda was damaged as he was driving down one of the roads in the subdivision.
At the City Commission meeting, Orrico presented a slideshow showing photos of road deterioration.
“We have no sidewalks in Forest Club by design,” Orrico said. “The roads are in desperate need of repair.”
Mayor Rick Lott said that the issue is one he’s familiar with — and not just in Walden Lake.
“It’s a city-wide, county-wide, national problem,” Lott said. “All communities are dealing with it.”
Although there are no immediate plans to have all the roads in Forest Club fixed, Lott said that the City Commission views the issue as a top priority.
“I assure you that the Commission, here, is not ignoring this,” Lott said. “It’s a deeper conversation … what it comes down to is having the options.”
The City Commission suggested alternatives to Orrico, such as having Walden Lake tax residents to raise money for such repairs.
Lott also said that if a half-cent sales tax in Hillsborough County is approved, Plant City’s revenue from the tax will be used for transportation improvements. The sales tax may be on the 2016 ballot if the County Commission approves a referendum.
Lott also encouraged residents to attend Go Hillsborough meetings when they are held in Plant City. Go Hillsborough conducts transportation meetings throughout the County every month.
Orrico plans to continue voicing her concerns until she sees more progress.
“My residents left disappointed,” she said.
Plant City will continue to work on the issue. City Manager Mike Herr is planning to begin an asset management study done on the city’s roads. The study will set up road priorities, which will then be presented to the City Commission.
Herr is hoping that the study will begin in the next 45 to 60 days and expects that it will take between four and one half to six months to complete.
Similar studies have been done in neighboring municipalities, including Temple Terrace.
Contact Emily Topper at etopper@plantcityobserver.com.
