Issue link: https://newsleader.uberflip.com/i/293799
rebound, there was a feeling among policy makers that they needed to facilitate and not handicap new development. But arcane rules or "exception areas" were not on residents' minds Monday. The focus was "traffic," as in "too much." This has been an epic tourist season with pentup demand exploding in the South under the pressure of polar vortices; families have fled to the Florida sun. The congestion is the worst in living memory, and nowhere is it greater than at the junction of U.S. 41 and the Ringling Causeway. Traffic backups have become epic. The addition of 400 new dwellings at The Vue have been seen as the final insult to the residents of the existing condominiums in that area — those at the RitzCarlton and in One Watergate, plus the people living in Golden Gate Point. A number of them trooped into City Hall to voice their concerns in January, to figuratively drink from the fire hose. To their credit, they were promised a sip. The city agreed to ask consulting firm KimleyHorn and Associates Inc. to review the original traffic study for The Vue, which was released in October 2013. TRAFFIC DÉJA VU Three months later the (slightly) amended study was released. With one small exception, the findings were unchanged. "Based upon The Vue will sit adjacent to One Watergate on the northwest corner of U.S. 41 and Gulfstream Avenue/ Ringling Causeway. Photo by Norman Schimmel Based upon the analysis of the study roadway segments, the study … segment of Gulfstream Avenue/John Ringling Causeway from Bird Key Drive to U.S. 41/Tamiami Trail is currently operating at an acceptable level of service and is expected to continue to operate at an acceptable level of service for future total traffic conditions. Transportation Impact Analysis Kimley-Horn and Associates Sarasota News Leader April 11, 2014 Page 39