Mark HarperDaytona Beach News-Journal
People opposing the Florida Department of Transportation's efforts to build a new interchange at Interstate 95 and Pioneer Trail are attempting to throw up obstacles at both state and federal levels.
The proposed $120 million project is near Spruce Creek, a formally designated Outstanding Florida Waterway. A coalition including environmentalists and patrons of the Doris Leeper Spruce Creek Preserve say runoff from the new ramps, traffic lanes and bridge will not only spoil the creek but harm animals, plant life and the sanctity of the 2,513 conservation acres.
Bear Warriors United, Inc., the Sweetwater Coalition of Volusia County, its founder Derek LaMontagne, and New Smyrna Beach resident Bryon White petitioned the state 5th District Court of Appeal to overrule an environmental resource permit granted to FDOT by the St. Johns River Water Management District in April. Arguments are proceeding.
Meanwhile, Lesley Blackner, a Tallahassee attorney, has sent letters this month to the Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Department of Transportation alerting them to what she believes is proof of the state skirting federal laws to streamline the process for getting the interchange built.
"There are so many improprieties associated with this interchange. So many. So many legal improprieties, it seems like this thing has just been greased through," Blackner said.
Blackner also cites a 2022 request by Volusia County Council Chair Jeff Brower to state officials, including Gov. Ron DeSantis, for an investigation into what he suggests is the state's sidestepping of environmental scrutiny of the project under the National Environmental Policy Act.
Cindi Lane, public information director for FDOT's Central Florida district, defended the Pioneer Trail project in an email to The News-Journal this week.
"The department continues to work diligently through federal, state, and local requirements to achieve our mission and deliver impactful projects to our communities," Lane wrote. "For the (EPA) permit related to the Clean Water Act, FDOT continues to work through permit review with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. As with every project, as part of the permitting process, the department goes above and beyond in consideration of environmental preservation, and Pioneer Trail is no exception."
Requesting federal intervention
Blackner, LaMontagne and Volusia County Council Chair Jeff Brower are among those who believe the Pioneer Trail project needs more scrutiny under the parameters of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 and other federal laws governing the impacts of development on air quality, noise, wildlife, water and other concerns.
In a letter dated Aug. 26 on behalf of the Bear Warriors United, Blackner asks U.S. transportation officials for remedial action be taken to ensure compliance with federal law.
She explains that the Federal Highway Administration and U.S. transportation department in a 2016 memorandum of understanding “assigned compliance with multiple federal environmental laws to FDOT.” Then the state determined in 2021 that the project qualified for a categorical exclusion, a determination that the Pioneer Trail interchange “does not involve significant environmental impacts,” according to an FDOT document.
“The I-95 Interchange at Pioneer Trail is unquestionably a major federal action under NEPA and must be lawfully reviewed as such,” she wrote.
LaMontagne wrote the project is neither in the public’s interest nor does it have substantial public support.
“Leaving land undeveloped allows for more plant and animal species, including endangered and/or threatened species like the scrub jay and gopher tortoise, to have habitat to survive. Wetlands and forests themselves serve important ecological functions that are of benefit to people and nature alike, cleaning our air, water and soil,” Lamontagne wrote.
Brower argued that the 1969 National Environmental Policy Act requires the Pioneer Trail project to have an Environmental Impact Study.
“I take exception to these claims finding the I-95 Pioneer Interchange has no significant impacts and thus categorially excluded from NEPA review when absolutely no honest investigation was made,” Brower wrote, adding the categorical exclusion “is completely inappropriate and unlawful.”
Brower cited a 2015court ruling where FDOT had attempted to use the same categorical exclusion during the construction of the State Road 436 Flyover at U.S. 17-92 in Seminole County. U.S. District Court Judge Paul Byron wrote in RB Jai Alai LLC v. Secretary of FDOT that the new construction did not qualify as “restoration, reconstruction or rehabilitation,” while the project’s scope went beyond the statute allowing for categorical exclusions.
Brower wrote to the governor and other key state officials: “The best course is to end consideration of this project.”
Appeal of St. Johns River Water Management permit
More than a year ago, the St. Johns River Water Management District first granted the Pioneer Trail project a permit to allow stormwater runoff from the interchange into an unnamed canal that connects to Spruce Creek. FDOT engineers presented the district with findings showing their plans would actually reduce phosphorus and other harmful runoff to Spruce Creek and will not impact wetlands, fish and wildlife because of a mitigation plan.
LaMontagne, a Port Orange resident who recently lost a mayoral election there, led an effort to appeal that decision during an administrative law hearing last October.
During that hearing, Wendy Anderson, a Stetson University professor of environmental science and studies, testified, saying FDOT's engineers made "wild assumptions" in their modeling, and she expects a new interchange would increase phosphorous levels, further damaging the creek.
LaMontagne and other Spruce Creek supporters ultimately prevailed in that hearing earlier this year. They convinced an administrative law judge to rule that the project is not in the public interest because the creek had won an Outstanding Florida Waters, or OFW, designation in 1991. That qualifies Spruce Creek for special protections due to its natural attributes.
However, the St. Johns River Water Management District had final say, and once again granted the permit in March, leading to the latest challenges.
FDOT lists the construction cost at $112.5 million, with an $8.2 million design cost. The department estimates Sept. 25 as a "letting date," or the day it plans to open a bidding process.
State officials say the new interchange will make roadways in the area safer while easing traffic jams at the I-95 interchanges at State Roads 44 and 421. It would also provide an additional hurricane evacuation route for residents of a growing residential area.
FDOT says I-95 interchange is needed for safety, resiliency, mobility
As far back as 1985, Volusia County studies have included an I-95 interchange at Pioneer Trail.
The plan has long been controversial, as many rural New Smyrna Beach residents who live along Turnbull Bay Road have posted signs in opposition. But development on three corners of the interchange has sprung up, bringing more population to the area, with lots more homebuilding and other development expected in coming years.
Lane noted the long process involved in bringing the interchange to this point.
"It brings tremendous value to the community, enhances safety, ensures resiliency, increases mobility, and has been developed and prioritized by the community, local government, and the (River to Sea) Transportation Planning Organization," she said.
While Gov. Ron DeSantis' administration initially attached some $92 million in COVID relief funds − also known as ARPA for the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 − that no longer remains the case.
The state has eliminated ARPA funds from the Pioneer Trail project, Lane said, as those dollars have a Dec. 31, 2024, deadline to be committed to a project, and must be spent by the end of 2026. Attaching the ARPA funds to projects that are closer to starting ensures the state "is able to use every dollar available," Lane said, adding that the Pioneer Trail project remains fully funded with state dollars.
