BREAKING: City Delays Southernmost Point Improvements Until June Meeting
Neighborhood concern about over-commercialization and a lack of focus on infrastructure in the South and Whitehead neighborhood prompts delay, puts TDC funding at risk.
KEY WEST, Fla. — The Key West City Commission voted unanimously Thursday morning to postpone approval of a bid award to Toppino Construction and delay a related request for Tourism Development Council funding tied to the proposed Southernmost Point improvement project.
The commission voted 7-0 during its morning session after hearing impassioned pleas from residents living near the Southernmost Point buoy in the largely residential neighborhood along the 400 block of South Street.
Among those speaking against moving forward without additional review were former federal magistrate Hugh Morgan and his daughter, both longtime neighborhood residents who urged commissioners to slow the process and more carefully consider impacts to the surrounding area.
Several residents told commissioners they believed neighborhood input gathered during earlier discussions had largely been ignored as the project moved forward through the planning process.
Morgan and other residents said they were not opposed to infrastructure improvements in the area, but asked the city to focus on longstanding neighborhood concerns including drainage problems and deteriorating seawalls without fundamentally changing the character of the neighborhood.
Neighbors also raised concerns over tourism intensity, traffic, pedestrian congestion, neighborhood compatibility and what some described as the continued erosion of quality of life in one of Key West’s most heavily visited residential areas.
The project has drawn increasing scrutiny from nearby homeowners concerned about the broader future of the Southernmost Point district and whether infrastructure improvements could unintentionally intensify visitor activity around the buoy.
City Manager Brian Barroso urged commissioners to continue moving the project forward, warning additional delays could jeopardize outside funding opportunities.
Barroso said he was not sure city staff could “land the plane and secure the TDC funding if there were more delays.”
The commission declined, ultimately agreeing to defer action on both the construction bid award and the city’s request for TDC funding until the commission’s next scheduled meeting on June 4.
City officials did not immediately indicate whether modifications to the project proposal would be considered before the item returns.
The Southernmost Point buoy remains one of the Florida Keys’ most recognizable and visited tourist destinations, drawing thousands of daily visitors to the corner of South and Whitehead streets.
This is an evolving story. Watch this space.