Feds review civil rights complaint on proposed Poinciana expressway

POINCIANA, Fla. — “The Great Wall of Poinciana” is what critics have named a proposed toll road project that they say will divide the city’s business district.

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The project has caught the eye of the U.S. Department of Transportation. The agency confirmed with 9 Investigates it’s looking into if the project violates Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Poinciana has what could be the worst traffic in the state, according to the Central Florida Expressway Authority.

Officials say it’s impacted emergency response and has even deterred doctors and nurses from working at the hospital.

Read: ‘It is out of control’: Residents concerned about constant crashes along Poinciana Boulevard

“It may take up to one hour and a half from this point Cypress Parkway to get to Pleasant Hill,” Poinciana resident Flor Melo said.

While almost no one will debate that Poinciana is a traffic nightmare, plenty are debating how to solve the problem.

“There should be another option,” Melo said.

Read: Kissimmee woman, 63, dies after being hit by driver in Osceola County, troopers say

This is the route originally proposed by the Central Florida Expressway Authority.

It shows a toll road connecting I-4 to the Turnpike south of St. Cloud.

A segment of that route, known as the Southport Connector, would cut through the middle of Poinciana along its main street and economic hub— Cypress Parkway.

“It changes completely the picture of a town the way a town is laid out,” said Rick Lawson, a resident of Solivita, a Polk County community.

Read: Sheriff: Man dies after argument with neighbor escalates into shooting in Poinciana

Lawson is part of a group called SCAR. It stands for what they’re pushing for-- Southport Connector Alternative Route. Their proposed alternative route goes through the north part of the city away from the business district.

“We have 118 businesses along Cypress Parkway,” Lawson said.

One of those businesses is Bourinquen, a restaurant serving up authentic Puerto Rican and Dominican food to the area’s majority-Hispanic population.

Jhoanny Brea bought the restaurant last year and is worried about the proposed plans.

‘It is out of control’: Residents concerned about constant crashes along Poinciana Boulevard ‘It is out of control’: Residents concerned about constant crashes along Poinciana Boulevard (Nikki DeMarco, WFTV.com/WFTV)

“She own this business one year ago, when it’s finally going up, she’s scared she’s going to lose it,” Melo translated to English on behalf of Brea.

In 2021, Lawson’s group filed a Title VI complaint with the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Office of Civil Rights.

The agency told 9 Investigates it is still reviewing the complaint. The complaint states the town is 83 percent minority and that the CFX project will “physically sever the community, splitting it in half, and remove a major thoroughfare.”

“We have a post office on this side. We have a library on the north side,” Lawson said, describing the how resources would be split. “I believe 12 stores will be wiped out.”

Central Florida Expressway Authority says it is in the middle of a “project development and environment study” and doesn’t know how many homes and businesses may be affected.

But when asked about Bravo, a supermarket that caters to Hispanic communities, CFX says it’s “a likely scenario” it will have to be demolished for the route.

However, Brian Hutchings with Central Florida Expressway Authority says “the vast majority of the project that we’re contemplating will be done with the existing Cypress Boulevard right away.”

The Central Florida Expressway Authority says it has changed some of its proposed route because community input. The Authority says plan development is behind because of the Title VI complaint and estimates it could be 10 years before the expressway is completed

CFX says it plans to meet with the SCAR group in the next few weeks; however, SCAR told 9 Investigates, CFX has not reached out to them nor their counsel about this meeting.

Once the Title VI complaint is resolved, the agency says it plans to have a completed study and suggested route within six months. They plan to have public hearings before construction begins.

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