13 hours ago
With the Suncoast Parkway/State Road 589 Extension Project underway, neighbors worry about how it's impacting wildlife and the environment.
CRYSTAL RIVER, Florida — Neighbors in a Crystal River neighborhood about 90 minutes north of Tampa have some concerns that the expansion of a popular roadway is creating some other issues. Walking Savanna Burrell’s property, you can tell why she wanted to move to the rural area off of a dirt road.
“I feel like it’s like a hidden gem,” Burrell said. “’Cause it’s quiet and peaceful.”
That is, until you make it to the road in front of her property. Noise has picked up due to the construction of the Suncoast Parkway/State Road 589 Extension Project. A dirt road that only saw a few cars a day, now sees bulldozers, cranes, excavators, and any other piece of construction equipment it takes to build the new lanes for the parkway.
“There were points of time where we were trapped inside our dirt road with different semis and vehicles blocking our road, being stuck, which took some time to get them out of our road for us to be able to enter freely. Our concern has been the damage to our road,” Burrell said.
She says those who lived here believed the road was private.
“Families for generations have been maintaining this road at their own cost. So it's cost many people time and money to repair our road over generations and years. It has been our private road that we've all taken care of,” Burrell said.
But 10 Investigates uncovered court documents that show the private road actually belongs to a homeowner who is now deceased. Those in charge of her estate agreed to lease the road to the Florida Department of Transportation for $80,000. The document says that's, “full compensation for Parcels 259 and 800, inclusive of land, improvements, severance damages, business damages and all other damages of any nature.”
“I don't feel it's right that somebody who we don't even know who they are is speaking on behalf of all of us to allow permission for a heavy traffic and construction use to access our road when we're the ones that have been paying and maintaining it for generations,” Burrell said.
When we reached out to the Florida Department of Transportation about the road a spokesperson told us:
“The court document referenced in your inquiry reflects a right of way purchase of a portion of Gum Street by FDOT to support the construction of the planned extension of the Suncoast Parkway.”
“I don't believe that it should be at the cost of the homeowner, nor should we be having difficulty accessing our road due to the heavy construction flow that's going in and out of our dirt road,” Burrell said.
And it’s not just the road that’s a concern. Burrell’s neighbor shared photos of an excavator submerged in water, worrying neighbors about the environmental concerns something like that may cause.
Colleen Farmer is the chair of the Stop the Sand Mine Committee — a group concerned about the water quality and neighboring springs.
“We heard about the sand mine approximately in May of this past year, May 2025 going in next to our neighborhood. Was originally concerned about the dust, but after digging in and really learning about it, very concerned about the aquifer,” Farmer said.
Farmer says the incident with the excavator happened a few hundred feet from the sand mine.
“We know that they were digging down about 18 to 20 feet, which is about where the limestone, could be in that area. And we also know that they ended up after three days, putting in a well, another couple hundred feet away from this incident, which again gives another picture underground what's happening. And that the limestone again was about 20 feet down in that location. So we did have major concerns about, you know, the aquifer and what was happening there,” Farmer said.
When we reached out to FDOT about the excavator incident. They tell us: "It was simply removed and had no environmental impacts."
Savanna’s concerned about the future of this neighborhood as the construction project isn’t set to be completed until next year.
“We are listening to construction and I'm not even complaining about that. Is it inconvenient? 100 percent, but not having access to our road and having uncertainty about the safety protocols that are happening is my main concern,” Burrell said.
Here’s the full statement given to us from a spokesperson for FDOT/ Florida’s Turnpike Enterprise:
“Thank you for reaching out regarding the Suncoast Parkway/State Road (S.R.) 589 Extension Project.
The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) takes environmental protection seriously and all our construction activities comply with environmental requirements set by the State of Florida, the Water Management District, and environmental protection agencies. These agencies review and approve all work to ensure that natural resources are protected. As always, FDOT will continue to follow all guidelines and permit conditions throughout the project.
This project will extend Suncoast Parkway approximately 5.5 miles from W. Norvell Bryant Highway/County Road (C.R.) 486 to C.R. 495, improving connectivity and supporting long-term transportation needs in Citrus County. Additionally, the project will extend the Suncoast Trail adjacent to the new roadway. Construction activity in the area is associated with this planned and permitted work.
FDOT works to protect the natural resources that surround all of our projects often exceeding federal and state requirements. In this case, and always on our projects, the work was confirmed and authorized by the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Section 404. In reference to the photo of the crane, on October 24, 2025, while excavation activities were underway, a piece of equipment slid into the excavation area, however, it was simply removed and had no environmental impacts.
FDOT continues advancing the project in accordance with all applicable state and federal requirements. FDOT works directly with property owners to secure the access needed for construction and construction related activities. Our contractor is authorized by the road owner to use portions of Gum Street. “No Trespassing” signs were installed by our contractor to prevent trespassing for safety, as the area had been used recreationally by dirt bikes. Additionally, the court document referenced in your inquiry reflects a right of way purchase of a portion of Gum Street by FDOT to support the construction of the planned extension of the Suncoast Parkway.
FDOT remains committed to maintaining a safe and well-managed work zone to deliver this important regional improvement.”
