Before the approval last month to surround the historic Bahia Mar with skyscrapers, Fort Lauderdale City Hall officials hid a study that indicated a dramatic increase in traffic projected on the beach.
Instead of a projected increase of 56,320 vehicles on the beach by 2025 used at a May meeting of City Commission, the actual figure is 168,009 – roughly three times as much.
The use of misleading figures was disclosed during a June commission meeting, but by that time it was too late. The project was approved in May.
City Commissioner Bruce Roberts used the faulty data to justify his vote in favor of converting a portion of the historic yacht marina to towering condominiums. Roberts argued that traffic was actually decreasing on the beach.
Yet as Roberts argued his point to skeptical residents, staff in city hall had traffic studies that indicated the exact opposite.
Whether Roberts had seen those studies when he made his widely criticized comments is not known, but he should have known. The figures were available in City Hall and in the files of traffic engineers.
One problem with the old discredited figures: They left out many projects already approved, some under construction.
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