BY MILT THOMAS

If anyone knows the answer to that, please let me know. Until then, I assume some bureaucrat in Tallahassee invented the name to distinguish it from all the other one-way streets in Florida. Why? Because it was a project totally unnecessary and a waste of taxpayer dollars (see the reasons below).

I have certainly written my share on the subject, but it just won’t go away. It’s like having a ping in your car’s engine. You know you should take your car to a mechanic, but unless that ping turns into something more serious, you’ll simply ignore it. In this case, you know something should be done about the dangerous, unattractive throughway bisecting our downtown, but why do anything about it when people can speed unimpeded through the historic heart of our community. As my grandmother used to say, don’t scratch something that doesn’t itch.

So, here’s a little Q&A that might help clear up the issue:

1. There’s nothing to see in downtown, so why not speed through it?

By the same logic, we speed over the Barber Bridge because there’s nothing to see, right? Nothing except the most beautiful waterway on Florida’s east coast! Clearly, the Florida DOT has no appreciation for aesthetics. They built the bridge high enough so traffic would not be impeded by that pesky drawbridge. So what if they blocked out one of our community’s greatest assets. Aside from the Indian River and waterfront, the other unique aspect of Vero Beach is our historic downtown where it all began. It was in Downtown was where the decision was made in the first place to connect beachside to Vero and call it Vero Beach.

2. Why wasn’t downtown built on the waterfront like Ft. Pierce, Stuart and so many other coastal communities?

Downtown is where it is because when the town was first settled, it was surrounded by water! The Atlantic Ridge was the only high ground in an endless marshland. Henry Flagler built his railroad on the same ridge so it wouldn’t be flooded.

3. Why do you say the Twin Pairs was unnecessary?

Back when I-95 ended at Vero Beach, traffic was diverted east on SR60 through downtown over to US 1, then south to the turnpike feeder road and back on I-95. The original intent was to help this diverted traffic flow through downtown. Great idea. But when the master minds in Tallahassee decided to go ahead with the Twin Pairs, I-95 was already long completed, with traffic no longer being diverted through downtown. Kind of putting the cart AFTER the horse – but the horse had already left the building!

4. Why is the Twin Pairs such an issue now after more than twenty years?

It was an issue almost from the start. Within two years of completion, the City’s own Downtown Vero Beach Redevelopment Plan of September 29, 1993 called for providing a “safer, more comfortable pedestrian environment” surrounding the Twin Pairs.  That was in response to millions of dollars spent by private property owners to revitalize downtown, a trend that was happening not only in the communities surrounding Vero Beach (Ft. Pierce, Stuart, Melbourne, Sebastian, etc.), but all across the country. Since then, numerous studies have been conducted by outside consultants for the City, the City has developed its own Vision Plan, there have been focus groups, charrettes, and simple logic all in agreement that something must be done about the Twin Pairs. Even the Florida DOT has agreed and is willing to make changes.

5. So why has nothing been done?

Inertia. It is simply easier from a political standpoint to do nothing while opposing sides argue. Taking action is risky, even when that action is the right thing to do. It can cost a politician in the next election. Just look at what’s happening in Washington right now. The current City Council and staff seem to feel it is an issue too long neglected and the winds of change are gathering.

So, the Twin Pairs argument seems to be between those opposed to taking an extra 20 seconds (per studies) to get through downtown versus those who want downtown to take its rightful place as the birthplace of our great community. It’s an itch that needs to be scratched.