GADSDEN COUNTY, Fla. (WTXL) - Gadsden County commissioneres are expected to place the deciding vote in a longstanding debate between Florida Highway Patrol and Gadsden County Landowners.
WTXL ABC 27's Karah Bailey was Live in Gadsden County with details about the issue at hand - deciding who has the right to build on several acres of now empty land.
Landowners in Gadsden County and the Florida Highway Patrol reached a stalemate in last month's Board of Commission meeting after presenting hours of evidence about who should do what with available land.
The Florida Highway Patrol wants to use several acres in Gadsden County to build a high speed track. They'd use the track to train deputies how to safely reach the swift speeds required to catch drivers on the interstate before they reach those speeds in traffic.
FHP would also allow officers from all other enforcement agencies statewide to utilize the facility if it's built.
Landowners near the proposed facility want to build affordable single-family housing for more than 200 families and say that no one would want to live next to the disturbance the track would cause.
"Well it is kind of unusual beacause the property around it is agricultural," said Brenda Holt, chairperson of the Gadsden County Board of Commissioners. "So it's not residential. So if that property is not residential at this point, the noise may or may not be a factor. But if that property were developed then it could be a factor. So I think that's where the controversy's coming in at."
The two parties tried to negotiate adding noise buffers and limiting operating hours but were unable to reach a compromise in May. The board extended the time allotted for the two parties to reach agreement until Tuesday.
If an agreement is not reached, four of the five commissioners would decide which project to greenlight first.
