Coconut Road, The Other SideTo be fair in our coverage of Rep. Don Young’s (R-AK) controversial $10 million Coconut Road interchange earmark, we should point out that there are locals who want to keep the extra-Constitutional language change. One of the more vocal advocates also appears to have a financial stake in the decision.
Last week when county authorities voted to ask Congress to use the money to widen Interstate 75, rather than for the pet project, there was some opposition. Heather Mazurkiewicz, who belongs to the citizens advisory board, which advises the Metropolitan Planning Organization, supported keeping the changed wording. According to theNews Press she was appalled that the county ignored her advice:
“I should be able to discuss the merits of this without a bias from you,” she said. “We make recommendations to you. You don’t make them to us.”
As it turns out, Mazurkiewicz is married to a consultant who pushed for the project and attended the fundraiser that netted Young $40,000 right before the earmark appeared. Joe Mazurkiewicz spoke with the New York Times and CNN about the fundraiser and the funding. In his initial interview with the Times, Mazurkiewicz was a bit more candid about the fundraiser, saying he and other developers were looking for “a lot of money” and Young delivered. According to Young’s contribution records, the Mazurkiewiczs gave Young’s campaign $1,000 a few weeks after the February 2005 fundraiser.