The situation in Anna Maria regarding the pier project is reminiscent of a bicycle path project in that city that never occurred a few years ago because the city commission got cold feet after hearing a lot of complaints about where the path would go.

The problem this time is that the city commissioners have not seen the final plans, which would involve a boardwalk and a covered trolley stop in the parking area of the pier.

It would behoove the city commissioners to beware of Florida Department of Transportation projects because of a recent situation in Bradenton Beach.

While inspecting a sidewalk project, members of the Scenic Highway Committee, which hammered out details of the project, were upset to find deviations from the plan. They originally wanted a landscaping buffer between the sidewalk and Gulf Drive, but were dismayed to find the sidewalk was located next to Gulf Drive. The engineer who walked the project with them said that they had to change the route due to a retaining wall at a condominium there. The highway engineer went ahead and changed it without conferring with the city.

That could be the case with the pier project in Anna Maria. Although many facets of the plan sound good, and limiting ingress and egress at the pier parking lot would make it a lot safer for pedestrians, the city commission should make sure they know what they are getting. They need plans with renderings and they need to make sure the state, which is funding a lot of the project, won't deviate from the plan.

We're sure the city commissioners are mulling this decision carefully. The plan needs to keep with the historic nature of the pier without veering too far from what was there in the past. We urge they make sure they know what they're getting.