On Thursday, the Palm Beach Transportation Planning Agency approved adding a four-lane extension of State Road 7 from 60th Street to Northlake Boulevard to its long-range 25-year transportation plan.

The plan would take $53 million to construct, and it would start in 2024. It has been a controversial plan because it could possibly affect the environment, because Grassy Waters Preserve is a 23-square mile wetlands ecosystem that serves as the freshwater supply for the City of West Palm Beach and the towns of South Palm Beach and Palm Beach Island.

West Palm Beach Mayor Keith James said earlier this week: “We don’t want it going through the Grassy Waters,” “We don’t want it going through that particular location. It’s the source of our drinking water here in the city.”

With the approval from the Transportation Planning Agency plans for the road extension will begin.