Mission Project Description Project Objectives Project Updates Meetings & Agendas Project Team Project Pictures Project Aerials and Plans Environmental Challenges Newsletter Contact Us

PROJECT UPDATES Public Participation The FDOT recognizes that active participation in the study by roadway users is critical in designing a successful project that meets both community goals and FDOT standards. Design alternatives will be directly influenced by public comment, and so will eventual selection of the preferred alternative. Community Advisory Committee (CAC) In order to ensure adequate input and representation from local citizens and other stakeholders, the FDOT has assembled a Community Advisory Committee (CAC) at the onset of the project. The CAC is comprised of a diverse group of individuals (residents, business owners, stakeholder groups, County and agency staff) who represent different perspectives on the roadway. The CAC has already met four times and has accomplished a great deal of work. On January 16, 2003, 24 people attended the first meeting where everyone was asked to voice his or her concerns about the roadway. This initial meeting set the stage for the design charrette held on February 22, 2003. Thirteen people participated in this afternoon-long design activity that resulted in a CAC-designed conceptual plan for the roadway. The CAC's design was refined by the project engineers and presented at the public workshop on May 13, 2003 at the Harvey Government Center. Based on technical issues and public input, the project team further refined the design plans and created a preferred alternative. This preferred alternative was then presented at a 3rd CAC meeting that took place at the Shark Key Club House on October 8, 2003. Once again, the project team refined the preferred alternative and presented the changes to the CAC at an informal meeting held on December 18, 2003. The preferred alternative will eventually become the final recommended alternative that will be presented at the public hearing. Opportunities to Get Involved You can still voice your opinion about this project by attending the public hearing, or by contacting us via phone, fax, email or mail (see Contact Us page). Newsletters, news releases and advertised notices in the local media will be used to keep the public informed as the study progresses. Please visit this website regularly for current project information and schedules. Project Status At this point, the study is well underway. The study team has gathered necessary project data, and has been continually refining design plans to come up with a preferred alternative. The CAC has been formed, and participated in four meetings along with a public workshop. Work Completed: Kick-off meetings with local government, regulatory agencies, and local groups 4 CAC meetings Engineering data collection Environmental date collection Roadway Survey Geotechnical roadway assessment Utility inventory Environmental analysis Drafting of design alternatives Draft of traffic/accident report Draft of drainage report Ongoing Work: Public meetings Preliminary engineering analysis Final roadway plans Study Schedule The PD&E should be completed by May 2004. The preferred alternative will then advance to the final design phase that will take approximately 12 months. If no unforeseen delays occur, construction could begin in 2005.