Five Points roundabout construction to begin

The Five Points roundabout will become the new epicenter of downtown Sarasota.

The third of five major downtown construction projects is set to begin July 5.

Because the intersection is scheduled to close for two months, work was scheduled to start after the Fourth of July to accommodate the holiday parade.

The intersection is expected to shut down until Sept. 3, but additional work such as road resurfacing and landscaping will continue through November.

The contractor, Jon F. Swift Inc., will try to open the intersection before Sept. 3. Its work crews are expected to work around the clock, because the company will receive $5,000 per day for every day it finishes the project early. There is also a $1,000-per-day penalty for each day the intersection remains closed after the deadline.

Jon F. Swift is the contractor that completed the June Main Street waterline project 19 days ahead of schedule.

Both Main Street and Pineapple Avenue will be closed in front of Patrick’s and First Watch restaurants. The two ends of Main Street will have turnarounds, but Pineapple Avenue is too narrow to have one, so it will dead end into the Five Points road block.

The entire Central Avenue spur from Five Points to First Street will be closed, because it’s a one-way street.

Because 16 parking spaces will be lost during construction, the Downtown Improvement District is paying for free valet parking during the construction period.

The valet stations will be located at Main Street and Palm Avenue; Main Street and Lemon Avenue; and Pineapple Avenue at Five Points Park.

When complete, the roundabout will feature a brick-paver surface, a landscaped inner circle with three flag poles and shorter crosswalks on Main Street, Pineapple Avenue and Central Avenue.

Future projects include the Palm Avenue and Main Street intersection improvements, which will begin in September, and the Downtown Improvement District landscaping project in November.