Merchants hear from FDOT, county

The Florida Department of Transportation had a message for merchants along Market Street in Lakewood Ranch: construction of the diverging diamond interchange and Unviersity Parkway and Interstate 75 will have as little impact on business as possible.

During an informal meeting with merchants, representatives of FDOT and Manatee County shared plans for making traffic flow as smoothly as possible during construction.

Kevin Ingle, FDOT project manager, said FDOT will convert what is typically a more than three-year project into one completed in just two years — in time for the 2017 World Rowing Championships. 

"We'll have a temporary bridge structure — the largest one in FDOT inventory — to keep the whole length (of the Interstate open)," Ingle said. "It's going to make it go a whole lot faster."

FDOT improvements indirectly will benefit the Market Street intersection, although Manatee County is still responsible for improving that intersection overall, Ingle said.

For a complete story, see the Dec. 11 issue of the East County Observer.

Contact Pam Eubanks at [email protected].