- July 15, 2025
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Ogden Clark, the communications coordinator for Manatee County Public Works, said there’s one thing he wants people to understand about the construction on Lakewood Ranch Boulevard.
It is not a regular resurfacing job.
“I think there are a lot of people who look at it and think it shouldn’t take more than 10 days because that’s what they’re typically seeing with resurfacing work,” Clark said. “To their point, that’s 100% accurate. It just happens that’s not the work that’s happening out there.”
Lakewood Ranch Boulevard isn’t being resurfaced, it’s being rebuilt.
Clark said the road was riddled with potholes because, over time, water had moved the earth underneath the asphalt surface. Clark described the base as spongy, so the potholes were appearing where gaps had formed.
The county applied a “scratch course” over the potholes last June. The work lasted three days, but that was only a temporary fix until the entire stretch from University Parkway to State Road 70 could be repaired.
While the contract officially says December, Clark is optimistic that the work to Lakewood Ranch Boulevard will be completed in October.
County staff members chose to start the project in May to impact the least amount of residents.
While it was possible to get the work done in half the time, it would have cost taxpayers twice the money. Clark explained that in order to finish the project in half the time, it would take twice as many workers.
“Right now, this project is estimated to be somewhere over $16 million,” Clark said. “So you’d be talking about $32 million to complete the project (in the shorter time span).”
The entire Lakewood Ranch Boulevard project, which extends to State Road 64, is anticipated to cost just over $30 million.
The 2.9-mile stretch being worked on now will cost about $16.4 million. Reconstructing the outside lanes from State Road 70 to State Road 64 will cost about $13.7 million. The inside lanes were reconstructed in 2019.
Rainy days are another issue with contracting work during the summer months. The county could pay the higher price, but if it rains all summer or storms barrel through the area, the project isn’t guaranteed to be finished anyway.
Rebuilding the base of a road is a large undertaking, but once finished, the road should last 30-plus years.
Clark explained the process.
The first step is to grind up all the old asphalt, which is recycled into millings and laid back down. The millings aren’t strong enough to hold up on their own, so they’re used as a base and several layers of concrete are laid down over top.
The concrete can take up to two weeks to cure before vehicles can put weight on it.
So while it might seem like the orange cones and barrels should be moved to open up a lane, it’s not quite that simple. Even moving the barricades is a process.
“You have to pay a very highly qualified engineering company to take all those barrels and put them all back out in the right spot, so that insurance and liability issues are covered,” Clark said.
Residents have questioned why one lane on Lakewood Ranch Boulevard on the north side of State Road 70 is blocked off, too. It’s for safety reasons. Establishing the traffic flow ahead of time lessens the risk of accidents when cars reach the construction area.
Lakewood Ranch Boulevard serves about 20,000 cars daily.
Tom Merrell, director of operations for the Lakewood Ranch Inter-District Authority, commended the county and the contractor, AD Morgan Corporation, for constant communications with Town Hall.
He noted the inherent challenges in road resurfacing and base repair projects.
"Progress updates have been shared regularly, and the contractor has upheld its commitment to maintaining traffic flow and ensuring access to residential and business areas," Merrell said. "We consider this project, to date, a success."
