Cortez Bridge replacement to start soon

As Manatee County wraps up a utility pipe relocation project, the Florida Department of Transportation is waiting in the wings preparing to build a $123 million fixed-span bridge in place of a 1956 drawbridge.

Construction of the 65-foot-clearance bridge is expected to begin with phase 1 in September. Despite the bridge replacement, traffic between Cortez and Bradenton Beach will not be halted, but roadwork impacts will continue throughout the 1,200-day construction window.

Traffic will be shifted slightly to the south at both bridge entrances. “This shift will allow crews to build new roadway approaches and project features north of the existing roadway,” FDOT’s project website states.

During the first phase, the northern portion of the new bridge will be constructed alongside the existing bridge. Hunter’s Point Way, a short road connecting 127th Street W. to Cortez Road W. on the mainland-side of the bridge, will also be built. When the northern portion of the new bridge is complete, traffic will be routed onto that half of the bridge for phase 2.

The second phase will include the demolition of the existing Cortez drawbridge and the completion of the second half of the new bridge. Barges and temporary trestles will be deployed.

The Cortez Bridge replacement has been years in the making, with design work starting in 2019. Next in line in the region is the replacement of the Anna Maria Bridge, which runs parallel to the Cortez Bridge and connects Holmes Beach and the northern end of Anna Maria Island to Bradenton. Project bidding for that bridge is expected in July 2028.