By Marvin G. Cortner
Editor

The Florida Department of Transportation on Thursday, Aug. 26, will hold another public workshop at the Kissimmee Civic Center on a study relating to proposed improvements to Orange Blossom Trail from Country Boulevard to U.S. Highway 192, a distance of about 2.1 miles.

The project, according to information presented at the Aug. 9 Osceola County Commission meeting, calls for the roadway to remain four lanes from Donegan Avenue south to U.S. Highway 192 but six lanes from Donegan Avenue to Country Boulevard just south of Osceola Parkway.

According to department officials, intersection improvements with a raised median and limited access on the south end of the project will negate the need for additional traffic lanes. Plus, the width of the right of way in this area of Kissimmee is too narrow to allow the six lanes.

Department officials also said the roadway’s improvement would not adversely impact the historic Ivey House site or the Pine Ridge Cemetery. In addition, the $113.3 million project would include improvements to a portion of Old Dixie Highway, a realignment of Columbia Avenue, replacement of a bridge over a drainage ditch and sidewalks and bike lanes on both sides of the roadway.

The design for the northern half of the project, department officials said, is funded, but not the southern portion. A construction schedule has not been set.

Department officials said no provisions will be made for a dedicated Lynx bus lane on the improved roadway, but bus pullouts are being considered. Also, no money would be available for landscaping, though the county has asked the department to include in the project the infrastructure needed – such as irrigation pipes – so that landscaping could be added later in the 22-foot wide median area. The county would have to cover any landscaping costs.

“We should design it for landscaping even though we might not be able to pay for it now,” Commissioner Ken Smith said. “This would be a primary way into Kissimmee and our county and it would be a shame if, in the future, we could not add landscaping.”

The highway was originally built in 1937 and then widened in 1957.

The workshop begins with an open house at 5:30 p.m. A presentation is at 6:30 p.m. Maps, drawings and other study information will be on display at the workshop. Representatives will be available to discuss the study and answer questions.

A public hearing is scheduled later this fall and project documents will be submitted afterward to the Federal Highway Administration for final approval. Design work for the segment from Donegan Avenue to Country Boulevard is currently funded.